Things Seen and Unseen - (Discourse and Ideology in Tokugawa Nativism) 2nd Edition by Harry D Harootunian (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

This long-awaited work explores the place of kokugaku (rendered here as "nativism") during Japan's Tokugawa period. Kokugaku, the sense of a distinct and sacred Japanese identity, appeared in the eighteenth century in reaction to the pervasive influence of Chinese culture on Japan. Against this influence, nativists sought a Japanese sense of difference grounded in folk tradition, agricultural values, and ancient Japanese religion. H. D. Harootunian treats nativism as a discourse and shows how it functioned ideologically in Tokugawa Japan.

From the Back Cover

This long-awaited work explores the place of kokugaku (rendered here as 'nativism') during Japan's Tokugawa period. Kokugaku, the sense of a distinct and sacred Japanese identity, appeared in the eighteenth century in reaction of the pervasive influence of Chinese culture on Japan. Against this influence, nativists sought a Japanese sense of difference grounded in folk tradition, agricultural values, and ancient Japanese religion. H.D. Harootunian treats nativism as a discourse and shows how it functioned ideologically in Tokugawa Japan.