Asian History Commons^™

Gaijin Shogun: The Effectiveness Of Macarthur In The Early Stages Of The Military Occupation Of Japan, Jack Cashion

Senior Honors Theses

In the aftermath of World War II, the Allied powers occupied Germany and Japan to ensure a peaceful transition at the end of the war. While the Allies had conquered Germany in its entirety, Japan’s surrender in the wake of the atomic bombs forestalled a costly invasion of the Japanese mainland. President Harry Truman granted General Douglas MacArthur the title of Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers (SCAP) when he appointed the general as the leader of America’s occupation force in Japan. As SCAP, MacArthur oversaw the initial years of the reconstruction of Japan and its transition from a war-torn …

Unilateralism And Strategic Ambiguity In American Foreign Policy: Contextualizing The Taiwan Relations Act, James L. Landers

Honors College Theses

The goal of this thesis is to examine the unique historical context surrounding the enactment of the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act in order to demonstrate how congressional unilateralism, a core component of enacting the TRA, led the United States to strengthen a policy of strategic ambiguity toward Taiwan and China. As a result of its enactment, the TRA has been criticized by the mainland Chinese government as an example of foreign policy that is contrary to the traditional values promoted by the United States. This study examines the creation of the TRA through government documents, legislation, and speeches and aims …

Buddhist Music As A Contested Site: The Transmission Of Teochew Buddhist Music Between China And Singapore, Jie Zhang

Yale Journal of Music & Religion

In the Chaozhou City Gazetteer of Buddhism & Chaozhou Kaiyuan Monastery Gazetteer published in 1992, the then Abbot of the Kaiyuan Monastery, Shi Huiyuan 释慧原 heavily condemned the Qing Dynasty (1644–1911) monk Shi Kesheng 释可声 (date unknown) for "starting the sins among laities in the Chaozhou region who dared transgressing (the Buddhist doctrines) and became chant leaders in a flaming mouth ceremony.” Why was the Abbot so upset with a fellow monk back in history? What did Kesheng do, and what were the implications of him starting this "transgression"? This article investigates the history of the international traffic of Buddhist …

Caron's Japan: Tokugawa State And Society Through A European Lens, Cegan Hinson

Student Research Submissions

Dutch East India Company (VOC) merchant François Caron describes Tokugawa Japan as a rigid political hierarchy controlled by the Shogun, similar to the governments established by absolute monarchs in Europe. Caron understands and insightfully describes Tokugawa society by emphasizing perceived and real similarities between Tokugawa Japan and Early Modern Europe. He struggles to understand religious differences between these societies, but his description of Japanese religious practices still reflects how the Shogunate utilized Buddhism and anti-Christian policies to uphold their rule. Caron also depicts Tokugawa Japan as a land of plentiful resources prime for lucrative trade. He includes the writings of …

The Dixie Mission, Patrick J. Hurley, And America's Diplomatic Failure In China, 1944-45, Sarah Moody

History Undergraduate Theses

This paper examines the American diplomatic effort in China in 1944-45 including the attempts at military coordination with Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalist government as well as the "Dixie Mission," which was the first official American contact with the Chinese Communist Party. I argue that the personalities of the American diplomats, the structural issues endemic to the China-Burma-India Theater, the fractured and complex Chinese political situation, and the lack of clear and rational foreign policy on China all culminated in the diplomatic efforts failing. While acknowledging the numerous contributing factors that led to diplomatic failure, this paper also suggests ways in which …

The Marriage Between Art And Politics: Propaganda, Rebecca J. Counen

The Purdue Historian

During the first half of the twentieth century Europe, Asia, and the United States faced many political/social changes and challenges amid both ideological wars and revolutions. This research paper works to analyze films from this era in order to convey the somewhat unorthodox, yet nonetheless influential and compelling, relationship between the arts and politics and how creativity is oftentimes manipulated for power and influence.

Mansfield, Marines, And Mothers: The Politics Of Resistance To The American Intervention In North China From 1945-1946, James Robert Compton

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

At the conclusion of World War II, American citizens, including millions of deployed servicemen, reasserted the democratic freedoms they sacrificed to win the war. The American intervention in North China during the Chinese Civil War presented a ripe opportunity for civic restoration in late 1945. Controversial and seemingly at odds with the stated goals of the Second World War—namely the “Four Freedoms” and the Atlantic Charter—the US military presence in North China faced formidable domestic political obstacles. This thesis explores the nexus of domestic politics and foreign policy in the post-World War II era. Focusing on 1945-1946, this project steps …

A Distinction Without A Difference: Vietnam, Sir Robert Thompson, And The Policing Failures Of Vietnam, Mark J. Rothermel

Madison Historical Review

The scholarship analyzing the failure of the American involvement in Vietnam began even before the war finished. Whether the Orthodox School which considered the war unwinnable or the revisionist which argued there was a path to victory for the Americans, there have been libraries of tomes arguing who or what was to blame for the American defeat. An increased amount of scholarship recently has been written regarding the influence of British officer Sir Robert Thompson and his attempt to advise both the South Vietnamese and American war efforts.

