Fri 10/7 and Mon 10/10 Formal and informal empire

The two books under discussion on Friday and Monday are Peter Duus, The Abacus and the Sword: The Japanese Penetration of Korea, 1895-1910 (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998) and Peter Duus, Ramon H. Myers, and Mark R. Peattie, eds., The Informal Empire in China, 1895-1937​ (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1989).

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Duus on Formal Empire in Korea

Complete and share map exercise

Discussion on Korea

• Surprising or confusing to you?
• What does this article help us understand about Japan’s colonization of Korea?
  • What role did economic forces (especially investment in industry and railways) play in Japan's colonization of Korea?
• In what ways did Japan's experience with the West shape its interactions with Korea?
  • Where do models of imperialism come from? Do any countries “perfectly fit” a model of imperialism? And if not, what makes Japan stand out for Duus?
• What does the concept of “feudalistic-militaristic imperialism” contain? What does it help us explain? What does it obscure?
  • In what sense was Japan “backward” in the Meiji period?
  • Distinction drawn here between “external” and “internal” causes?
• Assimilationism challenge or amend our views on race?
  • What is a “civilizing mission”?
  • Analyze discussion of family
  • Convincing argument? Why or why not?
• How did Japanese imperialism in Korea differ from British and other Western examples?

Duus on Informal Empire in China

Assign notetaker

Mindmapping key terms

• In this activity, we will start out by identifying several key terms from last night’s reading. This activity should be conducted with a partner.
• Our first step will be to very briefly define each term.
• Next, we will trace their relationship to one another by linking them visually on a sheet of paper, general sketching software like Google Drawing, or a dedicated “mind mapping” program like MindNode Pro. There are no firm rules on how to do this, but you should be able to explain why you have charted the terms together as you have.
• ​The terms for this activity are below:
  • Most favored nation (MFN) clause
  • Informal imperialism
  • Formal imperialism
  • Open Door
  • Strategic advantage
  • Economic penetration
  • Unequal treaties
  • Partition
  • Additional key terms you feel are important to include

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Discussion

• How does Duus define “informal imperialism”?
• To what extent was Japanese “informal imperialism” in China a product of its own initiative and to what extent was it part of a larger collaborative enterprise begun by the British in 1838?
• What do we learn here from this article to deepen our understanding of Japanese views toward China?
  • How would you summarize Japanese feelings about China between 1895 and 1930?
• “Backwardness” was a major theme in our previous reading on formal empire. To what extent does this tendency express itself in Japan’s relationship with Korea? With China?
• What factors influenced how Japan interacted with Korea vs. how it interacted with China?