Modern Japan: From Samurai to Pokemon

In this unit, you will explore the history of Japan and East Asia via an examination of Japan’s final samurai-dominated shogunate, the Tokugawa (1603-1868), and the expansionist Empire of Japan (1868-1947), and its post-WWII transformation. You also examine the evolution of images and representations of the Japanese nation in popular culture, including film, books, anime, manga, and/or video games. The central concern is with the evolution of the Japanese state and society across this long period and with the tensions between the ideals put forward about Japanese tradition and the actual realities of Japanese life. We will consider modern Japan from varied perspectives by considering questions of status, identity, politics, gender, technology, environment, and economy.