- 246 pages
- English
- PDF
- Available on iOS & Android
About this book
Why is it that we so readily accept the boundary lines drawn around nations or around regions like 'Asia' as though they were natural and self-evident, when in fact they are so mutable and often so very arbitrary? What happens to people not only when the borders they seek to cross become heavily guarded, but also when new borders are drawn straight through the middle of their lives? The essays in this book address these questions by starting from small places on the borderlands of East Asia and looking outwards from the small towards the large, asking what these 'minor pasts' tell us about the grand narratives of history. In the process, it takes the reader on a journey from Renaissance European visions of 'Tartary', through nineteenth-century racial theorising, imperial cartography and indigenous experiences of modernity, to contemporary debates about Big History in an age of environmental crisis.
Frequently asked questions
- Essential is ideal for learners and professionals who enjoy exploring a wide range of subjects. Access the Essential Library with 800,000+ trusted titles and best-sellers across business, personal growth, and the humanities. Includes unlimited reading time and Standard Read Aloud voice.
- Complete: Perfect for advanced learners and researchers needing full, unrestricted access. Unlock 1.4M+ books across hundreds of subjects, including academic and specialized titles. The Complete Plan also includes advanced features like Premium Read Aloud and Research Assistant.
Please note we cannot support devices running on iOS 13 and Android 7 or earlier. Learn more about using the app.
Information
Table of contents
- List of Illustrations
- Introduction
- 1. Anti-Area Studies Revisited
- 2. Mapping Time and Space
- 3. ‘Tartary’ in the Reshaping of Historical Thought
- 4. Unthinking Civilisation: An Imbricated History of the Okhotsk Region
- 5. The Telescope and the Tinderbox: Rediscovering La Pérouse in the North Pacific
- 6. Lines in the Snow: The Making of the Russo–Japanese Frontier
- 7. Indigeneity and Modernity in Colonial Karafuto
- 8. Japan and its Region: From Tartary to the Emergence of the New Area Studies
- Concluding Thoughts: On the Value of Small Histories