The logic of conformity : Japan's entry into international society / Tomoko T. Okagaki.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Okagaki, Tomoko, 1963- author.

Series:

Japan and global society

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Political socialization.

International relations.

Japan--Foreign relations--Europe.

Japan.

Europe--Foreign relations--Japan.

Europe.

Political socialization--Japan.

Japan--History--Meiji period, 1868-1912.

History.

East and West.

Physical Description:

x, 189 pages ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Toronto : University of Toronto Press, [2013]

Summary:

The central puzzle that runs through [this] study is the high degree of conformity that Japan demonstrated in accommodating itself to Western norms of international relations within a short period to time. Only four decades after its first encounter with the West in 1853, it joined the Western powers in the European colonial competition in East Asia. The slogan of "expel the barbarians" (joi), which prevailed during the early days of the encounter with the West, was transformed to "civilisation and enlightenment" (bunmei kaika) by 1880. Why did Japan join the Western state, system without voicing as much resistance as other Asian, countries, such as China, did? What explains Japan's rapid transformation from a feudal society to a modern nation-state? The answers to these questions may provide insights into the foreign policy behaviour of newcomers to the European state system in general and enhance our understanding of the evolution of the international norms in the particular historical context of the nineteenth century. Book jacket.

Contents:

Part 1 The Framework of Analysis

1 Introduction: Explaining Japan's Entry into the International System 5

2 State Socialisation and Institutionalisation of the International System 22

Part 2 The Process of Conformity

3 Adoption: Introduction of International Law, 1853-1860s 45

4 Absorption: "Civilisation and Enlightenment," 1870s 64

5 Adaptation: International Law as a Tool, 1880s-90s 78

Part 3 The Logic of Conformity

6 Japan's Entry in Perspective 97

7 Conclusion 113.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [153]-175) and index.

ISBN:

9781442641884

1442641886

OCLC:

841474870