Gavan McCormack
Encyclopedia
Gavan McCormack is a researcher specialising in East Asia
who is currently Emeritus Professor and Visiting Fellow, Division of Pacific and Asian History of the Australian National University
. He is also a coordinator of an award-winning open access journal The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus
.
and Arts degree at the University of Melbourne
from 1955 to 1959. He then spent two years completing a Masters degree in history
from 1960 to 1962. McCormack spent the 1962-1963 academic year at the Osaka Foreign Language University where he took a Diploma in Japanese Language
and Culture. He then enrolled at the School of Oriental and African Studies
in London
where from 1963 to 1966 he did another undergraduate degree in Chinese
, graduating with a Second Class Honours degree. McCormack then spent two years completing a second Masters degree at SOAS in Area Studies (Far East). From 1969 to 1974 he completed a doctoral degree at SOAS and produced a thesis Chang Tso-lin, the Mukden Military Clique, and Japan, 1920-1928: The Development and interrelationships of Chinese warlordism and Japanese imperialism in northeast China. This was later published as a book.
His academic career took him to the University of Leeds
in the United Kingdom
, then to La Trobe University
in Victoria
, Australia
and eventually the University of Adelaide
in South Australia
. In 1990 he was appointed Professor in Japanese at the Australian National University
.
McCormack's main research interest is in "modern Japanese (and East Asian) political, intellectual, and environmental history". He has published widely, in academic and popular journals, on the "liberation" struggles in South East Asia. This led McCormack, in 1979 and 1980, to deny that genocide had occurred in Cambodia
during the Pol Pot
years. In more recent times he has become more interested in environmental issues and in 1996 published The Emptiness of Japanese Affluence which attacked Japanese economic success as a mirage based on environmental exploitation that posed the single greatest threat to stability in the region. He remains a trenchant critic of the Bush Presidency
and the American government in general. He has claimed that the North Korea
n nuclear program is justified by belligerent American rhetoric.
He worked as visiting professor at Kobe University
, Kyoto University
, Ritsumeikan University
, Tsukuba University, International Christian University
, and Tokyo Institute of Technology
.
from December 2007 to December 2009.
East Asia
East Asia or Eastern Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either geographical or cultural terms...
who is currently Emeritus Professor and Visiting Fellow, Division of Pacific and Asian History of the Australian National University
Australian National University
The Australian National University is a teaching and research university located in the Australian capital, Canberra.As of 2009, the ANU employs 3,945 administrative staff who teach approximately 10,000 undergraduates, and 7,500 postgraduate students...
. He is also a coordinator of an award-winning open access journal The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus
The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus
The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus, founded in 2004 as Japan Focus, is an open access, peer reviewed academic journal which explores the forces shaping the Asia-Pacific region and the world. Published weekly, its coverage spans geopolitics, history, economics, society, culture, and international...
.
Academic career
McCormack did a combined LawLaw degree
A Law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Such degrees are generally preparation for legal careers; but while their curricula may be reviewed by legal authority, they do not themselves confer a license...
and Arts degree at the University of Melbourne
University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...
from 1955 to 1959. He then spent two years completing a Masters degree in history
History
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
from 1960 to 1962. McCormack spent the 1962-1963 academic year at the Osaka Foreign Language University where he took a Diploma in Japanese Language
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
and Culture. He then enrolled at the School of Oriental and African Studies
School of Oriental and African Studies
The School of Oriental and African Studies is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the University of London...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
where from 1963 to 1966 he did another undergraduate degree in Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
, graduating with a Second Class Honours degree. McCormack then spent two years completing a second Masters degree at SOAS in Area Studies (Far East). From 1969 to 1974 he completed a doctoral degree at SOAS and produced a thesis Chang Tso-lin, the Mukden Military Clique, and Japan, 1920-1928: The Development and interrelationships of Chinese warlordism and Japanese imperialism in northeast China. This was later published as a book.
