The Chrysanthemum and the Sword: Patterns of Japanese Culture

Ruth Benedict

Jun 2020 · Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

About this ebook

"One of the best books ever about Japanese society . . . [A] thoughtful, nuanced study of the Japanese character."— U.S. News & World Report

"A classic book because of its intellectual and stylistic lucidity . . . Benedict was a writer of great humanity and generosity of spirit."—from the foreword by Ian Buruma

Essential reading for anyone interested in Japanese culture, this unsurpassed masterwork opens an intriguing window on Japan. The World War II–era study by the cultural anthropologist Ruth Benedict paints an illuminating contrast between the people of Japan and those of the United States. The Chrysanthemum and the Sword is a revealing look at how and why our societies differ, making it the perfect introduction to Japanese history and customs.

"A classic of Japanese cultural studies . . . With considerable sensitivity, she managed both to stress the differences in Japanese society of which American policy makers needed to be aware and to debunk the stereotype of the Japanese as hopelessly rigid and incapable of change."— The New York Times

"An absorbing account of Japanese culture . . . almost novel-like readability."— The Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology

About the author

RUTH BENEDICT (1887–1948) was one of the twentieth century’s foremost anthropologists and helped to shape the discipline in the United States and around the world. Benedict was a student and later a colleague of Franz Boas at Columbia, where she taught from 1924. Margaret Mead was one of her students. Benedict’s contributions to the field of cultural anthropology are often cited today.