Thompson, who gained fame as one of the key leaders for the …

Knowing China, Losing China: Discourse And Power In U.S.-China Relations, Shankara Narayanan

University Scholar Projects

The U.S. government’s 2017 National Security Strategy claimed, “China and Russia challenge American power, influence, and interests, attempting to erode American security and prosperity.”[1] Three years later, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the U.S. foreign policy community’s discursive shift towards Realist competition with China, with officials from the past three presidential administrations coming to view China as a threat to democratic governance and America’s security posture in Asia. The discourse underpinning the U.S.-China relationship, however, remains understudied. During key moments in the relationship, U.S. policymakers’ Realist intellectual frameworks failed to account for Chinese nationalism, suggesting a problem embedded within …

Knowing China, Losing China: Discourse And Power In U.S.-China Relations, Shankara Narayanan

Honors Scholar Theses

The U.S. government’s 2017 National Security Strategy claimed, “China and Russia challenge American power, influence, and interests, attempting to erode American security and prosperity.”[1] Three years later, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the U.S. foreign policy community’s discursive shift towards Realist competition with China, with officials from the past three presidential administrations coming to view China as a threat to democratic governance and America’s security posture in Asia. The discourse underpinning the U.S.-China relationship, however, remains understudied. During key moments in the relationship, U.S. policymakers’ Realist intellectual frameworks failed to account for Chinese nationalism, suggesting a problem embedded within …

Teaching The Lessons Of The Vietnam War And Applying Them To The War In Afghanistan: Lesson Plans For A Sophomore Us History Class, Zoe Bond

Honors Projects

This project is a series of lesson plans for a 10^th grade US History class detailing the lessons of the Vietnam War and how they have and haven’t been used by President Obama in his decisions during the War in Afghanistan. The lesson plan uses Differentiation and Universal Design for Learning to accommodate every student in the class. The goal of this project was to teach original research in a way that promotes inquiry even if there is no correct answer at that time.

Mob Ideology Or Democracy: Analyzing Taiping Rebellion’S Defeat And Revolution Of 1911’S Triumph In Ending The Qing Dynasty, Bincheng Mao

Swarthmore Undergraduate History Journal

This paper investigates the underlying factors that caused the Qing Dynasty of China to survive the Taiping Rebellion yet crumbled upon the Revolution of 1911. It first examines the ideological differences between the two attempts of regime change, followed by an exploration into the extent of foreign interference in determining the outcomes of the two events. Subsequently, the author analyzes the conflict between the constitutionalists and the absolute monarchists within the Qing court during the time of the Revolution in 1911. Ultimately, this paper concludes that the Qing dynasty survived the Taiping Rebellion yet crumbled upon the Xinhai Revolution because …

Isolation Versus Engagement: The Economic Factors In Sino-Canadian Relations, 1960s-1970s, Brendan Williams

Bridges: An Undergraduate Journal of Contemporary Connections

This essay seeks to present a historic overview of this relationship as it developed between the 1960s and 1970s and showcase how certain events impacted this development. Canada has had a steadily growing economic relationship with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) since the latter’s reform and opening up policy under Deng Xiaoping in 1978. The development of this relationship was not a forgone conclusion, as Cold War tensions initially heightened ideological tensions between Maoist China and capitalist democracies like Canada. The path of normalization was impacted by both domestic and international events involving both Canada and the PRC, which …

A Reexamination Of Emperor Hirohito's Military And Political Role In Wartime Japan, 1926-1945, Kazuaki Suhama

Access*: Interdisciplinary Journal of Student Research and Scholarship

This paper discusses and reexamines Emperor Hirohito’s degree of responsibility in Japan’s military aggression in China during the late 1920s and 1930s to the attack on Pearl Harbor in the United States during World War II. Scholars have long debated the extent of Hirohito’s role as a warmonger due to his ambiguous position as a head of state and the lack of primary evidence displaying his actions and thoughts on the war. This paper will utilize the Constitution of the Empire of Japan of 1889 (informally known as the Meiji Constitution) which delineated the emperor’s supreme position in the government …

Cultural Diplomacy With North Korean Characteristics: Pyongyang’S Exportation Of The Mass Games To The Third World, 1972–1996, Benjamin Young

