日本 近代性 認識의 한 樣相

A study on recognition of Japanese modernity

As generally recognized among us, modern Japan’s impending needs were recognized as ‘economic wealth and military strength of the nation’ and ‘the growth of industry’. As a national system implementing these objectives, the government of Meiji was established and lasted as a monarchy, which was founded by what was known ‘kokutai(國體)’ through the restoration of the Royal rule, which was based upon the beginning of the Zimmu(神武) establishment. The monarchy’s absolute Tenno system, designed for ‘economic wealth and military strength of the nation,’ had required a militarism, and also, for ‘growth of industry,’ had required a capitalism, which finally formed the Japanese modernization. This can be seen as being on the extension line of the so-called Sakuma Shozan(佐久問象山)’s ‘Wakonyosai(和魂洋才)’. Here, the problem was that the Japanese modernization, formed in this way, needless to say, had modern’s and premodern’s transitional character. Moreover, knowing the historical idea of the modern’s origin which was from the West, the Japanese modernization dwelt both in historical discontinuity and in limping at the same time. Under this kind of situation, after the Meiji ishin, modern people who emphasized on transcendence and subjugation considered the Japanese modernity to be being Westernized, putting Japanese Capitalism and Japanese Imperialism out of the way, crying out aloud for Western Capitalism and Western Imperialism or Western Civilization’s transcendence and subjugation, as a ‘wakon’ depending on pre-modernized absolute Tenno System, is the higher reach of nonsense. In this point of view, modern people who emphasized on transcendence and subjugation neglected the grasp of essential contradiction about the Japanese modernization, mechanically taking apart ‘wakon’ and ‘yosai,’ making ‘denial of the West’ equal to ‘modern transcendence and subjugation’. Using this equality, facing a rock-like modern West might be seen as a caricatural gesture of the Japanese infantile patriotism prior to an intellectual adventure.