The intertwined issues of Japanese identity' and normality' are at the centre of the tension between internal and external pressures on Japanese defence and security policies. With chapters on peace thought, the militarisation and demilitarisation of language as well as the hard' aspects of the Japanese military build up in the 1980s and the response to the Gulf War in the 1990s, this study challenges many of the preconceived notions on Japanese defence and security policies and the policy making process in Japan.

This book provides a comprehensive, up-to-date and accessible introduction to the philosophy of space and time.
Ray considers in detail the central questions of space and time which arizse from the ideas of Zeno, Newton, Mach, Leibniz and Einstein. Time, Space and Philosophy extends the debate in many areas: absolute simultaneity is examined as well as black holes, the big bang and even time travel.
Time, Space and Philosophy will be invaluable to the student of philosophy and science and will be of considerable interest to mathematics students. The clear,...

Teachers of the youngest children at school were the first to bear the brunt of the policies to change the curriculum after the 1988 Education Act. What did the changes mean to them? How did they perceive their impact upon their work, on standards in the curriculum, on assessment and testing, and on their relationships with pupils and colleagues? How did they cope with stress, long working hours, intrusions into their home lives, and with change imposed from outside?
The authors capture in detail the views of thirty infant teachers and compare their subjective perceptions, dominated by a...

Japan: Beyond the End of History assesses Japan's significance, in fact and in theory, for the Western traditions of political philosophy and practice, from Adam Smith and Hegel to the French deconstructionists and today's end of history theorists.

Drylands, which cover over half the world's area, have witnessed rapid development, exploitation and change with the discovery of mineral reserves, urbanization and population growth. Environmental management is critical to the conservation and sustainable use of resources.
This comprehensive text offers a systematic study of the physical nature of drylands and the history of human response to and uses of these harsh landscapes. Detailed case studies, including urban as well as pastoral drylands from California to Soviet Central Asia, the Middle East, the Sahara and Australia, contrast...

Modern Japan's repressed anxieties, fears and hopes come to the surface in the fantastic. A close analysis of fantasy fiction, film and comics reveals the ambivalence felt by many Japanese towards the success story of the nation in the twentieth century.
The Fantastic in Modern Japanese Literature explores the dark side to Japanese literature and Japanese society. It takes in the nightmarish future depicted in the animated film masterpiece, Akira, and the pastoral dream worlds created by Japan's Nobel Prize winning author Oe Kenzaburo. A wide range of fantasists, many...

Endo Shusaku is probably the most widely translated of all Japanese authors. In this study of Endo's works, Mark Williams moves the discussion on from the well-worn depictions of Endo as the Japanese Graham Greene, and places him in his own political and cultural context. Through a discussion covering all Endo's major novels, the picture painted by Williams is of an author building on his native Japanese tradition in pursuit of a more universal literary portrayal of the individual engaged in his, or her, unique process of individuation. Bringing to light the enduring legacy of an author who...

Japan is regarded as a world leader in the field of education and training for improved economic performance. Yet success in Japan is often achieved by going against what is regarded as ideal practice elsewhere. This book offers the most comprehensive review available in English of the many facets of Japanese vocational education and training. Covering the system from primary education through to in job-training offered by companies, this book provides a detailed study of current practice giving equal emphasis to formal training in explicitly vocational courses, and informal training in...

This volume approaches the history of Japanese-German relations from a business history perspective. Starting with an overview of Japanese-German relations which focuses on the environment, strategies and forms of inter-firm relations, Akira Kudo then uses case studies to provide a broader picture, before finally considering strategy, organisational strategy and technology and management transfer in the light of problems identified earlier.

Japan is regarded as a world leader in the field of education and training for improved economic performance. Yet success in Japan is often achieved by going against what is regarded as ideal practice elsewhere. This book offers the most comprehensive review available in English of the many facets of Japanese vocational education and training. Covering the system from primary education through to in job-training offered by companies, this book provides a detailed study of current practice giving equal emphasis to formal training in explicitly vocational courses, and informal training in...