Capturing Contemporary Japan

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Capturing Contemporary Japan

Author : Satsuki Kawano
Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
ISBN 13 : 0824838688
Total Pages : 370 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (248 download)

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Book Synopsis Capturing Contemporary Japan by : Satsuki Kawano

Download or read book Capturing Contemporary Japan written by Satsuki Kawano and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2014-08-31 with total page 370 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What are people’s life experiences in present-day Japan? This timely volume addresses fundamental questions vital to understanding Japan in the first decade of the twenty-first century. Its chapters collectively reveal a questioning of middle-class ideals once considered the essence of Japaneseness. In the postwar model household a man was expected to obtain a job at a major firm that offered life-long employment; his counterpart, the “professional” housewife, managed the domestic sphere and the children, who were educated in a system that provided a path to mainstream success. In the past twenty years, however, Japanese society has seen a sharp increase in precarious forms of employment, higher divorce rates, and a widening gap between haves and have-nots. Contributors draw on rich, nuanced fieldwork data collected during the 2000s to examine work, schooling, family and marital relations, child rearing, entertainment, lifestyle choices, community support, consumption and waste, material culture, well-being, aging, death and memorial rites, and sexuality. The voices in these pages vary widely: They include schoolchildren, teenagers, career women, unmarried women, young mothers, people with disabilities, small business owners, organic farmers, retirees, and the elderly.

Capture Japan

Author : Marco Bohr
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1350186783
Total Pages : 325 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (51 download)

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Book Synopsis Capture Japan by : Marco Bohr

Download or read book Capture Japan written by Marco Bohr and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2022-12-01 with total page 325 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Capture Japan investigates the formation of visual tropes and how these have contributed to perceptions of Japan in the global imagination. The book proposes that images are not incidental in the formation of such perceptions, but central to notions about identity, history and memory. From a tentative western ally in 1952 to a 'soft power' superpower with a huge global influence in the 21st century, the book locates questions about Japan in the global imagination to the country's transforming geopolitical position. By adopting an interdisciplinary approach, with a multiplicity of perspectives from around the world, Capture Japan goes beyond binarisms to uncover how images can also produce discourses that challenge, subvert or even contradict each other. The word 'capture' in the title of the book recognises both the deeply problematic role that images have played in relation to colonialism, as well as the potential dominance that visual spectacles can wield in a contemporary context. Diverse essays from a wide range of perspectives investigate the institutional framework that has allowed certain types of images of Japan to be promoted, while others have been suppressed. In doing so, the book points to a vast network of images that have shaped the perception of Japan both from within and from outside, revealing how these images are inextricably linked to wider ideological, political, cultural or economic agendas.

Contemporary Japan and Popular Culture

Author : John Whittier Treat
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 344 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

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Book Synopsis Contemporary Japan and Popular Culture by : John Whittier Treat

Download or read book Contemporary Japan and Popular Culture written by John Whittier Treat and published by . This book was released on 1996 with total page 344 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Kyoto Revisited

Author : Jennifer S. Prough
Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
ISBN 13 : 0824891686
Total Pages : 241 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (248 download)

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Book Synopsis Kyoto Revisited by : Jennifer S. Prough

Download or read book Kyoto Revisited written by Jennifer S. Prough and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2022-02-28 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There is a charm to Kyoto. Surrounded by lush green hills, the city feels alive with nature, history, culture—and tourists. At once ancient capital, modern city, and home to numerous cultural heritage sites, Kyoto looms large in the promotion of Japanese culture at home and abroad. In the wake of years of economic recession followed by the national promotion of “cool Japan” in popular culture and tourism of the twenty-first century, anthropologist Jennifer Prough sets out to examine how the city’s history and culture have been mobilized to create heritage experiences for today’s tourists. The heart of her book, Kyoto Revisited, centers on what it means to produce these for visitors, why seeing and feeling culture and tradition appeal to both domestic and international travelers, and the challenges faced by a heritage tourism city. As Prough’s study suggests, heritage has multiple meanings. It is created as interested parties—state and local, public and private—tell different stories about the past, which are marketed in response to tourists’ desire for face-to-face engagement in an experience economy. Her work examines several prominent features of Kyoto tourism, including promotion plans, heritage neighborhood renovation, the role of the seasons and traditional aesthetics in citywide events, the appeal of sites commemorating the Meiji restoration, and the trend of walking in the heritage district in a rented kimono. Throughout Prough brings together scholarship from Japanese studies, heritage studies, and the anthropology of tourism to highlight the interplay between the romantic desire for heritage tourism and the emphasis on “personal experience” (taiken) in the visitor industry today. Experience has long been an integral part of tourism—even as what counts as experience has shifted across time and place (from taking a photo to staying with locals to trying one’s hand at a traditional craft)—yet these touristic desires take on a new tinge in the experience economy. Kyoto Revisited demonstrates not only how the past has been used to construct the city’s identity and shape understandings of Japan for travelers, but also how these speak to broader trends in our contemporary moment.

