Download or read book Warriors of Japan as Portrayed in the War Tales written by Paul Varley and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 1994-07-01 with total page 308 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A leading cultural historian of premodern Japan draws a rich portrait of the emerging samurai culture as it is portrayed in gunki-mono, or war tales, examining eight major works spanning the mid-tenth to late fourteenth centuries. Although many of the major war tales have been translated into English, Warriors of Japan is the first book-length study of the tales and their place in Japanese history. The war tales are one of the most important sources of knowledge about Japan's premodern warriors, revealing much about the medieval psyche and the evolving perceptions of warriors, warfare, and warrior customs.
Download or read book The Samurai Swordsman written by Stephen Turnbull and published by Frontline Books. This book was released on 2008-02-20 with total page 213 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Samurai tells the story of the courageous and highly disciplined fighting men of this time, showing how they evolved from the primitive fighters of the seventh century into an invincible military caste with a fearsome reputation. In the early seventh century, the samurai rose to prominence during the struggles between the emperor and the military leaders (shogun). They took part in the invasion of Korea, as well as helping to keep Japan free from foreign influence. From the Heian period through to the Onin wars, the history of the samurai is replete with tales of heroism and bloodshed. Although the samurai is most famous for his use of the sword, he also used a wide variety of other weapons, such as the crossbow, the dagger and the spear. Samurai armour and costume were constantly evolving, and by the twelfth century most samurai were wearing the box-like yoroi armour. Samurai examines samurai fighting tactics, as well as acts such as ritual suicide (hari-kiri) and the taking of enemy heads as trophies.
Download or read book Creating Japan s Ground Self Defense Force 1945 2015 written by David Hunter-Chester and published by Lexington Books. This book was released on 2016-11-30 with total page 315 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Creating Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force, 1945–2015 is a timely contribution to postwar Japan security studies. It is the first comprehensive account of Japan’s post-1945 army, including a comprehensive institutional history, together with the evolution of roles and missions and the adoption of successive professional identities. The organizational history is embedded within a thorough examination of Japan’s own defense policy, as well as of America’s policy of alliance with Japan. The book examines and challenges assumptions about the drafting and adoption of the War Renunciation clause of Japan’s postwar Peace Constitution, Article 9, which uniquely not only renounces war, but the arms to wage war. Thus Japan’s army is not called an army, but the Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF). The work also examines the place of an army and soldiers in the formation of Japan’s national identity after its last devastating war, and explores the impact of constitutional, legal and policy restrictions, as well as the power of the legacy of the still-largely vilified Imperial Japanese Army on GSDF members who seek to serve because “there are people we want to protect.” The study is rounded by an examination of the place of soldiers in Japan’s popular culture, focused on movies, manga and anime, assessing the impact on the GSDF of a public imagination that most often ignores or villainizes soldiers, though ending with a note that some positive images of soldiers and of the GSDF members themselves have started to appear in the last few years. The book’s author, a retired U.S. Army soldier who spent more than twenty years working, studying and training with the GSDF, offers a broad-ranging exploration of a unique organization. This work is extensively researched, using English and Japanese sources, and will appeal to anyone interested in Japanese security studies, alliance studies, and military imagery in Japanese pop culture, as well as to students of military history, international security, international relations, and cultural identity.
