Japanese History

1466 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Relationship between america and japan 20th century

A nation’s decision to go to war is not one that can be taken lightly. War requires a great deal of sacrifice and more often than not, results in a great deal of pain for an entire nation. For some, the humiliation of defeat may be worse than any physical pain one car endured. As Pearl Harbor and the Coming of the Pacific War by Akira Iriye shows, Japanese leaders decided that war with the USA was in the best interest of their nation, knowing full well the cost of war. The Japanese leaders` anxiety over the self preservation and self defence of their nation, their anxiety over perceived hostile attitudes from the west, and the importance of making a timely decision on war led them on a path that resulted in war with the USA.

In the 1900`s, Japan had become a major player in world affairs. Their one glaring weakness however, was their lack of natural resources. Japan`s lack of natural resources presented a risk to their self preservation and self defence. Civilians were required “consider substitute food such soybeans” (22) in place of the traditional rice. Steel available for civilian use was “allotted on a priority basis, with the allotment being kept to a minimum” (22) and shipping for civilian use was limited as well. Despite these concessions made by the Japanese civilians, the military had to make concessions of its own to cope with limited resources. Japan had to resort to “take such measures as standardizing and lowering the quality of ships to be built” (21) in order to make resource supply to meet demand. The majority of petroleum products, “the most vital of all energy resources for Japan at that time” (143), were imported into the nation. The Japanese relied heavily on petroleum and they feared that the shortage of...

... middle of paper ...

...and self defence. The occupation of Manchuria and territories in the south, led to fierce tensions between Japan and the western nations. In an attempt to resolve these differences, Japanese leaders tried very hard to reach peace thru negations while making many concessions along the way. The felt however, that the USA was negotiating in bad faith due to hostilities that it held against Japan. As time passed, the negations were not able to bring these nations any closer to peace. Instead, Japanese leaders saw the passage of time as being detrimental to their survival. They viewed the passage of time as an opportunity for the USA to better prepare for war. All of these events led Japanese to believe that their nations’ existence was in jeopardy. Essentially, Japan was left with the choice of attacking or defending as war had become inevitable; they chose to attack.

Show More
Related

  • Japanese Culture Dbq

    2205 Words  | 5 Pages

    -Nara’s Buddhist temples were another result of cultural diffusion, Buddhist began in India in 500s B.C.E. about 1,000 years later, it came to Japan from China by way of Korea.

    Read More

  • JAPANESE STRATEGIC FAILURES IN THE SPRING OF 1942

    1748 Words  | 4 Pages

    Once significant recurring theme affecting Japanese planning for war was the psychology of arrogance ...

    Read More

  • Atomic Bomb Justified Dbq

    646 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Japanese government believed that the only way to solve its economic and demographic problems was to expand into its neighbor’s territory and take over its import market, mostly pointed at China. To put an end on that the United States put economic sanctions and trade embargoes. We believed that if we cut off their resources and their source of federal income than they would have no choice but to pull back and surrender. But the

    Read More

  • Pearl Harbor Dbq

    696 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor was one of the most atrocious attacks to have ever happened on American soil, starting with disagreement on the Potsdam declaration. Japan’s greed for more land and industrial materials led the Japanese to make a plan to keep the United States out of the war, which consisted the use of kamikaze pilots and bombs to destroy our aircraft carriers and boats in an attempt to control the Pacific. While leaving the drowning, and dead bodies of thousands of American seamen and battleships at the bottom of the sea, seemed to be a good idea to the Japanese; America joined World War II and introduced the first nuclear weapons as reprisal for the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. Had the Japanese agreed to an unconditional surrender and end to militarism during the agreement on the Potsdam declaration, the introduction to nuclear weapons and the death count wouldn’t have been so high and devastating on both the American and Japanese sides.