Enduring Identities

Author : John K. Nelson
Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
ISBN 13 : 0824862384
Total Pages : 336 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (248 download)

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Book Synopsis Enduring Identities by : John K. Nelson

Download or read book Enduring Identities written by John K. Nelson and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2000-03-01 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Enduring Identities is an attempt to understand the continuing relevance of Shinto to the cultural identity of contemporary Japanese. The enduring significance of this ancient yet innovative religion is evidenced each year by the millions of Japanese who visit its shrines. They might come merely seeking a park-like setting or to make a request of the shrine's deities, asking for a marriage partner, a baby, or success at school or work; or they might come to give thanks for benefits received through the intercession of deities or to legitimate and sacralize civic and political activities. Through an investigation of one of Japan's most important and venerated Shinto shrines, Kamo Wake Ikazuchi Jinja (more commonly Kamigamo Jinja), the book addresses what appears through Western and some Asian eyes to be an exotic and incongruous blend of superstition and reason as well as a photogenic juxtaposition of present and past. Combining theoretical sophistication with extensive fieldwork and a deep knowledge of Japan, John Nelson documents and interprets the ancient Kyoto shrine's yearly cycle of rituals and festivals, its sanctified landscapes, and the people who make it viable. At local and regional levels, Kamigamo Shrine's ritual traditions (such as the famous Hollyhock Festival) and the strategies for their perpetuation and implementation provide points of departure for issues that anthropologists, historians, and scholars of religion will recognize as central to their disciplines. These include the formation of social memory, the role of individual agency within institutional politics, religious practice and performance, the shaping of sacred space and place, ethnic versus cultural identity, and the politics of historical representation and cultural nationalism. Nelson links these themes through a detailed ethnography about a significant place and institution, which until now has been largely closed to both Japanese and foreign scholars. In contrast to conventional notions of ideology and institutions, he shows how a religious tradition's lack of centralized dogma, charismatic leaders, and sacred texts promotes rather than hinders a broad-based public participation with a variety of institutional agendas, most of which have very little to do with belief. He concludes that it is this structural flexibility, coupled with ample economic, human, and cultural resources, that nurtures a reworking of multiple identities--all of which resonate with the past, fully engage the present, and, with care, will endure well into the future.

A Lateral View

Author : Donald Richie
Publisher : Stone Bridge Press
ISBN 13 : 0962813745
Total Pages : 248 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (628 download)

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Book Synopsis A Lateral View by : Donald Richie

Download or read book A Lateral View written by Donald Richie and published by Stone Bridge Press. This book was released on 1998-07-01 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A revealing look at the Japanese through the window of their contemporary culture.

Experimental Buddhism

Author : John K. Nelson
Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
ISBN 13 : 0824838343
Total Pages : 322 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (248 download)

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Book Synopsis Experimental Buddhism by : John K. Nelson

Download or read book Experimental Buddhism written by John K. Nelson and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2013-10-31 with total page 322 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Based on ethnographic fieldwork and archival research, it is one of the first studies to give readers a sense of what is happening on the front lines as a growing number of Buddhist priests try to reboot their roles and traditions to gain greater significance in Japanese society. The book profiles innovative as well as controversial responses to the challenges facing Buddhist priests. From traditional activities (conducting memorial rituals; supporting residences for the elderly and infirm; providing relief for victims of natural disasters) to more creative ones (collaborating in suicide prevention efforts; holding symposia and concerts on temple precincts; speaking out against nuclear power following Japan’s 2011 earthquake; opening cafés, storefront temples, and pubs; even staging fashion shows with priests on the runway), more progressive members of Japan’s Buddhist clergy are trying to navigate a path leading towards renewed relevance in society. An additional challenge is to avoid alienating older patrons while trying to attract younger ones vital to the future of their temples. The work’s central theme of “experimental Buddhism”provides a fresh perspective to understand how priests and other individuals employ Buddhist traditions in selective and pragmatic ways. Using these inventive approaches during a time of crisis and transition for Japanese temple Buddhism, priests and practitioners from all denominations seek solutions that not only can revitalize their religious traditions but also influence society and their fellow citizens in positive ways.

