Week 5 (HIEA 112)

Total War through Occupation

Discussion Questions: Considering the intense racial animosity that Dower outlines in his introduction to War Without Mercy, why do you think the Japanese and US government were so quick to see each other as allies? Do you believe that the transition was as quick for ordinary people? Think about how this question (including a version of this question that is put forth in Kurosawa’s No Regrets for Our Youth) risks effacing the scrutiny of Japanese colonial rule and imperialist aggression in Asia.

World War Two marked the beginning of a new modern warfare — one where nations utilized dangerous technological innovations. However, as Dower outlines in War Without Mercy, it also highlighted the racial animostiy between the ally and the enemy. “Race hate fed atrocities and atrocities in turn fanned the fires of race hate. The dehumanization of the Other contributed immeasurably to the psychological distancing that facilitates killing…” (Dower, 11). The United States and its Western allies portrayed the Japanese nation-state and its people as subhuman — consistently comparing them to apes and vermin. The Japanese portrayed Americans and Europeans as monsters — consistently comparing to devils and demons. Both sides viewed one another as enemies who deserved ‘demanded extermination’. This created, as Dower coined the phrase, a war without mercy.

I think that it may be difficult to understand exactly why the Japanese and US government were so quick to see one another as allies, especially considering the intense racial hate that each side exhibited during the period of war. However, I would suppose that it was the best choice for both sides. That is, by becoming allies, the United States was able to remain dominant and reaffirm the power that it held over Japan. As Dower highlights, “Victory confirmed the Allies’ assumptions of superiority, while the ideology of ‘proper place’ enabled the Japanese to adjust…” (13). As for Japan, it was in the nation-state’s best interest to become allies with the victor of the war. They were able to keep the peace while the Emperor and the Imperial institutions remained intact.

I do not believe that the transition was as quick for ordinary people. After the Emperor’s speech, many Japanese citizens were shocked considering that the nation-state had urged them all to continue to fight and make sacrifices to aid in the war effort. Many soldiers found Japan’s surrender unbearable and took their own lives (lecture 9). I think that it was very difficult for ordinary Japanese citizens — and those under Japan’s colonial rule — to change their views of the enemy to that of an ally of the nation-state.