Louis D. Hayes Livres

This innovative, interdisciplinary introduction to East Asian politics uses a thematic approach to describe the political development of China, Japan, and Koreas since the mid-nineteenth century and analyze the social, cultural, political, and economic features of each country. Unlike standard comparative politics texts which often lack a unifying theme and employ Western conventions of the 'state', "Political Systems of East Asia" avoids these limitations and identifies a common thread running through the histories of China, Korea, and Japan. This common thread is Confucianism, which has shaped East Asian perspectives of the universe and how it operates. The text describes and explains the ways in which each country has employed this shared tradition, and how it has affected the country's internal dynamics, responses to the outside world, and its own political development.

Focusing on Japan's evolving quest for national security, the book examines its historical journey from early internationalism to totalitarianism and subsequent conflict in the Pacific. It highlights the shifts in foreign policy, illustrating Japan's transition from reliance on military force for preservation to economic self-interest as a Cold War ally of the U.S. Ultimately, it portrays a contemporary Japan that is moving away from unarmed neutrality, reasserting its security independence in the post-Cold War Asian landscape.