Breaking Open Japan. Commodore Perry, Lord Abe, and American Imperialism in 1853

George Feifer

ISBN 10: 0060884320 / ISBN 13: 9780060884321

Published by HarperCollins Publishers Inc, 2007

About this Item

Documents the 1853 confrontation between America and Japan, a conflict that marked the end of Japan's more than two-century isolation and was headed by American squadron commander Matthew Perry and Japanese political mastermind Lord Masahira Abe. 20,000 first printing.; onderstrepingen en markeringen in de kantlijn met potlood.

Seller Inventory # 900952

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Breaking Open Japan. Commodore Perry, Lord Abe, and American Imperialism in 1853
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Inc
• Publication Date: 2007
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0060884320
• ISBN 13: 9780060884321
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: First Edition.
• Condition: Fair
• Seller catalogs:
  • History: general

About this title

Synopsis

On July 14, 1853, the four warships of America's East Asia Squadron made for Kurihama, 30 miles south of the Japanese capital, then called Edo. It had come to pry open Japan after her two and a half centuries of isolation and nearly a decade of intense planning by Matthew Perry, the squadron commander. The spoils of the recent Mexican Spanish–American War had whetted a powerful American appetite for using her soaring wealth and power for commercial and political advantage.

Perry's cloaking of imperial impulse in humanitarian purpose was fully matched by Japanese self–deception. High among the country's articles of faith was certainty of its protection by heavenly power. A distinguished Japanese scholar argued in 1811 that "Japanese differ completely from and are superior to the peoples of...all other countries of the world."

So began one of history's greatest political and cultural clashes.

In Breaking Open Japan, George Feifer makes this drama new and relevant for today. At its heart were two formidable men: Perry and Lord Masahiro Abe, the political mastermind and real authority behind the Emperor and the Shogun. Feifer gives us a fascinating account of "sealed off" Japan and shows that Perry's aggressive handling of his mission had far reaching consequences for Japan – and the United States – well into the twentieth if not twenty–first century.

About the Author

George Feifer is the author of many successful books, including Tennozan: The Battle of Okinawa, a New York Times Notable Book; Moscow Farewell, a Book of the Month Club Main Selection; and The Girl from Petrovka, the basis of a Hollywood film. He's written for a wide variety of publications, including the New Republic, the New York Times Magazine, Harper's, and the Saturday Evening Post. He lives in Roxbury, Connecticut.