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The Political Discourse of International Order in Modern Japan: 1868–1945

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 August 2008

SAKAI TETSUYA*
Affiliation:
Professor, University of Tokyo, 3-8-1 Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo, Japan, 153-8902tsakai@waka.c.u-tokyo.ac.jp

Abstract

This article discusses what constituted Japan's conception of the world order, by analyzing political discourse of international order in modern Japan. It has been generally assumed that the Japanese vision of international order in the pre-World War II years was dominated by a belief in the supremacy of the sovereign state. Contrary to the conventional supposition, this paper will argue that modern Japan actually abounded in discourses of transnationalism, and that most of them cannot be seen as the product of liberal ideas but rather the result of an unstable image of the sovereign state system. Surveying the historical development of political discourse of sovereignty and colonial administration in modern Japan, the way in which the ambivalence of Japanese transnationalism had affected the theoretical construction of the international order will be elucidated. Keeping in mind that previous studies on the genealogy of international relations have focused exclusively on the paradigmatic debate over the League of Nations, this article will also pay more attentions to the fact that rearrangement of empire had occupied the significant place in building the image of the world order. Based on the historical considerations mentioned above, the conclusion will offer generalized consideration of what constituted Japan's conception of the world order.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2008

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