Platt, Brian 1970-

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Platt, Brian 1970-

PERSONAL:

Born April 27, 1970. Education: University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Ph.D., 1998.

ADDRESSES:

Office—Department of History and Art History, George Mason University, Robinson B 359, 4400 University Dr., MSN 3G1, Fairfax, VA 22030-4444. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Writer and educator. George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, associate professor and chair of the department of history and art history.

WRITINGS:

Burning and Building: Schooling and State Formation in Japan, 1750-1890, Harvard University Press (Cambridge, MA), 2004.

SIDELIGHTS:

Writer and educator Brian Platt is a professor of history, specializing in research on the social and cultural history of Japan and East Asia, including autobiographies of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. He has served as associate professor and chair of the department of history and art history at George Mason University.

Platt published his first book, Burning and Building: Schooling and State Formation in Japan, 1750-1890, in 2004. In this work, the author details the development of Japan's modern education system, including analysis of the historical archives in Shinano Prefecture, one of the most educationally oriented areas of the country. Platt outlines the development of both individual schools and broader policies. He also demonstrates the active involvement of locals to guide the education system plans of the government, which are supported by some and opposed by others. Overall, Platt's book was met favorably by readers and critics alike. Many cited his well-developed research and lively account as highlights of the book. The author gives us a "brisk narrative, and fresh analysis," wrote Stephen Vlastos in a review for the Historian. Others lauded Platt's ability to take the literature on the subject to a new level of discussion. Burning and Building is "very scholarly, always interesting," noted Pacific Affairs contributor Roger Goodman.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

American Historical Review, June, 2005, Mark Lincicome, review of Burning and Building: Schooling and State Formation in Japan, 1750-1890, p. 776.

Choice: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries, March, 2005, P.G. Altbach, review of Burning and Building, p. 1283.

Historian, fall, 2006, Stephen Vlastos, review of Burning and Building, p. 617.

History of Education Review, January, 2006, Maxine Stephenson, review of Burning and Building, p. 78.

Journal of Asian History, fall, 2006, Jordan Sand, review of Burning and Building.

Journal of Asian Studies, February, 2005, Terrence Jackson, review of Burning and Building, p. 201.

Pacific Affairs, spring, 2005, Roger Goodman, review of Burning and Building, p. 147.