Japan Rising: The Resurgence of Japanese Power and Purpose by KENNETH PYLE

From the Publisher

Japan is on the verge of a sea change. After more than fifty years of national pacifism and isolation including the "lost decade" of the 1990s, Japan is quietly, stealthily awakening. As Japan prepares to become a major player in the strategic struggles of the 21st century, critical questions arise about its motivations. What are the driving forces that influence how Japan will act in the international system? Are there recurrent patterns that will help explain how Japan will respond to the emerging environment of world politics?

American understanding of Japanese character and purpose has been tenuous at best. We have repeatedly underestimated Japan in the realm of foreign policy. Now as Japan shows signs of vitality and international engagement, it is more important than ever that we understand the forces that drive Japan. In Japan Rising, renowned expert Kenneth Pyle identities the common threads that bind the divergent strategies of modern Japan, providing essential reading for anyone seeking to understand how Japan arrived at this moment—and what to expect in the future.

The Economist

The task Pyle . . . took on is . . . a worthwhile one, and the book he has written to fulfill it is outstanding.

Seattle Times

Argues that Japan is set to become a 'major player in the strategic struggles of the twenty-first century.

Kirkus Reviews

The land of the rising sun is poised to rise again as a regional, and even world, power. So holds noted Japan specialist Pyle (History/Univ. of Washington). Cultural relativists reject the notion of national character, but Pyle suggests that there is something in the homogeneous nation's makeup that can be used to gauge the future. He approvingly quotes anthropologist Nakane Chie, who wrote, "We Japanese have no principles. . . . Except for a few leftists or rightists, we have no dogma and don't ourselves know where we are going." Pyle holds that this anyway-the-wind-blows pragmatism is a consequence of the leadership's recognition long ago that Japan is a resource-poor island nation with very powerful neighbors; he writes that it has had many consequences, among them the only partial fulfillment of the postwar MacArthur equivalent of de-Nazification, since the American government feared that a resentful Japan, forced to acknowledge its bad and definitely ideological behavior, would wander into the Soviet camp. The lack of ideological firmness, by Pyle's account, means that WWII was an aberration, "a sweeping rejection of the Japanese heritage" in the lust for national power. Chastened, Japan sat out most of the Cold War on the sidelines, Pyle writes, building economic strength in part by not having to shoulder the costs of defense. In the wake of 9/11, U.S. politicos have demanded that Japan pay those costs, which, ironically, may contribute to Japan's revival as a power. Pyle observes that this revival is contingent on many factors and can take many forms, depending on the scenario-that old pragmatism again. For instance, an Asia with a reunified Korea will look very much different fromthe present one, particularly if Korea plays China off Japan. How will Japan react? And how will Japan respond if America does not remain "deeply engaged in East Asia and committed to maintaining a balance of power"?The author does not doubt the revival itself. An interesting thesis, backed by a strong historical narrative.

What People Are Saying

The most comprehensive history of Japan's international relations to date . . . " (Sheldon Garon, Professor of History and East Asian Studies, Princeton University)

Sheldon Garon
The most comprehensive history of Japan's international relations to date . . . (Sheldon Garon, Professor of History and East Asian Studies, Princeton University)

Product Details

• Table of Contents

Table of Contents