Tojo Speech Outline

Joseph Lacovara

Address by Hideki Tojo, Premier of Japan, At the opening of the Imperial Diet: 

Tokyo, May 27, 1942.

 Translation by the Foreign Broadcast Monitoring Service, Federal Communications Commission. 

Purpose: To ensure the Japanese people what their goal is in the war, and how they are strong and united. Make the people stay strong and continue working for the war effort.

Audience:  The Japanese people.

Context:  May, 1942. Nanking massacre already occurred in December 1937 resulting in the Japanese slaughter of 300,000 Chinese people including women and children. The Japanese had just won the Battle of the Coral Sea. Japan had invaded of most of Asia including the Dutch East Indies, Korea, China, Thailand, Indochina, and the Philippines.

Section 1) Introduction/ The Japanese mission in Asia and the current status on the war. 
Purpose:  To inform the people that the Emperor has declared that the people must fight until victory. He ensures the people that Japan is winning the War, and that nothing can get in its way.
Appeals:  Uses much pathos to invigorate the public and unify the nation even further. Establishes ethos by explaining how national defense has been increased.
Technique: Uses many hyperbole's to twist the truth of the war. "Crushed the enemy forces wherever encountered." However lacks to tell how many Japanese have died so far in the war. Only talks about the Japanese successes.
Effectiveness:  Very effective at captivating the Japanese public with his strong usage of pathos. However lacks to tell how many Japanese have died so far in the war and fails to add much logos to support his claims. For me it is very hard to believe his claims because I am American and he lacks evidence to support his claims. He also used many logical fallacies such as "National structure of a sure victory," which doesn't make any logical sense, especially because he supports this with no evidence. 

Section 2) The current strength of the Japanese economy/Japanese colonization across Asia: 
Purpose:  Wants the Japanese people to have faith in their government and trust Tojo and the Emperor. Ensure the people that Japan is economically and militarily strong.
Appeals:  Uses logos in the beginning to explain the previous economic reliance on America and Britain. "Establishing the 4 year plan." Also uses logos to explain how colonization across Asia is fueling the Japanese war effort. "Oil, tin, and rubber" from other nations are fueling the war machine. Uses pathos to thank the Japanese public for their "Extreme hardships." Pathos: The enemy is losing,"Blows they are receiving are serious."
Technique: Uses many Litotes to understate the vicious attacks of the Japanese on other Asian nations. "Various areas in the southern regions; all these have fallen into our hands." Saying that these materials just came to us, while the Japanese were the ones who invaded and stole them.
Effectiveness:  Very effective at ensuring the public of the Japanese economic strength and the reason for colonizing throughout Asia in order to obtain natural resources. He does use logic to support his claims however, there are many fallacies in his speech such as when he understates the brutal attacks by the Japanese across Asia in order to get these raw materials.

Section 3) Japanese foreign policies/relations: "Allied countries" "The enemy"
Purpose:  Inform the Japanese people that several nations are helping and cooperating with the Japanese throughout Asia and the World. Ensures the people that not everyone is their enemy.
Appeals:  Uses logos to establish Ethos. "Germany and Italy, that are cooperating with Japan in the fulfillment of the same objective during this war." Uses pathos to attack the U.S., Chinese rebels and Britain. America is covering up their losses by "relying on vicious propaganda." "Crush the determination of the Chungking."
Techniques: He uses many hyperbole's as well as litotes to emphasize his points. "Southwestern Pacific has completely fallen into our control." Again he states "Vicious propaganda." He used the assumption that Japan could give other nations Independence if they rose up and fought the British with them.
Effectiveness:  Very effective at informing the Japanese that they have strong power, especially because of their allied nations such as Italy, Germany, and Thailand. However he is very ineffective in influencing other nations to rise up and join the Japanese. He doesn't use any hard evidence or facts to support his very strong and biased claims.

Section 4) Conclusion: The Diet:
Purpose:  Influence the Diet to quickly pass the bills regarding the operation of shipbuilding in order to improve the war effort and strengthen the military even more. The bill is necessary for Japan to continue to succeed in the war.
Appeals:  Uses logos to emphasize how important the bill is in being passed. Uses pathos to establish trust (ethos). "I also wish to express my deep respect to the greatest and united efforts of each and every Japanese subject." Appears humble to the Japanese people for their sacrifice which helps to establish ethos.
Techniques:  He used another hyperbole to emphasize how important the bill is, and how it must be passed as quickly as possible by saying, "The emergency situation." His tone in this paragraph is very different from all of the other sections because he takes a more humble and demanding tone, instead of a very enthusiastic and criticizing tone that he tends to use throughout his speech.
Effectiveness:  This section is very effective in speeding the bill through the diet because he uses logos to support his claim that it is an emergency to help the war effort. Also by his careful choice of wording, he makes himself appear very humble. This makes it easier for the audience be loyal and trust in his commands.

General Evaluation: 
Tojo's usage of pathos really helps to strengthen his speech and invigorate his audience, as well as gaining the people's trust. He carefully uses his language when talking about his allies and thanking the people in order to act humble. Throughout most of his speech he rarely uses logos to support his claims, which is really hurting his credibility, especially because he poorly addresses any counterarguments to his claims if any at all. To us Americans especially his speech lacks major assumptions that would be acceptable by an American because of the fact that this is from the point of view of our countries enemy during the war. Example: Assumption that the U.S. is evil, and the Japanese were helping to save the universe.