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Eric Truong Mrs. Bozzay/ Mr. Zeigler WS-ELA Honors 13 February 2013 Perspective Matters Final Project Rough Draft The Second Sino-Japanese war was a conflict between the Republic of China and Imperial Japan beginning in 1937, caused by imperial Japans desires to conquer and unite all of Asia. Before the war, Japan had taken control of Korea during the First Sino-Japanese war and conquered Manchuria in northern China for its vast amount of resources (Hays). Japans increasing power eventually led it to skirmish with China near the Marco Polo Bridge, ultimately resulting in the beginning of the Second Sino-Japanese War. During the war, Japan invaded much of China causing untold amounts of damage through the destruction of dykes and dams which caused the loss of much farm land. Japan took part in the Rape of Nanking which would draw much attention from the western powers (McDonald). This war soon became part of the much larger World War II and Japan was later defeated by the Western Allies after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the United States of America. The Chinese resistance force was comprised of mostly the Kuomintangs guerrilla tactics due to Chiang Kai-Shek, leader of China at the time being occupied with battles against the Communist party (Jing-Hui). Nationalist leader Chiang Kai-Shek was more interested in fighting his Communist counterpart, Mao Zedong, than repelling a Japanese invasion states historian Jason McDonald. The occupation of Manchuria and the invasion of China, however, proved to be an economically draining effort on Japan, causing the slow decline in its economy and society. Japan eventually

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surrendered the war on September second of 1945 and was forced to withdraw all soldiers from the Pacific Ocean and China and to return all conquered land including Manchuria, Korea, and various Pacific islands. American troops were stationed in Japan to help maintain the peace following the end of the war. The war resulted in the collapse of Imperial Japan, the weakening of the Republic of China (ultimately allowing the Communists under Mao Zedong to take control of China and establish a communist government), and the independence of Taiwan. The Japanese Imperial army viewed the Second Sino-Japanese war as glorious and they felt a sense of national pride; however, following the surrender of Japan to the western powers and China, Japan renounced their warlike motives. The Japanese perspective of peace after the war is superior to the Japanese perspective before the war because it encourages global harmony and a more fluid society through peace and cooperation among the nations. During the war, the Japanese soldiers fought for their country with undying and sometimes blind loyalty, even if it meant dying for their country. Japanese pilots during the war were sometimes ordered to recklessly crash into buildings, enemy soldiers, and even other planes in order to cause damage to the enemy forces. These kamikaze pilots wrote poems about their actions in the form of journals, diaries, poems, and songs. In poems about kamikaze by Japanese Kamikaze pilots Samaumi and Taro, the pilots proudly describe their duties as kamikaze pilots to be a service to their countries. They support their claim by comparing themselves to Japanese mythological heroes such as Momotarou the Peach Boy in order to show their strength and power. Then they shout hussah and Well do it, to show their enthusiasm for their noble act for their country. And finally, they compare their deaths as if blossoms are falling to show how their death is one of grace and grandeur rather than reckless acts of violence. Samaumi and Taros purpose is to glorify their kamikaze deaths in order to show the audience that they are

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dying for the improvement of their empire. Taro and Samaumi both create a proud and glorious tone within their poems to further explain the purpose of their poem. The poem signifies how Imperial Japanese soldiers were violent and reckless, while also displaying undying loyalty to their country in radical service. Furthermore in Japanese propaganda such as the one shown in a Michigan State University research paper (Navarro figure 6), the Japanese believed that they were superior to the western nations of Britain and the U.S and promoted young Japanese men to the join the military. This is shown by the words fire and never quit titled across the poster which encourage Japanese soldiers to serve their nation till death. The soldier shown stepping on the flags of the U.S. and United Kingdom show how the Japanese are more powerful than the U.S. and U.K.; ultimately revealing how Japan is superior and more powerful. The propaganda poster does this to establish a glorious tone and encourage the Japanese men to participate in the war and fight for their country. This shows how Imperial Japan was a militaristic society that encouraged violence and arrogance which would be disagreed upon by many people Following the 2nd Sino-Japanese war, the Japanese revoked their actions during the war and encouraged peace; additionally, the soldiers of the Imperial army felt that those directly responsible for the war did not take responsibility for their actions. Following the signing of the surrender treaty, the Japanese emperor rescinded the actions of Imperial Japan in a radio speech that and stated how the Japanese were promoting peace by surrendering the war to the Western Allies. Emperor Hirohito ironically expresses his deepest sense of regret to our allied nations of East Asia when in fact they forcefully conquered the Asian nations. He does this to exaggerate the power and honor of Japan and to show that their crimes against East Asia were for the betterment of their lives. This highlights how the emperor has changed his imperialistic and warlike mindset to one of peace and accommodation. Hirohito also states how we have ordered

