{"podcast":{"title":"New Books in Sociology","slug":"new-books-in-sociology-671620","podcast_index_feed_id":671620,"rss_url":"https://feeds.simplecast.com/v2qTvjo5","website_url":"https://newbooksnetwork.com","image_url":"https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/e2f45575-aa64-469b-823c-25f04d775e35/5b19178e-705b-42a9-8667-20cf6fa413a9/3000x3000/b6e67e348fe6c83f677a9dc9bd7ac1fe.png?aid=rss_feed","author":"New Books Network","episode_count":600,"summary":"This podcast is a channel on the New Books Network. The New Books Network is an academic audio library dedicated to public education. In each episode you will hear scholars discuss their recently published research with another expert in their field. Discover our 150+ channels and browse our 28,000+ episodes on our website: ⁠newbooksnetwork.com⁠ Subscribe to our free weekly Substack newsletter to get informative, engaging content straight to your inbox: ⁠https://newbooksnetwork.substack.com/⁠ Follow us on Instagram and Bluesky to learn about more our latest interviews: @newbooksnetwork Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/sociology","last_synced_at":"2026-09-19T12:22:01.061961+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-sociology-671620"},"episode":{"title":"Nozomi Naoi, \"The Land of Happiness: How the Japanese Department Store Visualized Modern Life\" (MIT Press, 2026)","slug":"nozomi-naoi-the-land-of-happiness-how-the-japanese-department-store-visualized-modern-life-mit-press-2026","published_at":"2026-08-04T08:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-sociology-671620/nozomi-naoi-the-land-of-happiness-how-the-japanese-department-store-visualized-modern-life-mit-press-2026","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-sociology-671620","url":"https://newbooksnetwork.com","audio_url":"https://injector.simplecastaudio.com/e2f45575-aa64-469b-823c-25f04d775e35/episodes/c1ecbee2-e714-48e8-8fc6-d9cec0fa7511/audio/128/default.mp3?aid=rss_feed&awCollectionId=e2f45575-aa64-469b-823c-25f04d775e35&awEpisodeId=c1ecbee2-e714-48e8-8fc6-d9cec0fa7511&feed=v2qTvjo5","summary":"The Land of Happiness: How the Japanese Department Store Visualized Modern Life (MIT Press, 2026) explores the far-reaching influence of the Japanese department store on modern life and our imaginations. In this gorgeously illustrated volume, Dr. Nozomi Naoi explains how Japanese department stores modeled “the new modern Japanese life and identity” through print media and design, physical and imagined space, and the new experiences that these spaces offered. The stores created the notion of a modern subject enjoying a “land of happiness”—and this, in turn, shaped the wider sociological context, including emerging roles for women and perceptions of coloniality. The book focuses on three areas: the mediascape of proliferating department store posters, advertisements, commercial design, promotional magazines, and merchandise; the physical space, such as the Western-style architecture that characterized many of these early department stores, and the imagined “modern space” created within their walls; and, finally, the production of a novel “dreamworld,” which included dining spaces with children’s menus, new technology such as elevators and escalators, and more. Although the research on department stores and their role in the quotidian experience is vast, there is nothing like this study, which is uniquely grounded in an art-historical approach that draws on the visual media environment of early twentieth-century Japan and its impact on the everyday. This interview was conducted by Dr. Miranda Melcher whose book focuses on post-conflict military integration, understanding treaty negotiation and implementation in civil war contexts, with qualitative analysis of the Angolan and Mozambican civil wars. You can find Miranda’s interviews on New Books with Miranda Melcher, where…","meta_description":"The Land of Happiness: How the Japanese Department Store Visualized Modern Life (MIT Press, 2026) explores the far-reaching influence of the Japanese depa…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2361,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/new-books-in-sociology-671620/episodes/nozomi-naoi-the-land-of-happiness-how-the-japanese-department-store-visualized-modern-life-mit-press-2026/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/new-books-in-sociology-671620/nozomi-naoi-the-land-of-happiness-how-the-japanese-department-store-visualized-modern-life-mit-press-2026.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}