Transnational History of Victimhood Nationalism – On the Transpacific Space

Abstract

The Author explores the problem of nationalism in a specific context, which he calls “victimhood nationalism” and defines as competing collective memories for the position of victims. Victimhood nationalism is used by nations as well as individuals to gain the position of “victimized” in international context and in this way justify the acts of violence committed by those very nations or individuals against the others. Victimhood nationalism engages whole nations in a specific international competition, which adds to the phenomenon of nationalism a “transnational” dimension. The Author illustrates his ideas by examples from the WWII, particularly history of Japan and Korea but also Germany, Austria and Poland.