I Approach my topic—the development of the modern Japanese political cartoon—with some trepidatio... more I Approach my topic—the development of the modern Japanese political cartoon—with some trepidation. Humor is a fragile product that can easily be damaged by academic scrutiny. As Evelyn Waugh once remarked, analyzing humor is like dissecting a frog—much is learned but in the end the frog is dead. Waugh was right. Most analyses of humor cannot be read for amusement. On the other hand, why should they be? If Shakespeare scholars are not expected to write in iambic pentameter, why should students of humor be expected to keep their readers in stitches? As the editor of theInternational Journal of Humor Studiesrecently told a reporter, “We are not in the business of being funny” (New York Times, 19 December 2000).
The year 1924 marked a turning point in the history of Japanese domestic politics. In January, Ki... more The year 1924 marked a turning point in the history of Japanese domestic politics. In January, Kiyoura Keigo, the incumbent president of the Privy Council, was nominated as prime minister and chose all his cabinet except for the military service ministers from the membership of the House of Peers. The House of Representatives had been by passed in the selection of cabinets since the fall of the Takahashi Korekiyo cabinet in June 1922. Angered by this, the leaders of the three major opposition parties in the lower house – Katō Takaaki (Kenseikai), Takahashi Korekiyo (Seiyūkai), and Inukai Tsuyoshi (Kakushin Club) – met in February 1924 to organize a united front to bring down Kiyoura's “cabinet of peers.” Because the first Labour Party government had been organized in England just a few weeks before, the general public as well as many party politicians felt that the Kiyoura government was swimming against the tides of history. In the general election of May 1924, the three-party coalition, brandishing the slogan of “protecting constitutional government,” won a majority in the House of Representatives. Faced with the prospect of intransigent opposition in the lower house, Kiyoura chose to resign. In June the three opposition parties formed a coalition cabinet under the premiership of Katō Takaaki, president of the Kenseikai, the plurality party in the House of Representatives. The formation of this “cabinet to protect constitutional government” (goken sanpa naikaku) was of great significance. For the first time in modern Japanese history, the result of a general election, that is, a change in the majority in the House of Representatives, had brought about a change of cabinets in Japan.
Following the end of the Second World War, Japanese and foreign scholars eagerly seized upon the ... more Following the end of the Second World War, Japanese and foreign scholars eagerly seized upon the concept of fascism as the basis of an analytic framework for explaining what had gone wrong in pre-war Japan and who, if anyone, could be held responsible. The literature on Japanese fascism is, as a result, quite extensive; some of it is richly insightful. The problem with such studies, however, is that fascism has never been satisfactorily defined, either logically or empirically. Recent studies have shown how difficult it is to find a definition that is at once broad enough to encompass the varieties of fascism across time and space and yet concrete enough to illumine distinctive characteristics. In this comment, some of the salient distinguishing features of the Japanese experience are alluded to, and a few important questions which studies of Japanese fascism have failed to address are identified. After nearly forty years' pursuit of the phantom of fascism, the time has come to ...
... 8. Dreams of Brocade Migration to Korea 9. Strangers in a Strange Land The Settler Community ... more ... 8. Dreams of Brocade Migration to Korea 9. Strangers in a Strange Land The Settler Community 10. The Korean Land Grab Agriculture and Land Aquisition 11. Defining the Koreans Images of Domination Conclusion: Mimesis and Dependence Bibliography Index Page 11. ...
I Approach my topic—the development of the modern Japanese political cartoon—with some trepidatio... more I Approach my topic—the development of the modern Japanese political cartoon—with some trepidation. Humor is a fragile product that can easily be damaged by academic scrutiny. As Evelyn Waugh once remarked, analyzing humor is like dissecting a frog—much is learned but in the end the frog is dead. Waugh was right. Most analyses of humor cannot be read for amusement. On the other hand, why should they be? If Shakespeare scholars are not expected to write in iambic pentameter, why should students of humor be expected to keep their readers in stitches? As the editor of theInternational Journal of Humor Studiesrecently told a reporter, “We are not in the business of being funny” (New York Times, 19 December 2000).
The year 1924 marked a turning point in the history of Japanese domestic politics. In January, Ki... more The year 1924 marked a turning point in the history of Japanese domestic politics. In January, Kiyoura Keigo, the incumbent president of the Privy Council, was nominated as prime minister and chose all his cabinet except for the military service ministers from the membership of the House of Peers. The House of Representatives had been by passed in the selection of cabinets since the fall of the Takahashi Korekiyo cabinet in June 1922. Angered by this, the leaders of the three major opposition parties in the lower house – Katō Takaaki (Kenseikai), Takahashi Korekiyo (Seiyūkai), and Inukai Tsuyoshi (Kakushin Club) – met in February 1924 to organize a united front to bring down Kiyoura's “cabinet of peers.” Because the first Labour Party government had been organized in England just a few weeks before, the general public as well as many party politicians felt that the Kiyoura government was swimming against the tides of history. In the general election of May 1924, the three-party coalition, brandishing the slogan of “protecting constitutional government,” won a majority in the House of Representatives. Faced with the prospect of intransigent opposition in the lower house, Kiyoura chose to resign. In June the three opposition parties formed a coalition cabinet under the premiership of Katō Takaaki, president of the Kenseikai, the plurality party in the House of Representatives. The formation of this “cabinet to protect constitutional government” (goken sanpa naikaku) was of great significance. For the first time in modern Japanese history, the result of a general election, that is, a change in the majority in the House of Representatives, had brought about a change of cabinets in Japan.
Following the end of the Second World War, Japanese and foreign scholars eagerly seized upon the ... more Following the end of the Second World War, Japanese and foreign scholars eagerly seized upon the concept of fascism as the basis of an analytic framework for explaining what had gone wrong in pre-war Japan and who, if anyone, could be held responsible. The literature on Japanese fascism is, as a result, quite extensive; some of it is richly insightful. The problem with such studies, however, is that fascism has never been satisfactorily defined, either logically or empirically. Recent studies have shown how difficult it is to find a definition that is at once broad enough to encompass the varieties of fascism across time and space and yet concrete enough to illumine distinctive characteristics. In this comment, some of the salient distinguishing features of the Japanese experience are alluded to, and a few important questions which studies of Japanese fascism have failed to address are identified. After nearly forty years' pursuit of the phantom of fascism, the time has come to ...
... 8. Dreams of Brocade Migration to Korea 9. Strangers in a Strange Land The Settler Community ... more ... 8. Dreams of Brocade Migration to Korea 9. Strangers in a Strange Land The Settler Community 10. The Korean Land Grab Agriculture and Land Aquisition 11. Defining the Koreans Images of Domination Conclusion: Mimesis and Dependence Bibliography Index Page 11. ...
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