The Other Side of Nationalism in Japan
Nationalism in Japan, like fundamentalism in America, is often over-represented relative to its actual popularity. The black loudspeaker trucks and vans tend to stand out. They are way over-represented in government, with the ruling party tending to go along their lines. Newspapers often tout their agendas (though the Yomiuri is now doing an about-face).
But there is evidence of a different point of view among actual Japanese people. One small point of evidence: a new anti-war film, called The Ants (Ari no Heitai), is drawing large crowds. It is only playing in two small art houses–bigger chains would not dare to bring this out themselves, at least not until it’s wide popularity is proved–but it is getting record attendance. A small piece of evidence, to be sure, but it will be interesting to see if this gets wider attention and a broader release.
It’s always been my observation that most Japanese simply don’t know about what happened in WWII–too many simply never heard of it, not just because they didn’t want to. I recall back in the 80’s when I was tutoring a private student, a high-school girl, and discussion came around to the subject of Japan’s actions in the war. She told me that her high school History teacher only covered material up to the end of the Meiji period (when Japan was modernizing and growing in international stature)–then said that there was “not enough time to cover everything,” so they jumped ahead to the firebombings of Japanese civilians by the U.S. and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. A jump which conveniently glossed right over Japanese militarism and aggression at its worst. Since then, I have spoken to several Japanese people from different parts of the country who report the exact same gap in their teachings.
As a result of this and the whitewashing in the media, many Japanese, though aware something is wrong in this area, have very little actual knowledge of what happened outside the revisionist retellings of what went on, usually focusing on how it was the Japanese, and not others, who suffered.
Like the people of any nation, many Japanese will defend their country when challenged with the facts, but it is my impression that most are not like that. When they discover what Japan did during that period, most Japanese I know accept it and are very disapproving. Now, that is certainly colored by the fact that many of those I see in this reaction are young people, and often students who have chosen to study English. But even in light of that, my general impression remains the same, so I would not be too surprised if The Ants were generally well-received if it were to enjoy a wider release. The news would probably be focused more on the predictable reactions of the minority nationalists, protesting such a film.
And although I see a general trend towards nationalism in Japanese politics, I am far from convinced that this is also true of the Japanese people.
Does anyone have experiences or opinions to the contrary?
Well, I know that the history that’s told in the Soka Gakkai tends to be a little bit harsh on Japan’s actions in WWII- but not really on the nationalistic side, or the war side.
Soka Gakkai (the religious group that started the Komeito party) was started by a 13th century Japanese monk named Nichiren. One of Nichiren’s main treatises was “Rissho Ankoku Ron”, or “On Establishing the Correct Teaching for the Peace of the Land”.
This teaching has been used (or misused, depending on your preference) to justify Japanese nationalism in the past, and some Nichiren Buddhist groups still have that tendency.
In the Nichiren Shoshu/Soka Gakkai tradition, however, the teaching is basically used to sum up why people need to follow Nichiren Buddhism; in it, he lays out many sufferings that Japan was laboring with in the Kamakura era (drought, earthquakes, foreign invasion, etc).
Nichiren blames these calamities on the fact that Japan is not following true Buddhism.
(I’m going somewhere with this, hang in there.)
In the 1940s, the first two presidents of Soka Gakkai were imprisoned by the Japanese government for refusing to put a Shinto talisman on their home butsudan (an altar or shrine).
The first SG president, Makiguchi, wound up dying while in prison, and Josei Toda was released right as the war was about to end. He became SG president after the war.
So in this group, in the Soka Gakkai, there is a clear and direct link between the suffering of Japan during the war and Japan’s refusal to embrace and accept the teachings of Nichiren’s Buddhism.
Even then, though, in my opinion there is nowhere near enough linkage between how brutal Japan was during the 30s and 40s and the suffering that Japan had after the war.
While the Americans are presented as being a benevolent force (in fact, Toda had great admiration for MacArthur) whose humanistic emphasis ties in with that of Nichiren Buddhism, the main thrust of Soka’s historical account is two points… first, how mean and nasty and persecuted the Soka Gakkai leaders were by the military government (Soka is a very peace-oriented group). This is borne out by the fact that Makiguchi died while imprisoned.
Second, how utterly miserable Japan was in the aftermath of the war, and how valiently and mightily the Soka leaders struggled to rebuild their movement, the Nichiren Buddhist religion, and how the nation of Japan struggled and improved as well. (Again, all true, because SG exploded in size despite the horrible conditions of the nation after the war.)
But they definitely, in my view, leave out just how dangerous the nationalistic policies were. It’s almost as though it’s accepted as though everyone knows it, but they’d rather not speak of it.
The thing is… everyone does NOT know about it. By leaving it unspoken, now the younger generations don’t really realize Japan’s culpability when it comes to WWII, and what a huge part nationalistic thoughts played in that era.
Paul
Seattle
I find this all very troubling.
Mostly the white washing of history.
I understand people not wanting to know about their dark history. I am a white american (anscesters came here around 1870 – I think to dodge serving in the Prussian Army against France – though some came from Luxembourg/Belgium). And I don’t like thinking about Slavery and the genocide of the native American Indians, stealing their land, and making and breaking treaties left right and center.
However, I am firmly of the belief, that if one, at the very least, does not acknowledge a mistake and/or ask for forgiveness, then one is reserving the right to do again the same misdeed.
After WWII, Patton forced Germans to walk through concentration camps and death camps to witness what their politics had wrought. And Germany, in a larger sense has confronted its mistakes. This makes Germany all the more better.
Despite defeat in the Civil War, Southerners have not, as a whole, confronted their dark side. And the desire to avoid that confrontations impells the negative reaction to the civil rights movement and the reactionary politics that runs the United States today. We are following in Germany’s footsteps into barbarism.
Japan seems to be in a similarly perolous position, perhaps taking their lead from the American learch rightword. Its the political fashion of the day. Everywhere righ wing extremist don’t seem to mind expressing themselves.
If left unchecked this whole intire movement will lead to a new spasm of wide spread global violence.
For liberals, and modernist, some contemplation is called for over what causes reactionary movements to be so vehement. I tend to think that, at its very core, its the destruction of traditional local community for fungible society that creates the resentment. (Nationalism, and religiosity are expressions of communalism, or tribalism). Humans need both freedom and community and we need to find each where ever we find ourselves.
On the other hand, Conservatives need to confront the darkness of our collective pasts. This is true with the Japanese. Perhaps what is needed if for Spielberg to produce another huge blockbuster on this topic, that the Japanese can’t refuse to see, to be shown their past.
The rape of Nanking did happen. The colonization of Korea and Manchuria did happen. War was created by the nationalists who went unchecked (because of the assasination of the minister of finance) by any contravening force. Right and left, communal and libertarian, traditional and modern need to check the excesses of the other. The ancient greeks espoused moderation in all things. Right now, all these right wing movements, like Iccarus, are flying to close to the sun. It can only doom them and us.
I’ve always thought that the “They didn’t teach me that in school” excuse to be a cop out.
They didn’t teach me anything about WW2 in high school either but that didn’t prevent me from learning about it. Even in Japan, NHK has many documentaries about the 20th century and what happened. Whether they are aware of the atrocities or not is a different matter but I’m always amazed at how many people have not even heard of Iwo Jima or the battle of Okinawa.