Written by top scholars in the field, East Asia: A Cultural, Social and Political History provides the most complete history of East Asia available to date. Strong coverage of gender and social history, as well as a special emphasis on material culture provide students with a broad understanding of the region. Eight Connections chapters connect the societies of East Asia to each other and the rest of the world. Throughout the text, primary source documents and biography essays capture the lives and voices of East Asian history while "Material Culture" features invite students to examine physical objects as sources of culture. Some of the objects profiled include Chinese lacquer, Korean streetcars, and Japanese manga (comics). East Asia: A Cultural, Social, and Political History offers geographically balanced coverage of Chinese, Japanese, and Korean history while examining the history of each society in a larger, global context. Book jacket.