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The final years of WWII turned the attention of the Allies eastward, where the Empire of Japan had been brutally expanding into nearby Asian nations. As the Allies pushed forward, toward places like Okinawa and Iwo Jima, they noticed something about Japanese soldiers: a unique penchant for martyrdom, and an unwillingness to surrender even in the most dire circumstances. This was most shockingly apparent in the “special attack” kamikaze missions.

Today’s episode investigates this mindset, and the fascinating mix of religious, cultural, and imperialist propaganda that encouraged it. From Shinto beliefs to ancient samurai code, the cultural backdrop for this new militarism is fascinating. We also ponder just how widespread this kind of thinking really was in Japan at the time.

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Sources:

Cawthorne, Nigel. Reaping the Whirlwind: the German and Japanese Experience of World War II. David & Charles, 2007.

Fridell, Wilbur M. “A Fresh Look at State Shinto.” Journal of the American Academy of Religion, XLIV, no. 3, 1976, pp. 547–561., doi:10.1093/jaarel/xliv.3.547.

“Last Letter of Ensign Teruo Yamaguchi to His Father.” Translated by Bill Gordon, Kamikaze Images, Feb. 2019, www.kamikazeimages.net/writings/yamaguchi-teruo/index.htm.

Lipman, Jonathan N. “Imperial Japan: 1894-1945.” About Japan, aboutjapan.japansociety.org/imperial_japan_1894-1945_1.

Ohnuki-Tierney, Emiko. “The Emperor of Japan as Deity (Kami).” Ethnology, vol. 30, no. 3, 1991, p. 199., doi:10.2307/3773631.

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