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AMERICAN PUBLIC OPINION TOWARD JAPAN IN THE PRE SECOND WORLD WAR PERIOD

This research examines public opinion in the United States toward Japan in the period prior to the beginning of the Second Word War. Secondarily, Japanese public opinion toward the United States is also examined.

The thesis of this examination is that the actions of the Japanese nation in the pre Second World War period account entirely for the negative character of American public opinion toward Japan prior to the beginning of the war, and, in turn, these Japanese actions led inevitably to war between the two countries. In the conduct of this examination, the policies of the government of Japan that attempted to extend Japanese economic hegemony in Eastern and Southeastern Asia while simultaneously promoting Japanese political dominance in the Pacific region are considered as motivators for actions by the Japanese nation that were found offensive by the American public. Economic interests were a major causal factor of the Pacific War in the 1940s between the United States and Japan, and the influence of Japanese economic objectives on Japanese political decisions that affected American public perceptions of Japan in the prewar period are considered in this research. AntiAmerican attitudes in Japan were strong in the prewar period, and these attitudes increased in intensity throughout the 1920s and 1930s. While these attitudes did not make have a direct impact on American public opinion toward Japan in the prewar period, the AntiAmerican feeling that was prevalent in Japan created an environment that was supportive of aggressive actions by the Japanese military that did have direct effects on the development of a hostile American public opinion toward Japan in the prewar period. Thus, these Japanese attitudes are considered in this research. Lastly, the propagandistic actions of the Japanese military and the Japanese government designed to pe...