The Way of the Warrior

Paper Summary:

This paper provides a brief history of Japan and its relationship and influence by the West and in particular the U.S.. It looks at how while a technological and industrial revolution swept the West in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Japan remained in a medieval state, the country governed by a class of hereditary warlords. It examines how once the shogun was overturned, the new Japanese government, known as the Meiji, set about modernizing the country as quickly as possible and how following the Western example, Japan established modern industries and re-organized her military with the latest available technology. It evaluates how Japan rose to become one of the world's main powers and even after her defeat in World War II, got back on her feet very quickly. It analyzes how today as more Japanese become exposed to the West and how the more they travel and view Europeans and Americans in their environments, the more they come to realize the disparity in their standards of living and traditions.

From the Paper:

"The Japanese had learned much from the Russo-Japanese War. They had learned that an Eastern nation could defeat a major Western power if it had the requisite military technology, and the industrial base. They had learned that militarism paid. And, taking these lessons to heart, the Japanese moved their government and society in an ever more strongly military direction. Though administered in theory by an elected parliament, and a responsible prime minister, in reality, Japan was largely and increasingly under the control of its military. The military regularly interfered in government affairs, and by the terms of its constitution had the right to approve or veto government decisions that concerned it. As well, in a curious quirk of Japanese law, the military could actually continue to function under its own budget if funds were not voted by parliament. The Japanese High Command regularly named its candidates to the ministries, and manipulated the national administration. Significantly, this constitution and system of government had been imposed from above. Ordinary Japanese, and their elected official, had no voice whatsoever at the highest echelons of the administration. They had no hand in policy-making."

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