    Read More

  • Atomic Bomb Dbq

    1981 Words  | 4 Pages

    The United States of America’s use of the atomic bomb on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki has spurred much debate concerning the necessity, effectiveness, and morality of the decision since August 1945. After assessing a range of arguments about the importance of the atomic bomb in the termination of the Second World War, it can be concluded that the use of the atomic bomb served as the predominant factor in the end of the Second World War, as its use lowered the morale, industrial resources, and military strength of Japan. The Allied decision to use the atomic bomb not only caused irreparable physical damage on two major Japanese cities, but its use also minimized the Japanese will to continue fighting. These two factors along

    Read More

  • Japan Attack On Pearl Harbor Dbq Analysis

    465 Words  | 1 Pages

    For instance, when Japan promised to establish a new order in east Asia, America responded by commencing an aircraft and aircraft parts embargo on japan in 1939 and an oil shipment embargo in 1941. These embargos demonstrated to japan how American interventionism will affect the success of their totalitarian agenda. Document E states, “ Two years from now we will have no petroleum for military use.” Japan was desperate and the forever expanding of the American fleet did not help their cause. Document C says, “US Congress passes Naval Expansion Act and promises to triple fleet size by 1944.” Japan knew that in order to achieve their dream of world domination thew would eventually need to take over America. the expansion of the American Navy intimidated japan. Document D also corroborates Document E by showing that American shipment of oil has steadily declined over the years. For example in 1937 japan imported 380 tons of oil, by 1941 that number drastically dropped to 88 tons. That same year japan attacked pearl harbor because they saw America as a threat to their

    Read More

  • Japanese Internment: A Lesson from the Past

    2309 Words  | 5 Pages

    World War II was a time of heightened tension. The entire world watched as fascism and dictatorships battled against democracy and freedom in the European theater. The United States looked on, wishing to remain neutral and distant from the war. On December 7, 1941, Pearl Harbor was attacked by the Japanese, officially drawing the U.S. into the war. Thousands of young sailors died in the attack and several U.S. Navy vessels were sunk. The attack marked the beginning of the United States’ involvement in World War II as well as the beginning of the persecution of Japanese Americans in the U.S. Hysteria and outrage increased across the country and largely contributed to the authority’s decision to act against the Japanese. On February 19, 1942, President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, allowing the military to place anyone of Japanese lineage in restri...

    Read More

  • Pearl Harbor Pacific Problems

    660 Words  | 2 Pages

    One theory suggested that Japan was planning to occupy as much land in the Pacific as possible while keeping the United States distracted. (Schweikart, 593) This theory was likely true because the day after bombing Pearl Harbor, the Japanese invaded both Malaysia and the Philippines. By bombing Pearl Harbor, they hoped to cripple the US’s ability to defend the Pacific. Another possible reason for Japan’s rash actions was their lack of supplies. They were running out of both oil and rubber because the United States had blockaded their usual stock lines. These supplies were found in areas like the Southeast Asian Islands they planned to invade. Perhaps the Japanese were attempting to distract the US from the European front of the war to assist the Axis powers. The US had not officially declared war against any of the Axis, despite the fact that they were already assisting the Allies. The attack on the Harbor might have allowed the Axis to make European advances while the US was trying to recover. Though to the Japanese these might have been valid reasons, they knew right away that they had, “awoken a sleeping tiger.” (Dowswell, 151) The US recovered rapidly and

    Read More

  • Tora Compare And Contrast Essay

    2275 Words  | 5 Pages

    This paper will compare Gordon W. Prange's book "At Dawn We Slept - The Untold Story of Pearl Harbor" with the film "Tora! Tora! Tora!" directed by Richard Fleischer, Kinji Fukasaku, and Toshio Masuda. While the film provides little background to the attack, its focal point is on the Pearl Harbor assault and the inquiry of why it was not prevented, or at least foreseen in adequate time to decrease damage. Prange's book examines the assault on Pearl Harbor from both the Japanese and American viewpoints to gain a global view of the situation and the vast provision undertaken by Japanese intelligence. The film and book present the Japanese side, the American side, the events that lead up to the attack, and the aftermath.

    Read More

  • The Decision of a Lifetime: Dropping the Atomic Bomb on Japan

    1989 Words  | 4 Pages

    One of, if not the most influential part, of allowing the bombs to drop is because of the mentality of the Japanese military and the pull they had in politics. As Maddox stated, “[t]he army, not the Foreign Office controlled the situation” (Maddox, pg. 286). Although Japan had an influential leader in regards to their emperor, the military wanted to and would have engag...

