And then came a change. The author continued to narrate the story behind Japan's slide into militarism but this time added his own analyses and insights. I found myself sticking a lot more Post-it slips because he begins to provide some intricate insights to the Japanese psyche. Here's one example: in Chapter 5 when talking about the different military men known to be very knowledgeable about China, he explained why some of them started off Chinese-leaning in their early careers but transformed into people who became tremendously angry with China, accusing it of betrayal or dishonesty (pg. 186). While this view of the author might be right or wrong, he made a persuasive case and that's what I like about the later part of the book. I do not agree with him all the time, but I respect his views and especially the way he argues for them.
The chapter on post-war Japanese psyche, especially the one on the Yasukuni Shrine displays his formidable intellect through his clarity of thoughts and articulation. Why do the japanese continue to honour the Class-A war criminals? Why does the rest of the world have a problem with them? You'll find the answers here.
The final chapter was a pleasant surprise. The author took a look at current Japanese attitudes towards the Japanese's pacifist constitution through Japanese a popular cultural product - anime. Admittedly he focused only on Patlabor 2 - The Movie, but few "serious historians" took this path. As one who recently took an interest in linking anime to Japanese's post-war narrative, I find this chapter entertaining and well-considered.
This book is an easy read mainly because of the author's style. If the first few chapters are a little simplified, the rest are both educational and thoughtful. Those of us who are interested in understanding pre-war japanese militarism and who are equally interested in where the Japanese might go from here would benefit much from this book.
