Japanese Assimilation Policies in Colonial Korea, 1910-1945

During Japan's colonial rule over Korea from 1910 until the end of World War II, Japan adopted assimilation as its administrative policy but was unable to integrate the Korean people as Japanese. In "Japanese Assimilation Policies in Colonial Korea, 1910-1945", Mark Caprio traces the history of this policy to determine why Japan failed to attain its stated goals. In his search through government documents, personal travel accounts, diary entries, published essays, newspaper editorials, and fictional works, Caprio uncovers a rich discussion regarding the policy's potential but little evidence of practical policy initiatives designed to realize Korean assimilation. In Korea, segregation was built into everyday life. Japanese and Koreans lived in virtually segregated communities. The colonial education system, unwilling to intermix large numbers of Koreans with Japanese, segregated students into two separate and unequal systems. As a result, inferior education blocked the social advancement of Koreans. Intermarriage between Koreans and Japanese was comparatively rare, while many who did marry found themselves ostracized from Korea-based Japanese society. Japan reinforced the second-class status of Koreans by limiting employment opportunities and denying representation in the political institutions Japan constructed for Korea. Japanese colonial policy during World War II enabled some improvement, as Koreans were promoted in government and factory positions to replace Japanese recalled home or sent to the battlefront. "Japanese Assimilation Policies in Korea, 1910-1945" also examines the diverse views held by Koreans regarding Japan's colonial policy. Mark Caprio is a professor in the Department of Intercultural Communications, Rikkyo University, Tokyo, Japan.