Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan - Softcover

Deal, William E.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0195331265 ISBN 13: 9780195331264

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2007

Synopsis

andbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan spans the beginning of the Kamakura period in 1185 through the end of the Edo (Tokugawa) period in 1868. The medieval and early modern eras in Japan were largely shaped by the rise of the warrior class. After 1603, with the founding of the Tokugawa shogunate, Japanese culture changed dramatically, but as cities grew and merchants thrived, the warrior class became less dominant. By the end of the Edo period, Japan's insular feudal society and military government became irrelevant in an increasingly consumer-oriented economy and thriving urban culture.

The contribution of military rulers, celebrated warriors, and cultural innovators to medieval and early modern Japanese culture are well documented. However, life at the village level also had a strong impact on the culture. Covering both levels of society, this comprehensive guide provides insightful information on well-known people and peasants, artisans, shopkeepers, and others outside the periphery of power. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan introduces the reader to the significant people and events-cultural, social, political, and historical-and the everyday experiences and elements of material culture during this time.

Organized thematically, the text covers: History; Land, Environment, and Population; Government; Society and Economy; Warriors and Warfare; Religion; Philosophy, Education, and Science; Language and Literature; Performing Arts; Art and Architecture; Travel and Communication; Daily Life. Each chapter includes an extensive bibliography, and photographs and maps complement the text. Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan provides all the essential information for anyone interested in Japanese history, society, or culture.

About this title

About the Author:

WIlliam E. Deal obtained a Ph.D. in religious studies from Harvard. He is currently Severance Professor of the History of Religion at case Western Reserve University. Dr. Deal's current research focuses on the relationship between religion and state in Japanese history. He has numerous articles to his credit and has translated part of the Nihon shoki and other early Japanese texts. He is the co-author of Theory for Religious Studies (with Timothy Beal) (Routledge).

From Booklist:

This latest entry in the publisher's Handbook to Life series surveys Japanese life during the Kamakura (1185-1333), Muromachi (1333-1573), Azuchi-Momoyama (1573-1615), and Edo (1615-1868) periods. The Edo period, marked by some 250 years of both peace and nearly complete exclusion of foreign influences, constitutes early modern Japan. Arrangement is topical, with 12 chapters covering subjects such as "Land, Environment, and Population"; "Government"; "Warriors and Warfare"; and "Art and Architecture." Each of these is subdivided into from 3 to 12 subchapters, listed in the table of contents. Each subchapter is itself often extensively subdivided. "Religion," for example, is organized into an introduction and sections on Shinto traditions, Japanese Buddhist traditions, Christianity, the role of women, and suggestions for further reading. The section on Shinto is itself composed of 9 sections, for example, "Shinto Rituals and Festivals" and "Shinto Deities." The latter devotes a paragraph to each of 12 major deities.

Valuable supporting features include some 85 black-and-white photographs and illustrations, 5 maps, 17 tables and charts, and a thorough bibliography and index. The bibliography of some 600 English-language publications is a single alphabetical listing, most easily approached through the topically arranged reading suggestions at the end of each chapter. The index often pairs English terms with italicized romaji (English transliteration of Japanese) equivalents. This admirable practice is repeated throughout the clearly written text. An otherwise useful two-page chart of "Syllabic Sounds in the Japanese Language" (hiragana and katakana) suffers a common fate: the small lines and circles used to indicate voicing and palatalization are difficult to see without a magnifying glass.

This solid reference should find use not just among the anime and manga crowd but among all seeking reliable guidance to the basics of a country with an extraordinarily rich history and culture. Highly recommended for public and university libraries. Craig Bunch
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About this edition

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0195331265
• ISBN 13: 9780195331264
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 415