Peasant Agriculture and the Distribution of Power in Prewar East Asia

Abstract

ABSTRACT This paper examines agricultural development in EastAsia (Taiwan, Korea, and Japan) in the prewar period. It is argued that rapid productivity growth in this region depended on a redistribution of power in the countryside. In Japan this redistribution of power was linked to the development of strong village structures that proved resistant to attempts by the government to extract agricultural surplus. For Korea and Taiwan colonization by Japan resulted in a redistribution of power in the latter two regions and significant investment in the agricultural sector. Although much of the benefits of productivity growth in these regions initially went to Japan, with the independence of Taiwan and Korea this dramatically changed. Finally, it was argued that in today's developing nations technology may act to redistribute power in the countryside. In addition, democratic political institutions may prove useful as mechanisms for redistributing power and thus enhancing agricultural development.