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SPECIAL ARTICLE Japanese (Part 12) – Historical : A Fresh Look at Japan’s Economic –

By Kawakatsu Heita

Doesn’t Historical Periodization volume Nihon no Jidai-shi (History of selves, historical materialism gives rise to Ever Change? Japan’s Historical Periods), which is cur- the ideas of developmental periods and rently being published by Yoshikawa historical periodization. These ideas are To get a bird’s-eye view of where con- Kobunkan. The “ancient-medieval-early hypotheses, just like any other scientific temporary Japan is situated within the modern” breakdown is used throughout, theory. Moreover, these hypotheses are context of , one must focus as if the different publications had all recognized as an asset that is shared by broadly on the larger flow of historical rolled off the same press. Upon further the entire community of .” events and conduct an orderly historical investigation, one will find that either This sentence is followed by a quote periodization. Theories of historical the same influential people were among from Vladimir I. Lenin: “Historical periodization seek to draw together all the editors for each of these publica- materialism is a synonym for social sci- the different strands of tions, or a number of people from the ence.” And at the end of the mono- and weave them into a single tapestry. same school of historiography were graph the authors note that they had The most orthodox historical peri- among the editors in each case. received many helpful suggestions from odization in contemporary historiogra- Socialism was a powerful force in the their research group, which included phy divides history into , 20th century, in the political world as such authorities as Ienaga Saburo, the and modern history. well as in the ideological realm, but in Ishimoda Sho, Sato Shin-ichi and This is the periodization adopted by the end it was unable to develop a new Furushima Toshio. By throwing in this Europeans, for whom history begins outlook and made a most ignominious note, the authors show that their work with the of ancient Greece exit from the stage of history. And the had been vetted by some heavyweight and Rome. Europe’s ancient history historical materialism upon which historians. came to an end with the fall of the socialism was founded has also ended up In the latter half of the 1970s, Roman Empire, which ushered in the in the dustbin of history. Both socialism Iwanami Shoten launched a second edi- Middle Ages (otherwise known as the and historical materialism were bank- tion of its Iwanami Koza Nihon Rekishi. “dark ages”). Then the classical revival rupt by the end of the 20th century. To The editors for the second edition came of the , a time when the nat- champion historical materialism today, from the same school of thought as their ural flourished, ushered in mod- 10 years after the collapse of the Cold predecessors. A supplement to the series ern history. Such is the European view. War, is an anachronism, but that is nev- carries an article entitled “Hosoku And while some outstanding European ertheless precisely to what many Ninshiki to Jidai Kubun” (Recognizing historians have argued against the idea Japanese historians adhere. Historical Principles and Periodizing History), by that the Middle Ages were a dark period, materialism is so deeply embedded in Araki Moriaki, in which the author the basic tripartite periodization of Japanese academism that it will not easi- refers to the historical materialism set Western history retains its appeal. ly be rooted out, and I believe that there forth in Karl Marx’s preface to A Japanese historians use those very are serious problems with the school- Critique of Political Economy as hallowed same Western terms in periodizing books written by Japanese academics. canon when he writes: “The establish- Japanese history – ancient, medieval, There is a series of historical mono- ment of the bakuhan (shogunate and early modern, modern and contempo- graphs that has been extremely influen- domain) system in early-modern Japan rary. Historians in post-war Japan have tial in shaping the historical view of the occurred as the result of a transition in been profoundly influenced by Marxist Japanese people; it sold so well, in fact, the form of production from paternalis- materialism in working out this peri- that it went through four editions in the tic slavery to serfdom. Toyotomi odization. As the theory holds, ancient 1960s through the mid-1970s. This was Hideyoshi’s Taiko Kenchi (national sur- Japan featured slavery, medieval Japan Iwanami Koza Nihon Rekishi (The vey of lands and their productivity had feudalism, early-modern Japan fea- Iwanami Series on Japanese History). capacity) were merely a compulsory tured a transition from feudalism to cap- The series includes a supplement enti- enforcement of the transition.” This italism and in modern Japan capitalism tled “Jidai Kubun-ron” (The idea was first put forward by Araki in came to maturity. Go to a book store Periodization of History), jointly the 1950s, and was here reaffirmed and browse through the various series on authored by Toyama Shigeki and based on academic theories accumulated Japanese history and Japanese economic Nagahara Keiji. The authors were both for more than 20 years. history put out by major publishers like editors of the series. As firm believers in Iwanami Shoten and the University of historical materialism, the authors Tokyo Press. Or have a look at the 30- wrote: “At the risk of repeating our-

