Oxford LibGuides: Japanese Studies: Books

Physical books

Use the tabs above to explore the key texts and libraries for students of Japanese studies. Access to collections and borrowing privileges are subject to conditions; please check individual library websites for further information.

Help with books

For those wishing to learn more about searching for physical collections in Oxford, we recommend the following:

SOLO: Search Oxford Libraries Online guide
A guide for students and researchers at the University of Oxford, or those visiting, who seek support in using the Bodleian Libraries resource discovery tool, SOLO.
Bodleian Libraries special collections
Information about special collections at the Bodleian Libraries and how to access them.
Bodleian Libraries theses and dissertations
Links to information on accessing the Bodleian Libraries collections of Oxford, UK, US and other international theses.

Below you will find some of the key texts for Japanese studies. The links will take you through to SOLO where you can find out how to access the books.

Anarchist Modernity by Sho Konishi
Call Number: HX947 .K584 2013
ISBN: 9780674073319
Publication Date: 2013-09-09
Mid-nineteenth century Russian radicals who witnessed the Meiji Restoration saw it as the most sweeping revolution in recent history and the impetus for future global progress. Acting outside imperial encounters, they initiated underground transnational networks with Japan. Prominent intellectuals and cultural figures, from Peter Kropotkin and Lev Tolstoy to Saigo Takamori and Tokutomi Roka, pursued these unofficial relationships through correspondence, travel, and networking, despite diplomatic and military conflicts between their respective nations. Tracing these non-state networks, Anarchist Modernity uncovers a major current in Japanese intellectual and cultural life between 1860 and 1930 that might be described as "cooperatist anarchist modernity"-a commitment to realizing a modern society through mutual aid and voluntary activity, without the intervention of state governance. These efforts later crystallized into such movements as the Nonwar Movement, Esperantism, and the popularization of the natural sciences. Examining cooperatist anarchism as an intellectual foundation of modern Japan, Sho Konishi offers a new approach to Japanese history that fundamentally challenges the "logic" of Western modernity. It looks beyond this foundational construct of modern history writing to understand people, practices, and cultural expressions that have been forgotten or dismissed as products of anti-modern nativist counter urges against the West.
The Cambridge history of Japan, 6 vols. by Marius B. Jansen (Editor, Contribution by); John Whitney Hall (Contribution by); Madoka Kanai (Contribution by); Denis Twitchett (Contribution by)
Call Number: DS835 .C36 1988 v.1-v.6
ISBN: 9780521223560
Publication Date: 1989-07-28
The Cambridge History of Japan provides the most comprehensive account available in any Western language of Japan's transformation from a feudal society to a modern nation state. It traces the roots and course of political, social, and institutional change that took place in Japan from late Tokugawa times to the early twentieth century. During this period Japan, under pressure from the intrusive West, abandoned its policy of national seclusion and remodeled its institutions to build the strength necessary to join the great powers and to fashion an empire in East Asia. The volume consists of an interrelated collection of authoritative and analytical chapters by specialists in the history of nineteenth-century Japan that discuss the fissures in late feudal society, the impact of and responses to the West, the overthrow of the shogunal government, and the revolutionary changes that were instituted as defensive measures to strengthen the country against what seemed a dangerous competition with the Western world.
Education, Equality, and Meritocracy in a Global Age by Takehiko Kariya; Jeremy Rappleye; Gita Steiner-Khamsi (Series edited by)
Call Number: LC213.3.J3 K37 2020
ISBN: 9780807764091
Publication Date: 2020-06-30
How has schooling functioned in the construction of meritocratic national systems historically? To what extent will these historical patterns and normative commitments continue in the new era of a global meritocracy? And ultimately, how can educators effectively balance the inherent tension between individual merit and standardized quality? Kariya and Rappleye explore the answers to these questions and more by focusing on the Japanese model, long recognized globally for being one of the most equitable and meritocratic systems in the world. Looking at the country's educational history and policy shifts, the authors point to the important comparative lessons for sociology and education research. They show how the Japanese experience can inform global approaches to educational reform and policymaking--and how this kind of exploration can reinvigorate a more rigorous discussion of meritocracy, equality, and education. Book Features: Rethink the complex relationships among meritocracy, education, and equality from a global perspective. See how nations beyond North America and Western Europe have developed different, more equitable approaches to improve outcomes for all learners. Explore the root causes of current problems in meritocracy through a look at the historical background of Japan's postwar experience. Transcend prevailing stereotypes of Japanese education and society, and reconceptualize these differences as alternative approaches. Understand how pedagogical approaches and funding mechanisms are fundamentally entangled through the authors' rich empirical detail.
