2025 (Current Year) Faculty Courses Liberal arts and basic science courses Humanities and social science courses

History C

Academic unit or major: Humanities and social science courses
Instructor(s): Takeru Ogi
Class Format: Lecture
Media-enhanced courses: -
Day of week/Period (Classrooms)
Class: -
Course Code: LAH.H305
Number of credits: 200
Course offered: 2025
Offered quarter: 3Q
Syllabus updated: Mar 19, 2025
Language: Japanese

Syllabus

Course overview and goals

History of Contemporary Japanese politics(1945-2025)
The aim of this course is to deepen understanding of modern and contemporary Japanese history, particularly post-war Japanese political history. In order to understand post-war Japanese political history, this lecture will focus on the formation and transformation of the post-war Japanese political system.

Course description and aims

By the end of the course, students should be able to do the followings:

1) By acquiring basic knowledge of post-war Japanese political history, students will be able to understand the historical background to the establishment of the political structure of contemporary Japan.
2) Based on the acquired knowledge of post-war Japanese political history, students be able to critically examine the political structure of contemporary Japan.
3) Learn how to express their own opinions in an appropriate way through submitting reaction papers after each class.

Keywords

History, Japanese History, Political and Diplomatic History, Administrative History, Post-war Japan

Competencies

Specialist skills
Intercultural skills
Communication skills
Critical thinking skills
Practical and/or problem-solving skills

Class flow

Lectures with resumes. At the end of each class, students are required to submit reaction papers that include their questions, feedbacks, and opinions about the lecture. If needed, the lecturer will provide additional explanations and answers to these reactions at the next class. This mutual communication will enable students to deepen their understanding of the class.

Course schedule/Objectives

	Course schedule	Objectives
Class 1	Intorduction: Politics and history as a druama	Explain the course description, and how to discuss political history.
Class 2	Political system in modern politics	Discusses the formation of modern political systems through the history of democracy from the 19th to the mid-20th century.
Class 3	Establishment of the post-war Japanese constitutional system 1: The Occupation and the beginning of reform	Discusses Japanese politics during the occupation.
Class 4	Establishment of the post-war Japanese constitutional system 2	Discusses Japanese politics leading up to the San Francisco Peace Treaty, with a focus on rearmament and peace issues.
Class 5	Establishment of the 1955 system	Discusses the unification of the Left Socialist Party and the Right Socialist Party and the establishment of the 1955 system through the formation of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) .
Class 6	Japanese politics during the period of rapid economic growth	Discusses Japanese politics since the revision of the US-Japan Security Treaty, particularly LDP politics from the 1960s to the early 1970s.
Class 7	Japanese politics during a period of stable growth	Discusses Japanese politics and the rise of the progressives in the 1970s.
Class 8	The maturation and collapse of LDP politics	Discusses the maturation and collapse of LDP politics through an analysis of Japanese politics in the 1980s.
Class 9	Political realignment and political reform	Discusses Japanese politics in the 1990s, focusing on political reform and political realignment.
Class 10	Two-party system and political leadership 1: Koizumi Cabinet to Aso Cabinet	Discusses Japanese politics in the early 2000s, with a focus on the political leadership of the Koizumi Cabinet.
Class 11	Two-party system and political leadership 2: Failure of DPJ	Discusses the politics of the LDP by analysing the relationship between politicians and bureaucrats after the change of government.
Class 12	Transformation of LDP politics	Discusses the transformation of LDP politics in the contemporary era through an analysis of the second Abe administration and the leadership of the Prime Minister's Office.
Class 13	Japanese politics in the digital age	Discusses the rise of social networking and other digital technologies and contemporary Japanese politics.
Class 14	Summary of the course	There will be a summary of the whole lecture and a question and answer session on the previous lectures.

Study advice (preparation and review)

To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to reference books and other course materials.

Textbook(s)

No textbook

Reference books, course materials, etc.

Reference Books on the entire course are as follows (no need to purchase)
Iio Jun, Nihon No Touchikōzō, Tokyo: Chuokoron-Shinsha, Inc., 2007.
Nakakita Koji, Jimintō,Tokyo: Chuokoron-Shinsha, Inc.,2017.
Ishikawa Masumi, Yamaguchi Jiro, Sengo Seiji Shi 4th edition, Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten, Publishers., 2021.
Sakaiya Shiro, Sengo Nihon Seiji Shi,Tikyo: Chuokoron-Shinsha, Inc., 2023.
Other books will also be introduced during the lecture if needed.

Evaluation methods and criteria

Final grade will be calculated according to the following process End-term report (80%), and in-class contribution (20%).

Related courses

History A
History B
LAH.S414 ： Essence of Humanities and Social Sciences14:History

Prerequisites

It is desirable to have prior knowledge of junior high or high school level of Japanese history and Civics. Nevertheless, the lecturer will proceed the course along with providing basic knowledge of Japanese history and Civics during the lectures.