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A New Periodization is Needed ing, food and shelter. That is why peo- the natural environment”), or into envi- ple speak of idealism as opposed to ronmental fundamentalism (the idea, for The usefulness of a Western-centered materialism. But in actual fact, Marx’s example, that “all human activity having view of history has worn demonstrably ultimate concern was people. any environmental impact whatsoever thin. The same holds true with respect The language of Marx’s “materialism” must be stopped”). Nevertheless, the to historical materialism and class theo- does not match up with the reality; we anthropocentric view of history, that ry. We must open our eyes to new reali- must distance ourselves from it. puts an emphasis on human subjectivity ties. It is time for us to free ourselves Therefore, I coined a new Japanese and is inclined to believe that “humans from the spell of historical materialism term, “Kakubutsu-ron,” in order to dis- can remake the environment,” must be that has held sway for 50 post-war years. tinguish between true materialism and corrected. It is time to work out a new general the- ersatz “materialism,” which has long We must cast aside both environmen- ory of history – in effect, a new peri- been known in Japanese as “Yuibutsu- tal fundamentalism and anthropocen- odization – based on a view of history ron.” True materialism is a way of view- trism, and concentrate on that which is and new reference points that are in ing society from a material perspective. in the middle path, somewhere between keeping with the age. True materialism seeks to identify the the natural environment and human This paper treats “cultural and materi- ideal relationship between nature, things society. We should be concentrating on al complexes” as a key reference point. and people. Other things exist on our the things that are produced on that The essence of a society (i.e., material planet besides people. There are other land and used there by humans. And we conditions without which a society important things besides the rights and should be concentrating on how such could not exist) is its material complex. interests of people. Nature and things things change through the course of his- Since this concept is about material, as also have a reason for being. It ought to tory. the term itself states, it can probably be be possible to simultaneously preserve The cultural and material complex is regarded as materialism. But this term nature, conserve things and care for the an appendage of the land and the natur- “materialism,” grating as it is upon the needs of people. People the whole al environment where humans live. For ear, is about “material” in name only. world over are calling for development the sake of , let us refer As typified by his theory of reification, that pays maximum attention to biologi- to this land and the natural environment Marx held that the products of our labor cal diversity and ecological sustainabili- as a “venue.” For life to be possible, become commodities, and that people ty. there must necessarily be a venue. That are controlled by commodity relations, Of these three elements which are venue is the land and the natural envi- which results in the fetishism of com- derived from the requirement of the new ronment. It is the basis of all existence. modities. This, Marx argued, was the reality – natural environment, things Thus, that which we call a “venue” is the cause of alienation of man from man, and human society – we should concen- land and the natural environment, as and was to be avoided at all costs. Marx trate first on “things,” because a sound well as the human life that occurs there. was primarily concerned about people. natural environment is a prerequisite for For life to be possible, there must be a Western thought treats the universe as human survival. As environmental basis that supports it, and that basis dual in character, one aspect being spiri- archeologist Yasuda Yoshinori and his must consist of land and the natural tual and the other material. This duality associates have shown in a number of environment, i.e., a “venue.” Where in Christian thought treats the physical studies, conditions in the natural envi- there is a “venue” for life, there will as something deeply sinful, and puts ronment are intimately connected with inevitably be a cultural and environmen- great stress on the spiritual. In his the rise and fall of civilizations, but envi- tal complex. German Ideology, Marx criticized idealist ronmental change is extremely gradual Humans cannot turn the entire planet , put forward by such as measured against the human lifespan. into a venue for life. Part of the planet thinkers as Immanuel Kant, Johann G. We are not unwilling to recognize the is the “venue,” and there we spend our Fichte, Friedrich Schelling and Georg existence of “environmental history,” lives. The term “venue” can also be W. F. Hegel, that can be described as a but the difference in time scale is too called “region.” Region is a part of the paean to the spiritual. Marx cast aside huge. When one becomes deeply planet. On the basis of some certain cri- religion, which stresses the spirit, as the involved with environmental issues, teria, the whole planet is divided into opium of the people, and turned his there is a strong tendency to veer off regions. There is thus a relationship attention to material conflicts of interest into geographic determinism (the idea between the whole (the planet) and a over the basic necessities, such as cloth- that “human society is determined by part (region) thereof. Without the

