
The Rise of Modern Japan
How the US Occupation Remade Japan, 1945–1952
Documentary · Jul 17, 2025 · 33 min The Great Courses Signature Collection
Available on Prime Video
S1, E2: Probe the reasoning that led US occupying forces, headed by General Douglas MacArthur, to exonerate the Japanese emperor from any responsibility for his country’s conduct in World War II. Part of an American strategy for making Japan an ally in the Cold War, the policy misled ordinary Japanese about the causes of the war. Also, learn about other controversial decisions of the occupation.
Documentary · Jul 17, 2025 · 33 min