Annotated Bibliography

Annotated Bibliography Students Name Course Instructor Date Leupp, Gary P. "Servants, shophands, and laborers in the cities of Tokugawa Japan." (No Title) (1992). In the article, Leupp contends the working class in urban such as manual laborers, manufacturing workers, and others, greatly impacted Japan's development during the Tokugawa period (1603-1868), which Western historians have often overlooked. He further argues that the emergence of wage labor and capitalist relations of production in Japanese cities during this "feudal" era was crucial in shaping Japan's historical trajectory towards capitalism. Leupp's work contributes to the debate about Japan's transition to capitalism by examining the transformation of the urban labor force from unpaid, hereditary retainers to short-term, contracted employees paid in cash wages. He emphasizes the need to understand the conditions and experiences of these urban workers, who constituted a substantial portion of the population in major cities like Edo, Osaka, and Kyoto. Leupp uses statistical records such as legal, cultural artifacts, and population registers to provide demographics, working conditions, and societal perceptions of servants, day laborers, and manufacturing hands. Leupp shows how these workers, often marginalized in history, helped shape the urban background and offered a foundation for Japan's subsequent industrialization and economic growth. Clulow, Adam. The Company and the Shogun: The Dutch Encounter with Tokugawa Japan. Columbia University Press. Columbia University Press, 2013. Adams's article "The Company and the Shogun" argues that the Dutch East India Company (VOC), a hybrid organization combining corporate and state powers, faced significant challenges in encountering Tokugawa Japan. The article contributes to the debate about European expansion in early modern Asia by examining conflicts between the VOC and the Tokugawa regime over diplomacy, violence, and sovereignty. The author shows that contrary to the conventional narrative of European dominance, the Dutch were forced to retreat from their claims and adapt to the Tokugawa order, ultimately becoming a subordinate vassal of the shogun. The article challenges the notion of a "Vasco da Gama epoch" of European hegemony in Asia. It highlights the enduring power of Asian states in containing and shaping European presence in the region. Through detailed case studies, Clulow offers a nuanced understanding of the limits of European power and the socialization process whereby Europeans were compelled to conform to Asian political orders. Hauser, William B. “Some Misconceptions about the Economic History of Tokugawa Japan.” The History Teacher 16, no. 4 (August 1983): 569. https://doi....