Japanese Confucian Beliefs Summary

To understand how Confucian ideals were used by Japanese leaders to promote economic prosperity, one must first understand the Confucian ideals embedded in Japanese society at the time. During the Meiji period—which marks the beginning of modern Japan for many historians—many people viewed social norms as Japanese values despite the fact that they were Confucian values rooted in Japanese society. One of the most remarkable examples occurred when the Confucian value of bushido was drawn upon by Japanese military leaders during World War II as propaganda, subsequently making the concept increasingly common in public rhetoric. The continuity of Confucian principles from the beginning of modern Japan through World War II illustrated how Confucianism remained an integral part of Japanese society despite its introduction to Japanese society being in the 6th century. Because Confucian values remained relevant to Japanese society through World War II, they continued to influence post-World War II Japanese society.

One Confucian concept that continued to be pertinent in post-WWII Japan was community-orientation, which entailed focusing on the whole rather than the individual. In Japan,

Filial piety was the virtue of respecting one’s parents and elders. Because Confucianism was strongly embedded in Japan, values such as filial piety, translated to respect and honor of all elders. Using World War II propaganda, the authoritarian Japanese government paralleled filial piety with loyalty to the emperor and state. In the years following the Japanese surrender, filial piety had a negative connotation across most of the public sphere because of discontent towards the Japanese government. However, the virtue was upheld and preserved in modern Japan after the war. Therefore, filial piety remained inherent to Japanese society in the period following World War II—the era of high-speed