Inexorable Modernity by Hiroshi Nara

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Inexorable Modernity by Hiroshi Nara

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Summary

A compilation of case studies about Japanese intellectuals' relationships to modernity in three majors arenas of art (art and aesthetics, theater, and literature) beginning in the 1850s to the 1970s. It discusses how inevitable wave of modernity was responded to, discussed, assimilated, changed by some practitioners of art and intellectuals.

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Inexorable Modernity by Hiroshi Nara

Beginning in late Edo, the Japanese faced a rapidly and irreversibly changing world in which industrialization, westernization, and internationalization was exerting pressure upon an entrenched traditional culture. The Japanese themselves felt threatened by Western powers, with their sense of superiority and military might. Yet, the Japanese were more prepared to meet this challenge than was thought at the time, and they used a variety of strategies to address the tension between modernity and tradition. Inexorable Modernity illuminates our understanding of how Japan has dealt with modernity and of what mechanisms, universal and local, we can attribute to the mode of negotiation between tradition and modernity in three major forms of art-theater, the visual arts, and literature. Dr. Hiroshi Nara brings together a thoughtful collection of essays that demonstrate that traditional and modern approaches to life feed off of one other, and tradition, whether real or created, was sought out in order to find a way to live with the burden of modernity. Inexorable Modernity is a valuable and enlightening read for those interested in Asian studies and history.
Inexorable Modernity has the clear virtue of addressing modern Japanese aesthetics, painting, and theater in a single volume, one of very few recent works to do so* The Journal of Japanese Studies *
By drawing together essays on art and aesthetics, theatre, film, and literature, this volume provides a broad, nuanced view of the landscape of modernity in Japan. It is a most interesting and useful resource for teaching—a fine tribute to an outstanding scholar and teacher whose erudition and creativity have afforded pleasure and insight to so many readers over the years. -- Elaine Gerbert, associate professor of modern Japanese literature, University of Kansas
Hiroshi Nara is professor of Japanese language and Japanese linguistics at the University of Pittsburgh.
SKU Unavailable
ISBN 13 9780739118429
ISBN 10 0739118420
Title Inexorable Modernity
Author Hiroshi Nara
Condition Unavailable
Binding Type Paperback
Publisher Lexington Books
Year published 2007-02-16
Number of pages 284
Cover note Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
Note Unavailable