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Table 1 Changes in the cultural and material complex of Japan

(1) Jomon period (2) Yayoi period (3) Kofun period whole there would be no part; without (c.a.10,000 B.C.-4 B.C.) (c.a.4 B.C.-3 A.D.) (c.a.4 A.D.-7 A.D.) the part, there would be no whole. The relationship between the two is well described in the phrase “in one there are many; the many are but one.” People (1) The period in which Oriental artifacts made their way to Japan’s “capital city” live in many different venues. Over (2) The period in which Japan, in its “capital city,” turned Oriental artifacts into something of its very own time, different ethnic groups have (3) The period in which Western artifacts made their way to Japan’s “capital city” emerged, each with its own shared cul- (4) The period in which Japan, in its “capital city,” turned Western artifacts into something of its very own ture and society. Some say there are 3,000 such groups. Others put the number at 8,000. Taken as a whole, and by looking at changes in the “cul- Japan’s first capital city. Thereafter, they constitute human society. The tural and material complex” as they are each move of the capital city from one venue where these ethnically defined reflected in changing venues. place to another has marked the bound- societies, taken as a whole, make up ary between different periods. human society, is nature on a planetary Focusing on the Capital City Why is the capital city so important in scale. the periodization of Japanese history? At the risk of repeating myself, when First, what exactly is a capital city? Key Indicators: “Venue” and looking at changes in the material com- News reports often use the names “Cultural and Material Complexes” plex, the “venue” is the key. There is a “London,” “Paris,” “Washington, DC” central venue to the area in which and “Tokyo” as pronouns referring to It is very true, as the old Japanese say- human beings spend their lives. The Britain, France, the United States and ing goes, that “change of place brings four great civilizations are identified in Japan, respectively. A capital city is change of character.” Once the “venue” terms of “venue.” The names of the truly “a country’s face.” Or, to be a bit changes, the material complex changes Tigris-Euphrates Civilization, the more precise, a capital city is where a as well. In the West, the nucleus of the Egyptian Civilization, the Yellow River country’s governing agencies are located. material complex is “livestock and Civilization and the Indus Civilization Generally speaking, a capital city is wheat,” while in Japan it is “marine all indicate the “venues”Before where the establishment these home of a tocapital that citycountry’s head of , in products and wet-rice paddies.” Every ancient civilizations flourished. The whom the political authority and politi- “venue” has its own “material complex.” “venue” (i.e., the place in time and cal power of the state are vested. And it is also true that “passage of space) that constitutes the center of In Japan, however, the situation has time brings change of character.” When Western civilization has shifted over the not always been quite that straightfor- the times change, so does the material centuries, moving fromAfter the establishmentward. of a capital During city the Heian period (794- complex. Most clothing during the and Egypt to (ancient history), 1192), after Japan came under the ruling Muromachi period (1392-1573) was from there to Rome (ancient history), power of regents, the emperor still had made from hemp, but cotton became then to Paris (early modern), London political authority but he did not have the most common type of cloth used for (modern) and New York (contempo- political power. Political power was in clothing in the Edo period (1603-1867). rary). the hands of the Fujiwara clan, and later Japanese during the Edo period wore When the artifacts of “venue B” are in the hands of rulers. Authority kimonos, but Western clothing is now added to the artifacts used in “venue A,” and power were split. That has been the the overwhelming choice of most peo- the cultural and material complex of “A” Japanese tradition since the Heian period. ple. In this manner, character changes changes. Japan’s society has been influ- Still in post-war Japan, authority and with the passage of time. enced by all sorts of artifacts that made power are split. Today’s emperor has The idea that “change of place brings their way to Japan from overseas. The authority (extending to absolutely no change of character” is a spatial concept, cultural and material complex of Japan one), but he does not have power. while “passage of time brings change of has grown richer with the passage of character” is temporal. The “character” time and the addition of foreign arti- Authority or Power? of human society at a given place and facts. In rough terms, those changes can time must be periodized using true be classified as in Table 1. In Japan, with its separation of author- materialism. To see how the “character” Japan has had a central “venue” ity and power, authority and power have of a given place will change as the times throughout its recorded history. That not always been located in the same change is the perspective of the changing central “venue” has been the capital city. place. The seat of authority (i.e., the times. To put it in somewhat recondite Japan did not always have a capital city, emperor’s palace) was Kyoto from the terms, periodization is accomplished by and for that reason the periodization of Heian period through the Edo period, looking at “venues” in space and time, Japanese history begins with the birth of but the seat of power moved around,

