History / Asia / Japan

The Movement and Circulation of Materials, People, and Practices across the Eurasian Continent over Nearly Two Millennia

In this pre-World War II analysis of working-class areas of Tokyo, primarily its Honjo ward, Hastings shows that bureaucrats, particularly in the Home Ministry, were concerned with the needs of their citizens and took significant steps to protect the city’s working families and the poor.

By analyzing three of Japan’s forty-seven prefectures, Reed paints a picture of the flexibility and the multi-leveled nature of Japan’s system of government that can’t be seen by studying only the central administration and national politics.