In his Introduction to Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of World War II, John W. Dower accomplishes two goals. First, he highlights the key aspects of Japanese history during the period 1853-1952. This period covers Japan’s rapid modernization, imperial transformation and conquest, the Second World War, and the aftermath, respectively. Second, the author discusses his study’s important themes. He analyzes Japanese militarism that led to this country’s significant expansion in this period as well as some of the cultural aspects that stalled its imminent surrender in 1945.

Japan’s first substantial contact with the Europeans occurred in the middle of the 16th century when the Portuguese arrived in Japan; their arrival was part of Early Modern European exploration, conquest, and imperialism. However, subsequently, Japan remained a relatively closed country under the feudal shogun—military rulers. In 1868, dissident samurai removed these feudal lords and formed a different government led by an emperor; Dower highlights the striking rise of Japan in the aftermath of this change in leadership. By 1895, Japan “brought China to its knees” and established its first colony, Formosa, in present-day Taiwan (19). Russia suffered military defeat in the Russo-Japanese war a mere decade later.