Japanese Wartime Ideology
Learn about:
- Wartime Japanese ideology and indoctrination
- Notions of the ideal Japanese soldier
- What do the Japanese think they are defending and fighting for?
Read:
Imperial Rescript for Soldiers and Sailors (1882), translation from Imperial Precepts (undated) as cited in Tsunoda, et al. Sources of Japanese Tradition II (Columbia University Press, 1958): 198-200.
Field Army Service Code (below).
Watch: The Story of Tank Commander Nishizumi (Nishizumi Senshacho-den, 1940, 137 min)
Assignment:
Write a short 500-word essay on the following based on the above readings and film.
The film, The Story of Tank Commander Nishizumi, depicts one of the most well-known “military gods” (gunshin) or heroes of Japan’s war in China.
- How does the film define what it is to be a Japanese military hero? In what ways does Commander Nishizumi represent the highest ideals of a Japanese soldier (as codified in the Field Service Code and Imperial Rescript to Soldiers)? What techniques and stylistic measures does the film use to inculcate these ideals?
