Customer Reviews

The Japanese Experience: A Short History of Japan (History of Civilisation)

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At just under 300 pages, William Beasley's "The Japanese Experience" provides a short but expert overview of Japanese history and culture. The author, who was born in 1919 and died in 2006, was a pioneer in Japanese studies who specialized in the modern history of Japan. The present book, however, offers the entire sweep of Japanese history, from earliest times down to the mid-1990's. With so much material to cover, the book is short on details, but this is compensated by the author's expertise and graceful writing.

Within the constraints of a short book, Beasley has done an admirable job of integrating Japan's cultural and political history into a readable and consistent narrative. A major theme throughout the book is the Japanese response to outside influence (China, Korea, Europe, America), from the Kofun period (250-350 AD) to the present, that the book explains in a thoughtful and easy-to-understand manner.
Like any expert, Beasley has his own opinions (against Heian-period Japan, for example, and against the idea of Japan's "cultural uniqueness.") However, one doesn't have to agree with everything in the book to appreciate its overall value to the general reader, homeschooler, or beginning student.

This is an excellent general history for those who don't have any knowledge of Japanese history or culture. I recommend it to those white Americans who are proud to be rednecks. This book will open your mind to the fact that not all people like to drink beer, watch Nascar and generally behave like louts. After reading this book you will be impelled to read more on this country.