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our government to communicate to the governments of the U.S., Britain, China, and the Soviet Union as if the terms of surrender are his own when in fact they are created by the western powers. This shows how the Japanese are trying to act as if they have been always advocating peace. Additionally, Susumu Lida, a Japanese war veteran, passionately argues about how he believes that the right people have not taken responsibility for Japans actions during World War 2. Susumu supports his claim by explaining how he allowed himself to be convicted in a war trial because he believed that someone should be held liable for Japans acts, despite the fact that he personally had not committed any crimes. Susuma Lida establishes a passionate and critical tone to show the reader how strongly he feels and believes that the instigators of the war were not held responsible. The Japanese point of view after war was one of peace as shown in Hirohitos speech to his soldiers, and also one of justice because many soldiers wanted those responsible for the crimes of war to be persecuted. The perspective of imperial Japan before the Second Sino-Japanese war and that of Japan after the war are opposites of each other because Japans loss caused a shift in point of view. History has commonly seen this event as a part of the larger World War 2 and taken a blind eye into the specifics of the atrocities committed against China by Japan such as the ravaging of acres of farmland and the Raping of Nanking. The perspective of the Japanese during the war emotionally appeals towards Japanese citizens because the poems evoke nationalistic feelings; modern day Japanese citizens and soldiers would understand the service that the soldiers during the Second Sino-Japanese War were providing for their country. They would feel a sense of national pride towards those who gave their life for the Japanese empire. Although the pre-war Japanese perspective would be viewed as horrific and barbaric, to other such as some Japanese citizens and nationalists, it would be seen as glorious and proud. Most people however, would

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find this point of view to be ferocious, wicked, and sinful and would disagree with it because of the atrocious acts that some Japanese soldiers committed. In contrast, the perspective of the Japanese after the war is logical because people would generally advocate peace rather than violence and war; it also ha because it people can see how some of the soldiers were wrongly imprisoned. Viewers of this part of history would agree with the Japanese point of view following the Second Sino-Japanese War because it promotes global prosperity and cooperation. They would also sympathize with the wrongly imprisoned Japanese soldiers because they would see how not all of the Japanese were prosecuted for their war crimes. People would agree more with the first perspective because they logically would rather see peace and cooperation between nations rather than war because it would be benefiting the global community as a whole. In addition, they would want to see a swift and fair justice system through the prosecution of Japanese like Emperor Hirohito, who were responsible for the terrible atrocities that occurred in the war such as the Rape of Nanking. The post-war perspective of the Japanese is agreeable because of the logical and emotional appeal that it has. The Japanese Imperial army viewed the 2nd Sino-Japanese war as glorious and they felt a sense of national pride; however, following the surrender of Japan to the western powers and China, Japan renounced their warlike motives which proved to be better than their previous point of view. The 2nd Sino-Japanese war led to the independence of Taiwan, modernization of Japan, and rise of Communism and the creation of The Peoples Republic of China, ultimately having a lasting effect on the global community. The Japaneses mindset of peace and global improvement ultimately led to a more fluid global society and advancements in Japanese politics, economics, and society by allowing the Japanese to prosper alongside the global powers.

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Works Cited Hayes, Jeff. "Japanese Occupation of China." Facts and Details. N.p., 2008. Web. 13 Dec. 2012. Hirohito, Emperor. "Accepting the Potsdam Declaration." Federal Communications Commission. 14 Aug. 1945. Web. 25 Jan. 2013. <https://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/hirohito.htm>. Hongo, Jun. "Vet blames those on high for wars sins, delusions: Jungle horrors, victors justice aside, one witness feels real culprits escaped blame." Japan Times 22 Aug. 2007. Ebscohost. Web. 18 Jan. 2013. Jing-Hui, Fu. Historical Boy's Clothing. N.p., 2 Feb. 2005. Web. 13 Dec. 2012. <http://histclo.com/essay/war/ww2/camp/pac/china/w2c-inv.html>. McDonald, Jason. "The Second Sino-Japanese War." The World War II Multimedia Database. N.p., 7 Aug. 2011. Web. 13 Dec. 2012. Navarro, Anthony V. "A Critical Comparison Between Japanese and American Propaganda during World War II." Michigan State University. Ed. Anthony V. Navarro. Michigan State Univeristy, n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2013. Saraumi, Akira. Unnamed Kamikaze poem. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Web. 25 Jan. 2013. <http://www.poolofzen.com/2010/03/poetry-of-kamikaze.html>. Taro, Momo. Sekei Unit Poem. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Web. 25 Jan. 2013. <http://www.poolofzen.com/2010/03/poetry-of- kamikaze.html>.

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