His academic career took him to the University of Leeds
University of Leeds
The University of Leeds is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England...
in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, then to La Trobe University
La Trobe University
La Trobe University is a multi-campus university in Victoria, Australia. It was established in 1964 by an Act of Parliament to become the third oldest university in the state of Victoria. The main campus of La Trobe is located in the Melbourne suburb of Bundoora; two other major campuses are...
in Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and eventually the University of Adelaide
University of Adelaide
The University of Adelaide is a public university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third oldest university in Australia...
in South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
. In 1990 he was appointed Professor in Japanese at the Australian National University
Australian National University
The Australian National University is a teaching and research university located in the Australian capital, Canberra.As of 2009, the ANU employs 3,945 administrative staff who teach approximately 10,000 undergraduates, and 7,500 postgraduate students...
.
McCormack's main research interest is in "modern Japanese (and East Asian) political, intellectual, and environmental history". He has published widely, in academic and popular journals, on the "liberation" struggles in South East Asia. This led McCormack, in 1979 and 1980, to deny that genocide had occurred in Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
during the Pol Pot
Pol Pot
Saloth Sar , better known as Pol Pot, , was a Cambodian Maoist revolutionary who led the Khmer Rouge from 1963 until his death in 1998. From 1976 to 1979, he served as the Prime Minister of Democratic Kampuchea....
years. In more recent times he has become more interested in environmental issues and in 1996 published The Emptiness of Japanese Affluence which attacked Japanese economic success as a mirage based on environmental exploitation that posed the single greatest threat to stability in the region. He remains a trenchant critic of the Bush Presidency
George W. Bush administration
The presidency of George W. Bush began on January 20, 2001, when he was inaugurated as the 43rd President of the United States of America. The oldest son of former president George H. W. Bush, George W...
and the American government in general. He has claimed that the North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
n nuclear program is justified by belligerent American rhetoric.
He worked as visiting professor at Kobe University
Kobe University
Shindai is one of the leading universities in Japan. It can be seen in the several rankings such as shown below.-General Rankings:The university is ranked 10th in 2010 in the ranking "Truly Strong Universities" by Toyo Keizai...
, Kyoto University
Kyoto University
, or is a national university located in Kyoto, Japan. It is the second oldest Japanese university, and formerly one of Japan's Imperial Universities.- History :...
, Ritsumeikan University
Ritsumeikan University
Ritsumeikan University has a growing reputation as one of the main private universities of Japan. It is part of a group of prestigious private universities in the Kansai area, called "Kan -Kan -Dou -Ritsu "...
, Tsukuba University, International Christian University
International Christian University
There are several rankings related to ICU, shown below.-Alumni rankings:According to the Weekly Economist's 2010 rankings and the PRESIDENT's article on 2006/10/16, graduates from ICU have the 24th best employment rate in 400 major companies, and their average graduate salary is the 4th best in...
, and Tokyo Institute of Technology
Tokyo Institute of Technology
The Tokyo Institute of Technology is a public research university located in Greater Tokyo Area, Japan. Tokyo Tech is the largest institution for higher education in Japan dedicated to science and technology. Tokyo Tech enrolled 4,850 undergaraduates and 5006 graduate students for 2009-2010...
.
Editorial career
Gavin McCormack had contributed as a guest editorial staff of the South Korean newspaper, Kyunghyang ShinmunKyunghyang Shinmun
The Kyunghyang Shinmun or Kyonghyang Sinmun is a major daily newspaper published in South Korea. It is based in Seoul. The name literally means Urbi et Orbi Daily News.-History:...
from December 2007 to December 2009.
Books
- Japanese Imperialism Today: Co-prosperity in Greater East Asia (co-authored with Jon HallidayJon HallidayJon Halliday is a historian of Russia and was a former Senior Visiting Research Fellow at King's College London.Halliday authored a biography of filmmaker Douglas Sirk and has written and edited seven other books. He and his wife, Jung Chang, live in Notting Hill, West London...
), LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and New YorkNew YorkNew York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, PenguinPenguin GroupThe Penguin Group is a trade book publisher, the largest in the world , having overtaken Random House in 2009. The Penguin Group is the name of the incorporated division of parent Pearson PLC that oversees these publishing operations...
and Monthly Review Press, 1974, 279 pp. ISBN 0-14-021669-3. - Crisis in Korea, co-edited with John GittingsJohn GittingsJohn Gittings is a journalist and author who is mainly known for his work on modern China and the Cold War. From 1983 to 2003, he worked at The Guardian as assistant foreign editor and chief foreign leader-writer....
