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Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan (Record no. 3890)

MARC details
000 -LEADER
fixed length control field 03684nam a2200181 4500
010 ## - LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CONTROL NUMBER
LC control number 2005369439
020 ## - INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BOOK NUMBER
International Standard Book Number 9780060931308
024 ## - OTHER STANDARD IDENTIFIER
Standard number or code 48008991
050 ## - LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CALL NUMBER
Classification number DS889.8
082 ## - DEWEY DECIMAL CLASSIFICATION NUMBER
Classification number 952.033092
100 1# - MAIN ENTRY--PERSONAL NAME
Personal name Herbert P. Bix
245 1# - TITLE STATEMENT
Title Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan
260 ## - PUBLICATION, DISTRIBUTION, ETC.
Name of publisher, distributor, etc. Harper Perennial
300 ## - PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
Extent 832 pages
520 ## - SUMMARY, ETC.
Summary, etc. Winner of the Pulitzer PrizeIn this groundbreaking biography of the Japanese emperor Hirohito, Herbert P. Bix offers the first complete, unvarnished look at the enigmatic leader whose sixty-three-year reign ushered Japan into the modern world. Never before has the full life of this controversial figure been revealed with such clarity and vividness. Bix shows what it was like to be trained from birth for a lone position at the apex of the nation's political hierarchy and as a revered symbol of divine status. Influenced by an unusual combination of the Japanese imperial tradition and a modern scientific worldview, the young emperor gradually evolves into his preeminent role, aligning himself with the growing ultranationalist movement, perpetuating a cult of religious emperor worship, resisting attempts to curb his power, and all the while burnishing his image as a reluctant, passive monarch. Here we see Hirohito as he truly was: a man of strong will and real authority.Supported by a vast array of previously untapped primary documents, Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan is perhaps most illuminating in lifting the veil on the mythology surrounding the emperor's impact on the world stage. Focusing closely on Hirohito's interactions with his advisers and successive Japanese governments, Bix sheds new light on the causes of the China War in 1937 and the start of the Asia-Pacific War in 1941. And while conventional wisdom has had it that the nation's increasing foreign aggression was driven and maintained not by the emperor but by an elite group of Japanese militarists, the reality, as witnessed here, is quite different. Bix documents in detail the strong, decisive role Hirohito played in wartime operations, from the takeover of Manchuria in 1931 through the attack on Pearl Harbor and ultimately the fateful decision in 1945 to accede to an unconditional surrender. In fact, the emperor stubbornly prolonged the war effort and then used the horrifying bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, together with the Soviet entrance into the war, as his exit strategy from a no-win situation. From the moment of capitulation, we see how American and Japanese leaders moved to justify the retention of Hirohito as emperor by whitewashing his wartime role and reshaping the historical consciousness of the Japanese people. The key to this strategy was Hirohito's alliance with General MacArthur, who helped him maintain his stature and shed his militaristic image, while MacArthur used the emperor as a figurehead to assist him in converting Japan into a peaceful nation. Their partnership ensured that the emperor's image would loom large over the postwar years and later decades, as Japan began to make its way in the modern age and struggled -- as it still does -- to come to terms with its past.Until the very end of a career that embodied the conflicting aims of Japan's development as a nation, Hirohito remained preoccupied with politics and with his place in history. Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan provides the definitive account of his rich life and legacy. Meticulously researched and utterly engaging, this book is proof that the history of twentieth-century Japan cannot be understood apart from the life of its most remarkable and enduring leader.
650 ## - SUBJECT ADDED ENTRY--TOPICAL TERM
Topical term or geographic name entry element History - Asia
Holdings
Withdrawn status Lost status Damaged status Not for loan Home library Current library Date acquired Total checkouts Full call number Barcode Date last seen Copy number Price effective from Koha item type
        Lake Chapala Society Lake Chapala Society 07/17/2024   952.03 BIX 58646 07/17/2024 1 07/17/2024 Book

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