A History of the Japanese Language by Bjarke Frellesvig
ISBN: 9780521653206
Publication Date: 2010-07-29
Bjarke Frellesvig describes the development of the Japanese language from its recorded beginnings until the present day as reflected by the written sources and historical record. Beginning with a description of the oldest attested stage of the language, Old Japanese (approximately the eighth century AD), and then tracing the changes which occurred through the Early Middle Japanese (800-1200), Late Middle Japanese (1200-1600) and the Modern Japanese (1600-onwards) periods, a complete internal history of the language is examined and discussed. This account provides a comprehensive study of how the Japanese language has developed and adapted, providing a much needed resource for scholars. A History of the Japanese Language is invaluable to all those interested in the Japanese language and also students of language change generally.
Sino-Japanese Power Politics by Giulio Pugliese; Aurelio Insisa
Call Number: DS740.5.J3 P84 2017
ISBN: 9781137595539
Publication Date: 2016-12-28
This book is about Japan-China power politics in the military, economic and propaganda domains. The post-2012 standoff over the disputed Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands has unveiled the antagonistic quality to Sino-Japanese relations, with an important addition: a massive information war that has cemented the two states' rivalry. Under the Xi and Abe administrations, China and Japan insisted on their moral position as benign and peaceful powers, and portrayed the neighbor as an aggressive revisionist. By highlighting great power rivalry, this study makes a theoretical contribution in favor of the power politics behind Sino-Japanese identities. The work is multidisciplinary in spirit and aims to speak both to academics and to general readers who might be curious of understanding this fascinating if worrisome facet of Sino-Japanese relations. In turn, the assessment of the diplomatic, economic and identity clash between the world's second and third wealthiest states provides a window in understanding the international politics of the Asia-Pacific in the early 21st Century. This book is an invaluable resource for scholars, Area Studies and Political Science students and policymakers alike.
Small Firms in the Japanese Economy by D. H. Whittaker
Call Number: HD2346.J32 T69 1997
ISBN: 9780521581523
Publication Date: 1997-04-10
Now in paperback, this book considers the role of small firms in the Japanese economy and challenges established views of the Japanese economy, society and political economy. Japan's giant corporations are household names, and dominate our views of the Japanese economy. But surprisingly, Japan also ranks alongside Italy as having the highest proportion of small firms - and employment in them - amongst the OECD countries. These small firms have either been ignored, or they have been treated as appendages of large firms. This book paints a balanced picture based on a unique and statistically rich survey. It looks at small firms in Japan's leading machine industries, their relations with each other as well as with large firms, and their internal management, employment and technology dynamics. Paradoxically, in contrast to the 'resurgence' of small firms in other industrialised countries, their number and employment share in Japan are now in decline.
A Sociology of Japanese Youth by Roger Goodman (Editor); Yuki Imoto (Editor); Tuukka Toivonen (Editor)
Call Number: HQ799.J3 S63 2012
ISBN: 9780415669269
Publication Date: 2012-01-12
Over the past thirty years, whilst Japan has produced a diverse set of youth cultures which have had a major impact on popular culture across the globe, it has also developed a succession of youth problems which have led to major concerns within the country itself. Drawing on detailed empirical fieldwork, the authors of this volume set these issues in a clearly articulated 'social constructionist' framework, and put forth a sociology of Japanese youth problems which argues that there is a certain predictability about the way in which these problems are discovered, defined and dealt with. The chapters include case studies covering issues such as: Returnee children (kikokushijo) Compensated dating (enjo kōsai) Corporal punishment (taibatsu) Bullying (ijime) Child abuse (jidō gyakutai) The withdrawn youth (hikikomori) and NEETs (not in education, employment or training) By examining these various social problems collectively, A Sociology of Japanese Youth explains why particular youth problems appeared when they did and what lessons they can provide for the study of youth problems in other societies. This book will be of huge interest to students and scholars of Japanese society and culture, the sociology of Japan, Japanese anthropology and the comparative sociology of youth studies.

