Japan Rising: The Resurgence of Japanese Power and Purpose

What a wonderful analysis of Japan! A psychological profile on a seemingly enigmatic nation, the author explains with great clarity Japan's strategy of engagement with the world. Just terrific!

Kenneth Pyle's examination of Japan's history and its ability to move with the flow of the times is well-done, detailed and very intriguing. He takes the reader through a sometimes clinical, but understandable tour of Japan's changes from the times of feudalism up through its 21st Century situation. Japan has often taken a possibly Taoist stance on the changes put before it over the decades; to adopt, adapt and improve on what went about around it. The acceptance of western ways from the time of America's first appearance in the 1850's to the time of the Meiji Restoration show the ability to take up the way of others without losing one's own identity. In recent decades that appears to be more of a concern; Japan's identity crisis is examined in great detail, from the time of the Yoshida influence, the maverick nature of the Nakasone administration, to the rise of Ozawa and the "Heisei Generation." The relations between Japan and its neighbors is a balancing act, with regard to the US as well, and the gestures between the Koreas and China with Japan still have much to reconcile. In particular, the military atrocities in those countries during the Second World War, which are still open wounds to many. A great history lesson, all in all.

After the occupation of Japan ended in 1952 by the United States, the Japanese nation would emerge as one of the strongest economical nations in the world. Without a doubt, Japan has been the economic empire of the Far East along with China but the Japanese do pay their employees much better than China. Japan has adopted a largely pacifist constitution since it was the military leaders who led Japan into World War II and almost complete destruction. This book traces the development of the Japanese military since the close of the Cold War and the beginnings of the new war on terrorism. The United States and most democratic allies are looking for Japan to rebuild its military might for several reasons. First, Japan is now an allied nation. Secondly, Japan is now a democratic nation allowing the people to help its leaders control the military. Thirdly, Japan could help offset North Korea and China as rogue nations in southeast Asia. Fourth, its simply a matter of time before Islamic terrorist target Japan. Japan has every right to protect herself. I found this book to be enlightning. If you would have told the Marines at Guam or Iwo Jima that Japan would be an allied nation along with the United States, almost none would have accepted that premise. Today the United States (and Europe) needs Japan to rebuild its military to help fight terrorism. The spending by the Japanese on their military has been steadly going up as Japan seeks to defend itself in the coming battle. Japanese forces are already helping the United States in its battles in the middle east. Overall this a good read. I would encourage you to study Japan as it rebuilds its military might.

Kenneth Pyle does a remarkable job in helping his readers better assess the future behavior of a resurgent Japan in fast-changing Asia. U.S. policymakers have been repeatedly wrong-footed in gauging Japan's foreign policy since the arrival of Commodore Matthew Perry and his ships on Japan's shores in 1853 (pp. 10, 67). Think for instance about the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor as an act of economic desperation over the American oil embargo, despite the odds against military victory (pp. 10 - 11, 64 - 65, 135 - 36, 204, 354). Another example is the Yoshida doctrine, Japan's unique Cold War policy that relied on U.S. security guarantees while pursuing mercantile realism, to which American policymakers remained oblivious for a long time (pp. 13, 45 - 46, 212, 225 - 77, 291). Part of the challenge in understanding Japan is that the country is simultaneously a state and a unique civilization (pp. 13, 49 - 50). Furthermore, Japan has vacillated between infuriating ethnocentrism and remarkable receptivity to foreign influences during its history without ultimately sacrificing its unique culture (pp. 18 - 19, 22 - 23, 58 - 62, 76, 100 - 05, 116 - 36, 176, 239, 245). Finally, Japan has often not done enough to factor in the legitimate concerns of other countries in its "opaque" decision-making process, resulting in some needless frictions (pp. 15 - 16, 229, 250 - 52, 306 - 09, 354). To his credit, Pyle clearly shows that the Japanese tend to shun radical change in their interaction with the outside world unless the circumstances deprive them of any other option. The difficulty of making change and the rapidity with which irresistible changes occur have often confused foreigners because of the apparent, inherent contradiction in this policy (pp. 52, 76). Resource poor and a late arriver in the modern world, Japan is among the few countries in modern history which have been especially sensitive and responsive to the forces of the international environment (pp. 21 - 22, 27, 49). As a matter of self-interest, Japan has repeatedly allied itself with the dominant ascendant power (pp. 12, 44 - 46). Modern Japan's behavior is especially remarkable when one remembers that the country benefited from a unique isolation and security for almost all its history prior to the 19th century. (pp. 32, 34). The origin of that astonishing capability to adapt to external forces lies in the legacy of Japanese feudalism (pp. 39 - 41, 59, 62, 84). The same conservative ruling elite has displayed an extraordinary resilience in carrying on the strategic principles of the Meiji leaders, despite the ups and downs in their fortunes (pp. 23 - 24, 43 - 44, 49-51, 194, 220, 225 - 26, 260 - 77, 293, 357). Pyle spends most of his time covering how Japan reorganized its domestic institutions to support its foreign policy while accommodating five fundamental changes in the international order in East Asia in the last century and half (p. 28): 1) The collapse of

Japan is a country that has faded into the background for many Americans. It is there, but not front and center like China or even Korea (North/South.) But the terms of our two countries' basically comfortable bilateral relationship may soon shift. Professor Pyle, a well-informed academic, reminds his readers that Japan is important not only as a current major world economic force but as an emerging political and military power in the future of Asia. Change is afoot in Japan -- with a younger population not grounded in the searing aftermath of World War II -- as it adjusts its foreign policy to post-Cold War realities. A book for those serious about understanding both historical and modern Japan, and its possible future in relation to China, Taiwan, Russia, Korea, and the United States.