Gwybodaeth Modiwlau

The course will provide students with a detailed understanding of modern Japanese History, not only through an exploration of political and economic developments, but also cultural and social. In doing so it will introduce the main historical arguments that have shaped the writing of Japanese history and consider how those arguments have changed during the twentieth century. By tracing the rise of Japan as a major regional and then world power, it will add important context and breadth to students’ overall understanding of modern history.

This module covers the history of Japan from the ‘Great Peace’ of the Tokugawa period beginning in the seventeenth century to modern times. It will trace the decline of the feudal system and the end of national seclusion, rapid modernization, rising nationalism and imperial expansion from the end of the nineteenth century. It will also cover experiments in ‘Taisho democracy’ and the growth of a middle class culture of consumption before the descent into war. It looks at the imperial expansion of Japan and war in Asia and the Pacific from 1933 and then the US-led occupation and the post-war ‘economic miracle’ that followed. While the focus is on political developments, the course will also look closely at changes in society and culture.