In this Book

summary
This latest work from Japanese-born anthropologist Takie Sugiyama Lebra is the first ethnographic study of the modern Japanese aristocracy. Established as a class at the beginning of the Meiji period, the kazoku ranked directly below the emperor and his family. Officially dissolved in 1947, this group of social elites is still generally perceived as nobility. Lebra gained entry into this tightly knit circle and conducted more than one hundred interviews with its members. She has woven together a reconstructive ethnography from their life histories to create an intimate portrait of a remote and archaic world.

As Lebra explores the culture of the kazoku, she places each subject in its historical context. She analyzes the evolution of status boundaries and the indispensable role played by outsiders.

But this book is not simply about the elite. It is also about commoners and how each stratum mirrors the other. Revealing previously unobserved complexities in Japanese society, it also sheds light on the universal problem of social stratification.

Table of Contents

restricted access Download Full Book
  1. Cover
  2. p. 1
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Title Page, Copyright, Dedication
  2. pp. 2-7
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Contents
  2. pp. vii-viii
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. List of Tables
  2. pp. ix-x
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. List of Illustrations
  2. pp. xi-xii
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Orthographic Note on Japanese Words
  2. pp. xiii-xiv
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Acknowledgments
  2. pp. xv-xviii
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 1. Studying the Aristocracy: Why, What, and How?
  2. pp. 1-27
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 2. Creating the Modern Nobility: The Historical Legacy
  2. pp. 28-61
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 3. Ancestors: Constructing Inherited Charisma
  2. pp. 62-105
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 4. Successors: Immortalizing the Ancestors
  2. pp. 106-146
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 5. Life-Style: Markers of Status and Hierarchy
  2. pp. 147-195
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 6. Marriage: Realignment of Women and Men
  2. pp. 196-242
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 7. Socialization: Acquisition and Transmission of Status Culture
  2. pp. 243-284
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 8. Status Careers: Privilege and Liability
  2. pp. 285-333
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. 9. Conclusion
  2. pp. 334-355
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Epilogue: The End of Shōwa
  2. pp. 356-362
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Images
  2. pp. 382-393
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Notes
  2. pp. 363-382
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Glossary
  2. pp. 383-394
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. References
  2. pp. 395-408
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
  1. Index
  2. pp. 409-430
  3. restricted access
    • Download PDF Download
Back To Top

This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Without cookies your experience may not be seamless.