The Making of the “Rape of Nanking”: History and Memory in Japan, China and the United States
by Yoshida Takashi
Review by Ian Buruma
http://
The long-time Asia hand Ian Buruma, after a brief diversion through Graceland, points out that Japan’s relations with Asia are at a postwar all-time low, due in no small part to Koizumi’s frequent visits to Yasukuni. Apropos of Koizumi’s periodic visits to Yasukuni, Buruma notes, “[t]o claim that visiting Yasukuni is merely ‘a matter of the heart’ is nonsense.” Indeed. Buruma also discusses a number of relatively popular revisionist right wing manga by Kobayashi Yoshinori and others that seek to deny the atrocities of the past. But there are many rich ironies here. As Buruma notes in passing, Mao thanked Tanaka Kakuei in 1972, observing that the CCP would never have been able to prevail in China without the powerful motivation of the Japanese occupation.
Koizumi has been playing right into the hands of the Chinese government, which is able to use each visit to Yasukuni to provoke popular antipathy towards Japan and to provide a rationale for demanding concessions of one sort or another. Here's hoping Abe will be smarter.
Buruma, however, seems to believe that US military bases in Japan and Korea prevent those two nations from going to war with China or, indeed, each other. That’s a truly depressing thought.
A good read, but not Buruma’s best work. While this purports to be a review, I was left with a much better idea of what Buruma thinks than of what the author of this book thinks.
by Yoshida Takashi
Review by Ian Buruma
http://
The long-time Asia hand Ian Buruma, after a brief diversion through Graceland, points out that Japan’s relations with Asia are at a postwar all-time low, due in no small part to Koizumi’s frequent visits to Yasukuni. Apropos of Koizumi’s periodic visits to Yasukuni, Buruma notes, “[t]o claim that visiting Yasukuni is merely ‘a matter of the heart’ is nonsense.” Indeed. Buruma also discusses a number of relatively popular revisionist right wing manga by Kobayashi Yoshinori and others that seek to deny the atrocities of the past. But there are many rich ironies here. As Buruma notes in passing, Mao thanked Tanaka Kakuei in 1972, observing that the CCP would never have been able to prevail in China without the powerful motivation of the Japanese occupation.
Koizumi has been playing right into the hands of the Chinese government, which is able to use each visit to Yasukuni to provoke popular antipathy towards Japan and to provide a rationale for demanding concessions of one sort or another. Here's hoping Abe will be smarter.
Buruma, however, seems to believe that US military bases in Japan and Korea prevent those two nations from going to war with China or, indeed, each other. That’s a truly depressing thought.
A good read, but not Buruma’s best work. While this purports to be a review, I was left with a much better idea of what Buruma thinks than of what the author of this book thinks.
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コメント(4)
＞
But there are many rich ironies here. As Buruma notes in passing, Mao thanked Tanaka Kakuei in 1972, observing that the CCP would never have been able to prevail in China without the powerful motivation of the Japanese occupation.
＞
Perhaps, it takes more than simple-minded "genuineness, which itself is a virtue particularly in Japanese culture, to be "smart" in international politics.
Koizumi was an interesting political player in that
he displayed his own style to attain national popularity.
Abe and other LDP members seem to be following
his footsteps, but I wonder how that type of
"dramatized" politics (or even populist regime)
would lead Japan.
The goal of politicians should never be to gain
popularity, but lead the nation to a better
direction among given realisitic options.
Sorry, I seem to have just repeated a banal view
of politics!
But there are many rich ironies here. As Buruma notes in passing, Mao thanked Tanaka Kakuei in 1972, observing that the CCP would never have been able to prevail in China without the powerful motivation of the Japanese occupation.
＞
Perhaps, it takes more than simple-minded "genuineness, which itself is a virtue particularly in Japanese culture, to be "smart" in international politics.
Koizumi was an interesting political player in that
he displayed his own style to attain national popularity.
Abe and other LDP members seem to be following
his footsteps, but I wonder how that type of
"dramatized" politics (or even populist regime)
would lead Japan.
The goal of politicians should never be to gain
popularity, but lead the nation to a better
direction among given realisitic options.
Sorry, I seem to have just repeated a banal view
of politics!
Kofumi-san,
In my view, people who believe that the study of history is a matter of revealing the truth about what actually happened are naive. I do not believe that humans are capable of such objectivity. Deciding what questions to ask is the first editorial decision. The kind of net you choose determines the kind of fish you catch.
Politicians in all countries will of course use history and historical controversies for their own political purposes. What I find troubling about Yasukuni is that the cost to Japan when Koizumi went was apparent, but there was no apparent corresponding benefit.
Gamera-san,
I agree with you about "genuineness" or sincerity not being enough. I have the impression that the Japanese language contributes to this in some way. Often ｢ご理解いただきたい」really means「合意していただきたい」. I wonder if people really believe that "understanding" alone is enough to prevent conflict. Korea could "understand" Japan's sincere views of Takeshima perfectly but still not agree on the issue of sovereignty.
You remind me a bit of a science fiction story I read years ago based on the idea that the last person that should be president is someone who actually wants the job. In the story, the election was replaced with a system where one name is picked at random from a list of the most qualified people, that person is made president, and is allowed to go back home after four years - but only if he or she does a good job.
In my view, people who believe that the study of history is a matter of revealing the truth about what actually happened are naive. I do not believe that humans are capable of such objectivity. Deciding what questions to ask is the first editorial decision. The kind of net you choose determines the kind of fish you catch.
Politicians in all countries will of course use history and historical controversies for their own political purposes. What I find troubling about Yasukuni is that the cost to Japan when Koizumi went was apparent, but there was no apparent corresponding benefit.
Gamera-san,
I agree with you about "genuineness" or sincerity not being enough. I have the impression that the Japanese language contributes to this in some way. Often ｢ご理解いただきたい」really means「合意していただきたい」. I wonder if people really believe that "understanding" alone is enough to prevent conflict. Korea could "understand" Japan's sincere views of Takeshima perfectly but still not agree on the issue of sovereignty.
You remind me a bit of a science fiction story I read years ago based on the idea that the last person that should be president is someone who actually wants the job. In the story, the election was replaced with a system where one name is picked at random from a list of the most qualified people, that person is made president, and is allowed to go back home after four years - but only if he or she does a good job.
http://www.lettre-ulysses-award.org/pics/user/_ianburuma.jpg
この男（Ian Buruma）、以前から傲慢な筆致が気になっていたが、日本語の文献が少しは読めるのだろうか？
つまり、１２才（中学一年生）程度の日本語読解力があるのだろうか？
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Buruma
Ian Buruma (born 1951) is an Anglo-Dutch writer and academic. Much of his work focuses on Asian culture, particularly that of 20th-century Japan.
He was born in the Netherlands, to a Dutch father and English mother. He studied Chinese literature, and then Japanese film at Nihon University in Tokyo.
この男（Ian Buruma）、以前から傲慢な筆致が気になっていたが、日本語の文献が少しは読めるのだろうか？
つまり、１２才（中学一年生）程度の日本語読解力があるのだろうか？
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Buruma
Ian Buruma (born 1951) is an Anglo-Dutch writer and academic. Much of his work focuses on Asian culture, particularly that of 20th-century Japan.
He was born in the Netherlands, to a Dutch father and English mother. He studied Chinese literature, and then Japanese film at Nihon University in Tokyo.
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