Japan: Isolationism & Internationalism
Jean-Pierre Lehmann explores Japan's transition from isolation to internationalisation.
In 1970 the run-away best-seller in Japan was a book entitled The Japanese and the Jews appearing under the nom-de-plume Isaiah Benda-san. At first sight the title seems odd: the Jews are widely dispersed in the Diaspora while the 116 million Japanese are highly concentrated in their own narrow territory. There is, however, a certain similarity in the outlook shared by Jews and Japanese in regard to outsiders – the gentile and the gaijin (Japanese for foreigners) are perceived as distinct species. While there may be a similarity in nature between the views of the Jews and the Japanese the actual degree of exclusivism is perhaps greater among the Japanese. No nation, no people are as much a tribe or a tight-knit clan as the Japanese. There is also another possible parallel to be drawn between Jews and Japanese, namely that both see themselves as being highly vulnerable.
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