German-Japanese Relations

The project explores the German-Japanese relations in past and presence. It integrates history, theory, and methodology on a sound empirical foundation and gives a comprehensive overview of different layers of the historical process (cultural, economic, political, social) of the German-Japanese relations. An all-inclusive encyclopaedic approach is to be avoided in favour of a clear-cut problem-oriented one. This premise means at the same time to consciously reflect on the specific perspectives, subjects, and approaches by which history was and still is depicted. Alltagsgeschichte (history of everyday life) and history from the perspective of ruling elites, that is to say history from the bottom up and history from the top down must not be looked upon historiographically as antipodes, but can be dealt with logically in an integrated way without compulsive grouting. That is true also for the so-called conventional political history (including diplomatic history) and the so-called modern social and economic history. The scrutiny of power and influence structures leaves enough opportunity to take into consideration sociocultural contexts of microhistorical Lebenswelten (life-worlds). System theory, modernisation theory, and class theory are by no means theoretically transcended. Essentialism, relativism, and historism constantly come in again, with and without "neo-". Within the framework of German-Japanese relations the cultural, economic, political, and social contacts in real terms should be categorially separated from images of Japan and images of Germany.