KAWARI: HOW JAPAN'S ECONOMIC AND CULTURAL TRANSFORMATION WILL ALTER THE BALANCE OF POWER AMONG NATIONS.
TITLE : KAWARI: HOW JAPAN'S ECONOMIC AND CULTURAL
TRANSFORMATION WILL ALTER THE BALANCE OF POWER
AMONG NATIONS.
MATERIAL TYPE : BOOK
AQUISITION NO. : 14172
This book is about change in Japan. The Japanese word in the title
"Kawari" literally means change or alternative. I had wanted to use
another Japanese word, "dappi" which means metamorphosis, the change
that occurs when a caterpillar turns into a butterfly and when a
people suddenly shift their way of thinking or proceeding. But "dappi"
sounded too strange to Western ears to use as a title. Nonetheless,
this is what is happening in Japan. She is transforming herself into
something that is totally different fro the country we know today. Her
transformation will affect people well beyond her borders, in Asia
more than any other parts of the world but given the reach of Japan's
economy and her potential diplomatic and military powers, everyone on
the planet will feel Japan's metamorphosis in some way.
I have tried to keep a practical tone throughout. The book identifies
powerful, interpersonal forces that will alter the cultural and
economic face of Japan. It describes the directions of this change and
the huge risks attached to the transition. The book takes a Japanese
perspective and describes the new Japan that will emerge as her
government, businesses and people wrestle with the practical
imperatives facing them. Most of my references are to newspaper items
and Japanese sources. There enough references to Western sources,
however, to let the reader know where Japan-watchers stand in the
debate.
Unlike much estern writing on Asia, this book resists the temptation
to create a false contest between Japan and the West or to use Japan
as a foil for America or as an object lesson. There no heroes, no
villians. The book refuse to declare Japan a winner or loser. Nothing
outside a sports arena is that clear cut and relations between nations
are not football matches. Nor are they a "zero sum game". One nation
does not necessarily succeed at the expense of others. Indeed,
prosperity in one place frequently brings prosperity elsewhere.
While I am fully aware of the hazards of predicting the direction of
change over long periods - especially in a complex, sophisticated and
a potentially volatile nation like Japan - the pressures, nonetheless,
are clear. My premise is that, with all the undeniable risk, Japan
will emerge from this chrysalis of change a more complete power on the
world stage than she is today, and will become a major force for
development and security in Asia.
