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Understanding Japan
- A Cultural History
- Narrated by: Mark J. Ravina
- Length: 12 hrs
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Understanding Japan
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Publisher's Summary
Japan's extraordinary culture is like no other in the world, and it remains mysterious to many of us. And that's unfortunate, because to truly understand Japan's influence on the world stage, one needs to understand Japan's culture - on its own terms.
In an exciting partnership with the Smithsonian, The Great Courses presents these 24 lectures that offer an unforgettable tour of Japanese life and culture. Professor Ravina, with the expert collaboration of the Smithsonian's historians, brings you a grand portrait of Japan.
From the dawn of Confucianism and the Meiji Restoration to World War II and the economic miracle years of 1955 to 1975, you'll explore landmark periods of Japanese history and learn how broad events and movements introduced, innovated, and revised everything from spirituality to popular entertainment. Along the way you'll get revealing insights into Shinto (Japan's indigenous religion), the art of Katsushika Hokusai, literary works like The Tale of Genji and the haiku of Basho, the everyday lives of samurai, the universal appeal of filmmakers like Akira Kurosawa, foods like yakitori and tempura, and so much more.
You'll come away from Professor Ravina's final lecture with a stronger sense of the very soul of this one-of-a-kind nation.
What listeners say about Understanding Japan
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Anonymous User
- 09-02-2018
really interesting and relevant to modern japan
really good with good presentation. puts modern japanese culture into a historical perspective. highly recommended and has sparked further research into the history of medieval japanese culture
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- Ronald McCoy
- 05-07-2020
Fine overall introduction to modern Japan. highly recommended.
This lecture series text the journey from the agent past of Japan to modern times. It does end around the second decade of
the 21st-century, and much has happened since that time, but it is still a fantastic introduction to Japanese history and culture.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Anonymous User
- 12-08-2017
Fantastic broad coverage
Fantastic story interwoven through so many different parts of Japanese culture and history. Lecturer is obviously tremendously knowledgeable and is very easy to listen to.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Mitchell
- 04-05-2016
Really informative
The lecture was really well layed out and spoken. I learnt a lot about Japanese culture and history and plan to re listen some time soon.
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- Andrew Teakle
- 22-12-2022
Excellent historical overview of Japanese culture
Professor Ravina is a passionate and eloquent master of Japanese culture. His entertaining and informative course is a perfect introduction to Japan for general knowledge or prior to travel there. The detailed pdf accompanying this audiobook was very helpful to see the spelling of words I was hearing. For me, at least, this helps in my retention of the information presented. Highly recommended.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Jeremy J
- 16-06-2020
Wide ranging and insightful
Looking at cultural development through the lens of history and cycles of isolationism and expansion. Great insight into the everyday and esoteric.
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- Macleod
- 27-02-2016
Outstanding and Great Value
What does Professor Mark J. Ravina bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?
He speaks really well. The audio (sound quality) is extremely well produced. Everything is easy to understand. He speaks slow enough to fully understand the concepts but rarely speaks with unnecessary flair. He gets to the point - he has a lot of insights to share!
Any additional comments?
I know this course has gotten many 5 star reviews - It seems unrealistic right?
But honestly: It really is an amazing course.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Judgement Day
- 12-10-2018
Superb introduction (albeit mostly pre-1900s)
A fantastic introduction to various periods of Japanese history, rich with cultural detail and bringing in references to the arts as well as politics. Recommended.
Just be aware that while there are some great chapters on more recent Japanese history, most of the course refers to events before 1900.
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- Dale Wark
- 12-11-2022
Excellent
This is such a fine series of lectures for anyone interested in Japan. I can not recommend it more highly for those that want to dive a little deeper.
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- Luza
- 05-08-2023
Highly recommended!
This is a great introduction into the history and culture of Japan. I highly recommended this book.
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