The City as Subject, 13

By Jeffrey E. Haynes,

Book cover of The City as Subject, 13: Seki Hajime and the Reinvention of Modern Osaka

Book description

In exploring the career of Seki Hajime (1873-1935), who served as mayor of Japan's second-largest city, Osaka, Jeffrey E. Hanes traces the roots of social progressivism in prewar Japan. Seki, trained as a political economist in the late 1890s, when Japan was focused single-mindedly on "increasing industrial production," distinguished himself…

When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

Why read it?

1 author picked The City as Subject, 13 as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Osaka became an industrial giant during the Meiji period, remaining one of the world’s fastest-growing cities throughout the later decades of the nineteenth century and early decades of the twentieth.  The city outgrew Tokyo in both population and industrial production for a brief period during the 1930s.  This was a time when social displacement, horrendous public health and housing failings, and labor unrest threatened communal wellbeing.  The city responded with some of the most innovative social policies of the era, especially under the leadership of Mayor Seki Hajime.  As Hanes uncovers, Seki used his training as a social economist to…

Want books like The City as Subject, 13?

Our community of 12,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like The City as Subject, 13.

Browse books like The City as Subject, 13

Book cover of A History of Tokyo 1867-1989: From EDO to Showa: The Emergence of the World's Greatest City
Book cover of Neighborhood and Nation in Tokyo, 1905-1937
Book cover of Neighborhood Tokyo

Share your top 3 reads of 2024!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,355

readers submitted
so far, will you?

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in Japan, economists, and Tokyo?

Japan 516 books
Economists 29 books
Tokyo 92 books