Cultural and Social Division in Contemporary Japan

Author : Yoshikazu Shiobara
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1351387871
Total Pages : 278 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (513 download)

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Book Synopsis Cultural and Social Division in Contemporary Japan by : Yoshikazu Shiobara

Download or read book Cultural and Social Division in Contemporary Japan written by Yoshikazu Shiobara and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2019-07-30 with total page 278 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The recent manifestation of exclusionism in Japan has emerged at a time of intensified neoliberal economic policies, increased cross-border migration brought on by globalization, the elevated threat of global terrorism, heightened tensions between East Asian states over historical and territorial conflicts, and a backlash by Japanese conservatives over perceived historical apologism. The social and political environment for minorities in Japan has shifted drastically since the 1990s, yet many studies of Japan still tend to view Japan through the dominant discourses of “ethnic homogeneity (tanitsu minzoku shakai)” and “middle-class society (so ̄churyu ̄-shakai)” which positions the exclusion of minorities as an exceptional phenomenon. While exclusionism has been recognized as a serious threat to minority groups, it has not often been considered a representative issue for the whole of Japanese society. This tendency will persist until the discourses of tanitsu minzoku shakai and so ̄churyu ̄-shakai are systematically debunked and Japan is widely recognized as both multiethnic and socio-economically stratified. Today, as with most advanced capitalist countries, serious social divides occasioned by the impacts of globalization and neoliberalism have destabilized Japanese society. This book explores not only how Japanese society is diversified and unequal, but also how diversity and inequality have caused people to divide into separate realities from which conflict and violence have emerged. It empirically examines the current situation while considering the historical development of exclusionism from the interdisciplinary viewpoints of history, policy studies, cultural studies, sociology and cultural anthropology. In addition to analyzing the realities of division and exclusionism, the authors propose theoretical alternatives to overcome such cultural and social divides.

Happiness and the Good Life in Japan

Author : Wolfram Manzenreiter
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
ISBN 13 : 1317352734
Total Pages : 279 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (173 download)

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Book Synopsis Happiness and the Good Life in Japan by : Wolfram Manzenreiter

Download or read book Happiness and the Good Life in Japan written by Wolfram Manzenreiter and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2017-03-27 with total page 279 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contemporary Japan is in a state of transition, caused by the forces of globalization that are derailing its ailing economy, stalemating the political establishment and generating alternative lifestyles and possibilities of the self. Amongst this nascent change, Japanese society is confronted with new challenges to answer the fundamental question of how to live a good life of meaning, purpose and value. This book, based on extensive fieldwork and original research, considers how specific groups of Japanese people view and strive for the pursuit of happiness. It examines the importance of relationships, family, identity, community and self-fulfilment, amongst other factors. The book demonstrates how the act of balancing social norms and agency is at the root of the growing diversity of experiencing happiness in Japan today.

Ōe and Beyond

Author : Stephen Snyder
Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
ISBN 13 : 0824863763
Total Pages : 329 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (248 download)

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Book Synopsis Ōe and Beyond by : Stephen Snyder

