The Rape of Nanking; The Forgotten Holocaust of World War II

I seem to be bumping into twentieth century Asian history in a number of books I've read lately.  I believe I found the reference to Iris Chang's 1997 best seller The Rape of Nanking; the Forgotten Holocaust of World War II (#111) in Lisa See's Shanghai Girls and Dreams of Joy (See my post on 6/22/11).  I decided it was time I read more about the history behind some of the novels for myself.  Based on the condition of the paperback edition I checked out of the library, this volume has had a host of readers.

Ms. Chang's interest in the subject of the fall of  the Nationalist Chinese capital of Nanking to the Japanese in 1937 and the subsequent atrocities arose from the whispers she heard from her parents growing up in Illinois, and as she grew older, her failure to find any information on the subject readily available.  The result of her research is The Rape of Nanking, a story that is both easy and difficult to read.  Easy, because of the way Ms. Chang has organized the materials; she tells the story of the capture of Nanking first from the Japanese sources available, next from the Chinese witnesses, and finally from the viewpoint of the Western foreigners who did their best to save as many Chinese lives as possible.  It is hard not to be caught up in this narrative.  Difficult, because the litany of torture, rape and murder so surpasses the bounds of civilized behavior that it is impossible to read without a shudder.  The accompanying pictures are almost unbearable to look at.  It is estimated that more than 350,000 Chinese lost their lives in Nanking during that six week period in 1937 - 1938.

But what may be the worst outcome of all for those victims in Ms. Chang's opinion is that they have been forgotten.  Germany had its Nuremberg Trials.  War criminals were actively pursued and punished, and the German government made restitution to many of the victims of the Nazis.  The same cannot be said of the War in the Pacific.  Although a few Japanese military commanders were tried and executed by the International MilitaryTribunal of the Far East, the majority were not, and because of the politics of the time, many resumed their positions of power and influence.  Any hint of atrocities committed during World War II are routinely whitewashed to this day.

This book certainly changed my perspective on Asia.  I know that I will be thinking about the news from Japan and China in a different light, because, after all, the future is built on the past...  I hope you find this book as worthwhile and interesting as I did.