Yasukuni and Hiroshima in Clash? War and Peace Museums in Contemporary Japan

This study investigates the role of museums in collective memory by focusing on the Yūshūkan and the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum to excavate the meanings of their visual, narrative, and material constructions of Japan's past war. The research found that the museums in Yasukuni and Hiroshima exhibit markedly contrasting memories in terms of what happened during World War II, what kind of lessons can be drawn, and how the Japanese self‐identify. The article demonstrates that the Yūshūkan and the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum not only produce knowledge of the nation's past, but also trigger the emotions of contemporary people to connect them to the war dead, by exhibiting personal stories, photographs, and belongings of the deceased and thereby generating an affective national identity that transcends time and space. It argues that the two museums’ contrasting messages are integrated into the larger, nationally contested discourse on war and peace in contemporary Japan, beyond museum narratives, rendering the Yūshūkan and the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum socially constituted institutions. It also argues that, despite the stark contrast in their portrayals of collective memory, the museums in Yasukuni and Hiroshima share a commonality in neglecting to exhibit or draw lessons from Japan's colonial past in Asia, leaving a profound effect on younger generations. In light of its findings, this article offers implications for historical reconciliation in East Asia.