Great East Asia co-prosperity sphere

Great East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere

Was an idea that was thought up by Japanese prime minister Matsuoka Yosuke. Was an idea that a united Asian nation led primarily by the Japanese could be self sufficient and free of western powers. This idea was pursued greatly by the Japanese government, which made many cultural, economic and political developments concerning this idea. Although this idea failed in the end due to the fact that what was said about the Great East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere was not what was going on. Simply put the reality was different from what the Japanese government was saying.

The cultural ideas which greatly supported this idea of the Great East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere was the idea that the Japanese were the dominant Asian race. Being descendants from the sun goddess Amaterasu they viewed themselves in a higher standing than most other Asian races. They also saw themselves as better due to the fact that they defeated the Russians in the Russo- Japanese war.

The economic ideals that drove the formation of the Great East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere was Japan's needs for raw materials. Japan as a country has scarce raw materials located on it that are essential to modernization. So throughout its history Japan has relied on other powers to supply them with ample raw materials that they needed to modernize. A luxury that they did not have following Japan's bombing of Pearl Harbor, which led to the U.S. embargo of oil and steel. This forced Japan to seek out other sources of war materials.

The final aspect that led to the formation of the Great East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere was Japan's political interests. Since the nineteenth century the Japanese government sought equality in world politics. The first way they saw fit to achieve that was to own overseas colonies. This idea was thought to make Japan a first-rate colony and up to par with its western counterparts. When this option failed Japan sought global equality at the Paris Peace Conference following world war one. Again they met fierce opposition and were given an unfavorable ratio of battleships the united states and great Britain both receiving five while Japan had received 3. This event combined with the Japanese Exclusion act in 1924 seemed to be the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back, which ultimately led to Japan's attack on western powers.

To conquered countries the Great East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere was advertised as an "Asia for Asians." Which fell in with many conquered peoples. When Japan conquered a country the set up a local government, which in reality was a façade put on by the Japanese government who were really the ones that were making all the big decisions. Including Japanization, which was imposed on locals and led to hundreds of thousands of deaths due to labor, torture and execution.

"Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere." Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. Bill Gordon, Mar. 2000. Web. 05 Sept. 2013.

Duus, Stanford University, Peter. "The Greater East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere Dream and Reality." Journal of Northeast Asian History 5.1 (n.d.): 143-54. June 2008. Web. 5 Sept. 2013.