Modernism is described as a philosophical movement that brought shifts in cultural trends and introduced far and reaching changes in societies from the late 19th to early 20th centuries. The first half of the 20th century saw two World Wars which damaged developments and stagnated cultural, economic, political or social growth in countries involved particularly Japan. Japan was actively involved in the second world war and was severely damaged after the war. Among what shaped Modernism in post war Japan was growth of industries, growth of mega cities, economic transformation and technological advancement.
Cultural
In the western nations modernization came with banishing anything that had any traces of the old days. But in Asia and specifically postwar Japan after the wave of modernization, the Japanese people accepted the new but infused with the old. For instance, a Japanese couple today may wear Armani during the course of the week but clad a traditional attire on weekend to attend a wedding. In the minds of postwar Japanese people, the traditional and the modern coexist peacefully with any conflict.
Economic
Japan was however, able to recover from the tentacles of the war and develop their nation to become of the most successful nation in the Asian continent. Japan was able to record what is popularly referred to as Japanese postwar economic miracle. This is the period after the second world war where Japan record the highest economic growth to become the second largest economy in the world after the United States. The period is greatly attributed to the effects of the cold war where the main beneficiaries of period were Germany and the post-World War II Japan.
Technology
On the technological front, japan is considered as one of the most technological advanced nation in the world. It’s technological advancements dates back to the postwar period and the need to recover from the damages of the second world war. The Japanese industries are the most technological equipped industries in the world.
The unique Japanese economic policies such as the keiretsu, cooperative employee-employer relations, industrial policy, cultural and traditional adjustment and technological innovativeness have been the hallmark of the postwar Japanese modernism
