Listeners of this book will gain a clear understanding of what makes the Japanese, and their society, tick.

Understanding our humanity - the essence of who we are - is one of the deepest mysteries and biggest challenges in modern science. Why do we have bad moods? Why are we capable of having such strange dreams? How can metaphors in our language hold such sway on our actions? As we learn more about the mechanisms of human behavior through evolutionary biology, neuroscience, anthropology, and other related fields, we're discovering just how intriguing the human species is.

 Racism: A Very Short Introduction incorporates the latest research to demystify the subject of racism and explore its history, science, and culture. It sheds light not only on how racism has evolved since its earliest beginnings, but will also explore the numerous embodiments of racism, highlighting the paradox of its survival, despite the scientific discrediting of the notion of "race" with the latest advances in genetics. 

This accessible and engaging new edition continues to be one of the leading introductory textbooks on Korean history. Fully revised throughout, the author takes a thematic and chronological approach to guide listeners from early state formation and the dynastic eras to the modern experience. Episodic accounts in each chapter are discussed in context with extensive examination of how the events and themes under consideration have been viewed up to the present day. 

World politics is entering a new phase, in which the great divisions among humankind and the dominating source of international conflict will be cultural.

This book traces the samurai throughout history, exploring their roles in watershed events such as Japan's invasions of Korea at the close of the 16th century and the Satsuma Rebellion of 1877. Coming alive in these accounts are the samurai, both famed and ordinary, who shaped Japanese history. 

名だたる文筆家が登場する、文藝春秋の文化講演会。日中戦争の最大の犠牲者である戦争孤児。政府に人間としての使命感、労りが見られないのが無念であります。同じ日本人なら最後の一人まで探し出すのが人間じゃないでしょうか。「私たちを三度も棄てないでください」…この言葉に衝撃を受けました。(1996年4月4日 有楽町朝日ホール 文藝春秋文化講演会より)
●土の戦士 ●真実 ●棄民 ●草の根 ●パーパー ●石の筆 文藝春秋の文化講演会は、文学談や執筆秘話に人生論も交え、含蓄と味わい深い講演があなたの生き方に豊かさと彩りを添えます。

How much faith should we place in what scientists tell us? Is it possible for scientific knowledge to be fully "objective"? What, really, can be defined as science? In the second edition of this very short introduction, Samir Okasha explores the main themes and theories of contemporary philosophy of science and investigates fascinating, challenging questions such as these.

In this new edition, Steve Bruce discusses the continuing arguments for social egalitarianism, considering issues such as gay marriage, women in combat roles, and the 2010 Equality Act to debunk contemporary arguments against parity. As gender divisions are increasingly questioned, he looks ahead to the likely consequences of this for society.

未来は本当に脱・資本主義にあるのか。ミクロな視点から資本主義の壮大な歴史と最前線を読み解く！資本主義の歴史を通じて空間・時間・生産の領域で広がってきたフロンティアは最早消滅しつつある。

Essential for anyone interested in Japanese culture, this unsurpassed masterwork opens an intriguing window on Japan. The World War II-era study by the cultural anthropologist Ruth Benedict paints an illuminating contrast between the people of Japan and those of the United States. The Chrysanthemum and the Sword is a revealing look at how and why our societies differ, making it the perfect introduction to Japanese history and customs. 

In the fifth edition of his best-selling Very Short Introduction work, Manfred B. Steger considers the major dimensions of globalization: economic, political, cultural, ideological, and ecological. He looks at its causes and effects, and engages with the hotly contested question of whether globalization is, ultimately, a good or a bad thing.  

The Japanese people have always seen themselves as a nation uniquely apart. Their exquisite art forms and elegant culture, military prowess and technological precision, have long been the envy of friend and foe alike. Today, even as Japan adapts to a rapidly changing world, its traditional culture and consensus-based philosophy have proved remarkably resilient. Culture Smart! Japan will broaden your perception and understanding of this complex, rich, and dynamic society.

Having spent centuries in the shadows of its neighbors China and Japan, Korea is now the object of considerable interest for radically different reasons - the South as an economic success story and for its vibrant popular culture; the North as the home to one of the world's most repressive regimes, at once both bizarre and menacing. Korea: A Very Short Introduction explores the history, culture, and society of a deeply divided region.

Noted Japan expert Professor Mark J. Ravina of the University of Texas at Austin covers the politics, economics, and culture of the island nation since World War II - a conflict that saw the end of Japan’s dream of regional conquest, which Professor Ravina calls Empire 1.0. The country’s postwar leaders radically changed course, renouncing a strong military to pursue Empire 2.0 - Japan as an economic colossus.

米中対立最前線の極東アジア4か国の展望を「地理」×「歴史」×「政治体制」から読み解く!●中国が軍拡・外交をエスカレートせざるをえない900年前の黒歴史=「靖康の変」と「岳飛と秦檜」の逸話

In Praise of Shadows is an eloquent tribute to the austere beauty of traditional Japanese aesthetics. Through architecture, ceramics, theatre, food, women, and even toilets, Tanizaki explains the essence of shadows and darkness, and how they are able to augment beauty. He laments the heavy electric lighting of the West and its introduction to Japan, and shows how the artificial, bright, and polished aesthetic of the West contrasts unfavorably with the moody and natural light of the East.

China and Japan have cultural and political connections that stretch back 1,500 years. But today, their relationship is strained. China's military buildup deeply worries Japan, while Japan's brutal occupation of China in World War II remains an open wound. In recent years, less than 10 percent of each population had positive feelings toward the other, and both countries insist that the other side must deal openly with its history before relations can improve. Ezra Vogel's China and Japan examines key turning points in Sino-Japanese history.

近年SNSで語られる機会が増え、SDGsの観点からも議論されることの多いフェミニズム。

The Book of Tea by Okakura Kakuzo is a long essay linking the role of tea (teaism) to the aesthetic and cultural aspects of Japanese life. Addressed to a western audience, it was originally written in English and is one of the great English tea classics. Okakura had been taught at a young age to speak English and was proficient at communicating his thoughts to the Western mind. In his book, he discusses such topics as Zen and Taoism, but also the secular aspects of tea and Japanese life.