HIST 120 - Japan’s American Revolution, 1945-52

1 unit(s)

Many Americans are unaware that Japan was ostensibly run by the US for nearly seven years after World War II. The US Occupation of Japan lasted longer than the war itself, and left indelible imprints upon modern Japanese history that remain visible today. As a grandly ambitious and idealistic project that forced people to be free, the Occupation was riddled with contradictory goals and visions. Democratization, demilitarization, the “Peace Constitution,” and ideological reform are among its legacies. So, too, are authoritarianism, miscarriage of justice in the Tokyo Trial, conflicts over new social values, and Japan’s unlikely transformation into “America’s unsinkable aircraft carrier.” We use John W. Dower’s Pulitzer Prize winner Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II (Norton, 1999) as a historiographical springboard to discuss the art and science of writing history. Students focus not on learning Japanese or American history as much as developing historical thinking, critical analysis of textual evidence, and effective writing skills.

Two 75-minute periods.

Fulfills the Freshman Writing Seminar Requirement.

Not offered in 2013/14.