| Japanese Assimilation Policies in Colonial Korea, 1910-1945 Subjects: Japan -- Foreign relations -- Korea; Korea -- Foreign relations -- Japan; Japan -- Colonies -- Korea -- History -- 20th century; Korea -- History -- Japanese occupation 1910–1945; Koreans -- Cultural assimilation -- Korea -- History -- 20th century; From the late nineteenth century, Japan sought to incorporate the Korean Peninsula into its expanding empire. Japan took control of Korea in 1910 and ruled it until the end of World War II. During this colonial period, Japan advertised as a national goal the assimilation of Koreans into the Japanese state. It never achieved that goal. Mark Caprio here examines why Japan's assimilation efforts failed. Utilizing government documents, personal travel accounts, diaries, newspapers, and works of fiction, he uncovers plenty of evidence for the potential for assimilation but very few practical initiatives to implement the policy. Mark E. Caprio is a professor in the Department of Intercultural Communications, Rikkyo University, Tokyo. |