Chinese nationalism in the shadow of Japan, 1945--1950

This dissertation traces the development of anti-Japanese nationalism in postwar China. International in its geographical and archival scope, this work is also interdisciplinary in its analysis of political cartoons and songs. Chinese views of Japan lie at the heart of each the dissertation's four chapters. The first chapter chronicles the aftermath of the War of Resistance, presents Guomindang and Japanese connections, and analyzes a Chinese Communist Party campaign that wielded anti Japanese sentiment against U.S. negotiators in 1946 China. The second chapter focuses on the U.S. occupation of Japan, depicting dissatisfaction with Douglas MacArthur and the "reverse course" by using SCAP records, popular magazines from Shanghai, newly opened Qinghua University archives, documents from the Liaoning Provincial Archives as well as CCP cartoons to reveal new aspects of China's "oppose American revival of Japan" movement in 1948. The third chapter wades vigorously into Cold War debates, arguing that the Soviet Union invested heavily in anti-Japanese nationalism in order to justify Soviet occupation of Manchurian ports. The dissertation concludes with an essay on anti Japanese nationalism as a vital element in Chinese Communist mobilization for the Korean War, drawing upon the abundant Hunter Collection of mass education materials held by the Center for Research Libraries.