In the early twentieth century, the Japanese accepted many modern western ideas, particularly industrialism. But, Harry Emerson Wildes argues, the people of Japan remained essentially the same as when the first foreigners stepped upon their shores in 1543: exclusive, intensely nationalistic, suspicious of strangers, set in a rigid and hereditary social system, and possessed of a mystic veneration of their emperor and their ancestors. The author of this volume knows the Japanese from firsthand experience and has had access to historical data only recently available. He describes fully the uneven course of Japan's foreign relations, from the earliest struggles of the Dutch, Portuguese and British to establish trade with the empire, to the diplomatic problems of the of the 1930s. Of particular note are Japan's relations with the United States which started years before Commodore Perry obtained a commercial treaty in 1854, the first real concession to a western power. Japan's attitude toward Russia in the past is likewise enlightening. In addition to the economic relationships, the missionary angle is discussed as well as the internal political situation throughout the period. Wildes argues that achieving satisfactory trade arrangements was difficult due to the Japanese temperament and the failure of foreigners to understand the almost fanatical distrust of outsiders which caused them in 1637 to go so far as to establish he death penalty for newcomers who landed on Japanese soil and exiles who left it and colored their attitude toward other nations for many decades.

Traces the development of the samurai, both in the way they regarded themselves and their role in society.

Mini-set D: Politics re-issues works originally published between 1920 & 1987 and examines the government, political system and foreign policy of Japan during the twentieth century.

Disillusioned by long hours at home alone and by demands from the older generation, Japanese women are marrying later, resulting in a sharp decline in the Japanese birth rate. Muriel Jolivet considers the reasons why Japanese women are finding it increasingly difficult to accept the terms and conditions of motherhood. Japan: The Childless Society explores the major factors contributing to maternal malaise in Japan including: * the 'Ten Commandments of the Good Mother' * the changing role of the father * education and careers * nostalgia from older generations Drawing on extensive interviews with Japanese women and translated into English for the first time, this innovative study examines the implications behind the declining birth rate and looks towards the future of a country that is in danger of becoming a 'childless society'.