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Photo: Kobori Tomoto, (Emperor arriving in Tokyo) / Meiji Memorial Picture Gallery from Kyoto to Kamakura to Edo(now Tokyo). It is often said that “the capital was moved from Kyoto to Tokyo early in the Meiji period (1868-1912),” a refer- ence to the fact that the Imperial family moved to Tokyo from the palace in Kyoto. This statement focuses on the seat of authority. But the shogun, in whom political power was vested, resided in Edo throughout the Edo period. When speaking of political power, the capital was not moved during the Meiji period. The seat of political power moved to Edo in 1603 when the Tokugawa bakufu (shogunate) was established, so it can also be said the capital of Japan was moved to Edo in the early 17th century. The period from the establishment of the Tokugawa bakufu until the Meiji Restoration is sometimes called the Tokugawa period. This style of peri- odization is based on the name of the The Meiji Emperor moved his residence from Kyoto to Tokyo after the Meiji Restoration person holding political power. For rea- sons given below, I choose to focus on seat of political power. period (1192-1333), Muromachi period, the capital city serving as the seat of Which is more appropriately consid- Azuchi-Momoyama period (1568-1600) political power, and thus speak of the ered the capital city? Should it be the and Edo period. It is noticeable that this “Edo period” rather than the seat of authority? Or the seat of political method of periodization is extremely “Tokugawa period.” power? natural to the Japanese people. That is The period since the Meiji Resto- I think it should be the seat of politi- why I conclude that we should not use ration is generally subdivided into the cal power. It is political power that has such periodization schemes as “ancient Meiji period, Taisho period (1912- a direct impact on the daily lives of the Japan – medieval Japan – early modern 1926), Showa period (1926-1989) and nation’s citizens. Moreover, the nation’s Japan – modern Japan – contemporary Heisei period (1989-), with the period citizens can also exert their influence Japan,” or “slavery – feudalism – capital- names coinciding with the name of the upon the nation’s political power. In ism – socialism.” I think we should go reigning emperor, but this sort of appel- short, for the nation’s citizens, the seat back to the periodization that is used by lation is based on the Chinese idea that of political power is more important the great majority of the Japanese people. the emperor controls the time. Because than the seat of authority. For that rea- And because the capital of Japan since I focus on the capital city, I prefer not to son, I refer to the seat of political power the Meiji Restoration has been Tokyo, I subdivide the period since the Meiji (i.e., the location of the capital func- would also argue that referring to the Restoration, but refer to this entire tions) as the capital city. entire period since the Meiji Restoration stretch as the “Tokyo period.” The capital city has moved over the as the “Tokyo period” is also in line with Speaking of capital cities, the subject years from Nara to Heian, Kamakura, the natural periodization instincts of the of “moving the capital’s functions” away Muromachi, Edo and now Tokyo. Japanese people. from Tokyo has become something of a Japan’s capital city has been moved a hot topic in recent years. The term number of times over the centuries. To (Continued in Part 13) “capital functions” refers to the ruling put it in another way, the “venue” con- agencies in charge of the nation’s legisla- stituting the nation’s center has changed tive, executive and judicial functions, many times. Kawakatsu Heita is a professor of economic i.e., the nation’s political power. In Naming Japan’s historical periods after history at the International Research Center for speaking of moving the “capital func- the capital city serving as the seat of Japanese Studies in Kyoto. His books and tions” away from Tokyo, the subject of political power is the most commonly articles have been published in both English the Imperial Palace is never mentioned. accepted method of periodization in and Japanese. He also serves as an advisor The seat of authority has nothing to do Japan. Thus we have the Nara period for various governmental bodies such as the with it; all talk focuses strictly on the (710-784), Heian period, Kamakura Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

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