Max Warrack
Teaching Fellow in Politics and International Studies (East Asia)
Coordinator of MA Student Experience and Progression (MA CSEP)
Coordinator of the University of Warwick East Asia Study Group (EASG)
For teaching-related inquiries, please use my staff email address:
For student experience and progression-related inquires, please use the MA CSEP resource email address:
For EASG-related inquires, please use the EASG resource email address:
Advice and Feedback Hours:
Thursdays 12:30 - 13:30
Location: In-person at Room E1.24; and online through Microsoft Teams
University of Warwick (2023) Politics and International Studies PhD; University of Sheffield (2012) Japanese Studies MA; and University of Edinburgh (2011) History MA with Honours
My research explores "cultural remilitarisation" as well as the broader relationship between culture and politics with an empirical focus on the international relations of Japan and within the broader East Asian region. I have three lines of research: popular culture and politics; international relations and security; and critical military studies. My PhD project fused the three lines of research together in a discourse analysis on gendered representations of the Japan Self-Defense Force (JSDF) in manga that re-establish the connection between masculinity and the military.
Recipient of Warwick Award for Teaching Excellence 2021 PGRLink opens in a new window
Fellow of Advance HE (FHEA)
N1 in the Japanese Language Proficiency Test
Recipient of the Sasakawa Japanese Studies Postgraduate Studentship Programme scholarship
Recipient of the British Association for Japan Studies John Crump Studentship
Recipient of Japanese Studies Grant from the Japan Foundation Endowment Committee
Publications
Warrack, M. (2025). Manga and militarism: rehabilitating military violence in Japan. The Pacific Review, 38 (6): 1110-38 https://doi.org/10.1080/09512748.2025.2484343
Flipping a standard premise in the Japan security debate: Japan's culture resists remilitarisation, this article outlines a process of 'cultural remilitarisation' connected to manga (Japanese comics) that positively portray the JSDF enacting violence. It traces the industry-origins of the manga and illustrates (pun intended) how they frame JSDF violence as a legitimate tool of statecraft, presenting a cultural explanation for Japan's post-Cold War security trajectory.
I was interviewed about my article (and broader research) for PAIS Podcasts. Listen to it here.
Teaching
For the 2025/6 academic year, I am teaching on the undergraduate first-year module PO131: World Politics; the undergraduate second-year module PO2E5L: Chinese Domestic Politics: Governance, Society and Reform; and the undergraduate third-year module PO3B7S: China and the World: Power, Strategy, and the Global Influence.
Supervision
I am best positioned to supervise on topics related to Japan and East Asia and/or connected to my lines of research: popular culture and world politics; international relations and security; and critical military studies.
Administrative Duties
I am a Coordinator for MA Student Experience and Progression (MA CSEP).
I am a Coordinator of the East Asia Study Group (EASG)Link opens in a new window; a PAIS research and study group.
Advice and Feedback Hours
Advice and Feedback is available on Tuesdays and Thursday between 12:30 and 13:30. They can be held in-person in my office (E1.24) or online through Microsoft Teams. They are available by appointment only. Appointments are arranged through the booking form Book time with Warrack, Max: Advice and Feedback. Please remember to specify whether you would prefer an in-person or online Advice and Feedback session.