NEWS
2024.07.18
【Publication】Dr. Kazutaka SOGO’s book about the transformation of the political structure in imperial Japan has been released!
Dr. Kazutaka SOGO (Senior Researcher, Ritsumeikan Asia-Japan Research Organization, Ritsumeikan University) has published The Structure of the Party Politics in Imperial Japan: Vision of Integrating Two Major Parties and the “Three Pro-Constitution Parties” (2024, Yoshida Shoten; written in Japanese). This book was written based on his dissertation and subsequent research activities at the Asia-Japan Research Institute (AJI).
In this work, Dr. Sogo examines in detail how the Japanese party cabinet system actually came into being in the Meiji Era even though the Meiji Constitution substantially excluded the establishment of such a party cabinet system. He then explains from multiple perspectives why the system ultimately reached its limits. It is noteworthy that this book succeeds in grasping the holistic structure of modern Japanese politics from the perspective of the integration of power through the party cabinet managed by two major parties, the Rikken Seiyukai Party (立憲政友会) and the Rikken Minseito Party (立憲民政党), by employing Dr. Sogo’s unique framework which he names the “Three Pro-constitution Parties.”
It is also intriguing that this work clarifies the transformational process of the party cabinet system, introducing both micro- and macro-viewpoints of Imperial Japan, including the role of the Showa Emperor, the movements of the Imperial Court, colonial governance, and the Colonial Ministry (Takumusho; 拓務省). By taking all the intersecting spheres into account, Dr. Sogo has traced the roles of both the political and the bureaucratic actors in these unfolding events, and with thorough investigation and detailed analysis has brought together all the diverse, interrelated aspects, something that has not been achieved up to this day. Thus, he has produced a comprehensive work on early 20th century Japanese political history which we can expect will have a meaningful effect on other historical themes, such as the history of postwar Japanese politics, Japanese colonial history, and the history of international relations.
You can check the table of contents and other bibliographic information here
http://yoshidapublishing.moon.bindcloud.jp/pg5420144.html
The publication of this book was supported by the Publication Grant Program for Doctoral Dissertation in Humanities Society at Ritsumeikan University (立命館大学人文学会博士論文出版助成金制度). Currently, Dr. Sogo is conducting research on “Structural Contradictions between Party Politics and Foreign Policy in Modern Japan: Conflicts between International Cooperation and Imperial Politics,” supported by JSPS Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research for Early-Career Scientists.
Dr. Kazutaka Soto and his book