This paper analyzes the impact and influence of the memory of kurofune (black ships), iron-armored battleships of the United States Navy led by Commodore Matthew Perry (1794-1858) that came to Japan in 1853, exerted over the course of industrialization in early Meiji Japan, which is the period from the Meiji Restoration (1868) to the Sino-Japanese war (1894-5). Using the comparative advantage theory formalized by David Ricardo (1772-1823) as an analytical tool, we consider the arguments of major contemporary Japanese policymakers as the object of analysis. We have three conclusions. First, the economic policy adopted by early Meiji policymakers generally followed the comparative advantage theory. Second, their goal was not the monoculturization of the comparative advantage goods, but the heavy industrialization necessary for avoiding the colonization: export of comparative advantage goods was a means to collect money for it. Third, they regarded the development of transportation-related industries as important because it would hasten the “movement” of men and goods, which would lead to the increased wealth and which was symbolized by the kurofune in the collective memory.
Impact of the Memory of Kurofune (Black Ships) on the Course of Industrialization in Early Meiji Japan
