The Nanjing Massacre in History and Historiography (Volume 2) (Asia: Local Studies / Global Themes)

The Rape of Nanjing was one of the worst atrocities committed during World War II. On December 13, 1937, the Japanese army captured the city of Nanjing, then the capital of wartime China. According to the International Military Tribunal, during the ensuing massacre 20,000 Chinese men of military age were killed and approximately 20,000 cases of rape occurred; in all, the total number of people killed in and around the city of Nanjing was about 200,000. This carefully researched, intelligent collection of original essays considers the post-World War II treatment in China of the Nanjing Massacre and Japan. The book examines how the issue has developed as a political and diplomatic controversy in the five decades since World War II. In his introduction, Joshua A. Fogel raises the significant moral and historiographical issues that frame the other essays. Mark Eykholt then provides an account of postwar Chinese responses to the massacre. Takashi Yoshida assesses the attempts to downplay the incident and its effects, providing a revealing analysis of Japanese debates over Japan's role in the world and the continuing ambivalence of many Japanese toward their defeat in World War II. In the concluding essay, Daqing Yang widens the scope of the discussion by comparing the Nanjing historiographic debates to similar debates in Germany over the nature of the Holocaust. The Rape of Nanjing was one of the worst atrocities committed during World War II. On December 13, 1937, the Japanese army captured the city of Nanjing, then the capital of wartime China. According to the International Military Tribunal, during the ensuing massacre 20,000 Chinese of military age were killed, and approximately 20,000 cases of rape occurred; in all, the total number of people killed in and around the city of Nanjing numbered some 200,000. Some Japanese historians say the total number of Chinese murdered was actually closer to 300,000. This carefully researched, intelligent collection of original essays considers the post-World War II treatment in China and Japan of the Nanjing Massacre. The book examines how the issue has developed as a political and diplomatic controversy in the five decades since World War II ended.In his introduction, Joshua A. Fogel raises the significant moral and historiographical issues that frame the other essays. Mark Eykholt then provides an account of postwar Chinese responses to the massacre. Takashi Yoshida assesses Japanese attempts to downplay the incident and its effects, providing a revealing analysis of Japanese debates over Japan's role in the world and the continuing antagonism by many Japanese toward their defeat in World War II. In the concluding essay, Daqing Yang widens the scope of the discussion by comparing the Nanjing historiographic debates to similar debates in Germany over the nature of the Holocaust.Taken together, this important collection makes contributions to our understanding of World War II, of Chinese and Japanese politics in the postwar period, and of the broader issue of atrocity in human history. Foreword / Charles S. Maier -- Introduction : The Nanjing Massacre In History / Joshua A. Fogel -- Aggression, Victimization, And Chinese Historiography Of The Nanjing Massacre / Mark Eykholt -- A Battle Over History : The Nanjing Massacre In Japan / Takashi Yoshida -- The Challenges Of The Nanjing Massacre : Reflections On Historical Inquiry / Daqing Yang. Edited By Joshua A. Fogel. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [189]-226) And Index. Foreword Charles S. Maier Contents Introduction: The Nanjing Massacre in History Joshua A. Fogel Aggression, Victimization, and Chinese Historiography of the Nanjing Massacre Mark Eykholt A Battle over History: The Nanjing Massacre in Japan Takashi Yoshida 4. The Challenges of the Nanjing Massacre: Reflections on Historical Inquiry Daqing Yang Glossary Bibliography Contributors Index More than sixty years have passed since the series of historical events now called the Nanjing Massacre (also known as the Nanjing Atrocity and the rape of Nanjing). Printbegrænsninger: Der kan printes 1 side ad gangen