Of all the conflicts which erupted throughout the twentieth century the Second Sino-Japanese War ranks amongst the most controversial, as it is to this day the source of much debate and deeply...Show moreOf all the conflicts which erupted throughout the twentieth century the Second Sino-Japanese War ranks amongst the most controversial, as it is to this day the source of much debate and deeply affects the dynamics of power in East Asia. After the end of World War II, Japan was forced to abandon its imperialist ambitions as well as many parts of the imperial cult as a sign of scission between Imperial Japan and the post-war modern nation that was to rise from its ashes. Although coming to terms with its troubled past was an essential step for Japan's reconstruction as a modern state and the normalization of its relations with other East Asian nations, in recent years an increasingly nationalist revisionist trend has emerged. This thesis is concerned with examining this Japanese war-memory problem, which is an issue which has grown exponentially in importance in recent years.Show less
Research master thesis | History: Societies and Institutions (research) (MA)
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This thesis compares two historical debates, the debate around the New Historians on the war of 1948 since the 1980s and the debate around the Cold War Revisionists in the US during the 1960s and...Show moreThis thesis compares two historical debates, the debate around the New Historians on the war of 1948 since the 1980s and the debate around the Cold War Revisionists in the US during the 1960s and 1970s. It links these debates to Raymond Martin’s thesis on progress in history that states that during historical debates historical interpretations will eventually become more comprehensive, better balanced and more justified, and that historiographical debates tend to converge after a brief period of interpretational divergence. The thesis argues that there is a difference between the historiographical trajectories in these two countries based on the respective socio-political circumstances. In both cases revisionist historians, claiming to pursue a more advanced historical narrative, challenged the prevailing mythical patriotic narrative. The revisionists –who themselves started out firmly on the political left- were in both instances aided by the changing socio-political realities of their day, such as loss of legitimacy of political establishments because of unpopular wars (Vietnam and Lebanon), changes in the international political context and generational shifts. While in the US the trajectory of the debate on Cold War historiography seems to confirm Raymond Martin’s thesis, the trajectory in the Israeli debate has not seen any convergence on the 1948 War. The thesis argues that this lack of convergence in the is linked to the socio-political circumstances in Israel.Show less
