History of Japan

Episode 290 - What Goes Up, Part 1

May 24, 2019 12:00 - 32 minutes - 22.2 MB

This week, we turn our attention to the 1980s. Japan and the United States find their relationship wracked by increasing tensions over political and economic relations, and turn to the solution of an agreement designed to ease the pressure of Japan's economic growth. The result? Japan's infamous Bubble Era!

Episode 289 - The Right Tool for the Job, Part 2

May 17, 2019 12:00 - 34 minutes - 24 MB

This week, we're going to talk about the impact that the gun had on Sengoku Era Japan, and the ways that it both reinforced and undermined the political trends of the time.

Episode 288 - The Right Tool for the Job, Part 1

May 10, 2019 12:00 - 31 minutes - 22.1 MB

This week, we discuss the history of one of the most important technologies in Japan: the gun. How did it get to Japan and spread around the country so quickly?

Episode 287 - The Drunken Demon

May 03, 2019 12:00 - 32 minutes - 24 MB

This week, we're taking a look at a specific oni tale, and probably the most famous one; the story of the Demon King of Mt. Oe, Shuten Doji. What's his story? How did he get punked by five of Japan's most famous warriors? And why are we still talking about him so many years later?

Episode 286 - On the Outside Looking In

April 26, 2019 12:00 - 35 minutes - 25.4 MB

This week we talk oni, the demons of Japanese folklore and legend. What makes oni different from Western style demons? What are some of the most famous oni stories? And how has the image of the oni changed over time?

Episode 285 - Rags to Riches, Part 3

April 20, 2019 11:00 - 34 minutes - 23.8 MB

This week: how did the Hojo go from the zenith of their power to utter destruction in a single generation? The answer: a difficult neighborhood, dangerous neighbors, and bad decisions.

Bonus Episode - Narutaki Mansuke

April 18, 2019 12:00 - 45 minutes - 22.6 MB

It's time for a b-b-b-b-bonus, from my other show at criminalrecordspodcast.com. I think you all will enjoy it; if you do, check the show out!

Episode 284 - Rags to Riches, Part 2

April 13, 2019 11:00 - 32 minutes - 29.9 MB

This week, we will talk about the innovations the Latter Hojo used to secure their dominance, and about their long war against one of the great clans of the Kanto, the Ogigayatsu Uesugi.

Episode 283 - Rags to Riches, Part 1

April 06, 2019 11:00 - 33 minutes - 34.6 MB

This week, we start a series on one of the also-rans of the Sengoku period: the Latter Hojo clan. Who were they, and where did they come from, and why is their first leader sometimes considered the first of a new breed of samurai warlord?

Episode 282 - The Brothers Soga

March 30, 2019 11:00 - 30 minutes - 31.6 MB

This week, we cover one of the most famous tales of revenge in Japanese history: that of the two Soga brothers, Goro and Juro. What do we know of the original story, and how did it morph into one of the most famous tales ever told in Japan?

Episode 281 - The Fool of Owari, Part 2

March 23, 2019 11:00 - 44 minutes - 45.9 MB

This week, we cover the remainder of Oda Nobunaga's rise to power: his wars for control of central Japan in 1570, his cleverness as a ruler, his brutal reign, and his eventual death at the hands of one of his most trusted retainers.

Episode 280 - The Fool of Owari, Part 1

March 17, 2019 21:30 - 34 minutes - 35.7 MB

Apologies for the delayed publication, all! Slight technical hiccup on my end. This week, we turn to the life and legacy of the first of Japan's three unifiers: the warlord Oda Nobunaga, who expanded his domains from part of a backwater province to 1/3rd of all Japan in just a few decades. Who were the Oda? Where did they come from? And how did Nobunaga go from a nobody to a major force in Japanese politics in just a few years?

Episode 279 - The Prince of Thieves

March 09, 2019 12:00 - 31 minutes - 14.2 MB

This week, we consider a figure who appears in two stories from the ancient collection of tales known as the Konjaku Monogatari: the bandit chief Hakamadare. What do we know about him? What do the stories say about him? And what can we learn from those tales?

Episode 278 - The Men Who Stayed Behind

March 02, 2019 12:00 - 35 minutes - 36.4 MB

This week we investigate the role of Japan in laying the groundwork for Vietnam's wars against France and the United States. How did Japan's occupation of Indochina create the groundwork for the Viet Minh? And why did some Japanese soldiers, given the choice to return home in defeat or stay behind and fight on behalf of a country other than their own, take up the Vietnamese cause?

Episode 277 - The House of Cards, Part 5

February 23, 2019 12:00 - 34 minutes - 35.3 MB

This week, we arrive at the end of the Ashikaga. What were the final 100 years of Ashikaga "rule" like, and what can we take away from exploring their time as rulers of Japan?

