Suchergebnisse

Former Professor of Modern Japanese Studies at Oxford, Arthur Stockwin explores his personal journey from being the son of medical/dental parents in Birmingham, England, to becoming a specialist in the politics and modern history of Japan, while reflecting on his personal experiences of Japan and assessing its current and possible future condition.

Intro -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Contents -- Introduction -- Part 1: The beginnings of 'Empire' and 'Constitution' -- Chapter 1: Defeating China - towards a 'small empire' -- Split in the new Meiji government -- The Japan-China confrontation over Ryūkyū - the Taiwan expedition -- Ōkubo Toshimichi's peace negotiations -- Chapter 2: Demanding a constitutional system of government -- The Ōsaka Conference -- The Imperial Edict establishing a constitutional structure -- The Edict establishing a Parliament: Ending of the constitution-building period -- From the Kanghwado Incident to the Popular Rights Movement -- Miscalculation by Inoue Kaoru -- Fukuzawa Yukichi and Inoue Kaoru -- Alienation - postponing the establishment of a Parliament -- Chapter 3: The Imo (Jingo) and Kapsin (Kōshin) Incidents - 'Empire' once again -- The China threat argument and the return of the 'strong army' argument -- Changing relationship between Japan and Korea, and advent of confrontation between Japan and China -- The subtle 'Asianism' of Fukuzawa Yukichi: Underestimation of China -- China becoming a 'strong power' - the Imo [Korean] or Jingo [Japanese] Incident -- Towards naval rearmament -- Breakdown in the reform of Korea - the Kapsin [Korean] or Kōshin [Japanese] Incident -- If war breaks out, is victory assured? -- Avoidance of war by Itō Hirobumi - the Tianjin Treaty -- Chapter 4: The Sino-Japanese War: The birth of 'Empire' and the continuation of 'Constitution' -- Towards military expansion before launching the Diet -- Dispute between the House of Representatives and the government - stagnation of military expansion -- The Imperial Edict on Harmony and Cooperation -- Europeanization and nationalism -- Towards the Sino-Japanese War -- Opposition from the Meiji Emperor -- The conclusion of the war -- The Japan-China Treaty and the triple intervention.

This book is volume two of the writings of David Sissons, who first established his academic career as a political scientist specialising in Japanese politics, and later shifted his focus to the history of Australia–Japan relations. In this volume, we reproduce his writings on Japanese politics, the Pacific War and Australian war crimes trials after the war. He was a pioneer in these fields, carrying out research across cultural and language borders, and influenced numerous researchers who followed in his footsteps. Much of what he wrote, however, remained unpublished at the time of his death in 2006, and so the editors have included a selection of his hitherto unpublished work along with some of his published writings.

This book represents volume one of the writings of David Sissons, who for most of his career pioneered research on the history of relations between Australia and Japan. Much of what he wrote remained unpublished at the time of his death in 2006, and so the editors have included a selection of his hitherto unpublished work along with some of his published writings. Breaking Japanese Diplomatic Codes, edited by Desmond Ball and Keiko Tamura, was published in 2013 and forms a part of the series that reproduces many of Sissons' writings. In the current volume, the topics covered are wide. They range from contacts between the two countries as far back as the early 19th century, Japanese pearl divers in northern Australia, Japanese prostitutes in Australia, the wool trade, the notorious 'trade diversion episode' of 1936, and a study of the Japan historian James Murdoch. Sissons was an extraordinarily meticulous researcher, leaving no stone unturned in his search for accuracy and completeness of understanding, and should be considered one of Australia's major historians. His writings deal with not only diplomatic negotiations and decision-making, but also the lives of ordinary and often nameless people and their engagements with their host society. His warm humanity in recording ordinary people's lives as well as his balanced examination of historical incidents and issues from both Australian and Japanese perspectives are a hallmark of his scholarship.