Before you delve into complex scholarly monographs and academic research articles, it's important to have a general understanding of your topic. This page lists tools and resources that can help you learn about your topic broadly. They can help you identify key people, events, issues, and dates that relate to your topic. Jot down what you come across: these terms will serve as keywords for your library searches.
Several guides from the Library of Congress may also give you research ideas:
Research Starters appear in Search@XU results for frequently-researched topics. They will be shown at the top of the search result page with a yellow light bulb icon. A Research Starter gives an overview of a topic and identifies key issues, dates, names, and places associated with it.
Modern Japan: a Very Short Introduction by
Japan is arguably today's most successful industrial economy, combining almost unprecedented affluence with social stability and apparent harmony. Japanese goods and cultural products--from animated movies and computer games to cars, semiconductors, and management techniques--are consumed around the world. In many ways, Japan is an icon of the modern world, and yet it remains something of an enigma to many, who see it as a confusing montage of the alien and the familiar, the ancient and modern. This Very Short Introduction explodes the myths and explores the reality of modern Japan, offering a concise, engaging, and accessible look at the history, economy, politics, and culture of this fascinating nation. It examines what the term "modern" means to the Japanese, debunks the notion that Japan went through a period of total isolation from the world, and explores the continuity between pre- and post-war Japan. Anyone curious about this intriguing country will find a wealth of insight and information in these pages. About the Series: Combining authority with wit, accessibility, and style, Very Short Introductions offer an introduction to some of life's most interesting topics. Written by experts for the newcomer, they demonstrate the finest contemporary thinking about the central problems and issues in hundreds of key topics, from philosophy to Freud, quantum theory to Islam