Emperor of Japan [Hardcover]

Donald Keene (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 15, 2002

When Emperor Meiji began his rule, in 1867, Japan was a splintered empire, dominated by the shogun and the daimyos, who ruled over the country's more than 250 decentralized domains and who were, in the main, cut off from the outside world, staunchly antiforeign, and committed to the traditions of the past. Before long, the shogun surrendered to the emperor, a new constitution was adopted, and Japan emerged as a modern, industrialized state.

Despite the length of his reign, little has been written about the strangely obscured figure of Meiji himself, the first emperor ever to meet a European. Most historians discuss the period that takes his name while barely mentioning the man, assuming that he had no real involvement in affairs of state. Even Japanese who believe Meiji to have been their nation's greatest ruler may have trouble recalling a single personal accomplishment that might account for such a glorious reputation. Renowned Japan scholar Donald Keene sifts the available evidence to present a rich portrait not only of Meiji but also of rapid and sometimes violent change during this pivotal period in Japan's history.

In this vivid and engrossing biography, we move with the emperor through his early, traditional education; join in the formal processions that acquainted the young emperor with his country and its people; observe his behavior in court, his marriage, and his relationships with various consorts; and follow his maturation into a "Confucian" sovereign dedicated to simplicity, frugality, and hard work. Later, during Japan's wars with China and Russia, we witness Meiji's struggle to reconcile his personal commitment to peace and his nation's increasingly militarized experience of modernization. Emperor of Japan conveys in sparkling prose the complexity of the man and offers an unrivaled portrait of Japan in a period of unique interest.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Drawing extensively from the Meiji tenno ki, the official Japanese record of the emperor's life, noted Japan scholar and Columbia professor emeritus Keene fills this monumental work with a wealth of factual information from the emperor's childhood illnesses and tours across the country to his political role in the state apparatus. This work is also, as the title suggests, an examination of Meiji's world, and Keene uses diaries and letters of the emperor's contemporaries, as well as secondary sources, to describe important events and people in Japan's transition to a modern nation-state. Keene is seeking the personality behind the historical figure, but since Meiji kept no diary and wrote almost no letters, it is difficult to determine his personal feelings about the historical events of the time. Keene does examine Meiji's poems and anecdotes from acquaintances in order to provide a rounder sketch of the man, but often, in the attempt to personalize him, Keene must resort to speculation about how the emperor "must have felt" at particular moments. Keene is obviously attracted by the subject of his study and often points out qualities in the man that he finds lacking in European monarchs of the same period (Meiji was more frugal and less arrogant, Keene notes, than the tsar, his enemy in the Russo-Japanese War). But in the end, Keene admits that "Meiji seems almost to repel attempts by a biographer to come closer" than the officially prepared chronicles allow. Perhaps, as one contemporary politician noted, "The emperor had almost no private side to him." Keene's achievement, then, is the enormous wealth of information that he makes available to the English reader. This book will undoubtedly be the most complete picture possible of a sovereign who remains as distant as a proper Confucian ruler should.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

During the Meiji era (1868-1912), Japan entered world politics as a modernizing and ambitious imperial power. Previous studies of this era largely slighted the emperor himself, but Keene (Shincho Professor of Japanese Literature and University Professor Emeritus, Columbia Univ.), a titan of Japanese studies, brings the emperor out of the wings and onto center stage in this vivid and richly detailed chronicle. Using a multitude of Japanese and other sources, Keene argues that Meiji was no mere figurehead but an increasingly active participant in the politics of modern Japan, particularly after he outgrew his youthful impatience with state affairs. Keene's admiration for Meiji, an unsympathetic figure who drank to excess, ignored his own children, and often slighted his duties, is somewhat baffling on the evidence presented. Ultimately, the Meiji era is much more interesting than the man himself. Keene, a literary scholar, is a master narrator with an eye for fascinating details, but his sprawling chronicle is weak on analysis of the historical significance of an era that he views almost exclusively from the vantage point of court politics. For academic and larger public libraries. Steven I. Levine, Univ. of Montana, Missoula
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 928 pages
• Publisher: Columbia University Press (May 15, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 023112340X
• ISBN-13: 978-0231123402
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.5 x 2.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,023,953 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Less about Meiji than "His World" yet still *excellent*, June 26, 2002

By 

macktheknife (Northern, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Emperor of Japan (Hardcover)

