Japanese Politics will offer an introduction to the foundations of Japanese politics, with a special focus on the theme of radicalism in modern Japan. The course will analyse the institutions and power structures that have underpinned the political world in Japan in the modern era, from the 1850s through to the present day. It will also examine how these institutions have been challenged, and by whom. Lectures and tutorials will feature topics such as the Emperor System and its precursors, the Meiji State, Democracy, Constitutionalism, the Party System and the advent of coalition governments in the late 20^th century. Challenges to these systems will include case studies such as Meiji restorationism, the rise of social, political and cultural movements in the 20^th century, through to the advent of manga (cartoons) as a forum for socio-political dissent in contemporary Japan.

This course aims to equip students with a survey knowledge of Japanese political history in the modern era. A second aim is to familiarise students with the scholarly debates that have arisen concerning the study of Japanese politics. A third objective is to encourage students to hone academic skills such as critical thinking and reading, and clear academic writing and analysis.

Tutorial attendance and participation (10%), tutorial presentation (15%), tutorial essay 1000 words (15%), Issues paper 2000 words (20%), Research essay 4,000 words (40%) Graduate students attend classes with undergraduates but may expect more rigorous assessment. Graduate students will not be required to sit a final exam.

32 contact hours per semester

Permission of the Coordinator

This course assumes no prior knowledge of Japanese politics.

J.A.A. Stockwin, Governing Japan (Blackwell, 2008); Andrew Gordon, A Modern History of Japan from Tokugawa Times to the Present (Oxford University Press, 2003); Tetsuo Najita, Japan: the intellectual foundations of Modern Japanese Politics (University of Chicago Press, 1974).

Curtis, Gerald L, The Logic of Japanese Politics, New York: Columbia University Press 1999. Reading list to be provided in the course outline.

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