Download or read book Ōe and Beyond written by Stephen Snyder and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 1999-04-01 with total page 329 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Are the works of contemporary Japanese novelists, as Nobel Prize winner Oe Kenzaburo has observed, "mere reflections of the vast consumer culture of Tokyo and the subcultures of the world at large"? Or do they contain their own critical components, albeit in altered form? Oe and Beyond surveys the accomplishments of Oe and other writers of the postwar generation while looking further to examine the literary parameters of the "Post-Oe" generation. Despite the unprecedented availability today of the work of many of these writers in excellent English translations, some twenty years have passed since a collection of critical essays has appeared to guide the interested reader through the fascinating world of contemporary Japanese fiction. Oe and Beyond is a sampling of the best research and thinking on the current generation of Japanese writers being done in English. The essays in this volume explore such subjects as the continuing resonances of the atomic bombings; the notion of "transnational subjects"; the question of the "de-canonization" (as well as the "re-canonization") of writers; the construction (and deconstruction) of gender models; the quest for spirituality amid contemporary Japanese consumer affluence; post-modernity and Japanese "infantilism"; the intertwining connections between history, myth-making, and discrimination; and apocalyptic visions of fin de siecle Japan. Contributors pursue various methodological and theoretical approaches to reveal the breadth of scholarship on modern Japanese literature. The essays reflect some of the latest thinking, both Western and Japanese, on such topics as subjectivity, gender, history, modernity, and the postmodern. Oe and Beyond includes essays on Endo Shusaku, Hayashi Kyoko, Kanai Mieko, Kurahashi Yumiko, Murakami Haruki, Murakami Ryu, Nakagami Kenji, Oe Kenzaburo, Ohba Minako, Shimada Masahiko, Takahashi Takako, and Yoshimoto Banana. Contributors: Davinder L. Bhowmik, Philip Gabriel, Van C. Gessel, Adrienne Hurley, Susan J. Napier, Sharalyn Orbaugh, Jay Rubin, Atsuko Sakaki, Ann Sherif, Stephen Snyder, Mark Williams, Eve Zimmerman.

Encyclopedia of Contemporary Japanese Culture

Author : Sandra Buckley
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1134763522
Total Pages : 665 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (347 download)

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Book Synopsis Encyclopedia of Contemporary Japanese Culture by : Sandra Buckley

Download or read book Encyclopedia of Contemporary Japanese Culture written by Sandra Buckley and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2006-03-07 with total page 665 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Offering extensive coverage, this Encyclopedia is a new reference that reflects the vibrant, diverse and evolving culture of modern Japan, spanning from the end of the Japanese Imperialist period in 1945 to the present day. Entries cover areas such as literature, film, architecture, food, health, political economy, religion and technology and they range from shorter definitions, histories or biographies to longer overview essays giving an in-depth treatment of major issues. With over 700 alphabetically arranged entries, this Encyclopedia will be an invaluable reference tool for students of Japanese and Asian Studies, as well as providing a fascinating insight into Japanese culture for the general reader. Suggestions for further reading, a comprehensive system of cross-referencing, a thematic contents list and an extensive index all help navigate the reader around the Encyclopedia and on to further study.

Democracy in Contemporary Japan

Author : Yoshio Sugimoto
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9780317473926
Total Pages : 272 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (739 download)

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Book Synopsis Democracy in Contemporary Japan by : Yoshio Sugimoto

Download or read book Democracy in Contemporary Japan written by Yoshio Sugimoto and published by . This book was released on 1986 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Social Change in Japan, 1989-2019

Author : Carola Hommerich
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1000203638
Total Pages : 157 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (2 download)

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Book Synopsis Social Change in Japan, 1989-2019 by : Carola Hommerich

Download or read book Social Change in Japan, 1989-2019 written by Carola Hommerich and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2020-10-15 with total page 157 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Based on extensive survey data, this book examines how the population of Japan has experienced and processed three decades of rapid social change from the highly egalitarian high growth economy of the 1980s to the economically stagnating and demographically shrinking gap society of the 2010s. It discusses social attitudes and values towards, for example, work, gender roles, family, welfare and politics, highlighting certain subgroups which have been particularly affected by societal changes. It explores social consciousness and concludes that although many Japanese people identify as middle class, their reasons for doing so have changed over time, with the result that the optimistic view prevailing in the 1980s, confident of upward mobility, has been replaced by people having a much more realistic view of their social status.

Writing Pregnancy in Low-Fertility Japan

Author : Amanda C. Seaman
Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
ISBN 13 : 0824859928
Total Pages : 249 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (248 download)

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Book Synopsis Writing Pregnancy in Low-Fertility Japan by : Amanda C. Seaman

