Europe and Japan

Abstract

This article traces the historical evolution of the images of Europe in Japan. While the length of Japan’s interactions with Europe do not compare to those between China, Korea, and Japan, the Europeans have nevertheless played a significant role in the process of constructing a Japanese identity. While Europe initially played a part in consolidating ethnocentric notions of Japanese superiority, since the expansion of European International Society in the late-nineteenth century, Europe has played a role as a “positive” other that Japan has frequently sought to emulate and mimic, even at the height of Japan’s rebellion during the Asia-Pacific War of 1931-1945. This dynamic has persisted to this day, even under the shadow of American hegemony and Japan’s incorporation into this order after 1945.