    Read More

  • Japan's History and Geography

    1148 Words  | 3 Pages

    There is a country in the Pacific Rim and that country is Japan. Throughout this paper we will explore the topics of Japan’s history, government, economy, geography and topography, and Japans culture and customs. As we learn and explore these topics I leave this note fore the reader, “I hope I get a good score on this paper” (Sanne, page 1). Please enjoy the essay into which I poured my blood, tears, and valuable time.

    Read More

  • The Japanese Miracle

    1442 Words  | 3 Pages

    In what’s been coined, “the Japanese Miracle,” the nation of Japan catapulted from a war-torn and defeated country to a world economic power, relatively overnight in the context of the historical rise and fall from power. The American occupation of Japan started on 2 September 1945 and lasted through April 1952; VJ day, or “Victory over Japan Day” (History.com_staff, 2009), was September 2nd, 1945. Lasting about 7 years, and unlike the European occupations managed exclusively by the United States, the United States was surprised by this abrupt rise of strength by Japan and the other defeated nations. The Japanese economy was helped significantly by the United States protection designing its constitution to prohibit rearmament and allowing Japan to save significant expenditures as opposed to if they were militarily on their own. The nation of Japan was aided in their rise as an economic power by the United States concerns over protecting the democratic way of life by stemming the spread communism in Asia and in Japan, and denying other world powers such as the Soviet Union and the Republic of China access to Japan’s resources. Finally, partnering with the US and introducing post-war policies protecting the nation of Japan and its ability to obtain natural resources allowed Japan to protect their industries and markets, stimulating the Japanese economy such that they were able to quickly surpass other world powers that were rebuilding their economies more slowly and quickly become a global economic power.

    Read More

  • The Manchurian Crisis

    960 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Manchurian incident was a turning point in Japanese history in which it abandoned its somewhat general policy of cooperation and peace and instead chose to pursue their personal interests in Asia (S,191). The Japanese interest in China was evident even before its invasion in 1931. In both the Sino Japanese war from 1894 to 1905 as well as the Russo-Japanese War from 1904 to 1905 Japan secured specific locations in Manchuria and other areas in China (U,351). Overall, the consensus for the extensive needs of the empire ultimately drove its policy making until the end of World War 2. To take control of what they believed to be the most mineral rich section of China in which they controlled expansive holdings in such as the South Manchurian Railroad, officers part of the Kwantung Army that were stationed there hatched a plan that would become to be known as the Manchurian Crisis. On September 18th 1931, Japanese soldiers located at the South Manchurian Railroad set off an explosive that they blamed on China (launching both nations into hostile relations for years to come.?? (P,115)) The Japanese invaded Japanese Invaded Chinese controlled Manchuria in 1931 because they wanted to accommodate the rising of the Japanese population, obtain more natural resources, and to stimulate their nearly collapsed economy.

    Read More

  • A History of Japan

    1458 Words  | 3 Pages

    Japans history dates back almost 53,000 years and is filled with interesting and fascinating events. Most of Japans actions have left the major world powers in the world stunned. The base of this amazing country is astonishing just by itself. The base is a bunch of active and large under water volcanoes. Japans uniqueness from the rest of the world ranges from its culture to its very interesting history to the change in government every few hundred years and their trading dilemma with petroleum and their assortment of fish that they export. Japan as a country is so very appealing and kind compared to the rest of the world its no wonder that it’s geographically separate from the rest of the world.

    Read More

  • Japan and Japanese Culture

    1178 Words  | 3 Pages

    Japan is a large island off to the east of China it is a great country that has a rich culture. The Japanese religion is based off of two main beliefs, the belief in Shinto and Buddhism many Japanese people believe consider themselves both. The Japanese people were known to be around as early as 4,500 B.C. They have constructed their government style to a constitutional monarchy where they do in fact have an emperor, but he has limited power within the country. The main power of the country is held by the Prime Minister of Japan. Japan is made up of many islands that extend along the Pacific coast of Asia. The land area is made up of a lot of forest and mountainous area that cannot be used for agricultural, industrial or residential use. Japan also has one of the largest and growing economies in the world. They are growing every day and it is all because the people of Japan work very hard in order for their economy to flourish as it has.

    Read More

More about Japanese History

Open Document