Bodleian Japanese Library:The Japanese Library houses the University’s main research and teaching collection for Japanese studies. Opened to readers in April 1993, it is located in the Nissan Institute of Japanese Studies on the premises of St. Antony's College. It is an open-access library which welcomes all readers. Less frequently used books are stored offsite and need to be requested to a reading room via SOLO.

Bodleian Library:The Bodleian Library is the University's largest library, with holdings numbering several million items. Frequently used books are kept on the open shelves in the reading rooms. Books stored offsite need to be requested to a reading room via SOLO, or you can request a scan to be sent to your email.
KB Chen China Centre Library: The KB Chen China Centre Library is the specialist hub library for Chinese studies.
Nizami Ganjavi Library: The Nizami Ganjavi Library is based in the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies
Weston Library: The Weston Library is the home of the Bodleian Libraries’ special collections.
Art Library: The Art, Archaeology and Ancient World Library focuses on the study of archaeology, art and architectural history.
Social Science Library: The Social Science Library (SSL) supports staff and students in the Social Science Division.

Electronic books (ebooks)

Ebooks are digital versions of written works. Broadly speaking they come in two forms: they are either 'born digital' or are digital reproductions of printed books. See the tabs above for details of different ebook resources relevant to those studying Japanese studies.

Features

Many ebooks have enhanced functionality, such as connectivity with reference management software, the ability to annotate and accessibility features.

Access

Members of Oxford University can use ebooks that the Bodleian Libraries have purchased for free. Search for them on SOLO. They can be read on a desktop computer, laptop, tablet, e-reader or mobile phone; you just need your Oxford Single Sign On to access them. Individually purchased ebooks are all searchable on SOLO, but not all purchased ebook collections are, so it is important to visit the websites of ebook collections too. Look at the 'ebook collections' tab above.

Note, some ebooks have restrictive access and usage terms, for example they can only be read by one person at a time.

Some books are acquired via 'electronic Legal Deposit'. These must be read on a library desktop computer in one of the Bodleian Libraries. Further information on how to identify and access electronic Legal Deposit items on SOLO is at the link below.

Electronic Legal Deposit guide

Help with ebooks

The links below are provided for those wishing to learn more about ebooks.

Ebooks guide
A guide intended for students and staff using, or likely to use, ebooks in the course of their studies and research.
Online and Remote Access
Information on accessing Bodleian Libraries content remotely.
University of Oxford E-resources Blog
The e-resources team use this blog to help keep you informed of news and changes in the world of ejournals and databases.

Below you will find some of the key texts available as ebooks for Japanese studies.

Access

You will need your Oxford Single Sign On to access the ebooks if you are not on the University network.

