Overview

June Teufel Dreyer's Middle Kingdom and Empire of the Rising Sun provides an authoritative and accessible overview of the great civilizational rivalry between Japan and China. Dreyer sets the context by providing a crisp account of Sino-Japanese relations from the ninth century to the onset of the modern era. In the aftermath of multiple wars between them, including a long and brutal conflict in World War II, Japan developed into a major economic power but rejected any concomitant military capabilities. With the addition of a new epilogue, this paperback edition brings the narrative up to the present day and focuses on trade beginning to rise again after 2016. Dreyer focuses on the issues that dominate China and Japan's fraught current relationship including economic competition, resurgent nationalism, military tensions, and globalization. For anyone interested in the political dynamics of East Asia, this integrative history of the relationship between the region's two giants is essential reading.

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9780190692209

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Reviews

"An important book which vividly and uniquely places the prospect of China and Japan avoiding a military clash in the context of a contentious history in which Chinese rulers have long expected, and continue to expect Japan to welcome subordination to China. Dreyer's revealing and even-handed political history makes a compelling case for deep and dangerous historical continuities in cultural identities and worrisome realistic anxieties among ruling groups.""-Edward Friedman, Professor of Political Science, Emeritus, University of Wisconsin A tour de force from one of the deans of China studies. Professor Dreyer recounts the saga of Sino-Japanese relations from its inception to the present day, illuminating the history underlying today's controversies while providing a glimpse of what may lie ahead.""-James R. Holmes, Professor of Strategy, U.S. Naval War College June Teufel Dreyer's book is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the historical forces that shape the highly complex ties between China and Japan, which is potentially the most explosive bilateral relationship among the great powers in the 21st century.""-Steve Tsang, Head of School and Professor of Contemporary Chinese Studies, University of Nottingham June Teufel Dreyer after tracing the historical background presents a comprehensive picture of Sino-Japanese relations after World War II. By presenting a detailed picture of the quarrels between the two countries over recent decades, she makes clear the amount of work required for the two countries to work together for a peaceful constructive relationship. * Ezra Vogel, Henry Ford II Professor of the Social Sciences Emeritus, Harvard University * In her excellent account of centuries of diplomatic turmoil, Ms. Dreyer seamlessly shifts between the granular and the macro. Her use of contemporaneous newspaper editorials and other primary sources clearly and colorfully render the ideological factions within both countries that had differing opinions about trade, military spending and the role of the U.S. in the region."" -The Wall Street Journal"

An important book which vividly and uniquely places the prospect of China and Japan avoiding a military clash in the context of a contentious history in which Chinese rulers have long expected, and continue to expect Japan to welcome subordination to China. Dreyer's revealing and even-handed political history makes a compelling case for deep and dangerous historical continuities in cultural identities and worrisome realistic anxieties among ruling groups. -Edward Friedman, Professor of Political Science, Emeritus, University of Wisconsin A tour de force from one of the deans of China studies. Professor Dreyer recounts the saga of Sino-Japanese relations from its inception to the present day, illuminating the history underlying today's controversies while providing a glimpse of what may lie ahead. -James R. Holmes, Professor of Strategy, U.S. Naval War College June Teufel Dreyer's book is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the historical forces that shape the highly complex ties between China and Japan, which is potentially the most explosive bilateral relationship among the great powers in the 21st century. -Steve Tsang, Head of School and Professor of Contemporary Chinese Studies, University of Nottingham June Teufel Dreyer after tracing the historical background presents a comprehensive picture of Sino-Japanese relations after World War II. By presenting a detailed picture of the quarrels between the two countries over recent decades, she makes clear the amount of work required for the two countries to work together for a peaceful constructive relationship. -- Ezra Vogel, Henry Ford II Professor of the Social Sciences Emeritus, Harvard University In her excellent account of centuries of diplomatic turmoil, Ms. Dreyer seamlessly shifts between the granular and the macro. Her use of contemporaneous newspaper editorials and other primary sources clearly and colorfully render the ideological factions within both countries that had differing opinions about trade, military spending and the role of the U.S. in the region. -The Wall Street Journal

Author Information

June Teufel Dreyer is Professor of Political Science at the University of Miami. Formerly senior Far East specialist at the Library of Congress, she has also served as Asia policy advisor to the Chief of Naval Operations and as commissioner of the United States-China Economic and Security Review Commission established by the U.S. Congress.

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