hed, however, under military rule, with strict controls on many of the basic freedoms.
Economic development also began from a different place. According to Robinson (1991) much of Korea's land had been redistributed to the people during 1948 and 1950. In addition, the Korean war changed the class structure and demographics of the country. Thus, the take off phase for Korean economic development started within a population that had essentially been levelled and was much less class based than traditional Korean society.
In some ways, Japan, too, was levelled after the defeat in World War II. Traditional Japanese society had always had its classes, with great importance placed on the scholar and the warrior, among others. Much of the immediate post war period is characterized by transition from that particular class structure to a new focus on the producer and a strong deemphasis on the warrior, at least in literal terms.
In Japan, the military has not been in the ascendant since the second world war. For a number of years militarism was so despised and the Japanese people so overwhelmed by the atomic bomb, that Japan's public life viewed the military, weapons, and military alliances as almost repugnant. Instead, Japan refocused its energy into economic development and development of the person in terms of productivity. While many of the same values remained in force, including loyalty and filial relationships, they were redirected
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