Japan remains one of the most intriguing yet least understood nations. In a much needed, balanced and comprehensive analysis, among other remarkable revelations, this book presents for the first time a vital key to understanding the organisation of Japan's society and the behaviour of its people. The Japanese are not driven by a universal morality based on Good and Evil, but by broad aesthetic concepts based on Pure and Impure. What they include as 'impure' will surprise many readers.
Dimensions of Japanese Society: Gender, Margins and Mainstream
Preface Introduction: Japan as Other, and the Other Japan The Essentials of Society: Men and Women On the Fringes of Society: Minorities and Other Marginal The Mainstream of Society: Being a Normal Japanese Conclusion: Japan as Itself, and the Aesthetics of Purity References Glossary of Key Japanese Terms Index