Faculty Research & Publications

During the 1970s and 1980s, the communist government in Pyongyang sent Mass Games instructors to the Third World in order to improve the image of North Korea abroad and promote its version of socialist modernity. The Mass Games, a huge choreographic gymnastics event of 100,000 performers, artistically exhibited the North Korean idea of "ilsim-dangyeol (single-minded unity).” In the era of decolonization, postcolonial leaders in the emerging Third World turned to East Asia for developmental inspirations and some leaders, notably Idi Amin of Uganda, admired the North Korean model of collectivism and discipline. The Mass Games, epitomized the communalistic values of …

Between The Devil And The Deep Sea: The Korean American War For Independence (1910-1945), Andrew Chae

War, Diplomacy, and Society (MA) Theses

From 1910 to 1945, while the Korean peninsula was a protectorate- and eventual colony- of the Empire of Japan, Koreans in the United States began an arduous process to maintain their sense of identity in a new land, and struggled to have a voice in a society that rejected their race. As a people in diasporic exile, Korean Americans engaged in a collective war for their independence by gathering resources to liberate Korea and committing extraordinary effort to deconstruct contrived stereotypes of Koreans. There are a number of forms of primary sources that corroborate the major arguments of the thesis, …

The Key Factors Driving Ccp Opposition To Taiwanese Independence, Connor Warshauer

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The CCP strongly opposes a formal declaration of independence from Taiwan, and has threatened military force should Taiwan take that step. This paper seeks to explain the underlying reasons for the CCP’s aggressive policy. To do so, it uses a two-part methodology composed of a comprehensive engagement with existing secondary sources from the academic literature and four new interviews with experts in the field. The paper considers three main explanations for China’s opposition to independence: nationalism, international geostrategic factors, and factors of domestic politics. It concludes that domestic politics, and specifically the CCP’s perception that independence threatens its claim to …

A Reexamination Of Emperor Hirohito's Military And Political Role In Wartime Japan, 1926-1945, Kazuaki Suhama

History Undergraduate Theses

This paper discusses and reexamines Emperor Hirohito’s degree of responsibility in Japan’s military aggression in China during the late 1920s and 1930s to the attack on Pearl Harbor in the United States during World War II. Scholars have long debated the extent of Hirohito’s role as a warmonger due to his ambiguous position as a head of state and the lack of primary evidence displaying his actions and thoughts on the war. This paper will utilize the Constitution of the Empire of Japan of 1889 (informally known as the Meiji Constitution) which delineated the emperor’s supreme position in the government …

When The Lights Went Out: Electricity In North Korea And Dependency On Moscow, Benjamin Young

Faculty Research & Publications

The division of the Korean Peninsula has been symbolized by electricity. While South Korea lights up on satellite images, North Korea is dark. Using archival documents from North Korea’s former communist allies and Pyongyang’s state-run media, the author argues that the DPRK’s electricity shortages were not a result of the regime’s Juche ideology but rather an outcome of overreliance on Soviet assistance. This analysis disputes the notion of North Korea’s Juche ideology as a totalizing phenomenon within the DPRK’s political structure. By presenting a multifaceted history of North Korea’s electricity sector, the author highlights the ways in which Pyongyang engaged …

Thucydides In Pyongyang: Fear, Honor And Interests In The 1968 Pueblo Incident, Benjamin Young

Faculty Research & Publications

Purpose: On January 23, 1968, North Korean naval forces captured a U.S spy ship, the USS Pueblo, off the coast of Wonsan. This incident nearly led to a second Korean War and heightened hostilities between the U.S and North Korean governments. This article demystifies the strategic thinking of Kim Il Sung’s regime and clarifies the reasoning behind Pyongyang’s risky undertaking in capturing the Pueblo and its crewmen as a rational and pragmatic action.

Design, Methodology, Approach: While the Pueblo crisis has been examined by a number of historians, this article which is based on former Eastern bloc archival documents and …

Trickle Down Nationalism: Interactions Between Liberal Nationalism And Colonialism In The Raj And Nigeria, Aaryaman Sheoran

CMC Senior Theses

The combination of nationalism and colonialism has remained understudied in academia, despite the important interaction between the two phenomena. European ideas bled over into their colonial empires and began to fill the power vacuum created by colonial enterprises. This study analyzes the impact of British colonialism on the development of national identity in British India and Nigeria.

