Showa Japan: The Post-War Golden Age and Its Troubled Legacy
- ISBN-10
- 1462900267
- ISBN-13
- 9781462900268
- Category
- History
- Pages
- 240
- Language
- English
- Published
- 2011-05-07
- Publisher
- Tuttle Publishing
- Author
- Hans Brinckmann
Description
Japan's momentous Showa era began in 1926, when Emperor Hirohito ascended the throne, and ended with his death in 1989. This was a tumultuous period in modern Japanese history—a time of great disaster and tremendous triumph for Japan. This book focuses on the post-war period in Japan when the nation stood at the zenith of her economic power. Today, the term Showa is shorthand for a glamorous period in which, all too briefly, Japan was the richest nation on earth and the envy of the developed world. A growing nostalgia for this period is now memorialized in Japan in a national holiday. It was an era of stratospheric growth which saw Japan's transition from an isolated, impoverished nation to a peaceful one holding an exalted position as the world's second largest economy. But what is the true meaning of the Showa era, and what is its legacy for the Japanese today? In Showa Japan, Hans Brinckmann provides a clear-eyed exploration of the Showa period as it really was—not just a time of wondrous change but of wild excesses that would eventually come crashing down with the bursting of Japan's economic bubble—exactly as occurred in the rest of the world, but almost 20 years earlier! From the heights of extravagance to the lean years that followed, Brinkmann, a long-time resident of Japan, examines the impact of the Showa era and its aftermath on every aspect of Japanese society. Featuring dozens of period photographs, interviews, and a wealth of factual information and personal reflections, this book provides an in-depth portrait of a Japan that once was—as well as a blueprint for one that might still be, if only the lessons of the past could be learned.
Get the book
Other editions
Similar books
-
Showa 1926-1939:: A History of Japan Vol. 1
By Shigeru MizukiThis volume deals with the period leading up to World War II, a time of high unemployment and other economic hardships caused by the Great Depression.
-
Emperor Hirohito and Showa Japan: A Political Biography
By Stephen LargeStephen Large draws on a wide range of Japanese and Western sources in his study of Emperor Hirohito's political role in Showa Japan (1926-89).
-
Showa 1944-1953:: A History of Japan Vol. 3
By Shigeru MizukiThis volume recounts the events of the final years of the Pacific War, and the consequences of the war's devastation for Mizuki and the Japanese populace at large.
-
Showa: The Japan of Hirohito
By Carol Gluck, Stephen Richards GraubardThe morally charged debate over the meaning of Showa Japan is carried on in this volume by distinguished Japanese and American experts.
-
Showa 1939-1944:: A History of Japan Vol. 2
By Shigeru MizukiThis volume covers the final moments of the lead-up to World War Two and the first few years of the Pacific War; it is a chilling reminder of the harshness of life in Japan during this highly militarized epoch.
-
Showa: An Inside History of Hirohito's Japan
By Tessa Morris-SuzukiThe first book to present modern Japanese history through the eyes of individuals, Showa presents the experiences of three individuals born at the beginning of this age, giving a unique inside view of Japan's recent history.
-
Showa 1953-1989:: A History of Japan Vol. 4
By Shigeru MizukiShowa : A History of Japan was originally published as an eight - volume series between November 1988 and December 1989 under the title of Showa - shi : Komiku ( A History of Showa : The Comic ) . Unusual for a comic in Japan , Showa ...
-
A History of Shōwa Japan, 1926-1989
By Takafusa NakamuraFor Japan, the reign of Emperor Hirohito - the Showa Era - is all but synonymous with the history of the twentieth century. The story is a dramatic one, with...
-
Showa 1944-1953: A History of Japan
By Shigeru MizukiPresents the history of Japan during the final years of World War II and the misery and poverty of the postwar period.
-
Shōwa Japan: Political, Economic and Social History, 1926-1989
By Stephen S. LargeWith a major new introduction by Stephen S. Large, the set provides a comprehensive guide for teachers and students of Showa Japan.