Everyday Life in Traditional Japan

Author: Charles Dunn
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
ISBN: 1462916511
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 195

Book Description
Everyday Life in Traditional Japan paints a vivid portrait of Tokugawa Japan, a time when contact with the outside world was deliberately avoided, and the daily life of the different classes consolidated the traditions that shaped modern Japan. With detailed descriptions and over 100 illustrations, authentic samurai, farmers, craftsmen, merchants, courtiers, priests, entertainers and outcasts come to life in this magnificently illustrated portrait of a colorful society. Most works of Japanese history fail to provide enough details about the lives of the people who lived during the time. The level of detail in Everyday Life in Traditional Japan allows for a nearly complete picture of the history of Japan. In fascinating detail, Charles J. Dunn describes how each class lived: their food, clothing, and houses; their beliefs and their fears. At the same time, he takes account of certain important groups that fell outside the formal class structure, such as the courtiers in the emperor's palace at Kyoto, the Shinto and Buddhist priests, and the other extreme, the actors and the outcasts. he concludes with a lively account of everyday life in the capital city of Edo, the present-day Tokyo.

Everyday Life in Imperial Japan

Author: Charles James Dunn
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 216

Book Description
The author presents the thesis that traditions of modern day Japan were established during the approximately two and a half centuries of Tokugawa rule (1600-1867).

Just Enough

Author: Azby Brown
Publisher: Stone Bridge Press, Inc.
ISBN: 1611729572
Category : House & Home
Languages : en
Pages : 236

Book Description
How the mindset of traditional Japanese society can guide our own efforts to lead a green lifestyle today. If we want to live sustainably, how should we feel about nature? About waste? About our forests and rivers? About food? Just Enough is a book of stories and sketches that give valuable insight into what it is like to live in a sustainable society by describing life in Japan some two hundred years ago, during the late Edo period, when cities and villages faced many of the same environmental challenges we do today and met them beautifully and inventively.

Handbook to Life in Medieval and Early Modern Japan

Author: William E. Deal
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 0195331265
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 433

Book Description
This book is an introduction the Japanese history, culture, and society from 1185 - the beginning of the Kamakura period - through the end of the Edo period in 1868.

Everyday Things in Premodern Japan

Author: Susan B. Hanley
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520922670
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 230

Book Description
Japan was the only non-Western nation to industrialize before 1900 and its leap into the modern era has stimulated vigorous debates among historians and social scientists. In an innovative discussion that posits the importance of physical well-being as a key indicator of living standards, Susan B. Hanley considers daily life in the three centuries leading up to the modern era in Japan. She concludes that people lived much better than has been previously understood—at levels equal or superior to their Western contemporaries. She goes on to illustrate how this high level of physical well-being had important consequences for Japan's ability to industrialize rapidly and for the comparatively smooth transition to a modern, industrial society. While others have used income levels to conclude that the Japanese household was relatively poor in those centuries, Hanley examines the material culture—food, sanitation, housing, and transportation. How did ordinary people conserve the limited resources available in this small island country? What foods made up the daily diet and how were they prepared? How were human wastes disposed of? How long did people live? Hanley answers all these questions and more in an accessible style and with frequent comparisons with Western lifestyles. Her methods allow for cross-cultural comparisons between Japan and the West as well as Japan and the rest of Asia. They will be useful to anyone interested in the effects of modernization on daily life.

Re-made in Japan

Author: Joseph Jay Tobin
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 9780300060829
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 276

Book Description
Colonel Sanders, Elvis, Mickey Mouse, and Jack Daniels have been enthusiastically embraced by Japanese consumers in recent decades. But rather than simply imitate or borrow from the West, the Japanese reinterpret and transform Western products and practices to suit their culture. This entertaining and enlightening book shows how in the process of domesticating foreign goods and customs, the Japanese have created a culture in which once-exotic practices (such as ballroom dancing) have become familiar, and once- familiar practices (such as public bathing) have become exotic. Written by scholars from anthropology, sociology, and the humanities, the book ranges from analyses of Tokyo Disneyland and the Japanese passion for the Argentinean tango to discussions of Japanese haute couture and the search for an authentic nouvelle cuisine japonaise. These topics are approached from a variety of perspectives, with explorations of the interrelations of culture, ideology, and national identity and analyses of the roles that gender, class, generational, and regional differences play in the patterning of Japanese consumption. The result is a fascinating look at a dynamic society that is at once like and unlike our own.

