Japan: A Concise History

by Milton W. Meyer

This popular introduction to Japan offers readers an authoritative and up-to-date overview of 2,000 years of Japanese history. Milton W. Meyer's concise explanations of Japanese traditions, religion, history, economics, politics, and relations with the West provide an invaluable aid for understanding contemporary Japanese society and values.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Japanese Literature, Japan

344 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1976

About the author

Milton Walter Meyer

Reviews

[Chris Jaffe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not much of a book. It's a text book and reads like one. So it's pretty dry and covers the main stuff, but nothing really comes to life. But at least it covers the main stuff.

It actually falls apart in the final chapters. The three chapters on post-Occupation Japan are the worst of the book. You don't get a real sense what's going on in Japan. Meyer doesn't give any narrative or analysis. He just takes about various elements on Japan, going into extensive details about various elements of Japan - but it's not really clear how much those elements matter. Wanna hear about ever treaty Japan has signed in the late 20th century? Then the last chapter is for. But is that really all that important?

Note: I read the 4th edition, not 3rd edition. I doubt it makes that much difference.

[Ramberto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent review of a 2500 year old culture. Gives you a historical flavor of what it means to be Japanese.

[Jared · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book, Meyer describes the whole history of Japan. To start Meyer describes the importance of Japan in a historic contest. Then Meyer described the foundation of Japanese culture and how geography impacted it. Then Meyer described the formation of a centralized government with an emperor as their leader copying the Chinese government. Then Meyer described the Japanese region Shintoism and the Shinto lifestyle. This changed with the introduction of Buddhism from Korean monks. Buddhism became the state religion and Shintoism became the minority. Then Meyer described how Daimyo (feudal lords of Japan) rose to power and overthrew the emperor with their samurai. The emperor was let to live unless he gave up all his power to the Shogun (powerful leader of Daimyo) and the emperor became a figurehead. Under the Shogunate society became feudal like the Europeans. The emperor was on the top but had no power. Then the Shogun, he had all the power. To keep Japan unified the Shogun gave land to loyal Daimyos and in exchange the Daimyos had to give money to the Shogun. Then the samurai (armored warriors) who defended the Daimyos and the Shogun. Finally the peasants who farmed rice and had to give some of their rice to their Daimyos. Later the Shogun began to lose power to the Daimyos and when the Shogun died there was grab for power and Japan became divided. This became the warring states period when Daimyos fought each other over the position of Shogun. The conflict ended with Oda Nobunaga taking the capital Kyoto. He gradually unified Japan until he was killed and replaced. His replacement was also killed and replaced with Tokugawa Ieyasu who stabilized the government. Then he closed all foreign trade, which led to Japan being technological inferior to the Europeans. Then an American naval officer arrived at Japan and forced the Shogun to open up trade. In response to this the emperor at the time Meiji overthrew the Shogun. Meiji began to westernize by banning feudalism and had advisers sent all over the west to study a certain field. With his new modernize military he invaded China and annexed Korea. When the Europeans came Japan was forced to stop. When the Russians took a bit of China Japan became furious and attacked Russia and won. This was the first time an Asian power beat a European power. Then Japan continued and attacked China and created a puppet state Manchuria. After ww1 Japan was forced to slow down because of the Great Depression. Then a battle took place on a bridge called the Marco Polo Bridge Incident allowing Japan to invade China. Japan was able to crush the unorganized Chinese military and took Beijing and Nanjing but the Chinese became to reorganized and it was at a stand still. Then the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor and went to war with the Allies. The Japanese couldn't keep up with the US but refused to give up in response the US drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Japanese was under US occupation for 7 years and the government turned in to a democracy and became an industrial powerhouse like it is today. Meyer helped me understand so much of Japanese history.

[Rob Western · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book is a textbook, but a poorly written one.

There are frequent errors in dates and word choices throughout. Working with the Soviet Union in 1992. The collapse of the Japanese economic bubble in the early 21st century followed by details of the 1993 collapse. The Philippines demanding “repatriations” from Japan after WW2 in reference to compensation. Poor editing exists throughout the book.

The last three chapters are also painful. They discuss in detail every treaty signed, every social trend, and every back and forth politically without discussing why any of it matters. It is all factual details without any insight.

The rest of the book seems to be Wikipedia level research, but is certainly much more readable than the last few chapters. The chapter on the US occupation provided some real insight in to MacArthur (the last Shogun) as well.

It isn’t the worst book on Japan available, but nowhere near the best.

[Yesim Sunger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pasifik savaş'tan sonra nasıl ayağa kalktıklarını anlamak için güzel bir araştırma kitabı.

[İrem 衣礼夢 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Çevirisi kötü, okumayı zorlaştırıyor ama Japon tarihine giriş için okunabilir ya da ham bilgi için elin altında olması açısından kütüphanede bulunabilir.

[Smiley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found reading this hardcover entitled “Japan: A Concise History” by Milton W. Meyer informative and enjoyable due to the author’s well-planned, concise narration of reasonably length in each chapter in which its content has been presented by means of subtopics so, I think, most readers should prefer to the one without them. A reason is that reading such lengthy contents having no subtopics is more demanding and tedious than reading those with appropriate subtopics like this one.

[Shawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too concise, a sweeping history (300 pages), most of which is done by way of cramming names & dates, numbers & figures. There's only ONE paltry map, maybe two dozen photographs (1/2 of which look like snapshots from a tourist), the writing lacks any human feel, like it could be written by some AI program/software. Positives: it's meant to be concise, to give a general understanding of Japan, and this it does.

[JP · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ironically, a bit slow. I suspect this is due to the broad strokes required to cover so much in so little space. It did achieve its purpose, as I do have a more complete sense about Japan's cultural themes throughout the last 2500 years. It's probably a great introduction to the topic.

[Kerry Allen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Incredibly dry regurgitation of names and dates with no sense of the Japanese people to give events context.

[Chanelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably a little too concise, really.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

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