Samantha Parker
Northwest Asia Weekly
December 7th marks the 80th anniversary of Pearl Harbor. Although it has been eight years since Japan attacked the naval base on Oahu, it is still difficult to find comprehensive information about Japan’s role in World War II in the West.
Takuma Melber is solving this problem with his book “Pearl Harbor: The Japanese Attack and the United States Joining the Second World War.” Originally published in German in 2016, this book was translated into English last year, centering on Japanese perspectives—a viewpoint often missing in Western history books—providing a more comprehensive description of the war, its background, and aftermath.
Melber is a lecturer at the Center for Intercultural Studies at Heidelberg University in Heidelberg, Germany. His interest in highlighting the Japanese side of war partly comes from his half-Japanese and half-German ancestry.
Born and raised in Germany, Melber learned a lot about the role of Germans in war at school. The country’s education system will not shy away from events that cannot keep Germany in its best condition, such as the takeover of Adolf Hitler, the massacre, and the atrocities inflicted by the country during the war. Growing up, Melber also learned about World War II from his German relatives. They told him the story of his late grandfather, who had participated in the war and died when Melber was very young. . He also has German classmates who shared the story of their grandfather who fought in the war.
But it is more difficult for the Japanese side to understand the war. Melber said that in Europe and the United States, the history of the world taught in schools is often very Western-centric. He said that students rarely study Asian or African history, and what they learn is from a Western perspective—usually starting with colonialism. Melber said it is therefore difficult to obtain information about Japan’s role in World War II. Although his Japanese grandfather was also a soldier and served in the Japanese army, he also died when Melber was very young, and most of his stories have been lost.
Melber said that many Japanese accounts of the war — and the content taught in Japanese schools — include victim narratives, focusing on incidents such as the U.S. bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, rather than cases of violence committed by the Japanese. Melber Said that there may be cultural factors at work. The Japanese do not want to lose face and admit some things that make them look bad, but in his opinion, this method is completely lacking. This prompted him to eager to learn more and share what he had learned in order to portray war more comprehensively and emphasize the Japanese perspective.
In “Pearl Harbor”, Melber wanted to tell the story of the battle from the perspective of a Japanese actor-from soldiers and pilots to diplomats and politicians. This is not an easy task. There are no direct sources, such as oral history and interviews with survivors.
“This can get tricky,” Melber admitted trying to talk to the Japanese about World War II and Pearl Harbor.
In addition, many Japanese written materials are not translated into Western languages or the translation is incomplete.
Nonetheless, and the very specific focus of his book, Melber strives to provide objective and thoroughly researched narratives—relying on secondary sources—to deepen readers’ understanding of the battles that led to the United States’ entry into World War II.
One conclusion Melber drew from his research is how factors such as the Japanese war against China that began in 1937 and the oil embargo imposed by the United States at that time severely hit the country and caused the Japanese leaders at the time to feel that they were different from each other. There is no choice but to attack the United States. Armed with this kind of information, we can have a more comprehensive understanding of war. Melber hopes that readers will learn to transcend black and white thinking and realize that no one is a good person or a bad person.
“I think we can learn from it now and in the future,” he said.
For American and other non-Japanese readers, Melber said that it is important for them to understand the Asian aspects of World War II, and for Japanese readers, it is important to understand the war more fully.
In general, Melber’s storytelling needs more voices and perspectives, and he hopes that his book can contribute to the international study of World War II—because this is an international story. He said that people tend to think too nationalistically, but if they do not have a “us and them” mentality and are truly willing to work together as an international community, global issues such as climate change will be easier to solve.
You can reach Samantha at info@nwasianweekly.com.