, Nottingham, the Russell Press, Spokesman University Paperback No.17, 1977; 190 pp. ISBN 0-85124-186-7. - Chang Tso-lin in Northeast China, 1911-1928: China, Japan and the Manchurian Idea, Stanford University PressStanford University PressThe Stanford University Press is the publishing house of Stanford University. In 1892, an independent publishing company was established at the university. The first use of the name "Stanford University Press" in a book's imprinting occurred in 1895...
, 1977, 334 pp. ISBN 0-8047-0945-9. - Korea North and South, co-edited with Mark SeldenMark SeldenMark Selden is a Coordinator of the open access journal The Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus, a Senior Research Associate in the East Asia Program at Cornell University, and Bartle Professor of History and Sociology at Binghamton University. He graduated from Amherst College with a major in...
, New York, Monthly Review Press, 1978, 240 pp. - Twice Victims: Koreans at Hiroshima, edited and introduced, jointly translated from Japanese with Kang Ok Su, TokyoTokyo, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, The Korean Peace Committee in Japan, 1981, 44 pp. - Cold War Hot War: An Australian Perspective on the Korean War, SydneySydneySydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, Hale and Iremonger, 1983; 191 pp ISBN 0-86806-082-8, ISBN 0-86806-083-6 (pbk). - The Price of Affluence: Dilemmas of Contemporary Japan, translator-in-chief and editor of Rokuro Hidaka's Sengo Shiso o Kangaeru (Tokyo), Iwanami, 1980). Tokyo and New York, Kodansha International, 1984
- Japanese Society: Ins and Outs in Showa 60, translated and edited by Gavan McCormack and Yoshio Sugimoto, Papers of the Japanese Studies Centre, Melbourne, No. 8, December 1986, 30 pp.
- Democracy in Contemporary Japan, co-edited with Yoshio Sugimoto, Sydney, Hale and Iremonger, and New York, M.E. Sharpe, 1986, 272 pp ISBN 0-87332-397-1, ISBN 0-87332-398-X (pbk).
- The Japanese Trajectory: Modernization and Beyond, co-edited with Yoshio Sugimoto. Cambridge University Press, 1988, 300 pp ISBN 0-521-34515-4.
- Bonsai Australia Banzai: Multifunctionpolis and the Making of a Special Relationship with Japan, Gavan McCormack, ed., Pluto Press, Sydney, 1991, 228pp.
- The Burma-Thailand Railway: memory and history, (co-edited with Hank NelsonHank NelsonHank Nelson is one of Australia's foremost historians of the Pacific, particularly Papua New Guinea. His interest in the region began in 1966 when he took a teaching position at the University of Papua New Guinea...
), ed, Sydney, Allen and Unwin, 1993, 175pp; - Korea Since 1850, (co-authored with Stewart Lone), Melbourne, Longman Cheshire, and New York, St. Martin's PressSt. Martin's PressSt. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in the Flatiron Building in New York City. Currently, St. Martin's Press is one of the United States' largest publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under eight imprints, which include St. Martin's Press , St...
, 1993, 226 pp. ISBN 0-582-87111-5, ISBN 0-312-09685-2. - Peace and Regional Security in the Asia-Pacific: A Japanese Proposal, translated, edited and introduced, Peace Research Centre, Research School of Pacific Studies, ANU, Working Paper No 158, September 1995, 59pp.
- The Emptiness of Japanese Affluence, Armonk, New YorkArmonk, New YorkArmonk is a hamlet and census-designated place located in the town of North Castle in Westchester County, New York. As of the 2010 census, the CDP population was 4,330....
: M.E. Sharpe, 311pp. 1996. (Co-published with Allen and Unwin, Sydney). ISBN 1-56324-711-9, ISBN 1-56324-712-7 (pbk). - Multicultural Japan: Palaeolithic to Postmodern, CambridgeCambridgeThe city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
, Cambridge University PressCambridge University PressCambridge University Press is the publishing business of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by Henry VIII in 1534, it is the world's oldest publishing house, and the second largest university press in the world...
