Showa: The Japan of Hirohito

Showa - the six-decade period of Emperor Horihito's reign, which began in 1926 and ended with his death in 1989 - accounts for fully half of Japan's modern history. It was a turbulent time of aggressive and catastrophic war, defeat and foreign occupation, domestic transformation and spectacular growth. The end of Showa provided and occasion for the Japanese to confront their past and the roots of their present success. The morally charged debate over the meaning of Showa is carried on in this volume by distinguished experts on Japan. In light of the history of Showa, they analyse the strengths of the Japanese economy, democracy and Japan's political culture, achievements in technology and the arts and relations with other Asian nations and with the United States.