Download or read book Writing Pregnancy in Low-Fertility Japan written by Amanda C. Seaman and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2016-12-31 with total page 249 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Writing Pregnancy in Low-Fertility Japan is a wide-ranging account of how women writers have made sense (and nonsense) of pregnancy in postwar Japan. While earlier authors such as Yosano Akiko had addressed the pain and emotional complexities of childbearing in their poetry and prose, the topic quickly moved into the literary shadows when motherhood became enshrined as a duty to state and sovereign in the 1930s and ’40s. This reproductive imperative endured after World War II, spurred by a need to create a new generation of citizens and consumers for a new, peacetime nation. It was only in the 1960s, in the context of a flowering of feminist thought and activism, that more critical and nuanced appraisals of pregnancy and motherhood began to appear. In her fascinating study, Amanda C. Seaman analyzes the literary manifestations of this new critical approach, in the process introducing readers to a body of work notable for the wide range of genres employed by its authors (including horror and fantasy, short stories, novels, memoir, and manga), the many political, personal, and social concerns informing it, and the diverse creative approaches contained therein. This “pregnancy literature,” Seaman argues, serves as an important yet rarely considered forum for exploring and debating not only the particular experiences of the pregnant mother-to-be, but the broader concerns of Japanese women about their bodies, their families, their life choices, and the meaning of motherhood for individuals and for Japanese society. It will be of interest to scholars of modern Japanese literature and women’s history, as well as those concerned with gender studies, feminism, and popular culture in Japan and beyond.

Intimate Japan

Author : Allison Alexy
Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
ISBN 13 : 082488244X
Total Pages : 289 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (248 download)

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Book Synopsis Intimate Japan by : Allison Alexy

Download or read book Intimate Japan written by Allison Alexy and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2019-01-31 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: How do couples build intimacy in an era that valorizes independence and self-responsibility? How can a man be a good husband when full-time jobs are scarce? How can unmarried women find fulfillment and recognition outside of normative relationships? How can a person express their sexuality when there is no terminology that feels right? In contemporary Japan, broad social transformations are reflected and refracted in changing intimate relationships. As the Japanese population ages, the low birth rate shrinks the population, and decades of recession radically restructure labor markets, Japanese intimate relationships, norms, and ideals are concurrently shifting. This volume explores a broad range of intimate practices in Japan in the first decades of the 2000s to trace how social change is becoming manifest through deeply personal choices. From young people making decisions about birth control to spouses struggling to connect with each other, parents worrying about stigma faced by their adopted children, and queer people creating new terms to express their identifications, Japanese intimacies are commanding a surprising amount of attention, both within and beyond Japan. With ethnographic analysis focused on how intimacy is imagined, enacted, and discussed, the volume's chapters offer rich and complex portraits of how people balance personal desires with feasible possibilities and shifting social norms. Intimate Japan will appeal to scholars and students in anthropology and Japanese or Asian studies, particularly those focusing on gender, kinship, sexuality, and labor policy. The book will also be of interest to researchers across social science subject areas, including sociology, political science, and psychology.

Cool Japanese Men

Author : Brigitte Steger
Publisher : LIT Verlag Münster
ISBN 13 : 3643909551
Total Pages : 239 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (439 download)

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Book Synopsis Cool Japanese Men by : Brigitte Steger

Download or read book Cool Japanese Men written by Brigitte Steger and published by LIT Verlag Münster. This book was released on 2017 with total page 239 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Japanese men are becoming cool. The suit-and-tie salaryman remodels himself with beauty treatments and 'cool biz' fashion. Loyal company soldiers are reborn as cool, attentive fathers. Hip hop dance is as manly as martial arts. Could it even be cool for middle-aged men to idolize teenage girl popstars? This collection of studies from the University of Cambridge provides fascinating insights into the contemporary lives of Japanese men as it looks behind the image of 'Cool Japan.' (Series: Japanese Studies / Japanologie, Vol. 6) [Subject: Japanese Studies, Cultural Studies]

Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Japan

Author : Hiroko Takeda
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1134830017
Total Pages : 650 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (348 download)

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Book Synopsis Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Japan by : Hiroko Takeda

Download or read book Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Japan written by Hiroko Takeda and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2020-09-21 with total page 650 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Routledge Handbook of Contemporary Japan presents a synthesized, interdisciplinary study of contemporary Japan based on up-to-date theoretical models designed to provide readers with a comprehensive and full understanding of the dynamics of contemporary Japan. In order to achieve this, the Handbook is organized into two parts. Part I, ‘Foundations’, clarifies the state of contemporary Japan topic by topic by referring to the latest theoretical developments in the relevant disciplinary fields of politics, international relations, economy, society, culture and the personal. Part II, ‘Issues’, then offers a series of concrete analyses building upon the theoretical discussions introduced in Part I to help undergraduate and postgraduate students learn how to conduct independent analysis. Locating Japan in a comparative and interdisciplinary perspective, this Handbook is an essential resource for students and scholars interested in Japanese studies, Asian studies and global studies.