Prasenjit Duara is professor in the Department of History and professor in the Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations at the University of Chicago.

In this powerful and provocative book, Prasenjit Duara uses the intriguing case of Manchukuo_the Japanese puppet state in northeast China from 1932-1945_to explore how such antinomies as imperialism and nationalism, modernity and tradition, and governmentality and exploitation interacted in the post-World War I period. He argues that Manchukuo, as a transparently constructed 'nation-state,' offers a unique historical laboratory for examining the utilization and transformation of circulating global forces mediated by the 'East Asian modern.' With its sweepingly original theoretical and comparative perspectives on nationalism and imperialism, this book will be essential reading for all those interested in contemporary history.

Chapter 1 Introduction Part 2 Comparative and Historical Perspectives Chapter 1 3 Imperialism and Nationalism in the Twentieth Century Chapter 2 4 Manchukuo: A Historical Overview Part 5 Civilization and Sovereignty Chapter 3 6 Asianinsm and the New Discourse of Civilization Chapter 4 7 Embodying Civilization: Women and the Figure of Tradition within Modernity Part 8 The Authenticity of Spaces Chapter 5 10 Imperial Nationalism and the Frontier Chapter 6 11 Local Worlds: The Politics and Poetics of the Native Place Chapter 12 Conclusion Chapter 13 Glossary of Chinese Terms Chapter 14 Glossary of Japanese Terms