아미노 요시히코의 일본론에 대한 재검토 - 중세사의 관점에서 -

A Reappraisal of Amino Yoshihiko s Theory of Japan

Amino s understanding of the Japanese emperor seems to be suprahistorical and mystical in the sense that the religiosity and ideal sanctity of the emperor are emphasized. Non-farming people suggested by him as the social foundation of the emperor cannot be distinguished as a group from the farmers. They were hardly related to the emperor or Buddhist and Shinto deities. Amino s argument to regard the Kamakura bakufu as the eastern state which stood side by side with the western state centered around Kyoto is based on the assumption that regional diversity led to the ethnic diversity and political power based on the locality was the state power. His argument cannot be accepted from the fact that the bakufu itself recognized the emperor as a king of the state. Lastly, Amino s new view of the sea is not free from criticism. It is true that the seas which surrounded the Japanese islands provided the Japanese with a place to communicate with other Asian people, and stimulated by these cultural exchanges various local cultures flourished in the islands. However, it is undeniable that societies developed around the islands remained relatively isolated and backward compared to other societies developed in the Korean peninsular or the Chinese continent. Amino s discourse seems to aim at the orientation of national Japanese history nation in addition to his explicit orientation toward people s social history in the Japanese islands.