Download or read book Hired Swords written by Karl F. Friday and published by Stanford University Press. This book was released on 1996-03-01 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Tracing the evolution of state military institutions from the seventh through the twelfth centuries, this book challenges much of the received wisdom of Western scholarship on the origins and early development of warriors in Japan. This prelude to the rise of the samurai, who were to become the masters of Japan's medieval and early modern eras, was initiated when the imperial court turned for its police and military protection to hired swords--professional mercenaries largely drawn from the elites of provincial society. By the middle of the tenth century, this provincial military order had been handed a virtual monopoly of Japan's martial resources. Yet it was not until near the end of the twelfth century that these warriors took the first significant steps toward asserting their independence from imperial court control. Why did they not do so earlier? Why did they remain obedient to a court without any other military sources for nearly 300 years? Why did the court put itself in the potentially (and indeed, ultimately) precarious situation of contracting for its military needs with private warriors? These and related questions are the focus of the author's study. Most of the few Western treatments see the origins of the samurai in the incompetence and inactivity of the imperial court that forced residents in the provinces to take up arms themselves. According to this view, a warrior class was spontaneously generated just as one had been in Europe a few centuries earlier, and the Japanese court was doomed to eventually perish by the sword because of its failure to live by it. Instead, the author argues that it was largely court activism that put swords in the hands of rural elites, thatcourt military policy, from the very beginning of the imperial state era, followed a long-term pattern of increasing reliance on the martial skills of the gentry. This policy reflected the court's desire for maximum efficiency in its military institutions, and the policy's succes
Download or read book Samurai Warfare and the State in Early Medieval Japan written by Karl F. Friday and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2004-08-02 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Karl Friday, an internationally recognised authority on Japanese warriors, provides the first comprehensive study of the topic to be published in English. This work incorporates nearly twenty years of on-going research and draws on both new readings of primary sources and the most recent secondary scholarship. It overturns many of the stereotypes that have dominated views of the period. Friday analyzes Heian -, Kamakura- and Nambokucho-period warfare from five thematic angles. He examines the principles that justified armed conflict, the mechanisms used to raise and deploy armed forces, the weapons available to early medieval warriors, the means by which they obtained them, and the techniques and customs of battle. A thorough, accessible and informative review, this study highlights the complex casual relationships among the structures and sources of early medieval political power, technology, and the conduct of war.
Download or read book Currents in Japanese Culture written by Amy Vladeck Heinrich and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 1997 with total page 548 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: These twenty-nine original essays focuses on how cultural and literary genres and norms have developed in response to historical and cross-cultural influences.
Download or read book Japan at War written by Louis G. Perez and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2013-01-08 with total page 657 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This compelling reference focuses on the events, individuals, organizations, and ideas that shaped Japanese warfare from early times to the present day. Japan's military prowess is legendary. From the early samurai code of morals to the 20th-century battles in the Pacific theater, this island nation has a long history of duty, honor, and valor in warfare. This fascinating reference explores the relationship between military values and Japanese society, and traces the evolution of war in this country from 700 CE to modern times. In Japan at War: An Encyclopedia, author Louis G. Perez examines the people and ideas that led Japan into or out of war, analyzes the outcomes of battles, and presents theoretical alternatives to the strategic choices made during the conflicts. The book contains contributions from scholars in a wide range of disciplines, including history, political science, anthropology, sociology, language, literature, poetry, and psychology; and the content features internal rebellions and revolutions as well as wars with other countries and kingdoms. Entries are listed alphabetically and extensively cross-referenced to help readers quickly locate topics of interest.
Download or read book Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan written by William E. Deal and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2007 with total page 433 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book is an introduction the Japanese history, culture, and society from 1185 - the beginning of the Kamakura period - through the end of the Edo period in 1868.
Download or read book Routledge Handbook of Premodern Japanese History written by Karl F. Friday and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2017-07-14 with total page 433 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Scholarship on premodern Japan has grown spectacularly over the past four decades, in terms of both sophistication and volume. A new approach has developed, marked by a higher reliance on primary documents, a shift away from the history of elites to broader explorations of social structures, and a re-examination of many key assumptions. As a result, the picture of the early Japanese past now taught by specialists differs radically from the one that was current in the mid-twentieth century. This handbook offers a comprehensive historiographical review of Japanese history up until the 1500s. Featuring chapters by leading historians and covering the early Jōmon, Yayoi, Kofun, Nara, and Heian eras, as well as the later medieval periods, each section provides a foundational grasp of the major themes in premodern Japan. The sections will include: Geography and the environment Political events and institutions Society and culture Economy and technology The Routledge Handbook of Premodern Japanese History is an essential reference work for students and scholars of Japanese, Asian, and World History.
Download or read book War In The Early Modern World 1450 1815 written by Jeremy Black and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2020-09-23 with total page 280 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents a collection of essays charting the developments in military practice and warfare across the world in the early modern period. It also considers the nature and role of technological change, and the relationship between military developments and state-building.
Download or read book Japanese Culture written by Paul Varley and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2000-03-01 with total page 401 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For nearly three decades Japanese Culture has garnered high praise as an accurate and well-written introduction to Japanese history and culture. This widely used undergraduate text is now available in a new edition. Thoroughly updated, the fourth edition includes expanded sections on numerous topics, among which are samurai values, Zen Buddhism, the tea ceremony, Confucianism in the Tokugawa period, the story of the forty-seven ronin, Mito scholarship in the early nineteenth century, and mass culture and comics in contemporary times.
