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原題目題號：DSE-練習卷-Essay-02
討論軍國主義在1930年代日本崛起的原因。
定義 軍國主義是一種黷武精神，指社會及國家的決策從屬於軍事價值的考慮，主張以武力解決問題及奉行對外擴張政策。 // 架構 日本軍國主義於1930年代取替了政黨政治而崛興，探究軍國主義得以在日本興起的原因，可從政治、經濟、社會、軍事及外交等方面討論。
主旨句 政治方面，政黨政府的軟弱腐敗是軍國主義者於1930年代日本上台的要因。 // 段落內容 政黨政府於執政期間貪污腐敗、醜聞不斷，例如1924年時就有15,000個違反選舉法的個案，使政府不得民心，更替頻繁，於1918-32年間換閣多達11次，政黨政府搖搖欲墜。更甚，政黨政府在推行政策時過於軟弱，例如首相犬養毅於1930年代初反對在中國建立「偽滿洲國」，結果成為國內激進分子及媒體抨擊的目標，最終更受到「血盟團」的刺殺。事後，行兇者更得到35萬日人以鮮血聯署要求法院從輕發落，反映政黨政治已失去民心，相反，以恐怖方式打擊政黨政府的軍國主義組織反得到人民的支持，令軍國主義思想主導了1930年代日本的政治發展。 // 小結 可見，政黨政府的軟弱腐敗必須為軍國主義於1930年代的崛興負上責任。
經濟方面，惡劣的經濟環境對於軍國主義於1930年代的崛興也具重要性。蓬勃的經濟發展有助提高人民對政府的支持，然而，自1910年代末開始，隨著一次大戰完結，列強重返中國的市場，使日本的出口量銳減，經濟開始衰退。更甚，日本於1920年代經歷多次經濟危機，面臨嚴重的經濟問題，例如1923年的關東大地震導致了超過10萬間房屋損毀，經濟損失達300億美元，及至1927年的銀行危機亦造成30多間銀行的倒閉。至1929年經濟大蕭條，日本經濟更跌至谷底，失業人數高達300萬人。惡劣的經濟環境一方面使政府不得民心，認為政府無力解決經濟問題，另一方面導致日人支持軍國主義者的對外擴張政策，例如在中國的關東軍發動「九一八事變」(1931年)及「一二八事變」(1932年)後，日人及媒體不但沒有譴責關東軍的行動，更對之表示支持，使軍國主義於1930年代受到人民的支持而崛起。可見，經濟衰退的環境成為軍國主義崛起的溫床。
社會方面，傳統極端民族主義也是軍國主義於1930年代興起的遠因。傳統以來，武士道精神深入日人骨髓，日人習慣服從上級。至明治時期，政府更不斷向人民強調國粹主義，對內灌輸為國奉獻的民族意識，對外主張拯救其他亞洲民族及為大和民族爭取光榮的思想，例如1890年頒布的《教育敕語》就是日本政府思想灌輸的代表例子，強調忠君愛國，為國犧牲。在極端民族主義思想的浸淫下，軍國主義思想和組織相繼成立，例如提倡侵略中國以實現「大亞細亞主義」的「黑龍會」(1901年)；主張以暗殺方式剷除腐敗官員的「血盟團」(1931年)。往後，此等組織更策略多次事變以打擊政黨政府，例如於1932年血盟團發動「五一五事件」，刺殺首相犬養毅，使政黨政治家噤若寒蟬，往後首相一職均由軍方或元老出任，標誌了政黨政治的告終。可見，傳統極端民族主義是軍國主義得以崛興的要因。
軍事方面，軍部的權力過大也是軍國主義得以在1930年代崛起的要因。傳統以來，軍人在日本政治上均擁有極大的權力，例如明治天皇掌政以前，日本政治由幕府大將軍控制。及後，由於藩鎮的武士在倒幕運動一事上貢獻重大，因此在明治天皇重新執政後，軍人一直保留有重大的權力，例如《明治憲法》中規定軍隊直接覲見天皇，向天皇交代。而且，內閣更受到軍部的控制，因「軍部大臣現役武官制」中列明，若軍部拒絕派人出任內閣的海、陸大臣之職，內閣就不能成立。儘管此制度於1913年曾被取消，但軍部的權力一直未有削弱，例如1928年在中國的日本關東軍擅自策劃暗殺中國軍閥張作霖的事件，反映軍部不受內閣控制。至1936年「二二六事變」後，「軍部大臣現役武官制」更得到恢復，使軍部再次操控內閣的成立及運作，往後，幾乎所有閣員均是軍方人員出任，使軍人徹底掌控了內閣。可見，軍部權力過大埋下了往後軍國主義於日本崛起的伏線。
外交方面，西方對日本的針對也是軍國主義於日本興起的要因。隨著日本的國力於19世紀末的明治維新後不斷壯大，不但於甲午戰爭(1894-95年)中打敗中國，更於日俄戰爭(1904-05年)中擊敗歐洲勁旅俄國，使西方有感日本的威脅漸增。於此情況下，西方列強不但對日本採取排斥性的政策，例如美國於1924年通過《排外法案》，禁止日本在內的黃種人移民到美國。此外，列強更試圖壓抑日本的勢力，例如在1921-22年的華盛頓會議中迫使日本交還原本在中國山東的勢力範圍；1930年的倫敦會議中限制日本的大型巡洋艦與美、英的比例至10：10：6，令日人於1920年代起產生強烈的仇外情緒，支持軍方的對外擴張行動，如九一八事變(1931年)等，希望藉對外擴張而挽回民族光榮，致使軍國主義者在取得人民支持下上台。可見，西方對日本的針對也助長了軍國主義在日本興起。
總括而言，政治、經濟、社會、軍事及外交等方面的因素促使了軍國主義於1930年代的崛興，但軍國主義者的上台卻使日本不斷發動侵略，使亞洲陷入戰火之中，同時四處樹敵，也埋下了日本往後戰敗的種子。
Discuss the reasons for the rise of militarism in Japan in the 1930s.
As a military spirit, militarism bears a definition that all decisions related to society and the nation are based on military concerns. It encourages using armed force to solve problems and supports expansionist foreign policy. Militarism in Japan rose in the 1930s as a replacement of party politics. The reasons for its rise can be discussed from political, economic, social, military and diplomatic perspectives.
