In the 1990s, two joint studies by Japanese and U.S. researchers were published: Total War and “Modernization” and Deconstructing Nationality. The continuity between the prewar and postwar periods and the constructability of the concept of nation, as these two studies argue, is already becoming common knowledge. However, the specific constructiveness of the concept of nation in wartime Japan has not been fully explored.

In fact, the wartime period was one of the most inundated periods in the history of Japanese society with the concept of “nation/kokumin,” from “national culture(Kokumin-Bunka),” “national literature(Kokumin-Bungaku),” and “national schools(Kokumin-Gakko)” to “national uniform (Kokumin-Fuku),” “national diet(Kokumin-Shoku),” and “national housing(Kokumin-Jutaku).” What is the meaning of the concept of “nation/kokumin” that appeared so frequently during this period? Does it have any special characteristics that differ from the concept of “nation/kokumin” in other periods?

In this presentation, first, we focus on things related to people's lives, such as national uniform, national diet, and national housing. Second, we will focus on surveys related to people's lives, such as the Survey of Living Expenses and the Survey of the National Physical Fitness. What is unique to the “nation/national” in wartime Japan is neither imagined objects, representations, nor citizenship. It has most to do with mass production technology and standardization. The nation was above all a set of bodies to be quantified, standardized, and governed. The principles of mass production technology were applied to people's lives and their lives were reorganized. And as “citizens,” wartime people were excessively expected to govern their own lives with reference to a certain standard.