Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II | John W. Dower

Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II | John W. Dower | As good a history as one could hope for

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Embracing Defeat: ...

	Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II John W. Dower, 1999 - 676 pages average customer review:based on 63 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

The first definitive history of the transformation of Japanese society under American occupation after World War II. This major new work by America's foremost historian of modern Japan draws on a vast range of Japanese sources to offer an extraordinarily thorough, complex, and rich analysis of how shattering defeat in World War II followed by over six years of military occupation by the United States affected every level of Japanese society-in ways that neither the victor nor the vanquished could anticipate. Here is the history of an extraordinary moment in the history of Japanese culture, when new values warred with old, and when early ideals of "peace and democracy" were soon challenged by the "reverse course" decision to incorporate Japan into the cold-war Pax Americana. Embracing Defeat chronicles not only the material and psychological impact of utter defeat but also the early emergence of dynamic countercultures that gave primacy to the private as opposed to public spheres-in short, a liberation from totalitarian wartime control. John Dower shows how the tangled legacies of this intense, turbulent, and unprecedented interplay of conqueror and conquered, West and East, wrought the utterly foreign and strangely familiar Japan of today.

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How Do You Transform A War Torn Nation?

EMBRACING DEFEAT is the historical saga of the United States occupation of war torn and defeated Japan following World War II. Japan had sent nearly 3 million men to battle the Allies throughout the Pacific but with the American usage of the atomic bomb, the Japanese quickly moved to surrender. Never before had this happen. In nearly 2,000 years the Japanese had never lost a war. Now not only were they defeated but the United States arrived in September of 1945 into the Japanese harbors with their ships and planes and military ready to occupy the nation.

The story of the remarkable recovery of Japan is now in our hindsight. Today the Japanese are allies of the United States and even have sent troops into the war on terrorism. But the transformation of Japan from a military dominated culture that was taught to die rather than surrender to the enemy was a slow process. Many of the 3 million who went to war with the United States never returned. The economy, the food, the housing, and the water systems were all destroyed. Japan was broke. The United States occupied Japan until 1952. This is that story.

I enjoyed this book greatly. I have often wondered how the Japanese must have felt as they saw the Americans come into mainland Japan. I have wondered how the military leaders and soilders of the Japanese must have been humbled by the American military leaders. EMRACING DEFEAT is the story of both the United States and the role it would play as a superpower following WWII and the role Japan would play in pushing for peace in the midst of strife.

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As good a history as one could hope for

Having been to Japan and about to return, I really appreciate the story that Dower tells. I agree with most of the positive reviews. However, I strongly disagree that it drags in the second half. The writing of the Japanese Constitution is fascinating in the back-and-forth between the American GHQ and Japanese government officials. The US initiators of the process got the conservative Japanese cabinet to accept some of the most progressive ideas of the twentieth century into this document. However, that the US insisted on preservation of the Emperor system is truly remarkable, not only for a victorious conquering and occupying force to do but especially because of the US attempt to absolve the not-very-innocent Emperor Hirohito of blame for Japanese aggression. The war crimes trial chapter foreshadows very up-to-date problems in holding military and government officials (e.g., Saddam or Milosevic) responsible for their actions.
Anyone who claims that Dower whitewashes the atrocities of the Japanese and is too sympathetic to them clearly did not read the book. By understanding the Japanese view of things, he shows how Japanese saw (and many still see) themselves as victims and barely recognized the truth of rampages, rapes, brutality, murder and destruction that they visited on millions of people, not just Americans but especially the Chinese, Koreans, Filipinos, etc. As a good historian, Dower does not overlook the contradictions between what the Americans said and what they did - e.g., the authoritarian method of imposing democracy; the evocation of freedom while rigorously censoring speech and writing; and the condemnation of truly horrendous Japanese atrocities while disallowing any criticism of American fire-bombings and atomic-bombings that killed hundreds of thousands of Japanese civilians. Yet his tone of admiration for the Americans also comes through: for their idealism, for their ability to win over Japanese children with chewing gum, for the irresistible attraction of their culture.
I can appreciate that the writing is on a high level. Still, it is clear and direct.
But you can't fault "Embracing Defeat" for being scholarly. Everything is well footnoted. Those who find Dower biased should be made to document their own claims with the care that he used in putting this great book together.

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Important Work and Fascinating Read

This is a well researched and fascinating look into how a culture that was completely controlled by an archaic belief system of national and racial identity, accepted total defeat and destruction and was skillfully if not neatly transformed by a foreign occupying culture. Author Dower has done a great service to world history with this richly detailed and deeply researched work that deals with culture, war, defeat, peace, politics, liberation, and just about every other human endeavor. Endlessly interesting and occasionally surprising, this book will change many readers who think that one nation cannot impose culture and a form of government on another in this day and age of so-called nation building. If you want to understand modern Japan you need to read this book. Working from a strategic level down and an individual level up, Dower weaves a beautiful mosaic of highly complicated transformation. Highly recommended for anyone interested in history, WWII, the Pacific War, Japan and especially the enlightened approach by the US government and military towards a former bitter enemy.
Steven Bustin, Author: Humble Heroes, How The USS Nashville CL43 Fought WWII. Humble Heroes: How the USS Nashville CL43 Fought WWII

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