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In this analysis of lower-class life in Tokugawa Japan (1603-1868), Gary Leupp vividly portrays the emergence of an urban proletariat during a time of extraordinary economic change. With the rapid increase in commercial activity, products previously restricted to use by the elite became commodities ...

In this analysis of lower-class life in Tokugawa Japan (1603-1868), Gary Leupp vividly portrays the emergence of an urban proletariat during a time of extraordinary economic change. With the rapid increase in commercial activity, products previously restricted to use by the elite became commodities for mass consumption. Likewise, labor power became a commodity as hired laborers replaced traditional corvee workers in the commercial realm and contracted servants supplanted lifetime, hereditary workers in households. Focusing on a class system mediated increasingly by money, Leupp explores the ways employers and employees dealt with each other and the steps taken by government officials to control rising hostilities.

In this sweeping narrative, Andrew Gordon paints a richly nuanced and strikingly original portrait of the last two centuries of Japanese history. Gordon takes us from the days of the shogunate--the feudal overlordship of the Tokugawa family--through the modernizing revolution launched by midlevel ...

In this sweeping narrative, Andrew Gordon paints a richly nuanced and strikingly original portrait of the last two centuries of Japanese history. Gordon takes us from the days of the shogunate--the feudal overlordship of the Tokugawa family--through the modernizing revolution launched by midlevel samurai in the late nineteenth century, the adoption of Western hairstyles, clothing, and military organization, and the nation's first experiments with mass democracy after World War I. Gordon offers the finest synthesis to date of Japan's passage through militarism, World War II, the American occupation, and the subsequent economic rollercoaster. But the true originality and value of his approach lies in his close attention to the non-elite layers of society. Here we see the influence of outside ideas, products, and culture on home life, labor unions, political parties, gender relations, and popular entertainment. Gordon shows the struggles to define the meaning of Japan's modernization, from villages and urban neighborhoods, to factory floors and middle managers' offices, to the imperial court. Most important, he illuminates the interconnectedness of Japanese developments with world history, demonstrating how Japan's historical passage represents a variation of a process experienced by many nations. Japan forms one part of the interwoven fabric of modern history. As head of the prestigious Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies at Harvard University, Gordon is one of the foremost American authorities on Japanese society. In this striking book, he brings all his knowledge and deep personal experience to bear, providing the most comprehensive portrait to date of Japan and its place in the wider world.