3 ms·

It's an accurate description. What do you want them to do? Pretend WW2 didn't happen? Pretend that Germany or Italy sent significant amounts of troops to invade

by LLWM 12y ago

It's an accurate description. What do you want them to do? Pretend WW2 didn't happen? Pretend that Germany or Italy sent significant amounts of troops to invade China?

jallmann 12y ago
They can certainly memorialize the event, but explicitly putting the spotlight on the opposition seems quite overt. From a propaganda perspective, it's almost a reminder that the bad guys are still out there. In the US, we don't celebrate "Independence Day From the Usurious British," we just celebrate Independence Day.
- hawkice 12y ago
  Not a precisely fair comparison, but it's worth noting that Nazis are very much a part of the modern American understanding of Important Events. The Japanese did some horrifying things in WW2 too, not just Nazis. I guess the trouble is, Japan has changed a lot (demilitarized, notably), but since they still technically have an emperor, it's hard to have a good name for WW2 Japan that isn't "Japan".
- LLWM 12y ago
  Seems quite straightforward to me. China wasn't involved in the larger global conflict, so to them, WW2 was just defending against an attempted conquest by Japan. I don't see aggression as an insult or a comment on the inherent nature of the Japanese, it's just a descriptor of how the war came to be. Much like the US declaring independence. What would you consider a more neutral name?
  - jallmann 12y ago
    Consider the goals of a propaganda machine with respect to naming a holiday. If you wanted to evoke national pride and unity, "Victory Day of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance" describes it perfectly well, and properly taught historical context will fill in the rest. By adding "Against Japanese Aggression", you're dividing attention away from your people and putting focus on the adversary -- a very strong rhetorical device. There is no reason to diminish the initial nationalistic message of the holiday, unless you also want the adversary at the forefront of everybody's thoughts -- an us-versus-them scenario. When people think of Independence Day in the US, we don't immediately think of the British, but rather of our collective accomplishments as Americans in declaring and building our country. Anyway, I had no idea if this style of naming or speech was common in China, which is why I asked -- other responses have addressed the question.
    - LLWM 12y ago
      About as accurately as you yourself have.
- rakoo 12y ago
  In the US (and in much of the western world), Russia is still the bad guy and is still out there.

by LLWM 12y ago

It's an accurate description. What do you want them to do? Pretend WW2 didn't happen? Pretend that Germany or Italy sent significant amounts of troops to invade China?

jallmann 12y ago

They can certainly memorialize the event, but explicitly putting the spotlight on the opposition seems quite overt. From a propaganda perspective, it's almost a reminder that the bad guys are still out there. In the US, we don't celebrate "Independence Day From the Usurious British," we just celebrate Independence Day.

hawkice 12y ago
Not a precisely fair comparison, but it's worth noting that Nazis are very much a part of the modern American understanding of Important Events. The Japanese did some horrifying things in WW2 too, not just Nazis. I guess the trouble is, Japan has changed a lot (demilitarized, notably), but since they still technically have an emperor, it's hard to have a good name for WW2 Japan that isn't "Japan".
LLWM 12y ago
Seems quite straightforward to me. China wasn't involved in the larger global conflict, so to them, WW2 was just defending against an attempted conquest by Japan. I don't see aggression as an insult or a comment on the inherent nature of the Japanese, it's just a descriptor of how the war came to be. Much like the US declaring independence. What would you consider a more neutral name?
- jallmann 12y ago
  Consider the goals of a propaganda machine with respect to naming a holiday. If you wanted to evoke national pride and unity, "Victory Day of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance" describes it perfectly well, and properly taught historical context will fill in the rest. By adding "Against Japanese Aggression", you're dividing attention away from your people and putting focus on the adversary -- a very strong rhetorical device. There is no reason to diminish the initial nationalistic message of the holiday, unless you also want the adversary at the forefront of everybody's thoughts -- an us-versus-them scenario. When people think of Independence Day in the US, we don't immediately think of the British, but rather of our collective accomplishments as Americans in declaring and building our country. Anyway, I had no idea if this style of naming or speech was common in China, which is why I asked -- other responses have addressed the question.
  - LLWM 12y ago
    About as accurately as you yourself have.
rakoo 12y ago
In the US (and in much of the western world), Russia is still the bad guy and is still out there.