Servants, Shophands, and Laborers in the Cities of Tokugawa Japan |
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| Author:
| Leupp, Gary P. |
| ISBN: | 978-0-691-02961-0 |
| Publication Date: | Nov 1994 |
| Publisher: | Princeton University Press
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| Book Format: | Paperback |
| List Price: | USD $24.95 |
Book Description:
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In this analysis of lower-class life in Tokugawa Japan (1603-1868), Gary Leupp vividly portrays the emergence of an urban proletariat during a time of extraordinary economic change. With the rapid increase in commercial activity, products previously restricted to use by the elite became commodities for mass consumption. Likewise, labor power became a commodity as hired laborers replaced traditional corvée workers in the commercial realm and contracted servants supplanted lifetime,...
More Description
In this analysis of lower-class life in Tokugawa Japan (1603-1868), Gary Leupp vividly portrays the emergence of an urban proletariat during a time of extraordinary economic change. With the rapid increase in commercial activity, products previously restricted to use by the elite became commodities for mass consumption. Likewise, labor power became a commodity as hired laborers replaced traditional corvée workers in the commercial realm and contracted servants supplanted lifetime, hereditary workers in households. Focusing on a class system mediated increasingly by money, Leupp explores the ways employers and employees dealt with each other and the steps taken by government officials to control rising hostilities.