The Japanese colonial legacy in Korea, 1910-1945 : a new perspective / George Akita & Brandon Palmer ; foreword by Kevin M. Doak (Georgetown University).

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Akita, George, author.

Palmer, Brandon, 1970- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Korea--History--Japanese occupation, 1910-1945.

Korea.

History.

Physical Description:

xi, 218 pages ; 24 cm

Distribution:

[Honolulu, Hawaiʻi] : Distributed by the University of Hawaiʻi Press.

Place of Publication:

Portland, Maine : MerwinAsia, [2015]

Summary:

The Japanese Colonial Legacy in Korea reexamines Japan's policies in Korea from 1910 to 1945. The authors contend that Japan's policies were moderate considering the magnitude of the colonial endeavor and were proportional when compared to the imperialist practices of western nations. Drawing on recent scholarship, this study effectively contributes to the growing field of historical revisionism in Korean colonial history. Historical remembrance in South Korea unabashedly portrays the colonial era in a wholly negative light; The Japanese colonial regime is presented as an authoritarian regime that exploited the innocent Korean people. In some cases, academic circles in Asia and America have adopted positions that mirror the Korean historical paradigm. Drs. Akita and Palmer challenge the pro-Korean nationalist narrative by using a plethora of archival documents. These documents reveal the origins and reasonableness of Japanese colonial policies, especially when shown in light of Japan's strong legalist tradition. A more nuanced view of Japan's rule in Korea is achieved by juxtaposing it to the Europeans' record in Asia and Africa. Furthermore, this work highlights various ways that Japan's colonial interlude contributed to South Korea's postwar industrialization. Book jacket.

Contents:

Revisionism Defined 2

Anti-Japanese Sentiment in South Korea 5

Western Criticisms of Japan's Colonial Policies 7

Chapter 1 The National Historical Narrative 11

The National Historical Paradigm 12

The Expositions of Wonmo Dong and Andrew Hak Ou 17

Revisionism and Colonial Conscription 23

Hildi Kang's Black Umbrella and "Revisionism" 27

Japan in Taiwan and the Philippines 33

Chapter 2 The Principles Governing Colonial Rule 37

Okuma Shigenobu's Korea Policy 42

Hara Kei on Korea 44

Hasegawa Yoshimichi's "Recommendations" 47

Reforms Based on Hasegawa's "Recommendations" 58

The Otsu Jiken 60

Cabinet Members' Active Role in Politics 64

The Otsu Jiken and Japan's Korea Policy 70

Chapter 3 Japan and the Rule of Law 75

Judicial Independence in Japan in the 1930s 77

Sustaining Japan as a Modern, Open Society 79

Further Analysis of Iyenaga 82

A Comparison of China and Japan 85

Additional Analysis of Chinese Politics 88

Jeome A. Cohen on China's Stagnant Legal System 93

Japan's Colonial Policies in a Global Context 96

A Comparison of Colonial Modernization 103

A Comparison of Social and Economic Colonial Policies 111

Miliarism and Militarists in Colonial Korea 118

Was Yamagata Aritomo a "Militarist"? 122

Peter Duus on the Concept of Japanese Textbooks 130

Chapter 4 The Many and Varied Voices of Revisionism 133

The State of Revisionism in South Korea 134

Terauchi Masatake: A Notorious Governor-General 137

Minami JirO: Another Notorious Governor-General 144

Gi-Wook Shin on Colonial Land Reform 150

Richard J. Smethurst and Gi-Wook Shin on Land Reform 154

Industrialization in Colonial Korea 159

The Expropriation of Korean Lands and Artifacts 161

The Persistence of the National Historical Narrative 166

Varying Perspectives of Flogging in Colonial Korea 171

Crime and Punishment in Korea 177

Customary Law in Colonial Korea and Its Legacy 187

Japan's Role in Korea's Capitalistic Development 192.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 205-212) and index.

ISBN:

193738571X

9781937385712

1937385701

9781937385705

OCLC:

905746489

Publisher Number:

99962553016