午夜剧场

I began researching Pan-Asianism in earnest about 15 years ago. Until then, my primary research themes were the political and intellectual history of modern China. My first paper dealing with Pan-Asianism focused on Sun Yat-sen's "Greater Asianism" lecture delivered in Kobe in November 1924. Through this research, I came to believe that Pan-Asianism needed to be re-compared and re-examined from the perspectives of both Japan and China over a long-term span. The compilation of my subsequent research results was my previous book, "Pan-Asianism and the Intellectual Intersections of Modern Japan and China" (午夜剧场 Press, 2016).

This newly published book is a revision of my previous academic work, rewritten to be as accessible as possible. Based on findings from subsequent research, I have added discussions on the thoughts of several individuals and expanded the target period from the Edo period to the present day. Early Japanese thinkers covered include Tokichi Tarui, who advocated for an equal merger of Japan and Korea; Atsumaro Konoe, the first president of the Toa Dobun-kai; and Mitsuru Toyama, Toten Miyazaki, and Ikki Kita, who were supporters of the Chinese Revolution. It will be understood that Pan-Asianism was an ideology that encompassed both proponents of national rights and proponents of civil rights.

Chinese figures covered include Sun Yat-sen, later known as the Father of the Nation; the participants of the Asian Solidarity Society; and Li Dazhao, who was involved in the founding of the Chinese Communist Party. To varying degrees, their arguments were all influenced by the Japanese government's policies toward Asia and trends in the intellectual world, and they called for the liberation of Asia from Western powers from positions of either cooperation with or opposition to Japan.

After the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War, Pan-Asianism in both countries emerged with new aspects. This book introduces Japan's theory of the East Asian Community, China's anti-Japanese Pan-Asianism, and the Chinese thoughts and movements that responded to Kanji Ishiwara's East Asia League theory. Ultimately, Japanese-style Pan-Asianism was declared bankrupt by the defeat in the war. Consequently, Pan-Asianism tended to receive negative evaluations in the post-war intellectual world. Of course, it is impossible for Pan-Asianism to be reborn in its past form in today's world. However, in a situation where Western modernism is reaching a deadlock, I believe there is a possibility that it could serve as a basis for inheriting the high-quality parts of past thought and creating new values.

Takashi Saga

Chikuma Shobo

304 pages, 1,700 yen (excluding tax)

*Affiliations and titles are as of the time of publication.