Ways of Forgetting, Ways of Remembering: Japan in the Modern World Paperback – February 4, 2014
by John W. Dower (Author)
4.2 out of 5 stars 12 ratings
See all formats and editions
Kindle
from AUD 4.34
Read with Our Free App
Historian John W. Dower’s celebrated investigations into modern Japanese history, World War II, and U.S.–Japanese relations have earned him critical accolades and numerous honors, including the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, and the Bancroft Prize. Now Dower returns to the major themes of his groundbreaking work, examining American and Japanese perceptions of key moments in their shared history.
Both provocative and probing, Ways of Forgetting, Ways of Remembering delves into a range of subjects, including the complex role of racism on both sides of the Pacific War, the sophistication of Japanese wartime propaganda, the ways in which the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki is remembered in Japan, and the story of how the postwar study of Japan in the United States and the West was influenced by Cold War politics.
Ways of Forgetting, Ways of Remembering offers urgent insights by one of our greatest interpreters of the past into how citizens of democracy should deal with their history and, as Dower writes, “the need to constantly ask what is not being asked.”
Editorial Reviews
Review
Praise for Ways of Forgetting, Ways of Remembering :
"No historian writes with more authority than this leading historian
of modern Japan. Dower’s new work . . . shows him at the
top of his form."
—Publishers Weekly
"Scrupulously researched and bravely presented scholarship."
—Kirkus Reviews
Praise for Embracing Defeat :
"A superb history of Japan’s occupation."
—The New York Review of Books
"A magisterial and beautifully written book. . . . A pleasure to read."
—The New York Times Book Review
About the Author
John W. Dower is Professor Emeritus of History at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is the author of several books, including War Without Mercy, Cultures of War, and Embracing Defeat, which was the recipient of numerous awards, including the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, the Bancroft Prize, and the Fairbank Prize. He lives in Boston.
Product details
Paperback: 336 pages
Publisher: The New Press; Reprint edition (February 4, 2014)
John W. Dower
Follow
Biography
John W. Dower is professor emeritus of history at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His interests lie in modern Japanese history and U.S.-Japan relations. He is the author of several books, including Ways of Forgetting, War Without Mercy, Cultures of War, and Embracing Defeat, which received numerous honors (including the Pulitzer Prize).
Customer reviews
4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
Top Reviews
R. J. Fadeley
4.0 out of 5 stars Dated but still germane.
Reviewed in the United States on March 30, 2015
Verified Purchase
This is accessible historiography in the form of a collection of essays dating back to the Vietnam era. Dower is better known for his later book on Japan, Embracing Defeat, but in some ways this volume seems more concise. A fine introduction to some basic cultural aspects of Japanese strategic thought, this book will also provide sarisfaction to the seasoned student of that fascinating and contradictory nation.
One person found this helpful
Helpful
Comment Report abuse
Bill Beers
5.0 out of 5 stars A book to remember!
Reviewed in the United States on May 6, 2014
Verified Purchase
These eleven essays present many fascinating insights and a great deal of information about postwar Japan, and can be enjoyed both by readers who already have an extensive knowledge of Japan and by readers whose knowledge is not so extensive. It is a book the reader will not soon forget. Both content and writing style deserve five stars!
5 people found this helpful
Helpful
Comment Report abuse
Yas
5.0 out of 5 stars If you are a student of 20th century history, you must read this book.
Reviewed in the United States on December 19, 2012
Verified Purchase
I read three books by Mr. John W. Dower; Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II, War without Mercy: PACIFIC WAR, and this book.
For my personal interest, this book is the most significant one amongst three of his books I read, especially the first chapter which is an excerpt from an essay titled “E.H. Norman, Japan, and the Uses of History”. Just by reading this section of the book, readers will learn the intellectual foundations of Mr. Dower’s interest and understanding of Japanese conflicts in early to mid-20th century.
16 people found this helpful
Helpful
Comment Report abuse
dominic yang
5.0 out of 5 stars love the book
Reviewed in the United States on January 29, 2014
Verified Purchase
Dower has done it again. This is a well-written book and I enjoy reading it very much. It's based on unpublished materials from his Pulitzer-winning Embracing Defeat.
5 people found this helpful
Helpful
Comment Report abuse
Craig Freedman
5.0 out of 5 stars Insightful Essays
Reviewed in the United States on January 22, 2014
Verified Purchase
John Dower has had a long career investigating the history of Japan. Perhaps he is best known for his wonderful book about post-war Japan, 'Embracing Defeat'. This is a volume of essays that won't disappoint his many admirers. Each is a gem and they are the sort of essays that one can go back to and read with equal appreciation. If you are interested in Japan, this is one book you should read.
2 people found this helpful
Helpful
Comment Report abuse
Sarah
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2017
Verified Purchase
great book!
Helpful
Comment Report abuse
dns
2.0 out of 5 stars The author is knowledgeable and provides a good deal of interesting and useful information
Reviewed in the United States on December 28, 2014
Verified Purchase
The author is knowledgeable and provides a good deal of interesting and useful information, but his credibility and so the value of his work is compromised by his political agenda, which he insists on inserting whether pertinent or not.
2 people found this helpful
No comments:
Post a Comment