Cultures of Antimilitarism: National Security in Germany and Japan

by Thomas U. Berger

Overview

After suffering crushing military defeats in 1945, both Japan and Germany have again achieved positions of economic dominance and political influence. Yet neither seeks to regain its former military power; on the contrary, antimilitarism has become so deeply rooted in the Japanese and German national psyches that even such questions as participation in international peacekeeping forces are met with widespread domestic opposition. In Cultures of Antimilitarism: National Security in Germany and Japan Thomas Berger analyzes the complex domestic and international political forces that brought about this unforeseen transformation.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780801872389
Publisher:	Johns Hopkins University Press
Publication date:	06/01/2003
Pages:	272
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.80(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Thomas U. Berger is an associate professor of International Relations at Boston University.

What People are Saying About This

Mike M. Mochizuki

Through his incisive comparative analysis of Germany and Japan, Thomas Berger makes an important contribution to the debate on how much culture and norms matter for national security policies. Essential reading for those interested in the theoretical study of international security as well as students of German and Japanese defense policy after World War II.

— Mike M. Mochizuki, Director, Sigur Center for Asian Studies,George Washington University

From the Publisher

Through his incisive comparative analysis of Germany and Japan, Thomas Berger makes an important contribution to the debate on how much culture and norms matter for national security policies. Essential reading for those interested in the theoretical study of international security as well as students of German and Japanese defense policy after World War II.
—Mike M. Mochizuki, Director, Sigur Center for Asian Studies,George Washington University

Thomas Berger's study is brilliant and original. It is nothing short of a landmark in its analysis of Germany and Japan but also in its conceptualization of comparative foreign policy.
—Andy Markovits, University of Michigan

Andy Markovits

Thomas Berger's study is brilliant and original. It is nothing short of a landmark in its analysis of Germany and Japan but also in its conceptualization of comparative foreign policy.

— Andy Markovits, University of Michigan

Editorial Reviews

Thomas Berger not only makes an important new contribution to our understanding of national security and defense planning in those countries, but also does a great service to the scholarly community by showing that cultural theory remains a viable methodology for the study of war.
—Douglas A. Borer, Perspectives on Political Science

An important academic achievement.
—Kazuhiko Noguchi, Social Science Japan Journal

A remarkable documentation of these two quite different cultures, one European and the other Asian, which experienced varying political pressures, but which agreed to remain demilitarized and unaggressive.
—Ed Peterson, H-German, H-Net Reviews

From the Publisher

An important academic achievement.

Social Science Japan Journal - Kazuhiko Noguchi

A remarkable documentation of these two quite different cultures, one European and the other Asian, which experienced varying political pressures, but which agreed to remain demilitarized and unaggressive.

H-German, H-Net Reviews - Ed Peterson

Thomas Berger not only makes an important new contribution to our understanding of national security and defense planning in those countries, but also does a great service to the scholarly community by showing that cultural theory remains a viable methodology for the study of war.

Perspectives on Political Science - Douglas A. Borer

An important academic achievement.

— Kazuhiko Noguchi

Social Science Japan Journal

Thomas Berger not only makes an important new contribution to our understanding of national security and defense planning in those countries, but also does a great service to the scholarly community by showing that cultural theory remains a viable methodology for the study of war.

— Douglas A. Borer

Perspectives on Political Science

Berger (political science, Johns Hopkins U.) explores the factors behind Germany's and Japan's refusal to take on the role of a great power league, concluding that the major factor was the strong antimilitaristic sentiment that emerged after World Word II. He also compares and contrasts how this sentiment plays a decisive role in present-day German and Japanese domestic political debates. Finally, Berger argues that the present generation continues to follow the antimilitaristic philosophy. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

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