The Pursuit of Power in Modern Japan 1825–1995
Chushichi Tsuzuki
Abstract
This history of modern Japan covers its transformation from a small country on the fringe of international politics to the major world power it is today. The book traces Japan's pursuit of power, first by military and then by economic means, from her attempts to replace China at the centre of the Confucian Middle Kingdom; through the Meiji nationalist response to the inroads of 19th century western imperialism; and on to the post-war US-Japanese alliance powering the economic miracle of the last half of the 20th century. The book examines Japan's political, intellectual, and industrial develop ... More
This history of modern Japan covers its transformation from a small country on the fringe of international politics to the major world power it is today. The book traces Japan's pursuit of power, first by military and then by economic means, from her attempts to replace China at the centre of the Confucian Middle Kingdom; through the Meiji nationalist response to the inroads of 19th century western imperialism; and on to the post-war US-Japanese alliance powering the economic miracle of the last half of the 20th century. The book examines Japan's political, intellectual, and industrial development throughout the last two centuries, with special attention given to the wars that were fought, and argues that the history of Japan's modernization was closely linked to the growth of Japan's own imperialism. The book goes on to show how some of the factors that contributed to remaking Japan as an economic giant have also been responsible for her recent economic and political difficulties.
Keywords:
modern Japan,
Meiji,
western imperialism,
Japanese imperialism,
USA,
political development,
economic development,
intellectual development,
Japanese modernization
Bibliographic Information
| Print publication date: 2000 |
Print ISBN-13: 9780198205890 |
| Published to Oxford Scholarship Online: October 2011 |
DOI:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198205890.001.0001 |
