"Hierarchy in Japan and its connection with Japanese images of the world have been written about many times before, but Jansen's judgment, his warm and conversational tone, and his artful skill at connecting individuals with historical trends render the story all the more intriguing... A nice synthesis and a sensible introduction to the subject of how the Japanese have sought to order the outside world in a way to find their place within it."--Michael W. Donnelly, Pacific Affairs "Jansen, one of the most prolific and stimulating western historians of Japan, has produced a remarkable, comprehensive but at the same time amazingly compact study of Japan's changing attitudes to the world."--Jean-Pierre Lehmann, History "No other Western scholar has written so extensively or so mastered the literature on aspects of this subject."--Kenneth B. Pyle, Journal of Asian Studies

Marius Jansen is Professor Emeritus of History and East Asian Studies at Princeton University.