Episode 276 - The House of Cards, Part 4

February 16, 2019 12:00 - 35 minutes - 36.6 MB

This week, we do a deep dive on the life of Ashikaga Yoshimasa and the lead up to the Onin War, the conflict that traditionally marks the end of Ashikaga rule over Japan. But how fair is it to point to Onin as a break with the past?

Episode 275 - The House of Cards, Part 3

February 09, 2019 12:00 - 34 minutes - 47.7 MB

This week we turn away from politics to discuss religion, art, and the economy during the age of the Ashikaga. Why is this era such a moment of societal flourishing despite the constant warfare and instability of Ashikaga rule?

Episode 274 - The House of Cards, Part 2

February 02, 2019 12:00 - 34 minutes - 46.7 MB

This week: war in the Ashikaga age. Plus; the reign of Ashikaga Yoshimitsu is generally considered the zenith of Ashikaga prestige, but why was his power built on such shaky foundations? Once the Ashikaga had seized control of Japan, how did they go about actually governing it?

Episode 273 - The House of Cards, Part 1

January 26, 2019 12:00 - 35 minutes - 48.6 MB

This week we start a multipart series on the Muromachi period and the reign of the Ashikaga family. How did they come to power? Why is their government generally described as so weak? And how, despite that weak government, did they win a 60 year war for control of Japan?

Episode 272 - I am the Law!

January 19, 2019 12:00 - 31 minutes - 43.8 MB

This week we cover the life and career of the legendary judge Oka Tadasuke, who rose from minor samurai to the rank of daimyo and a major position in the bakufu -- only to become a legendary figure. Who is he? How did he rise so high? And what can he tell us about the role of judges and bureaucrats in Japanese society more generally?

Episode 271 - You're Going on the List

January 12, 2019 12:00 - 34 minutes - 46.7 MB

This week, we cover the fascinating tale of Sei Shonagon and the Makura no Soushi, or Pillow Book. Why is a collection of anecdotes considered to be one of Japan's greatest literary classics? What mkes the Pillow Book so famous? And why does Isaac love it so very much?

Episode 270 - A Brief and Fleeting Dream

January 05, 2019 12:00 - 34 minutes - 47 MB

This week, we cover the life and work of one of Japan's most famous authors: the 11th century courtier Murasaki Shikibu. Why do we know so little about who she was? What inspired her to write Genji? Why do I dislike her work so viscerally? And how did it become so famous?

Episode 269 - The Revolution Will Not Be Live

December 22, 2018 12:00 - 33 minutes - 45.3 MB

This week, we cover the little-known "Chichibu Incident," an uprising against the Meiji government in 1884 that saw several thousand people take up arms against the state. Where did it come from? How did the rebellion fare? And what is its connection to the broader trends of Japanese history?

Episode 268 - The Right Thing for the Wrong Reasons

December 15, 2018 12:00 - 33 minutes - 45.4 MB

Today, we cover one of the most unusual stories of WWII: the policy of saving and protecting Jews pursued by some among Japan's military leadership. How did anti-semitic ideas about a global conspiracy convince some in Japan that the Jews could be their allies? How many were saved? And what does it all mean?

Episode 267 - Do Not Give Up Your Life

December 08, 2018 15:00 - 33 minutes - 45.6 MB

This week, we cover poet and political activist Yosano Akiko in her drift from icon of the political left to polemicist for the ultranationalist right. What kind of life trajectory drives a person that way? Why did she follow that path? And why did she write so many poems about breasts?

Episode 266 - In the Realm of the Gods

December 01, 2018 12:00 - 34 minutes - 46.9 MB

This week, we take a look at the bizarre history of a single text -- Senkyou Ibun, or Strange Tidings from Another World -- and the two people responsible for creating it: the famous scholar Hirata Atsutane, and a boy named Torakichi who claimed to have lived in Japan's spirit world.

Episode 265 - The House Always Wins

November 17, 2018 12:00 - 38 minutes - 52.2 MB

This week, we cover the life of real estate mogul and international gambling sensation Kashiwagi Akio. Who was he? How did he become an internationally famous gambler? Why was he mysteriously murdered? And how the hell does none other than Donald Trump fit into this?

Episode 264 - The Man of Legend

November 10, 2018 12:00 - 31 minutes - 43.9 MB

This week, we cover the story and legacy of the great warrior Kusunoki Masashige. Why does he have the unique distinction of a statue on the grounds of the emperor's palace in Tokyo? What do we actually know about him?

Special Bonus - Criminal Records: Sada Abe

November 09, 2018 18:46 - 42 minutes - 38.8 MB

As a surprise bonus, here's an episode of my new show Criminal Records on one of Japan's most fascinating criminal cases. Fair warning: this episode includes some graphic content!

Episode 263 - Their Eyes Were Watching the Gods, Part 2

November 03, 2018 11:00 - 30 minutes - 42.2 MB

This week; Oomoto's zenith and fall from grace. Plus, what have we learned from all this?

