ABSTRACT
New editions apparently need new Prefaces. I wish I had the knowledge, or the time to acquire it, to report on subsequent developments in the study of Tokugawa education. My impression is that a better acquaintance with the extensive output of Japan’s sizeable and productive body of educational historians would not lead me to alter the general picture I present in this book, even if, were I writing today, I would want to change some, and fill out other, details. Nor, I fear, am I aware of having any youthful indiscretions to disavow, of having grown out of any of the opinions, assumptions, prejudices which underlie my treatment of the subject – a sad admission, for one who believes in life-long learning. The best I can do, perhaps, is to spell out a little more clearly what those opinions, assumptions, prejudices were. I often wonder when I have read a book what can have prompted the author to embark on the writing of it. I shall assume that the reader shares the same kind of curiosity.
