Japan Unbound: A Volatile Nation's Quest for Pride and Purpose

by John Nathan

Explores the cultural changes that have taken place in Japan throughout the last decade as demonstrated by various economic groups and institutions, predicting what Japan's changing world role will... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0618138943
• ISBN13: 9780618138944
• Release Date: January 2004
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
• Length: 271 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.3" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

A must read

Japan Unbound is a must read for anyone trying to understand Japanese culture today. This book looks at the economic, social and political transitions taking place in the post boom years of Japan. I did not go into this book expecting to like it, but was forced to reconsider this position with every page.

Japan In Transition - Again.

Japan's history and culture is deeply rooted in its 1400 years of interaction and trade with its Asian neighbors, and especially with China during after the Tang dynasty of 618 to 907. This Asian orientation was the basis and has strongly influenced the development of Japan and contributed to the Japanese "identity". This Asian orientation continued until 1853 when Japan embraced both its past and while simultaneously embarked on a new path to absorb and adopted western or modern technology and culture during the so called Meiji period named after the emperor of that period. This continued until 1945 when its empire crumbled in war. With a fresh start but with its industrial infrastructure and with many government agencies and educational system still somewhat in tact after the war, it entered the second phase of its modern development becoming the world's leading financial power and creditor nation by the late 1980's. But after this financial run up the economy stalled, stocks and real estate prices fell sharply, and Japan entered a decade and half long period of economic stagnation and adjustment. That brings us to this new 250 page book. The author is a Japanese speaking Harvard educated American scholar with four decades of Japanese experience. He has lived in Japan for many years and is eminently qualified to write the book. The book is short and uses a combination of interviews, personal observations, and references to Japanese writings to provide a sense of a country in transition. He discusses the issue of the "unique" cultural identity, the politics, youth violence, the modern Japanese corporation in a state of flux, the family, and a number of other subjects. It is clear from the book that Japan is in the midst of another change or renewal. The people are turning again to nationalism, seeking pride in their country, and have a desire to re-establish Japan as a country respected by China and America but working more independently. In the background are lurking many social changes and a breakdown in the school systems, unemployment, changes in the family, and a dramatic increase in youth crime rates - all that are new for Japan that was previously a strongly structured and a more predictable society. This is a well written book. It manages to be both educate and entertain with many stories, insights, and humor. It brings up to date on what is happening in Japan today in 2004.

An eye opener

I liked this book very much. It was an eye opener to me because I had no idea that the school system was in such trouble and that the young people were dropping out of school or becoming violent. This seems pretty bad since Japan has the most rapidly aging society and they expect one day for there to be one worker for every retired person. Pretty depressing. One thing that was also a surprise was Shintaro Ishihara's response to 9/11. He seems to think that American's are whining. And the Japanese resent the parallels to Pearl Harbor. I like his references to Japanese authors. I've read many of the books he has translated, especially Oe. So, all in all its worth reading.

The best on contemporay Japan

John Nathan speaks about several main social topics of comtemporary Japan. I found the book extremly interesting for foreigners living in Japan and people who are interested in the current situation of Japan. The big advantage of this book, which makes is different from other books about Japan, is that Nathan writes based on a long time knowledge of the country and not from a superficial journalistic viewpoint. A a result, he does not merely selects queer stories and flamboyant Japanese personalities, but outstanding examples of characteristics of modern Japan, which he relates to the historical context. I found many valuable facts, interpretations and opinions in this book that I don't read in Japanese newspapers and books. Nathan is only sometimes openly judgemental his descriptions leaves the reader the freedom to make up his own opinion. After reading the book I do understand much better how to interpret what I encounter in Japan. I also find the writing style good but sometimes challenging for non-english speakers (which is not bad though).

INCISIVE COMPILATION OF SOCIAL ILLS, WITH FORGIVABLE ISSUES

While Alex Kerr's "Dogs and Demons" harped on about the travails of the Japanese construction industry, John Nathan picks on a social axe to grind. Which makes for an indulging read indeed, although the supporting evidence is occasionally lacking and the inferences about the future are to the tune of "It's unpredictable, time will tell." You've probably read other authors crunch economic data or political misgivings of the sushi nation, but Nathan turns his gaze to schools, novels, manga comic books, and the minds of young entrepreneurs and maverick local politicians. Is Japan's notoriously conformist society finally giving in to the longstanding recession? How is this affecting national identity? We first take up the issue of social corrosion. No surprise there, Japan is in a crisis. An incisive lens is directed at the schooling system, which is now a hotpot of truancy, felonies, alienation, angst amongst increasingly wayward kids. Sadly, parents are woefully underprepared to handle these issues, as are school authorities. Next we take the jingoistic extremism and of course, as people close to Japan may expect, the whacky governor of Tokyo Ishihara comes up, contrasted to the softer Tanaka of Nagano. A third person in the fray, the popular cartoonist Kobayashi, contends that Japan should in fact drop its US-linked past and become more self-assured. All of this makes for a very pithy discussion, but there may be little here that's new to people who follow Japanese news. To others, these essays alone alone are reason to grab the book. Now for the minor gripes. The section that highlights the growing capitalism cites the same pseudo-successful entrepreneurs to claim that Japan is becoming more entrepreneurial: Masayoshi and Oki Matsumoto (sigh, Monex!). To be fair, Japan does have a growing list of people stringing out on their own, but a recent Nikkei Weekly article did a much less sycophantic job of enumerating more convincing and down-to-earth examples. The author also gives in to sweeping statements such as his claim of America's encouragement to Japan to beef up its nuclear arsenal in order to egg China into getting involved with the North Korea issue. Where did this come from? Finally, be warned that the tone of the book in general is somewhat murky, and there is preciously little in terms of What Next, or How To Deal With It. Forgivable weaknesses? May be. For me, the book was an insightful read. At the very least, it'll equip you with interesting little tidbits for those Oh-Japan dinner conversations. In particular people who don't have the time to follow Japanese news on a regular basis will probably find this book eye-opening. A worthy purchase.