Politically, the incompetence of the democratic government was an important reason for the militarist takeover in the 1930s. The democratic government was corrupt and rocked by a series of scandals. For example, there were 15,000 cases of violation of the Election Law in 1924 and they ruined the government’s reputation. Also, the Cabinet was frequently reorganized. From 1918 to 1932, there were in total 11 cases of Cabinet reshuffle, which showed the instability of it. More importantly, the government displayed its weakness when putting forward policies. For instance, Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi犬養毅 was against the establishment of Manzhouguo偽滿洲國 in China and thus attracted criticism from radical elements and the mass media in the early 1930s. He was eventually assassinated by members of the Brotherhood of Blood League血盟團, who gained 350,000 signatures in blood afterwards from people around the country to plead for a lenient sentence. This showed that party politics had lost popular support. In contrast, militarist organizations that used violence against the democratic government gained public support and militarism dominated Japanese politics in the 1930s. Therefore, the incompetence of the democratic government must be responsible for the rise of militarism in the 1930s.
Economically, the poor economy was of great importance to the rise of militarism. Economic prosperity always drums up support for the government. But Japan’s exports declined sharply and its economy experienced recession because the powers returned to the Chinese market after WW1 ended in the late 1910s. Worse still, Japan was hit by several economic crises in the 1920s and faced serious economic problems. For example, the Great Kanto Earthquake關東大地震 in 1923 caused destruction of more than 100 thousand houses and losses of US$30 billion. About 30 banks were closed during the Bank Crisis銀行危機 of 1927. After the Great Depression經濟大蕭條 of 1929, Japan’s economy reached its trough and the number of unemployed climbed to 3 million. The depressed economy made the government lose its popularity because they thought it was incapable of solving economic problems. It also cultivated support of the Japanese for expansionist foreign policy adopted by the militarists. After the September 18th Incident九一八事變(1931) and January 28th Incident一二八事變(1932) were staged by the Kwantung Army關東軍 in China, the Japanese and the press not only showed no criticism towards its actions but also expressed their support. Rise of militarism became possible in the 1930s with popular support. Therefore, economic recession provided a breeding ground for militarism.
