Japan After WW1 Flashcards
1
Q
before WWI
A
- limited participation during WWI
- experienced growth in society and industry
2
Q
after WWI
A
- tension from industrialization
- disputes from workers and land owners
- women resentments
- American Great Depression was felt in Japan - economic crisis
- questioning capitalism and democracy, thus the rise of nationalism
- military begins to take a more dominate role in life (militarism)
- 1937 - Ministry of Education reforms
- rise authoritarianism
- Japan would join the Axis Powers (with Germany and Italy)
- china invades Japan
3
Q
note
A
- 1920s = Japan moving toward more democratic politics and western values
- 1925 = universal male suffrage
- emergence of two-party system
- expansions of eduction
- urban consumer society develops
- middle-class women entered new professions
- greater gender equality and more freedoms of expression
- 1918 = “rice riots” = millions protested the rising price of rice
- 1920s = union membership tripled as Japanese workers started to fight more for workers rights
- increased disputes between landowners and tenants
- rising women’s movement: wanted the right to vote and the end of legal prostitution
- Radical Nationalism
- becomes Authoritarian state over time (pulled Japan out of Great Depression)
- 1937, people worked again
- believed it should have been given more land in the Treaty of Versailles
4
Q
Japan = hit hard by the Great Depression
A
- shrinking world demand for silk (millions of silk farmers now impoverished)
- exports fell by 50% between 1929 and 1931
5
Q
1930s = right-wing nationalist thinking continued to grow
A
- parliament, political parties, and elections continued but major government positions now held by military or bureaucratic figures, not party leaders
- military began to have a more dominant role in political life
- censorship limited free expression
- only ONE single news agency allowed to distribute national and international news
- trade unions banned
6
Q
1937 = new textbook issued by the Ministry of Education
A
- used in all Japanese schools
- stressed difference between Japan and “the West”
- stressed the divinity of the Japanese emperor
- students required to do more physical training
- martial arts replaced baseball in gym classes
7
Q
Japan
A
- no right-wing party gained popular support or seized power
- no charismatic leader
- no fascist party
- people arrested for political offenses, “re-socialized” renounced their errors and returned to the “Japanese Way”
8
Q
Italy and Germany
A
- Fascist political parties gained support & seized power
- Mussolini and Hitler
- strong fascist parties
- people arrested for political offenses, institutionalized, deported, or killed
9
Q
note 2
A
- Japan acquired sphere of influence in Manchuria following victory over Russia in Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905
- Japanese fear = growing Chinese nationalism would threaten this sphere of influence
- 1931 = Japanese military seized control of Manchuria
- set up a puppet state called Manchukuo
- western power = not happy
- Japan = broke with its western allies and withdrew from the League of Nations
- 1936 = Japan joined with Germany and Italy in an alliance called the Axis Powers
- 1937 = Japan invaded China (every single person and animal was killed)
- 1937-1938 = Rape of Nanjing (200,000 to 300,000 Chinese civilians killed or mutilated within a few months; countless women assaulted)
10
Q
how did the Japanese government charge the citizens spoke out after WWI?
A
- the Peace Preservation Law of 1925
11
Q
which type of government improved employment in Japan after WWI?
A
- authoritarian
12
Q
how was the Japanese government before WWI?
A
- becoming democratic
- two-party system emerging
13
Q
what were the effects of strong leadership on society in Japan after WWI?
A
- rise in nationalism
- improved employment rate
- repressed freedom of speech
14
Q
how did the government respond to protests after WWI?
A
- the peace preservation law of 1925
