Actual Japanese Quotes About the War

The book “Through Japanese Eyes” has numerous quotes from Japanese sources about the times leading up to the war and the war itself, and these quotes give a very good idea of the state of mind of those who were behind the war. I will reproduce a few of the quotes under separate topics.

The author is going to let the quotes from the Japanese speak for themselves, mainly.

The author goes into why the war started. The average person in the U.S. didn't understand just how vicious war-minded and power-mad people can be. (1) The second was the superiority the West felt over the East. (2)

More about the war, and then the first two quotes, both of which show the idea that Japan had that the entire world must be under the guidance and control of Japan. This was the idea of bringing the 'four corners of the world under one roof.'

All of these quotes show just how strongly some of the Japanese thinkers and leaders felt about the U.S. and Britain, that both countries needed to be destroyed. Period.

This is the quote that got a lot of people mad at Yamamoto, and was even used on various World War II posters.

These two quotes are from Tojo, who became the effective head of Japan for a while.

What would have been the peace terms as dictated by the Japanese.

The author lays a great deal of the blame for how the Japanese behave on the Shinto religion.

He finishes his discussion of Shinto, and then begins the quotes section.

He goes into more discussion of Shinto, this time linking it to Emperor worship.

More quotes about the Emperor, this time saying that the Emperor should rule over the entire world.

The idea of Japan ruling over the entire world goes all the way back to the first Emperor.

Yet more on the idea of everyone being under Japanese dominance.

Tojo again, this time using the Greater East Asia Co-prosperity Sphere concept.

One of the strangest quotes in the entire book.

The author then confronts one of the more controversial aspects, and that is what was Hirohito's role in all of this?

The actual declaration of war from Hirohito.

Some things Hirohito did to show he was in support of the war.

More from the Emperor and more from Tojo.

The plan for world conquest.

Preparation for war.

European and American thought is evil!

Chinese thought isn't any better!

A one-party system is the way things should be.

The Japanese paid attention to what was going on in the U.S., and used events to their own purposes.

Although some authors have said that the war was racial in nature, the White race trying to subjugate the Asian race, the Japanese already had that idea.

Japanese anti-Semitism.

One guy saying the war with the U.S. started in 1927.

What one Japanese paper thought of Americans.

Tojo saying Japan has never lost a war.

Why the attack on Pearl Harbor happened when it did.

Why the attack was carried out in the first place.

They thought they could destroy the entire American Navy.

Plans for invading America.

Planned use of biological weapons.

Tojo again.

Don't worry, be happy. The Emperor will save us (somehow).

What was this guy smoking?

Why they yelled Banzai!

Let me get this right. After you are dead by beheading, your head is supposed to fight on?

Lying about how they treated P.O.W.s.

How they were really treated.



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