Description
The establishment of overseas colonies and empires by modernizing nation-states was perhaps the defining historical development of the modern era. Modern Japan was one of the last great powers to modernize and to build an empire, but it caught up quickly. In the fifty years from 1895, the Japanese empire expanded to include Taiwan, Korea, Manchuria, Eastern China, the Western Pacific islands, and almost all of Southeast Asia, only to collapse dramatically at the end of World War Two.
What drove modern Japan to pursue this course? Was Japan’s empire simply a copycat of the Western ones? If not, how was it different, and why? What was the relationship between Japanese imperial expansion and economic, political, social, and cultural developments both within Japan and abroad? How was Japan as colonial ruler experienced by other Asians? And how did Japanese colonial expansion and colonial rule vary between place and time?
Teaching method
Lecture
Tutorial
Independent study of academic literature
Study visit
Field trip
Work placement
Course objectives
This course aims to offer students a basic history of Japanese imperial expansion from the late 19th century to 1945, and, along the way, to invite them to consider some essential points of scholarly debate.
Test method
Preparation, Participation and Attendance: 40% (includes weekly web postings and oral presentation)
Term paper: 40%
Final exam: 20%
Time table
For more information, check time table.
Contact
Registration
Via U-twist, check enrollment