, 1996. (co-edited with Donald Denoon, Mark Hudson, and Tessa Morris-Suzuki). 296 pp. ISBN 0-521-55067-X - (with Glenn HookGlenn HookGlenn Dawson Hook is a British academic, author and Professor of Japanese Politics and International Relations, University of Sheffield.-Early life:Hook earned a 1997 Ph.D. in Political Science at Chuo University in Tokyo....
), Japan's Contested Constitution - documents and analysis, London and New York, RoutledgeRoutledgeRoutledge is a British publishing house which has operated under a succession of company names and latterly as an academic imprint. Its origins may be traced back to the 19th-century London bookseller George Routledge...
, 2001, 212 pages. ISBN 0-415-24099-9 (hbk), ISBN 0-415-24100-6 (pbk). - Target North Korea: Pushing North Korea to the Brink of Nuclear Catastrophe, New York, Nation Books, and Sydney, Random HouseRandom HouseRandom House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
Australia, 2004. 228 pp. ISBN 1-56025-557-9.
Articles and Book Chapters
- "Some Radical Utopian Movements in Early Europe and China" in Afrasian, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of LondonUniversity of London-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
, 1969, pp. 16–22. - "The Student Left in Japan" in New Left Review, No. 65, January-February 1971, pp. 37–53. Reproduced in part in Jon Livingston, Felicia Oldfather & Joe Moore (eds.), The Japan Reader, 2 vols., New York, PantheonPantheon BooksPantheon Books is an American imprint with editorial independence that is part of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group.The current editor-in-chief at Pantheon Books is Dan Frank.-Overview:...
, 1973, Vol.2, pp. 552–56. - "The Tokyo-Taipei-Seoul Nexus" (with Jon Halliday) in Journal of Contemporary Asia, Vol.2, No.1, Spring 1972, pp. 36–55.
- "Japan and America" (with Jon Halliday) in New Left ReviewNew Left ReviewNew Left Review is a 160-page journal, published every two months from London, devoted to world politics, economy and culture. Often compared to the French-language Les Temps modernes, it is associated with Verso Books , and regularly features the essays of authorities on contemporary social...
, No.77, January-February 1973, pp. 59–76. - "The Politics of Korean Studies in Europe" in Journal of Contemporary Asia, Vol.7, No.3, 1977, pp. 387–392.
- "The South Korean Phenomenon" in Australian Outlook, published by the Australian Institute of International Affairs, Vol.32, No.3, December 1978, pp. 262–278.
- "The Kampuchean Revolution, 1975-1978, The Problem of Knowing the Truth" in Arena (Melbourne), No.53, September 1979, pp. 40–82.
- Revised and expanded version in Journal of Contemporary Asia, Vol.10, 1-2, 1980, pp. 75–118.
- "Kampuchea: Nationalism, Intervention, Revolution", Working Paper No.11, Antropologisch-Sociologisch Centrum, Universiteit van AmsterdamUniversiteit van AmsterdamThe University of Amsterdam or the UvA is a public research university located in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Founded in 1632 as the Athenaeum Illustre by the scholars Gerardus Vossius and Caspar Barlaeus, it is the third-oldest university in the Netherlands...
, 1982 - "Cambodia: Rationale for a Rural Policy" (review article) in Journal of Contemporary Asia, Vol.11, No.2, 1981, pp. 231–236.
- "Korea North and South" in Arena (Melbourne), 56, pp. 34–40, November 1980.
- "Letter from Pyongyang" in Far Eastern Economic Review, 15 August 1980.
- "1930's Japan: Fascist?" in Social Analysis (Adelaide), No.5/6 December 1980, pp. 125–43, also in Bulletin of Concerned Asian Scholars, 14, 2, April-June 1982, pp. 20–33.
- "North Korea: Kimilsungism - Path to Socialism?" in Bulletin of Concerned Asian Scholars, 13, 4, October-December 1981, pp. 50–61.
- "The Reunification of Korea: Problems and Prospects" in Pacific Affairs (VancouverVancouverVancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
: University of British ColumbiaUniversity of British ColumbiaThe University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
), 55, 1, pp. 5–31, Spring 1982. - "Yellow Rain" (review article discussing Grant Evans' The Yellow Rainmakers: Are Chemical Weapons being used in Southeast Asia? in Arena, No.66, 1984, pp. 196–205.