Using the traditional genres of allegory, pastoral, and parable, this book develops alternative paradigms of literary realism with which to reexamine a group of crucial but marginalized 20th century writers who have been misread as conventional mimetic realists.

Japan in Decline: Fact or Fiction?

To what extent is Japan in decline? In recent years popular writings, media commentaries and analysts often take the view that the rise of Japan is long since over and that the world's second largest economy is not just treading water but that society and the economy are failing, with potential catastrophic outcomes. But is this really the case? Could it be that once again Japan is being misread and misinterpreted? Are there not both obvious and less obvious signs of renewal and recovery? And how might the new DPJ-led government reform Japan?