Japan Prepares for Total War: The Search for Economic Security, 1919-1941 (Cornell Studies in Security Affairs) [Paperback]

Michael A. Barnhart (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 8, 1988 | ISBN-10: 0801495296 | ISBN-13: 978-0801495298

The roots of Japan's aggressive, expansionist foreign policy have often been traced to its concern over acute economic vulnerability. Historian Michael Barnhart tests this assumption by examining the events leading up to World War II in the context of Japan's quest for economic security. Drawing on a wide array of Japanese and American sources, this is the first English-language book on the war's origins to be based on research in archives on both sides of the Pacific. Barnhart focuses on the critical years from 1938 to 1941 as he investigates the development of Japan's drive for national economic self-sufficiency and independence and the way in which this drive shaped its internal and external policies. He also explores American economic pressure on Tokyo and assesses its impact on Japan's foreign policy and domestic economy. He concludes that Japan's internal political dynamics, especially the bitter rivalry between its army and navy, played a far greater role in propelling the nation into war with the United States than did its economic condition or even pressure from Washington.Japan Prepares for Total War sheds new light on prewar Japan and confirms the opinions of those in Washington who advocated economic pressure against Japan. At a time of growing interest in U.S.-Japanese economic relations, this book will be stimulating and provocative reading for scholars and students of international relations and American and Asian history.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Though the subject has been much studied, this book belongs to a small corpus of works based upon both English- and Japanese-language sources. In emphasizing that Japan's drive for empire was rooted in its economic insecurity, the book is in the tradition of James Crowley's Japan's Quest for Autonomy, 1930-38 (1966). Barnhart's work, however, covers a broader time span, is based upon a wealth of documentation that has become available in the past two decades, and also covers U.S.-Japanese diplomatic relations more thoroughly than Crowley's did. Barnhart's book is even-handed and scholarly in tone. Though its appeal will be limited mainly to specialists, general readers who have some knowledge of the topic will find it rewarding. John H. Boyle, History Dept., California State Univ., Chico
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"A first-rate, original account of Japan's road to war, fortified with documentation largely unavailable in English. Barnhart's unique perspective is sure to enrich our understanding of the 1930s and of the origins of the Pacific War."-Akira Iriye

Product Details

• Paperback: 296 pages
• Publisher: Cornell University Press (July 8, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0801495296
• ISBN-13: 978-0801495298
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #158,685 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A very good book for one with some background, January 4, 2003

By 

W. D ONEIL "Will O'Neil" (Falls Church, VA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Japan Prepares for Total War: The Search for Economic Security, 1919-1941 (Cornell Studies in Security Affairs) (Paperback)

This volume tells a very important part of the story of the Japanese Army and its part in dragging the nation into a catastrophic war. It is well and clearly written and generally quite strong in its sources. It is not the first book one should read about interwar Japan and its march to war, since it really does not present a rounded view of Japanese politics and the army as an institution. But for someone who understands the general background, it is fascinating and useful.

One caution: in common with many books written by specialists in Japanese history, it presents a very distorted picture of the mindset and actions of the Roosevelt administration. The central problem is an implicit assumption that Japan was the central concern when in fact its importance to FDR and his lieutenants lay in its relationship to the problem of Hitler. Deprived of this context, the actions of the administration are truly inexplicable.

Will O'Neil

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hard to find but well worth the effort, October 20, 2010

By 

Don Kehn, Jr. (Isola di Kizmiaz) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Japan Prepares for Total War: The Search for Economic Security, 1919-1941 (Cornell Studies in Security Affairs) (Paperback)

Michael A. Barnhart's modest-sized study is one of the finest available to non-Japanese speaking/reading students of the Pacific War, and although not without judgements with which one may rightly quibble, is indispensable in the long run. Within a mere 270 pages Barnhart traces Japan's catastrophic road to triumph & ruin; from the egoistic smallscale victories of Manchuria through the fatal decision to enlarge the China Incident, followed by disaster at Nomonhon, thence down a dark path contorted by fatal, and astonishingly irrational, interservice rivalries that eventually lead to Shinjuwan and Hawai sakusen.

I would disagree with the assessment made by Barnhart--in which he echoes Akira Iriye--that Japan did not hold the reins to its own fate...as I would with some of his conclusions about Japan's successes based upon "peaceful competition" in the postwar world. The book's tone is moderate, unemotional, and scholarly throughout; this is agreeable enough for those in search of the Truth of Accountants, but it utterly fails to capture the more sinister, paranoiac weltanschauung of Japan's leaders and populace during the era...Nonetheless, by & large this book is masterful, and no serious student of the Pacific War, let alone the causes that led to the conflict, can afford to do without it.

Apart from these minor criticisms--which should not be read as in any way disparaging--Barnhart cannot be highly commended enough for creating some semblance of rational order from the tangled, ensnarled netherworld of pre-war Japanese military "planning"...In which "plans"--and there were far too many--were less about actual plans than concepts for plans, (and as such bear more than a passing resemblance to more recent military misadventures by the West.) He also manages to identify most---though not all--of the key players in the Japanese army, navy, & civilian government who figured in the events leading up to war. For their arrogance & follies he makes no excuses. He shows as well that those men who were able to argue for a diplomatic settlement, as those who understood Japan's economic frailty, were swept aside like straws in a flood in the reactionary torrent leading to December 8th, 1941.

Finally, the copy I obtained appears to have been reprinted as a paperback in 1998, and was quite inexpensive: page for page one of the very best values possible, IMHO. Highly recommended!