Japanese Four Books

Author: Benedict P. Fei (USA)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-08-01
Features: The tumultuous encounters between China, Japan, and the United States in the last and the previous century gave rise to The Chrysanthemum and the Sword, Bushido, Japan: An Interpretive Study, and The Japanese, which are the four major texts offering insights into the national character of the Japanese people. The Chrysanthemum and the Sword, written by the renowned American anthropologist Benedict in 1944 for wartime government decision-making, carries significant political and academic tension. Bushido, authored by the Japanese educator Inazō Nitobe in 1899 in defense of the spirit of Bushido, the soul of the Japanese nation, is hailed as Japan's "flower of evil." Japan: An Interpretive Study, penned by Dai Jitao, a prominent figure of the Republic of China, in 1928, offers a political leader's perspective on Japan amid the modern Sino-Japanese conflicts. The Japanese, written by a Chinese military officer and of a Japanese during the early years of the eight-year War of Resistance, became a sensation in the media at the time, earning the nickname "paper bullets" and serving as a prophecy of the anti-Japanese strategy. Now, these four classic works have been compiled into one volume, with a new translation, edited, and accompanied by illustrations, renamed The Four Books of Japan, and presented to readers of the new century as a reference for understanding Japan. It is unlikely to be without benefit.