From the beginning of its recorded history until the opening to the West in the last century, Japan was caught between a love for and a rejection of Chinese civilization. David Pollack argues that the dialectical relationship between the two countries figured more importantly in the Japanese sense of identity and signification than any particular borrowed Chinese cultural materials. Originally published in 1986. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.