How Did Japan Dehumanize Americans?

The Japanese Government was hell-bent on expanding their empire and desired the strongest fighting force in the world. Japan is not resource dense, so it felt the need to spread its scope to the areas of Asia that are dense (Manchuria). Japan left the League of Nations as they escalated land grabs, displaying their desire for autonomy. Japan felt that they deserved the areas surrounding them, and that they had to defeat those that inhabited those areas. As the Japanese military expanded rapidly so did the nation’s bravado. The Japanese people thought their mainland was impenetrable and that their people were of the highest honor. They had lowered the stature of all non-Japanese so much that rape, murder, and pillaging was practically celebrated. …show more content…
The Japanese were trained from a young age to be militaristic, playing with objects that promoted violence, and were taught that Japan is to be a supreme power and that all others were inferior. Japanese culture dictated how Japanese soldiers were to act, leading to honor suicides and kamikaze attacks. There were few Japanese POWs during the war because the majority would kill themselves before being captured. Japanese viewed Americans as weak and immoral because they did not follow the same honor code. The Japanese dehumanized Americans just as Americans were dehumanizing them. Japanese soldiers were noted for beheading Allied troops, looting homes, and practicing forced labor. These were all justified by their idea that any non-Japanese were subhuman and that they should be treated as such. The Japanese leaders were able to have total obedience to their command and total allegiance to their country from their …show more content…
Nationalism can unify people and have them strive for a higher cause. A nation that stands as one is stronger and can accomplish much more. Yet overbearing nationalism can cause individuals of that nation to lose sight of the humanity of others. Nationalism can lead people to think that anyone who does not share their way of life is lesser than they, which can lead to heinous actions. World War II saw both sides of nationalism, as it helped bring in some of the greatest advancements in modern history, while also contributing to some of the greatest horrors in modern history. As long as there are borders and different races, nationalist pride and racial stereotypes are an unavoidable part of human life. Humanity is often lost in times of war, as people look at what separates us, instead of looking at all we