Japanese Apologies for World War II (Routledge Contemporary Japan Series)

✍ Scribed by Jane Yamazaki

• Year: 2005
• Tongue: English
• Leaves: 209
• Edition: 1
• Category: Library

✦ Synopsis

Post-war Japan offers a compelling case study of national apologies for past wrongdoings. Actions of the Japanese Army and government during the Second World War caused enormous suffering and distress throughout Asia, leaving a legacy of resentment and distrust. Beginning in the mid-1980s, apology for wartime actions became a recurring issue for Japan. Repeated calls for apology from various quarters as well as repeated apologies by Japanese officials provide a rich source for the study of national apology and how public apology discourse develops over time. Unlike most rhetorical studies that focus on apologia in the broad sense, this study concentrates on the strategy of the ‘true apology.’ The study combines rhetorical, sociological and historical approaches to address multiple examples of Japanese apology during the period 1984 to 1995. The author suggests that motive is more complex than the ‘image restoration’ theory that is prevalent in rhetorical theory. More specifically, this study emphasizes repair of relationships, self-reflection leading to a ‘new’ improved identity and affirmation of moral principle as reasons for apology.

✦ Table of Contents

Book Cover......Page 1
Half Title......Page 2
Series Title......Page 3
Title......Page 4
Copyright......Page 5
Contents......Page 6
Preface......Page 9
Acknowledgments......Page 12
Abbreviations......Page 13
1. Introduction......Page 14
2. Accusations, Accusers, and Audience......Page 37
3. The Early Apologies: Repairing Relationships......Page 46
4. The Comfort Women Apologies......Page 70
5. Hosokawa Apologies: Politics and History......Page 84
6. The Anti-Apologies/Conservative Apologia......Page 103
7. Murayama Apology: On the International Stage......Page 113
8. Apology as International Discourse......Page 124
9. Conclusions......Page 140
Appendix A: Key Documents/Apology Statements......Page 153
Appendix B: The Language of Apology......Page 170
Glossary......Page 178
Notes......Page 181
References......Page 193
Index......Page 204