In social aspect, extreme nationalism in Japanese tradition was an underlying factor leading to the rise of militarism. Traditionally, Bushido thoughts were deep-rooted in Japan and the Japanese were habituated to absolute obedience. The Meiji government even did intense brainwashing on Japanese nationalism, suggesting sacrifice for the country and saving other Asian races to fight for prestige for the Yamato people. The Imperial Rescript on Education教育敕語 published in 1890, which stressed loyalty, patriotism and sacrifice, was a typical example of indoctrination of ideas. Exposed to extreme nationalist ideas, the Japanese established militarism and related organizations, including the Black Dragon Society黑龍會(1901) that backed invasion of China for achieving Pan-Asianism大亞細亞主義, and the Brotherhood of Blood League血盟團(1931) that aimed at removing corrupt officials through assassination. Afterwards, these organizations launch several mutinies to strike a blow to the democratic government. For example, the Brotherhood of Blood League plotted the May 15th Incident五一五事件 in 1932 which Prime Minister Inukai Tsuyoshi犬養毅 was assassinated and party politicians were not dared to challenge the military. After that, almost all Prime Ministers were generals or the Genro and this marked the end of party politics. Therefore, traditional extreme nationalism was also an important factor.
In military aspect, the excessive power of the military was also a reason for the rise of militarism. Traditionally, the military in Japan enjoyed huge political power. Before Emperor Meiji came to the throne, Japan politics were under the control of shogun of the shougunate幕府大將軍. After regaining ascendancy, the Emperor granted a huge power to the military because of the great contribution of the samurai from different domains in the Anti-Shougunate Movement倒幕運動. For example, the Meiji Constitution明治憲法 stated that the military had direct access to the Emperor and were answerable to him. In addition, the Cabinet was controlled by the military because as stated in the Military Ministers to be Active-Duty Officers Law軍部大臣現役武官制, a Cabinet could not be formed without the participation of the military as the Secretary of the Army and Navy. Although this requirement was cancelled once in 1913, the power enjoyed by the military was never weakened. The unauthorized assassination of Zhang Zhoulin張作霖by the Kwantung Army關東軍 in 1928 showed that the military was not influenced by the Cabinet. After the February 26th Incident二二六事變(1936), the Military Ministers to be Active-Duty Officers Law was restored and the military were able to manipulate the formation and operations of the Cabinet again. Since then, almost all cabinet members were from the military, which means that they controlled the Cabinet completely. It is apparent that the excessive power of the military paved the way for the rise of militarism in Japan.
In diplomatic aspect, Western discrimination against Japan was also an important factor. Japan had been building up its strength after the Meiji Restoration明治維新. Not only did it defeat China in the First Sino-Japanese War甲午戰爭(1894-95), but it also scored a victory over Russia, an European power, in the Russo-Japanese War日俄戰爭(1904-05). The Western powers could feel the growing threat of Japan and adopted racially exclusive policy against Japan. One example was the American Immigration Act排外法案 of 1924, which banned Asian immigrants, including Japanese ones, to the US. The powers even attempted to check its influence. For example, Japan was forced to return Shandong to China in the Washington Conference華盛頓會議 of 1921-22 and the ratio on heavy cruisers was set to be 10(US) : 10(Britain) : 6(Japan) to curb Japanese naval expansion in the London Naval Conference倫敦海軍會議(1930). This induced anti-foreign sentiment among the Japanese and their support for territorial expansion by the military since the 1920s, which is exemplified by the September 18th Incident九一八事變(1931). They wanted to gain back national glory through foreign encroachment and the militarists successfully rose to power with their support. Therefore, Western discrimination against Japan also fostered the rise of militarism in Japan.
To conclude, political, economic, social, military, diplomatic and other factors combined to facilitate the rise of militarism in the 1930s. Unfortunately, the militarist takeover led to endless aggression of Japan and it drew Asia into wars. Japan made many enemies worldwide and paved the way for its defeat afterwards.
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