Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Japan in World War I

For those interested (as we discussed this in class the other day), Wikipedia actually has a pretty good, succinct account of Japan's actions in the first World War. Here is the summary at the top: "Japan participated in World War I from 1914 to 1917, as one of the major Entente Powers, played an important role in securing the sea lanes in South Pacific and Indian Oceans against the Kaiserliche Marine. Politically, Japan seized the opportunity to expand its sphere of influence in China, and to gain recognition as a great power in postwar geopolitics." I knew a little bit about Japan's influence in China, from my history class, but I wasn't sure how to frame it (or when it happened exactly). Just looking at this summary, I can put some things together in my head and tell you that Japan's influence in China extended BEYOND the war, as even in about 1924, Japan was still there, dictating, etc. Japan took over China's education system, putting Japanese teachers in schools and even making Japanese the official language in schools (for more on that, see the book Wild Swans by Jung Chang). The movie Farewell My Concubine actually has a lot of good information about this subject, but you have to sift through a lot of other stuff (e.g., the issue of the male bond and homoSOCIAL relationships—especially in Chinese opera—marriage customs, and so on). It is a very good movie—a LONG one, though—and I definitely recommend it, especially if you know anything about China.

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