Kazuko Kuramoto was born and raised in Dairen; Manchuria; in 1927; at the peak of Japanese expansionism in Asia. Dairen and the neighboring Port Arthur were important colonial outposts on the Liaotung Peninsula; the train lines established by Russia and taken over by the Japanese; ended there. When Kuramoto's grandfather arrived in Dairen as a member of the Japanese police force shortly after the end of the Russo-Japanese War in 1905; the family's belief in Japanese supremacy and its "divine" mission to "save" Asia from Western imperialists was firmly in place. As a third-generation colonist; the seventeen-year-old Kuramoto readily joined the Red Cross Nurse Corps in 1944 to aid in the war effort and in her country's sacred cause. A year later; her family listened to the emperor's radio broadcast ". . . we shall have to endure the unendurable; to suffer the insufferable." Japan surrendered unconditionally. Manchurian Legacy is the story of the family's life in Dairen; their survival as a forgotten people during the battle to reclaim Manchuria waged by Russia; Nationalist China; and Communist China; and their subsequent repatriation to a devastated Japan. Kuramoto describes a culture based on the unthinking oppression of the colonized by the colonizer. And; because Manchuria was; in essence; a Japanese frontier; her family lived a freer and more luxurious life than they would have in Japan—one relatively unscathed by the war until after the surrender. As a commentator Kuramoto explores her culture both from the inside; subjectively; and from the outside; objectively. Her memoirs describe her coming of age in a colonial society; her family's experiences in war-torn Manchuria; and her "homecoming" to Japan—where she had never been—just as Japan is engaged in its own cultural upheaval.
#2533368 in Books Liberty Press 1983Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.92 x .51 x 8.46l; 5.05 #File Name: 08659704161447 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Should be on every bookshelfBy zastrongI wish this book series was on every bookshelf in America. Americans are grasping in the dark for the solutions to problems which our forefathers knew and openly discoursed about. This is a tremendous resource for anyone who this history or politics is important. And if you are someone who doesn't think history or politics is important; you definitely need to read this.0 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy KW17Very Interesting.19 of 19 people found the following review helpful. A Bargain Price for a Great CollectionBy Jeffrey ReedLiberty Press is a marvel; and no; I don't work for them! They are reprinting some of the classic conservative and libertarian works of authors from the 18th and 19th century; as well as modern writers. Hyneman and Lutz's collection is a perfect example of what Liberty is accomplishing. This is an encyclopaedic collection of writings on the American revolution; covering a wide variety of topics; that informed and shaped the debate over American independence and the meaning of the American Revolution. The collection extends to 1815 since the Revolution itself cannot really be said to have ended until the War of 1812. This is a broad collection. You will find essays on slavery; on virtue and republicanism; on the meaning of freedom and liberty to the American revolutionaries; even conservative and radical alternatives to the moderate path most Americans embraced. Hyneman and Lutz also move beyond the 'great men' of the period; and delve into more popular writings; and lesser known figures. I do have one complaint; and a suggestion concerning these volumes. The two volumes are heavily weighted toward New England and Middle State writers (esp. New Englanders); and really give short shrift to Southerners from Virginia and South Carolina. And I would suggest purchasing Sandoz's Political Sermons of the Founding Period; as a companion volume to these two.
