Terroir: Japan Academic Library

Author: None
Publisher:
Publishing Time: None
Features: The book examines three types of climates—monsoon, desert, and pastoral—and analyzes the religious, philosophical, scientific, and artistic characteristics of each region. It elucidates the relationship between human existence and climate, proposing the view that "World history must give different peoples of different climates their respective places." The book discusses "humanistic climate," which refers to the interrelationships among history, culture, and ethnicity. Climate—being the imprint of human lifestyles and national spirit formed to resist external nature—is divided into three types by the author and Kazuo Watanabe: monsoon, desert, and pastoral, aiming to explore different forms of human existence.
The first type, the monsoon climate, includes China and Japan, but Southeast Asia best reflects its characteristics. People in these regions have developed a rich and delicate sensitivity coupled with a dual personality of endurance and resilience.
The second type, the desert climate, refers to places like Arabia, Africa, and Mongolia, strictly speaking to vast arid and barren lands lacking rainfall. The climate is dry, lifeless, and desolate. People in these regions have cultivated a personality that is obedient, warlike, practical, and determined.
The third type, the pastoral climate, refers to Europe. Southern Europe is bright, while Northern Europe is gloomy, but both experience dry summers and wet winters. In this naturally balanced environment, people are liberated, fostering a spirit of rationalism and giving rise to the concepts of freedom, as well as philosophical and scientific thought.