ahorbinski: kanji (kanji)
Andrea J. Horbinski ([personal profile] ahorbinski) wrote 2011-03-29 12:35 am (UTC)

because I can't edit comments

Actually, I think the indeterminacy of the 'popular readership/popular consciousness' relationship is one criticism that could be levied against Berry in this book, as well--at least, I have a response paper in progress arguing that. I think it's less of a flaw in Berry's arguments than in Foster's, but the final chapter of Berry's book in particular is grounded on the equation of Nation = Territory + State + Culture without any numerical limits, and hardly any geographical limits, on those variables. She argues strongly for a Japanese nation in the early modern period, which I think is only good sense (but then, I'm in her subfield in her department), but as much as I think that all the pearl-clutching on the modern Japan side around the word 'nation' is silly at best, I do agree that if the term can be applied to any historical period (as it potentially could under Berry's equation as stated in this book) then it's lost most if not all of its analytical utility.

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