The Historical Consumer

Author: Penelope Francks
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 0230367348
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 454

Book Description
This book explores the rise of consumerism and the expanding variety of goods available in Japan. Japan is placed within the comparative context of the 'consumer revolution' in Europe and North America, contributing to the analysis of the ways in which consumption and everyday life change in the course of economic development.

Art of Japanese Architecture

Author: David Young
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
ISBN: 1462906575
Category : Photography
Languages : en
Pages : 188

Book Description
The Art of Japanese Architecture presents a complete overview of Japanese architecture in its historical and cultural context. The book begins with a discussion of early prehistoric dwellings and concludes with a description of works by important modern Japanese architects. Along the way it discusses the iconic buildings and architectural styles for which Japan is so justly famous--from elegant Shinden and Sukiya aristocratic villas like the Kinkakuji "Golden Pavilion" in Kyoto, to imposing Samurai castles like Himeji and Matsumoto, and tranquil Zen Buddhist gardens and tea houses to rural Minka thatched-roof farmhouses and Shinto shrines. Each period in the development of Japan's architecture is described in detail and the most important structures are shown and discussed--including dozens of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The aesthetic trends in each period are presented within the context of Japanese society at the time, providing a unique in-depth understanding of the way Japanese architectural styles and buildings have developed over time and the great variety that is visible today. The book is profusely illustrated with hundreds of hand-drawn 3D watercolor illustrations and color photos as well as prints, maps and diagrams. The new edition features dozens of new photographs and a handy hardcover format that is perfect for travelers.

Japanese Color Harmony Dictionary: Traditional Colors

Author: Teruko Sakurai
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
ISBN: 1462922678
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 293

Book Description
Expert colorist Teruko Sakurai takes you to the end of the rainbow--and beyond--in this inspiring color dictionary! Over 2,750 traditional Japanese color combinations are presented, organized into 100 different themes associated with the seasons, landscapes and artistic heritage of Japan. Whether it's a shower of pink cherry blossoms, the flutter of a carp flap or the austere and cool tones of Mt. Fuji, flipping the pages of this color dictionary is like taking a stroll through the sensual delights of Japanese culture in all its dazzling tones, hues and palettes. Each two-page section in this richly-illustrated book presents a different theme with the following information: An introduction to the color scheme and a description of how it can be used A number-coded nine-color palette board showing the range of shades and hues that complement and comprise the scheme CMYK, RGB and HEX (the color code used in Japan) references for all nine colors 26 examples including two- and three-color combinations with photos and illustrations This is an indispensable guide for graphic designers, illustrators, decorators, artists and publishing professionals. It will also be enjoyable and inspiring for readers planning their own home design or art projects.

Things Japanese

Author: Nicholas Bornoff
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
ISBN: 1462913814
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 257

Book Description
Traditional Japanese design imbues objects with a sense of history and artistry that easily reaches across cultural boundaries. In Things Japanese: Everyday Objects of Extraordinary Beauty and Significance, author Nicholas Bornoff and photographer Michael Freeman examine over 60 traditional objects that are uniquely Japanese, deftly illustrating their beauty and significance. Beautifully crafted samurai swords Elegant wooden tansu chests Elaborate tea ceremony implements Exquisitely carved netsuke toggles Fabulous silk-and-gold embroidered kimonos Each item is described in loving detail alongside lovely full-color photographs that highlight the great artistry and craftsmanship in everyday items used by real people in traditional Japan. Things Japanese is the perfect book for Japanese antique collectors or anyone interested in Japanese art and the culture and history of Japan.