Contemporary China Studies in Japan: mainstream approaches and challenges

Abstract

ABSTRACT Contemporary China Studies in Japan owes its origin to two different sources. One is the prewar Japanese sinology (Toyogaku), at that time the main source of scientific knowledge on China. Although its influence waned after the war, its relevance cannot be underestimated. The other is Area Studies, a discipline first developed in the United States after the World War II. In the last 50 years, Contemporary China Studies in Japan has yielded great advances in the subfields of Chinese economy, politics, modern and contemporary history, and cultural anthropology, to name but a few. Following China’s rapid economic transformation and its rise to great power status, Contemporary China Studies is currently undergoing a massive paradigm shift, thus facing significant challenges that need to be addressed. In author’s opinion, the biggest challenges can be grouped under three headings: 1) the trinary structure model of state–society relations, 2) the Asianization of Contemporary China Studies, and 3) the persistence of institutions. The aforementioned fundamental challenges are dealt with in detail in the main section of this study; while in the conclusion, the concept of “state capitalism” and the very nature of Chinese state are discussed.