Sarah Thal
Position title: David Kuenzi and Mary Wyman Professor of History
Email: thal@wisc.edu
Phone: 608.265.6033
Address:
Office: 4117 Mosse Humanities
Mailbox: 4026 Mosse Humanities
Office Hours: TBA
Biography
I am a historian of early modern and modern Japan with particular interest in intellectual, religious, and social history. My current work examines the development in the 1890s and early 1900s of the “Way of the Samurai” (bushido) as a seemingly traditional, indigenous code of honor thought to embody the “spirit” of Japan. That is, I use the “Way of the Samurai” as a window into the intellectual, cultural, and political life of turn-of-the-century Japan. My teaching interests include samurai and bushido, Shinto and Japanese religion, historical research methods, and the interface between historical education and post-graduation careers.
Education
Ph.D., Columbia University
M.A., Columbia University
B.A., SOAS, University of London
B.Sc., Georgetown
Books
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Sarah Thal. Rearranging the Landscape of the Gods: The Politics of a Pilgrimage Site in Japan, 1573-1912. University of Chicago Press, 2005.
Selected Publications
- “Steadfast Resolve: Stoicism, the Way of the Samurai, and the Struggle over Japan’s National Character.” Japan Review 41:1 (forthcoming 2026).
- “Chivalry Without Women: The Way of the Samurai and Swinton’s World History in 1890s Japan.” American Historical Review 129:2 (June 2024): 361-394. https://doi.org/10.1093/ahr/rhae151
- “Shinto: Beyond ‘Japan’s Indigenous Religion.'” Religious Studies Review 32:3 (July 2006): 145-150.
- “Redefining the Gods: Politics and Survival in the Creation of Modern Kami.” Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 29:3-4 (Fall 2002): 379-404.
Advisor To
History Courses
- History 104 – Introduction to East Asian History: Japan
- History 200 – Film, Literature and the Japanese Past
- History 201 – Historian’s Craft: Conspiracy Theories: Evidence and Argument
- History 300 – History at Work – Syllabus 2025 (pdf)
- History 454 – Samurai: History and Image
- History 500 – Samurai in Film
- History 600 – Religion and Politics in Japan
- History 600 – Samurai in America
- History 725 – East Asian History Seminar
- History 855 – Samurai and Bushido
- History 855 – Early Modern Japan
- History 855 – Shinto and Politics in Japan