Author Donald Keene begins "Emperor of Japan" by introducing an interesting paradox: How is it that the Meiji emperor is one of the most revered figures in Japanese history, yet so little is known about the emperor as an individual? The aim of "Emperor of Japan" is to shed some light on the life of the Meiji emperor while placing him in the context of his times. Keene, however, only partially succeeds in this regard due to several problems he himself highlighted. The Meiji emperor kept no diary but wrote thousands of poems, although few revealed his true thoughts; official court chronicles kept a detailed record on the emperor's activities but all were concerned with events (i.e. the emperor did this and that); and eyewitness accounts by relatives and advisors-although extremely valuable-were sometimes contradictory or inaccurate.

Despite such formidable obstacles, Keene nevertheless does an incredible job of bringing Meiji to life by pulling as much sources together and making educated speculations on the implications of Meiji's day-to-day activities. Meiji was a diligent emperor who understood the gravity of his position and the responsibilities it entailed by taking a more active role than his predecessors in discussing and examining state matters with his officials. He had toured Japan a number of times during his reign, out of the conviction that an emperor should be closer to his people. He was open to adopting western ways but remained a traditionalist, as exemplified by his distrust of western medicine and his preference for hearing lectures on Confucian philosophy. He placed great value on education, as shown by his propensity to tour schools and offer dictionaries as gifts to pupils and his obsession with his son's (and the future Taisho emperor) education and curriculum.

The real strength of the book, in this reader's opinion, is the detailed account of Japan's march towards modernity from the end of the Tokugawa shogunate through the first decade of the 20th century. Readers will get an extremely detailed account of the Meiji Restoration, the political disputes that led to the Satsuma Rebellion, Meiji and his advisors' thoughts on the Sino-Japanese and Russo-Japanese wars, and Japan's search for a viable and more modern system of governance. Individuals like Saigo Takamori and Ito Hirobumi come to life in Keene's account.

I recommend this book for anyone who familiar with modern Japanese history and is interested in reading this narrative on the life and times of a well-known-yet poorly understood-individual.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A massive tome that is worth every page, April 9, 2005

By 

R. Brown "JapanVisitor.com" (Kyoto) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Emperor of Japan (Hardcover)

During the Meiji Period (1868-1912), Japan was thrust back into the world after a two-century self-imposed absence in which Japanese were prohibited from leaving and foreigners were banned from entering Japan-punishable by death. In this period, Japan entered the world stage hellbent on modernizing and catching up with the imperial powers of the West. Donald Keene, the dean of Japan studies and Professor Emeritus at Columbia, attempts to paint a picture of the Emperor for whom the period is named and about whom little is known. His name and the period are of course extremely well-known, both inside and outside of Japan; but the life of the Meiji Emperor himself remains hidden.

Drawing extensively from the Tenno no Ki, or official imperial diary, and other Japanese sources, Keene fills in the many blanks of the life of a man often derided as a mere figure-head. When the Meiji Emperor began his rule, in 1867, Japan was not a unified country per se; it was dominated rather by the shogun and the daimyos, who ruled over Japan's more than 250 decentralized domains. However, these rabidly xenophobic men yielded ultimately to a new constitution and Japan was on the road to becoming a modern state.

Keene's biography begins with the emperor's traditional education; we see the formal occasions that acquainted the young emperor with his subjects; have a ringside seat at his court, marriage, and his relationships with various consorts. This is a massive tome that will keep the reader hoping for more and sorry to see its 900-plus pages end.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars just one sour note..., February 20, 2003

By 

lordhoot "lordhoot" (Anchorage, Alaska USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Emperor of Japan (Hardcover)

I really don't have nothing more positive to add compared to two previous reviews which speak for itself. The book proves to be everything they stated. However, I would like to add this train of thought which may sound bit negative but something for author to considered in the future. For one, it needs a map. Imperial Japan isn't one of these geographical places many Americans really know about. Maps and diagrams would have been greatly helpful. Second, more photos of historical characters in the book. It would be nice to have faces to go with the names - most who were total unknown to most Americans. I am surprised considering the research involved in this book that Mr. Keene could not add more photos even although he writes about them in the book. Otherwise, the previous two reviews proves to be very accurate. Top notch book that combined biographical as well as historical evolution of the Meiji Emperor and his reign.