Recommended Resources
for Japan's Warrior Era (1185-1868)

Focused Studies

Duus, Peter. Feudalism in Japan. Second Edition. NY: Alfred A. Knopf, 1976. This is a wonderfully brief and sweeping examination of the period. Duus's focus is on political and social developments during the period. 

Jansen, Marius B., ed. Warrior Rule in Japan. NY: Cambridge University Press, 1995. This relatively short volume is drawn from volumes 3 and 4 of The Cambridge History of Japan. The chapters selected examine the institutional development of warrior domination.

Primary Sources/Document Collections

Aoki, Michiko Y. and Margaret B. Dardess, eds. As the Japanese See It: Past and Present. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1981.

Keene, Donald, ed. Anthology of Japanese Literature. NY: Grove Press, Inc., 1955.

Lu, David J., comp. Sources of Japanese History. 2 vols. NY: McGraw-Hill Publishing Company, 1974.

Tsunoda, Ryusaku, Wm. Theodore de Bary, and Donald Keene, comps. Sources ofJapanese Tradition. Vol. I. NY: Columbia University Press, 1958.

Standard Histories

Dower, John W. with Timothy S. George. Japanese History and Culture from Ancient to Modern Times: Seven Basic Bibliographies. Second Edition. NJ: Markus Wiener Publishers, 1995. Not a history, but rather a comprehensive listing of primary and secondary works on Japan.

Hane, Mikiso. Premodern Japan: A Historical Survey. Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press, 1991.

Reischauer, Edwin O. Japan: The Story of a Nation. Fourth Edition. New York: McGraw-Hill Publishing Company, 1990. 

Schirokauer, Conrad. A Brief History of Japanese Civilization. Fort Worth, Texas: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich College Publishers, 1993. This brief text is extremely well-written and illustrated.

Films (in most cases a source for purchase or rental is provided)

Budo Sai: The Spirit of the Samurai       70 minutes
Twelve martial arts masters demonstrate their skills and mental discipline at the Budo Sai festival. $149/$75  [FHS]

Daimyo     30 minutes
The "great names" of feudal Japan, this look at the daimyo notes how they ruled their domains and their cultural activities. $30 [CT]

Japan
Four hour series hosted by Jane Seymour (actress and former head of the National Endowment for the Arts)

The Electronic Tribe Contrasts between factory work and industrial life and traditional rural work and life.

The Legacy of the Shogun During the Tokugawa period three values were particularly promoted:diligence, discipline, and hierarchy.  These are partly responsible for Japan's more recent economic successes and social structure.

The Sword and the Chrysanthemum The paradox of the martial and aesthetic sides of the samurai.  [CT, F] 

Japan: The Living Tradition - The Feudal Experience: Part 1    28 min. Covers the feudal era of the Kamakura (1185-1333), Ashikaga (1336-1573), and Tokugawa Periods (1603-1868).  University of Mid-America.  GPN.  1976.

Japan: The Changing Tradition - The Cross and the Gun     29 min.
Explores the history of Japan - its contacts with the West in the 16th century and the adoption of firearms from the Portuguese, the Jesuit missionaries bringing Christianity to Japan, and the isolation of Japan from the rest of the world which permitted the Tokugawa shoguns to establish absolute peace throughout the nation for more than two centuries.   University of Mid-America.  GPN.  1978.

Japan: Past and Present
This five part series traces Japanese history from the seventh century centralization along the Chinese model to the modern society which maintains many traditions. The series is available for $749 and individual parts may be purchased for $159 or rented  for $75.

Buddha in the Land of the Kami (7th-12th Centuries)     53 minutes Begins with Japanese creation myth and then addresses the adoption of Buddhism and the creation of Heian aristocratic culture.

The Coming of the Barbarians (1540-1650)     52 minutes Sometimes called "Japan's Christian Century," this period represented a high point of  Japanese-European cultural and economic exchange, a period which came to an end with the prohibition of Christianity and unauthorized contact with the West.

The Age of the Shoguns (1600-1868)       51 minutes The Edo or Tokugawa period saw remarkable peace and development, both       economic and cultural. [FHS]

Satori in the Right Cortex        29 minutes
"Satori" is a sudden flash of enlightenment.   Examines Japanese philosophical traditions and their persistence in contemporary life.  [CC]

Samurai Japan                48 minutes
From their ascension to power in the 13th century to the unconditional surrender of Japan at the end of World War II, the Samurai, with their code of virtue and discipline, created a society that prized one's honor over one's life. In this program, scholars discuss the unique influence that this created and the impact of the Samurai on Japan's institutions and history, including the role of women in political alliances. Also discussed in Japan's shift from feudalism to a bureaucratic and cosmopolitan society, symbolically ruled by the emperor and administered by shoguns. Purchase $129/ Rental $75   [FHS]

Shodo: The Path of Writing    30 minutes
This film examines Japanese calligraphy, its history and role in the culture. (1980, $30) [CT]

Traditional Japanese Architecture        30 minutes
 Detailed examination of a seventeenth century building, the Katsura Imperial Villa in Kyoto. Follows restoration efforts. $149/$75  [FHS]

Principles and Practice of Zen, The                   100 minutes
Explains the process leading to satori.  Includes coverage of tea ceremony, flower arranging and other aspects of Zen culture. $159  [FHS]

 Japanese Way of Life, The         25
1990 ABC production. $17.75 rental [IU] $15.75 [KU]

Kabuki           56
Kabuki is more than four centuries old.  This video introduces the history and current state of kabuki, taking viewers to a rehearsal, and performance.   [FHS]

Kabuki Classics: Onue Baiko VII in the Salt Gatherer    27 minutes
Onue Baiko, a "living national treasure," performs this famous kabuki dance from the 18th century. (1972, $90) [CT]

Kodo: Heartbeat Drummers of Japan       57 minutes
Traditional and contemporary drumming.  [F]

Living Treasures of Japan    60 minutes
A National Geographic film on Japanese artists considered masters of traditional arts and crafts. $20 [F]