Japanisarguablytoday’smostsuccessfulindustrialeconomy,combiningalmostunprecedentedaffluencewithsocialstabilityandapparentharmony.Japanesegoodsandculturalproducts--fromanimatedmoviesandcomputergamestocars,semiconductors,andmanagementtechniques--areconsumedaroundtheworld.Inmanyways,Japanisaniconofthemodernworld,andyetitremainssomethingofanenigmatomany,whoseeitasaconfusingmontageofthealienandthefamiliar,theancientandmodern.ThisVeryShortIntroductionexplodesthemythsandexplorestherealityofmodernJapan,offeringaconcise,engaging,andaccessiblelookatthehistory,economy,politics,andcultureofthisfascinatingnation.Itexamineswhattheterm“modern“meanstotheJapanese,debunksthenotionthatJapanwentthroughaperiodoftotalisolationfromtheworld,andexploresthecontinuitybetweenpre-andpost-warJapan.Anyonecuriousaboutthisintriguingcountrywillfindawealthofinsightandinformationinthesepages.AbouttheSeries:Combiningauthoritywithwit,accessibility,andstyle,VeryShortIntroductionsofferanintroductiontosomeoflife’smostinterestingtopics.Writtenbyexpertsforthenewcomer,theydemonstratethefinestcontemporarythinkingaboutthecentralproblemsandissuesinhundredsofkeytopics,fromphilosophytoFreud,quantumtheorytoIslam
