East Asian Thought: A Critique of Modern Japanese Ideology

Author: (Japan) Kazuo Shibusawa / Zhao Jinghua (editors)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-09-01
Features: This book is a collection of essential works by the renowned Japanese scholar Kazuo Shibusawa. The author is a rare intellectual in the Japanese academic world, known for his critical spirit, who has long served as the president of the Society for the Study of Japanese Thought. In the book, the author delivers a fierce critique of the so-called self-evident rationality of Japan's modern knowledge system and discourse framework, and re-examines the topic of "East Asia," which is both steeped in historical traces and urgently relevant in the present. The author aims to thoroughly cleanse what is termed Japan's "modernity"—the pervasive nationalism in its modern culture and the unreflective, widespread use of discourse from the colonial era—through the analysis of these issues, in order to establish new values and perspectives. Additionally, the strong critical consciousness found in this book allows readers to witness the objectivity and fairness of the Japanese academic world, thereby laying some positive groundwork for the genuine establishment of a dialogue platform between the intellectual communities of China and Japan.