Militarisation and Demilitarisation in Contemporary Japan

by Glenn D. Hook

Overview

The intertwined issues of Japanese ‘identity' and ‘normality' are at the centre of the tension between internal and external pressures on Japanese defence and security policies. With chapters on peace thought, the militarisation and demilitarisation of language as well as the ‘hard' aspects of the Japanese military build up in the 1980s and the response to the Gulf War in the 1990s, this study challenges many of the preconceived notions on Japanese defence and security policies and the policy making process in Japan.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780415022743
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	11/30/1995
Series:	Nissan Institute/Routledge Japanese Studies
Pages:	270
Product dimensions:	5.81(w) x 8.25(h) x (d)

About the Author

Gleen D. Hook

Table of Contents

Introduction; Part 1 Part I; Chapter 1 Militarization: a critical approach; Chapter 2 Demilitarization: the impact of peace thought; Part 2 Part II; Chapter 3 Militarization in the cold war 1980s; Chapter 4 The Gulf War and ‘international contribution’ in the post cold war 1990s; Chapter 5 Persistence and change in mass attitudes; Part 3 Part III; Chapter 6 Militarization and language; Chapter 7 Demilitarization and language; Conclusion;

Editorial Reviews

Traces the gradual transformation of Japan into what other countries would recognize as a normal military state, the political forces supporting and opposing the change, and the values underlying the critique of militarization. Drawing on primary and secondary material relating to styles of thought and language, the military buildup during the 1980s and the response to the war on Iraq in the 1990s, finds at the center of the tension the intertwined notions of Japanese identity and military normality. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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