Japan’s Aggressive Imperialist Nationalism and Its Decision for War with the United States

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Abstract

This paper aims to provide a thorough examination of Japan’s pathway to the Pacific War from an ideological perspective. Existing literature has discussed material causes, economic factors, and shifts in domestic and international politics, but the sociopolitical dynamics of Japan’s “Hakkō Ichiu” have rarely been examined. “Hakkō Ichiu” served as both the key theoretical and ideological foundation of Japanese nationalism, playing a crucial role in shifting the general populace in Japan to an extremely supportive stance toward going to war against the West, particularly the United States. Furthermore, it legitimized Japan’s “Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere” by using political rhetoric that glorified Japan’s invasion of the so-called “Asian brothers,” and this discourse antithetically overturned Japan’s public sentiment toward the Western world, which had been formed after Perry’s Expedition. This paper examines the transformation of Japan’s public ideology from 1853 to 1941, focusing particularly on the dynamics of its social reactions to the arrival of Western imperialism. Moreover, it provides a concise overview of the formation and shifts in national consciousness in Japan, as well as its development into ultranationalism in the 1930s. Through an in-depth examination of the significant public statements disseminated by the Japanese government and, more importantly, the social responses to them, this paper argues that spontaneous nationalism among the general populace was the key factor in Japan’s decision to war, with such strong public sentiment effectively “kidnapping” the entire governmental apparatus and leading to the path of militarism. This paper contributes not only to enriching historical studies on the reasons for the outbreak of the Pacific War but also sheds light on the contemporary world through the lessons learned from history, as nationalism, extremism, militarism, and even fascism continue to prevail today.

Author

• Ruolin Hou, University of Toronto