British influences included large scale economic disruption, cultural reform through ‘westernizing’ the population and abolishing local customs, and creating a new set of institutions to replace traditional power centers. Inevitably, these factors created a nationalist surge across both the Raj and Nigeria, as …

The United States' Shifting Relationship With Taiwan Due To Cold War Influences, Hunter Pratt

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

The struggle between the Kuomintang (KMT) and Communist Party of China (CPS) shaped the direction of future American-Chinese relations by seismically uprooting the dynamics between the two states amidst the backdrop of the Cold War. President Harry Truman and later President Dwight Eisenhower were responsible for shepherding the United States through this new period of crisis as the ideological debates of the 21^st century were beginning to simplify into the East vs the West, communism vs. capitalism, and democracy vs. authoritarianism. China serves as one of the proto-battlefields of this ideological battle. Truman’s personal qualities, temperament, and beliefs influenced …

The Casualties Of U.S. Grand Strategy: Korean Exclusion From The San Francisco Peace Treaty And The Pacific Pact, Syrus Jin

Senior Honors Papers / Undergraduate Theses

From August 1945 to September 1951, the United States had a unique opportunity to define and frame how it would approach its foreign relations in the Asia-Pacific region. As the dominant power in the Pacific after World War II and claiming direct authority over vanquished Japan, the United States had the liberty to design its own post-war vision for the entire region. Until 1951, American State Department diplomats and government planners, attempted—ultimately unsuccessfully—to harmonize the competing motivations of lingering World War II multilateralist idealism and Cold War geopolitics in a postcolonial, postwar world. This thesis examines U.S.-Korean relations in context …

North Korea’S Nuclear Program And Negotiation: How Nuclear Negotiation During The Clinton Years Produced Lessons For Current International Relations, Brian Hilliker

Senior Honors Theses

North Korea’s road of survival began in the aftermath of World War II, when the United States and the Soviet Union sparred over rival ideologies. Ultimately, Korea split into a free south and an authoritarian north. Over seventy years later, North Korea remains a bastion of communism. Nuclear weaponry is a factor behind North Korea’s survival, and the history of their program can offer insight for American policy makers today. This paper offers a history of North Korea’s nuclear weapons program during the Clinton presidency, along with recommendations for present day policy makers. Without an understanding of history decision-makers tend …

Effects Of The United States Reconstruction On Nationalism In The Japanese Education System, Connell Murphy

Voces Novae

When the United States began its reconstruction of Japan after World War II, they consistently put their own interests within the country before what would benefit Japan the most . While the first two years of the occupation led to significant changes inside and outside schools, including the Ministry of Education’s diminished role, increased local involvement in the academic system, and the removal of nationalistic “morality” classes such as shushin. All of these changes were necessary efforts to denationalize and decentralize Japan’s educational system and allow more choices for teachers and schools. When Washington began to take an increased interest …

Enhancing Your Intelligence Agency Information Resource Iq: Pt. 2: The Central Intelligence Agency, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Provides an overview of information resources produced by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) including popular reference works like World Factbook and Chiefs of State and Cabinet Leaders of Foreign Governments. Additional content describes the CIA's origins and development, descriptions of current organizational components, information about it's directors, and the text of historical National Intelligence Estimates (NIE) and the President's Daily Brief covering topics as varied as North Korea, the 1973 Yom Kippur War, and NIE's on Soviet ballistic missile forces and numerous other topics. Features artifacts from the CIA Museum.

The Significance Of Mongolia's Foreign Policy And Security Apparatus On A Global And Regional Scale, Bolor Lkhaajav

Master's Projects and Capstones

Mongolia, land-locked between two politically, economically, and militarily powerful nations — Russia and China — often must balance its foreign and security policies with its two neighbors and countries beyond. When discussing Mongolia’s foreign policy and security apparatus, historians and scholars look at the international relations of East Asia as a whole. This is the case not because Mongolia’s foreign policy is insignificant but because greater powers impose greater influence on smaller states. Mongolia’s partial involvement in World War II (WWII), and the Cold War introduced new challenges as well as opportunities for Mongolia to modernize its foreign policy principles …

The Impact Of Immigration On Cold War Modernization Efforts: A Case Study Of South Korea, Shannon Hayes

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

This paper explores the intersection of American foreign and domestic policies during the Cold War. The United States sought to foster political and economic alliances in the developing world in the 1950s and 1960s by employing a new foreign policy initiative: modernization theory. Governmental officials and non-state actors carried out these policies in areas of the globe considered the most susceptible to communist influences because of cultural practices and economic realities. However, even while American policymakers sought to modernize political and economic systems, the nation’s own immigration policies may have worked against these efforts. This paper will explore the impact …

War Aims And War Aims Discussions (China), Lukas K. Danner

Dr. Lukas K. Danner

No abstract provided.

How Will The Politics And Government Of Hong Kong Change In 2047 When The “One Country, Two Systems” Policy Has Expired., Christopher D. Spalding, James M. Lochte

Undergraduate Research

Since the official transfer of sovereignty over Hong Kong from Great Britain to China in 1997, Hong Kong has been governed under a special set of laws dubbed “One Country, Two Systems”. Though Hong Kong and the mainland are one country, the People’s Republic of China, they are governed under two different systems with regards to economic and political policy. This two-system agreement has been seen as a guarantor of Hong Kong’s Western-style democracy and political freedoms, especially as compared to the rest of the People’s Republic. However, the system was set to be in place for only fifty years …