Episode 262 - Their Eyes Were Watching the Gods, Part 1

October 27, 2018 11:00 - 29 minutes - 40.6 MB

This week, we tackled the origin of one of Japan's new religious movements: Oomoto, or The Great Origin. Where did it come from, and how did the unique combination of two very different people with the right set of circumstances lead it to prominence?

Episode 261 - The City that Never Sleeps, Part 4

October 20, 2018 11:00 - 30 minutes - 41.6 MB

This week, we cover postwar Tokyo as it recovers from the devastation of war in remarkable time, and take some time to think about what we've learned from the history of Japan's most central city.

Episode 260 - The City that Never Sleeps, Part 3

October 13, 2018 11:00 - 30 minutes - 48.2 MB

This week: the Great Kanto Earthquake, the firebombing campaign, and Tokyo during the Occupation.

Episode 259 - The City that Never Sleeps, Part 2

October 06, 2018 11:00 - 29 minutes - 47.7 MB

This week, from Edo to Tokyo: how the shogun's city became the emperor's!

Episode 258 - The City that Never Sleeps, Part 1

September 29, 2018 11:00 - 29 minutes - 46.4 MB

This week, we start a look at the history of the city of Tokyo. How did the frontier fishing village of Edo go from backwater nowhere to the heart of the nation in only a few short generations?

Episode 257 - The Bookseller

September 22, 2018 11:00 - 30 minutes - 48.6 MB

This week, we cover the life and legacy of one of the great bridges between Japan and China -- the Christian bookseller of Shanghai, Uchiyama Kanzo.

Episode 256 - The Wrestler

September 15, 2018 11:00 - 27 minutes - 43.2 MB

This week, we take a look at the history of pro wrestling in Japan, and its unlikely progenitor: a Korean-born sumo wrestler named Rikidozan.

Episode 255 - The Beautiful Island, Part 4

September 08, 2018 11:00 - 29 minutes - 46.4 MB

This week, we close out our time with Taiwan with a look at its return to the Republic of China, and at the modern day relationship between the "renegade province" and Japan.

Episode 254 - The Beautiful Island, Part 3

September 01, 2018 11:00 - 29 minutes - 26.4 MB

This week, Japan's attempt to assimilate Taiwan finds some success, and one big stumbling block: the Musha Incident, the last and largest rebellion against Japanese rule on the island. Plus, the beginnings of Taiwan's mobilization for war.

Episode 253 - The Beautiful Island, Part 2

August 25, 2018 11:00 - 33 minutes - 29.5 MB

This week: now that Japan has conquered Taiwan, what are they actually going to do with it?

Episode 252 - The beautiful Island, Part 1

August 19, 2018 23:09 - 33 minutes - 29.3 MB

This week, we start a history of the Japanese occupation of Taiwan. How did Japan come to conquer the island, and what did its conquest entail for the Japanese and for the inhabitants?

Episode 251 - Homosexuality in Japan

August 11, 2018 11:00 - 35 minutes - 31 MB

This week, we take a look at the history of gay and lesbian relationships in Japan. How has the social position of homosexuality changed over time in Japanese history? What evidence can we use to "read out" the history of a non-mainstream culture?

Episode 250 - Today is the Victory

July 28, 2018 11:00 - 31 minutes - 28.1 MB

This week, we take on the legend of Miyamoto Musashi. How is it that a person we know very little about came to be a legend? Could it be, perhaps, that the very fact that we know so little about him for sure is part of the allure of his legend?

Episode 249 - Every Day is a Journey

July 21, 2018 11:00 - 32 minutes - 28.5 MB

This week, we delve into the life, legacy, and style of Matsuo Basho, Japan's most famous poet. Who was he? How did he develop his unique style? How did Japan's most famous haiku poet end up writing before the invention of the word "haiku"? All that and more!

Episode 248 - Family Matters

July 14, 2018 11:00 - 30 minutes - 26.8 MB

This week we take on the history of the von Siebold family -- father Philip Franz, son Alexander, and daughter Kusumoto Ine. How does the story of this unusual family fit in to the story of 19th century Japan?

Episode 247 - Edokko

July 07, 2018 11:00 - 29 minutes - 26 MB

This week, we're very lucky to have a chance to speak with Mr. Isaac Shapiro. Mr. Shapiro grew up in wartime Japan, and shares his experiences here with us today. You can check out his book, Edokko: Growing Up a Foreigner in Wartime Japan on Amazon!

Episode 246 - There and Back Again

June 30, 2018 11:00 - 35 minutes - 31.7 MB

This week, we cover the story of Engelbert Kaempfer, who wrote one of the most thorough and best known accounts of Japan for Western consumption before the Meiji era. How did this random German dude end up in Japan? What did he write about it? What did he think of it? And why do we care?

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