Download or read book Swords Oaths And Prophetic Visions written by Elizabeth Oyler and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2006-01-01 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Investigates some historically important political and social issues raised by the Genpei War (1180-1185). This epic civil conflict, which ushered in Japan's age of the warriors, is famously articulated in the monumental narrative Heike monogatari (The Tale of the Heike).
Download or read book Japanese Loyalism Reconstrued written by Bob Tadashi Wakabayashi and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 1995-01-01 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Learn Japanese written by John Young and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 1985-08-01 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: After fifteen printings, the Learn Japanese: College Text series has been substantially revised. The incorporated revisions grew out of the authors' decade and more of classroom experience. Revisions were also made in accordance with recommendations proposed by instructors who have used the Learn Japanese series. The new edition, which reflects recent trends in language teaching, continues to emphasize an integrated approach in which speaking, hearing, reading, and writing Japanese all contribute to the language learning process. - The most significant improvement is the addition of Culture Notes to help clarify the sociolinguistic context in which the language is used. Since Japanese modes of communication are highly situational, the student of Japanese needs to be made aware of the different contexts in which speakers interact. Culture Notes, used in conjunction with Grammar Notes, Dialogs, and Useful Expressions, show how an understanding of cultural values and human relationships can enhance the student's mastery of language skills. - A new approach to language learning is used throughout the revised edition. The new sociolinguistic approach (which encourages the "generation of discourse") is integrated with the original pattern approach (which encourages the "generation of sentences"). - Many components of the first edition, such as Sentence Patterns, Grammar Notes, and Reviews, have been revised and/or rearranged. The result is a clearer, more natural, and more functional presentation of the Japanese language. The four volumes of Learn Japanese: New College Text were prepared by the Asian Division of the University of Maryland University College and are published by the University of Hawaii Press.
Download or read book Warfare in Japan written by Harald Kleinschmidt and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2017-05-15 with total page 471 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Warfare in Japan from the fourth to the nineteenth century has caused much controversy among Western military and political historians. This volume assembles key articles written by specialists in the field on military organization, the social context of war, battle action, weapons and martial arts. The focus is on the transformation of patterns of warfare that arose from endogenous as well as exogenous factors.
Download or read book Japan Emerging written by Karl F. Friday and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2018-04-19 with total page 498 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Japan Emerging provides a comprehensive survey of Japan from prehistory to the nineteenth century. Incorporating the latest scholarship and methodology, leading authorities writing specifically for this volume outline and explore the main developments in Japanese life through ancient, classical, medieval, and early modern periods. Instead of relying solely on lists of dates and prominent names, the authors focus on why and how Japanese political, social, economic, and intellectual life evolved. Each part begins with a timeline and a set of guiding questions and issues to help orient readers and enhance continuity. Engaging, thorough, and accessible, this is an essential text for all students and scholars of Japanese history.
Download or read book Military Thought of Asia written by Kaushik Roy and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2020-11-04 with total page 267 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Military Thought of Asia challenges the assertion that the generation of rational secular ideas about the conduct of warfare is the preserve of the West, by analysing the history of ideas of warfare in Asia from the ancient period to the present. The volume takes a transcontinental and comparative approach to provide a broad overview of the evolution of military thought in Asia. The military traditions and theories which have emerged in different parts of Eurasia throughout history are products of geopolitics and unique to the different regions. The book considers the systematic and tight representation of ideas by famous figures including Kautlya and Sun Tzu. At the same time, it also highlights publications on military affairs by small men like mid-ranking officers and scattered ideas regarding the origin, nature and societal impact of organised violence present in miscellaneous sources like coins, inscriptions, paintings and fictional literature. In so doing, the book fills a historiographical gap in scholarship on military thought, which marginalises Asia to the part of cameo, and historicises the evolution of theory and the praxis of warfare. The volume shows that the ‘East’ has a long unbroken tradition of conceptualising war and its place in society from the Classical Era to the Information Age. It is essential reading for those interested in the evolution of military thought throughout history, particularly in Asia.
