The Peripheral Centre: Essays on Japanese History and Civilization

by Johann Arnason

Overview

The main theme of the book is the complex relationship between the patterns of Japanese modernity and the civilizational legacy on which they continue to grow. The author discusses the East Asian regional context of Japanese civilization, deals with the dynamics of state formation and the attendant cultural transformations in pre-modern Japan, and suggests ways of comparing the Japanese experience to the West. Presenting Japan as a test case for relating the emerging problems of multiple modernities to civilizational perspectives, the book examines the economic foundations as well as the philosophical self-interpretations of Japanese modernity.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781876843953
Publisher:	Trans Pacific Press
Publication date:	03/01/2002
Series:	Japanese Society Series
Pages:	234
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.80(d)

Table of Contents

	Preface	vii
	Acknowledgements	ix
1	Introduction: The Peripheral Centre and Its Transformations	1
2	East Asian Approaches: Region, History and Civilization	24
3	Comparing Japan: The Return to Asia	41
4	Is Japan a Civilization Sui Generis?	66
5	State Formation in Japan and the West	92
6	Elias in Japan: State Formation, Military Elites and Organized Violence	117
7	Multiple Modernities and Civilizational Contexts: Reflections on the Japanese Experience	132
8	Miracles and Mirages: Comparative Perspectives on Japanese Capitalism	158
	Notes	203
	Index	225

Editorial Reviews

Eight papers, some previously published, reflect Arnason's (sociology, La Trobe U., Melbourne) recent thinking about Japan. None of them set out a systematic theoretical position, though some raise theoretical questions connected to specific approaches to the culture and country. He approaches the uncertainties in the subject through the lens of the distinction between core and periphery in World Systems thought, which has been difficult to reconcile with other theories. Distributed in the US by ISBS. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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