Aggression, Victimization, and Chinese Historiography of the Nanjing Massacre

Abstract

Japanese planes bombed Nanjing, the Capital of China, on August 15, 1937. These raids were sustained until December 13, when Japanese troops entered the conquered city. Japanese soldiers killed, raped, looted, and burned for the following months. Hundreds of thousands of Chinese died. Six months later, random atrocities were still occurring. This is the vent known in history as the Nanjing Massacre. The Nanjing Massacre is an instant symbol of outrages committed by Japanese troops during the war and of China's victimization by imperialist aggression. Intrinsically, it is an event highly sensitive to Chinese people, causing anger when doubted and contempt when misconstrued. Thousands of books and articles have normalized the event in the minds of the Chinese people. Chinese of today continue to view Japan's action as a senseless and unconscionable attempt to exterminate the Chinese spirit.