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    Position Paper 9 - Art, Intellectual Life and Modern Culture

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    Ali Amr Ahmed
    By the late 19th century, Japan had become a major world power after defeating China in war. However, there were debates about Japanese identity and character. Some argued Japan had unique, timeless characteristics, while others believed Japan was developing like other modern nations towards democracy and equality. Rapid industrialization in the early 20th century widened inequality, spurring debates around socialism and workers' rights. The first Social Democratic Party advocated nationalization and reducing military spending but was banned within 12 hours of its founding manifesto. Later economic crisis led to more support for democratization and left-wing ideas.

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    Position Paper 9 - Art, Intellectual Life and Modern Culture

    Uploaded by

    Ali Amr Ahmed
    4 views3 pages
    By the late 19th century, Japan had become a major world power after defeating China in war. However, there were debates about Japanese identity and character. Some argued Japan had unique, timeless characteristics, while others believed Japan was developing like other modern nations towards democracy and equality. Rapid industrialization in the early 20th century widened inequality, spurring debates around socialism and workers' rights. The first Social Democratic Party advocated nationalization and reducing military spending but was banned within 12 hours of its founding manifesto. Later economic crisis led to more support for democratization and left-wing ideas.

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    Position Paper 9 - Art, Intellectual life and Modern Culture

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    By the late 19th century, Japan had become a major world power after defeating China in war. However, there were debates about Japanese identity and character. Some argued Japan had unique, timeless characteristics, while others believed Japan was developing like other modern nations towards democracy and equality. Rapid industrialization in the early 20th century widened inequality, spurring debates around socialism and workers' rights. The first Social Democratic Party advocated nationalization and reducing military spending but was banned within 12 hours of its founding manifesto. Later economic crisis led to more support for democratization and left-wing ideas.

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    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    4 views3 pages

    Position Paper 9 - Art, Intellectual Life and Modern Culture

    Uploaded by

    Ali Amr Ahmed
    By the late 19th century, Japan had become a major world power after defeating China in war. However, there were debates about Japanese identity and character. Some argued Japan had unique, timeless characteristics, while others believed Japan was developing like other modern nations towards democracy and equality. Rapid industrialization in the early 20th century widened inequality, spurring debates around socialism and workers' rights. The first Social Democratic Party advocated nationalization and reducing military spending but was banned within 12 hours of its founding manifesto. Later economic crisis led to more support for democratization and left-wing ideas.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    of 3

    By the end of the 19th century, Japan had been integrated to the world’s politics in which it

    even became a major player following its decisive victory in the Sino-Japanese War.

    Nevertheless, there were concerns about Japan’s fading character: an argument about the

    essence of the Japan. According to particularists, Japan has timeless distinctive characteristics

    that are unfathomable for aliens abroad. Initially vague in defining the tenets of this

    exceptionalism, particularists struggled in eliciting a distinguished identity out Shinto traditions,

    Heian Period sensibilities, harsh ethos of the warrior class in the boisterous arts of the Tokugawa

    townsmen, or in the austere puritanism of Tokugawa Confucianism. They tried to find

    uniqueness in the relation between the emperor and his subjects and sought to liken it to a

    familial relationship in which the emperor acts as the father who, under the guidance of the sun

    goddess, Amaterasu, immerses his children in benevolence and care but demands their

    unwavering loyalty.

    On the other hand, cosmopolitan thinkers believed that development is the inevitable fate of

    human beings. Japan’s development was a culmination of a series of events that propelled Japan

    to an egalitarian, free, and democratic society. In addition, they believed in the existence of

    trends that transcend the geographical barriers between humans. In other words, Japan was not

    detached from other humans. As an implication of these propositions, Japan could be deemed as

    a nondescript state, refuting the particularists’ premise. Moreover, the trend of emancipation has

    been halted or stymied following Meiji’s restoration with the state descending to

    authoritarianism, impairing the cosmopolitan thinkers’ argument.

    By that time, the rapid industrialization started affecting the social fabric with the industrial

    output increasing man folds. As a result, there were manifest concerns about the widening gap

    between the rich and the poor. In order to discuss the ideal course of action, many associations

    were founded. Organizing the Social Policy Association, Kuwada Kumazo and Kanai En

    supported the capitalist system but recommended introducing factory legislations and initiating
    workers’ insurance programs to protect the rights of the workers while distancing themselves

    from socialism which they deplored for being a hindrance to progress. In conclusion, they

    postulated that socialism is not necessary for Japan and surmised that Japan, which could

    establish a constitutional government without shedding blood, would be able to overcome the

    fissure between the classes.

    On the other hand, other thinkers were willing to criticize capitalism vociferously and

    promote socialism as an alternative. Those thinkers founded Social Democratic Party with the

    goal of eliminating the gap between the rich and the poor and promoting pacifism. They called

    for nationalization, abolishment of the house of peers, disarmament, and the reduction of the size

    of the Japanese army and navy. A distinguishing characteristic of the founders of Social

    Democratic Party is that their majority adhered to Christianity who perceived themselves as

    servants of Jesus and saw in socialism as the secular instrumentality of bring social and

    economic justice to Japan. Moreover, they were among the disillusioned with the Jiyuto’s

    alignment with the government. They were basically influenced by Karl Marx although they

    added a moral dimension to his analysis of the structural and historical reasons of capitalism.

    Ironically, the party was banned within 12 hours after the publication of its manifesto, and all

    the editions of the newspapers that included it were confiscated under the law Public Peace

    Police Law which was enacted in 1900. Nevertheless, it shouldn’t be construed that the

    government perceived socialist thoughts as threat to public order. In fact, public officials

    approached the party members and offered lifting the ban in exchange of recanting the

    manifesto’s provisions of abolishing the house of peers and reducing the size of the army and

    the military. It should be noted that the party didn’t espouse radical thoughts; they still supported

    the Meiji’s constitution and didn’t object to the Emperor’s role within the contemporary political

    edifice. They didn’t believe in overturning the government through violence, as they satisfied
    that they can change the system thanks to the nascent democratic parliamentary system. All they

    needed is convincing the public with their ideas. Unfortunately, due to the restrictions on party

    membership, the party couldn’t fill its ranks, as most of their publications’ readers were

    basically students who were prohibited from joining any political party. Like other political

    parties, the social democrats fell into disarray with the emergence of a radical faction composed

    mainly of direct-action proponents like Kōtoku Shūsui, who convicted with treason on charges

    of plotting to assassinate the Emperor.

    As a result of its alliance with the British Empire, Japan declared war on Germany and

    attacked its holdings in China. The Japanese economy flourished with the western commodities

    exported to the east are being allocated to the war effort. Nevertheless, this boom proved

    temporary, as Japan plunged into economic crisis with inflation rates soaring and rice prices

    increasing. As a result, Rice Riots took place in 1918: the largest disturbance to occur after

    Satsuma’s Rebellion. The Rice Riots were different for the whole affair was economic not

    political, as people were being pushed to the brink. Nevertheless, liberal democrats ascribed the

    crisis to the lack of inclusiveness and apathy of the government towards the general population

    not to capitalism. In addition, they viewed capitalism as a degenerate form of democracy. They

    believed that the current governance system favored the rich owning capital and paid no effort to

    ameliorate the conditions of the people. As a result, they pushed for democratization and

    universal male suffrage. Meanwhile, communism started entrenching itself in the community in

    response to the grievances of the labor.

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