Includes bibliographical references (p. 296-309) and index.

Showa-Era Japan and Beyond: From Imperial Japan to Japan Inc. / Peter Duus -- Four Cultures of Japanese Politics / David Leheny -- The Cultures and Politics of Language in Japan Today / Nanette Gottlieb -- Japanese Education and Education Reform / Roger Goodman -- Religion in Contemporary Japanese Lives / Mark R. Mullins -- Law and Society in Japan / Lawrence Repeta -- The Urbanization of the Japanese Landscape / Paul Waley -- Social Class and Social Identity in Postwar Japan / David Slater -- The Politics of Gender in Japan / Robin M. LeBlanc -- Change and Diversity in the Japanese Family / Merry White -- Japan's Queer Cultures / Mark McLelland -- Race, Ethnicity, and Minorities in Japan / Richard Siddle -- Life on the Margins in Japan: Homeless, Migrant Day Laborers, and People with Disabilities / Carolyn S. Stevens -- Aging and Social Welfare in Japan / Leng Leng Thang -- The New Prominence of the Civil Sector in Japan / Akihiro Ogawa -- Contemporary Architecture in Japan / William H. Coaldrake -- Japanese Film and Television / Aaron Gerow -- Manga and Anime: Entertainment, Big Business, and Art in Japan / Susan Napier -- Popular Music in Japan / Ian Condry -- The Sportscape of Contemporary Japan / William Kelly -- Cultural Flows: Japan and East Asia / Koichi Iwabuchi -- Cuisine and Identity in Contemporary Japan / Theodore C. Bestor.