The Cambridge History of Japanese Literature by Haruo Shirane (Editor); Tomi Suzuki (Editor); David Lurie (Editor)
ISBN: 9781107029033
Publication Date: 2015-12-17
The Cambridge History of Japanese Literature provides, for the first time, a history of Japanese literature with comprehensive coverage of the premodern and modern eras in a single volume. The book is arranged topically in a series of short, accessible chapters for easy access and reference, giving insight into both canonical texts and many lesser known, popular genres, from centuries-old folk literature to the detective fiction of modern times. The various period introductions provide an overview of recurrent issues that span many decades, if not centuries. The book also places Japanese literature in a wider East Asian tradition of Sinitic writing and provides comprehensive coverage of women's literature as well as new popular literary forms, including manga (comic books). An extensive bibliography of works in English enables readers to continue to explore this rich tradition through translations and secondary reading.
Doing Fieldwork in Japan by Theodore C. Bestor (Editor); Patricia G. Steinhoff (Editor); Victoria Lyon Bestor (Editor)
ISBN: 9780824862237
Publication Date: 2003-07-31
Doing Fieldwork in Japan taps the expertise of North American and European specialists on the practicalities of conducting long-term research in the social sciences and cultural studies. In lively first-person accounts, they discuss their successes and failures doing fieldwork across rural and urban Japan in a wide range of settings: among religious pilgrims and adolescent consumers; on factory assembly lines and in high schools and wholesale seafood markets; with bureaucrats in charge of defense, foreign aid, and social welfare policy; inside radical political movements; among adherents of "New Religions"; inside a prosecutor's office and the JET Program for foreign English teachers; with journalists in the NHK newsroom; while researching race, ethnicity, and migration; and amidst fans and consumers of contemporary popular culture. Contributors: David M. Arase, Theodore C. Bestor, Victoria Lyon Bestor, Mary C. Brinton, John Creighton Campbell, Samuel Coleman, Suzanne Culter, Andrew Gordon, Helen Hardacre, Joy Hendry, David T. Johnson, Ellis S. Krauss, David L. McConnell, Ian Reader, Glenda S. Roberts, Joshua Hotaka Roth, Robert J. Smith, Sheila A. Smith, Patricia G. Steinhoff, Merry Isaacs White, Christine R. Yano.
The Japanese Economy by David Flath
ISBN: 9780198702405
Publication Date: 2005
Japan remains one of the dominant economic powers. Yet the Japanese economy is one of the most misunderstood phenomena in the modern world. Conventionally, Japan is presented as the exception to mainstream economic theory: an exception to the standard models of modern economics. This bookdemolishes that notion, bringing the full analytical power of economic thought to all aspects of the most dramatic economic success story in recent times.David Flath concentrates on four main themes: Japan's economic growth and development; Japan's integration with the world economy; Government policies and their effects; Economic institutions and practices.By applying common economic tools such as the Solow growth model, Modigliani's life-cycle model of saving, Becker's theory of investment, Samuelson's theory of revealed preference, Coase's exposition of the problem of social cost, and the modern theory of industrial organization, this book showsthat the mainstream principles of economics apply in Japan as successfully as they do elsewhere.Revised and updated to take account of recent developments in Japanese banking and macroeconomics, this book is an indispensable resource for students and instructors alike. Lucid explanations and comprehensive and rigorous analysis make it natural choice for anyone interested in comprehending therise of the Japanese economy.
Postwar Japan As History by Andrew Gordon (Editor)
ISBN: 9780520074743
Publication Date: 1993-10-20
Japan's catapult to world economic power has inspired many studies by social scientists, but few have looked at the 45 years of postwar Japan through the lens of history. The contributors to this book seek to offer such a view. As they examine three related themes of postwar history, the authors describe an ongoing historical process marked by unexpected changes, such as Japan's extraordinary economic growth, and unanticipated continuities, such as the endurance of conservative rule. A provocative set of interpretative essays by eminent scholars, this book will appeal to anyone interested in the history of twentieth-century Japan and the dilemmas facing Japan today.
Routledge Handbook of Japanese Culture and Society by Victoria Bestor (Editor); Theodore C. Bestor (Editor); Akiko Yamagata (Editor)
ISBN: 9780203818459
Publication Date: 2011-04-13
The Routledge Handbook of Japanese Culture and Society is an interdisciplinary resource that focuses on contemporary Japan and the social and cultural trends that are important at the beginning of the twenty-first century. This Handbook provides a cutting-edge and comprehensive survey of significant phenomena, institutions, and directions in Japan today, on issues ranging from gender and family, the environment, race and ethnicity, and urban life, to popular culture and electronic media. Written by an international team of Japan experts, the chapters included in the volume form an accessible and fascinating insight into Japanese culture and society. As such, the Handbook will be an invaluable reference tool for anyone interested in all things Japanese. Students, teachers and professionals alike will benefit from the broad ranging discussions, useful links to online resources and suggested reading lists. The Handbook will be of interest across a wide range of disciplines including Japanese Studies, Cultural Studies, Anthropology, Sociology and Asian Studies in general.
Sources of Japanese Tradition by Arthur Tiedemann (Editor); Wm. Theodore de Bary (Editor); Carol Gluck (Editor)
ISBN: 9780231121385
Publication Date: 2001-05-07
Sources of Japanese Tradition is a best-selling classic, unrivaled for its wide selection of source readings on history, society, politics, education, philosophy, and religion in the Land of the Rising Sun. In this long-awaited second edition, the editors have revised or retranslated most of the texts in the original 1958 edition, and added a great many selections not included or translated before. They have also restructured volume 1 to span the period from the early Japanese chronicles to the end of the sixteenth century. New additions include: * readings on early and medieval Shinto and on the tea ceremony, * readings on state Buddhism and Chinese political thought influential in Japan, and * sections on women's education, medieval innovations in the uses of history, and laws and precepts of the medieval warrior houses. Together, the selections shed light on the development of Japanese civilization in its own terms, without reference to Western parallels, and will continue to assist generations of students and lay readers in understanding Japanese culture.
Topographies of Japanese Modernism by Seiji Lippit
ISBN: 0231125305
Publication Date: 2002-04-01
What happens when a critique of modernity--a "revolt against the traditions of the Western world"--is situated within a non-European context, where the concept of the modern has been inevitably tied to the image of the West? Seiji M. Lippit offers the first comprehensive study in English of Japanese modernist fiction of the 1920s and 1930s. Through close readings of four leading figures of this movement-- Akutagawa, Yokomitsu, Kawabata, and Hayashi--Lippit aims to establish a theoretical and historical framework for the analysis of Japanese modernism. The 1920s and 1930s witnessed a general sense of crisis surrounding the institution of literature, marked by both the radical politicization of literary practice and the explosion of new forms of cultural production represented by mass culture. Against this backdrop, this study traces the heterogeneous literary topographies of modernist writings. Through an engagement with questions of representation, subjectivity, and ideology, it situates the disintegration of literary form in these texts within the writers' exploration of the fluid borderlines of Japanese modernity.

