Surrender As absolute leader of Japan, the Emperor acted as the purpose of his nation, responsible for all actions taken by his people on behalf of the state. Therefore, when Japan faced defeat at the end of World War II, Hirohito accepted the consequences of his nation's behavior. When he met with General MacArthur after the Jewel Voice Broadcast, he offered to sacrifice himself for the deeds of his people. According to the testimony of the translator, Hirohito told MacArthur, "Kill me, but not those who acted in my name." [1] Hirohito may have received adulation when Imperial Japan was a rising power, but its end also meant the end of the Emperor, as he was the embodiment of the spirit and conduct of the nation. This idea is absolutely necessary to understand how Hirohito's role shifted after the war, as he transformed into a symbol of the people, rather than the state, of Japan. Although MacArthur chose not to kill Hirohito, the old idea of the Emperor died with the imperial state, beginning with Hirohito's renunciation of divinity.
Renunciation of Divinity In Hirohito's 1946 New Year’s message to the people of Japan, he made an announcement that irrevocably changed his relationship with his people: "The ties between Us and Our people have always stood upon mutual trust and affection. They do not depend upon mere legends and myths. They are not predicated on the false conception that the Emperor is divine, and that the Japanese people are superior to other races and fated to rule the world." [2] The Emperor had been treated as a divine figure for 2,600 years, and in one statement, Hirohito ended the fiction. Traditionally believed to have descended from the sun goddess Amaterasu, the emperors of Japan were the physical embodiment of the Shinto religion. Hirohito's position shaped his relationship with his people, and he was treated with unrestrained reverence. When he visited a firebombed section of Tokyo during World War II, the survivors of the fires "prostrating themselves on the ground. They wept... muttering, 'Your Majesty, due to our insufficient efforts this district has burned down. We are truly sorry and will sacrifice our lives for you.'" [3] This quotation not only shows how the Japanese people viewed their Emperor, but it mirrors Hirohito's statement to MacArthur after Japan's surrender. Just as Hirohito gave his life to the nation of Japan, the Japanese people gave their lives to him, showing a relationship between the Emperor and his people where each served the other. However, this position changed entirely with Hirohito's declaration of humanity, as he shifted from an absolute leader to a symbol of the Japanese people and the unity of the nation.
Sources:
Photo: Hirohito Signing Japan's Post-War Constitution. November 3, 1946. Photograph. Accessed December 5, 2016. http://www.atomicheritage.org/profile/emperor-hirohito.
Video: Testimony of the Interpreter. Accessed November 17, 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4UiIVxbs_0.
[1] Testimony of the Interpreter. Accessed November 17, 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4UiIVxbs_0.
[2] Gluck, Carol, and Stephen R. Graubard. “Showa: The Japan of Hirohito.” New York: W. W. Norton, 1992
[3] "The Showa Emperor’s Tour of Tokyo, March 18, 1945." In The Asia Pacific Journal. Vol. 14. Japan Focus 21. N.p.: n.p., 2016. Previously published in Meguriaishi Hitobito (People I Have Met). Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan: Shueisha Bunko, 1999. http://apjjf.org/2016/21/Hotta.html