CENTRAL THEMES FOR A UNIT ON JAPAN
in the World Cultures Social Studies Curriculum
by Carol Gluck | Additional Credits

These "central themes" are distinctive, and recurrent, so that they are touched on again and again under different categories, until a portrait of cultural difference is accumulated. Of the many possible themes, six are suggested here as illustrative of Japanese culture and its relation to the world:

Theme 1. Cultural Borrowing/Japanization of Foreign Ways
Theme 2. Social Closeness and the Primacy of Society
Theme 3. Relations between the Inward and Outward Economy
Theme 4. Inclination toward Political and Social Stability
Theme 5. Pursuit of Change/Preservation of Cultural Values
Theme 6. Japan and the World

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THE THEMES IN CONTEXT
The time suggestions following each section are based on a four-week unit of 15-20 class lessons.

I. The Physical/Historical Setting of Japan
(Suggested time: 3-4 lessons)
• Island Country in a Regional Setting
• Mountains and Sea
• Men Among Men — The Government

II. Dynamics of Change — Modernization
(Suggested time: 4-5 lessons)
• "Tradition" Defined
• The West in Asia
• Modernization
• Imperialism and War: 1905-1945

III. Contemporary Nations and Cultures — Postwar Japan
(Suggested time: 5-7 lessons)
• Postwar Reform: 1945-1955 and Thereafter
• Economic Recovery and Growth
• Social Relations
• School and Work
• Culture Preserved

IV. Japan in Global Context
(Suggested time: 3-4 lessons)
• Japan and the World
• The Future of the World
• Conclusion

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Appendix
• Chronological Outline of Japanese History — Annotated outline spanning 4000 BCE to the present.
• General Map of Japan (230k)

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Additional Credits
Roberta Martin, Series Editor
Michael Chambers, Production Consultant

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