The following is a list of ebook collections applicable to the Japanese studies at Oxford. Not all ebook collections are available on SOLO, so it is important to visit ebook collection websites to expand your search. You can browse and search across all ebooks on the provider's website and encounter titles of interest you may not have otherwise found.

Access

The ebook collections have been selected by the Bodleian Libraries and you are able to access them for free because of institutional subscriptions to the content. You will need your Oxford Single Sign On to access the collections if you are not on the University network.

A number of eresources, including ebook collections, are freely available online and listed below.

Access

Some of these resources are listed on SOLO but not all, so it is important to visit the websites to expand your search. You do not need your Oxford Single Sign On to access them. These are different to the ebooks purchased by the Bodleian Libraries for which you need your Single Sign On for access.

Google Scholar
Used to search for scholarly literature including articles, theses, abstracts and books from a variety of publishers.
Digital Book Index
Provides links to more than 165,000 full-text digital books from more than 1800 commercial and non-commercial publishers, universities, and various private sites. More than 140,000 of these books, texts, and documents are available free.
Internet Archive
A non-profit library of millions of free books, movies, software, music, websites, and more.
Many Books
A library of close to 50,000 free ebooks, with a selection of classic poltical and philosophical texts.
Open Book Publishers
Open Book Publishers is one of the biggest independent open access academic publishers of monographs in the UK.
Open Textbook Library
Supported by the Open Education Network, the Open Textbook Library offers over 800 etextbooks that are licensed by authors and publishers to be freely used and adapted. Download, edit and distribute them at no cost.

Recommend a book

If the Bodleian Libraries don't have the print or ebook you are looking for, you can make a recommendation by completing the form below (Oxford Single-Sign On required).

Recommend a purchase

Inter-library loans

If the Bodleian Libraries don't have the book you are looking for, we may be able to source it through Oxford's inter-library loan service.

Inter-library Loans Service Online Form
Use this form to request material not held by the Bodleian Libraries. Please check Oxford collections on SOLO and ensure that the item is not in stock, either in print or electronically.

Why are some books not available electronically?

There are a number of reasons why the Bodleian Libraries may be unable to provide electronic access to a resource. The ebooks guide explains some of these reasons:

Discovering online library resources

Japanese Studies: Books

Introduction

Physical books

Help with books

Electronic books (ebooks)

Features

Access

Help with ebooks

Access

Access

Access

Recommend a book

Inter-library loans

Why are some books not available electronically?