How Does Puyi Present The Relationship Between Japan And Manchukuo?

The Qing dynasty was the last to rule over China and Puyi was the last emperor. However, a revolution overthrew him and ended the reign of the feudal society. Years later, Puyi went to Japan for sanctuary in order to flee persecution. While there, he began his relationship with the Japanese officials which started the whole campaign for Puyi to rule Manchukuo. In Puyi’s Autobiography, he reveals the truth about the relationship between Japan and Manchukuo. The truth was that Manchukuo was a puppet country that was being controlled by Japan. Puyi shows his audience how he was deceived by Japan and Japanese officials in believing he had a significant part in the decisions regarding Manchukuo, when the truth is he was just a placeholder for them
They showed each other nothing but respect and loyalty and was the perfect example of countries working together in harmony. Both Japan and Manchukuo made the world think that they were close enough that it wouldn’t be odd to have officials travel between both countries, for example having Puyi travel to Japan. Puyi was mesmerized by Japan and all that it had to offer after his trip there, and being combined with the overwhelming feeling of being back in power, led him to believe that he has to defend Japan just with the same effort that he would defend Manchukuo. Puyi explains his devotion to Japan and also puts Japan and Manchukuo on the same level in his speech that he gave after he came back from Japan which states,“Disloyalty to the Emperor of Manchukuo is the same disloyalty to the Emperor of Japan, and disloyalty to the Emperor of Japan amounts to the Emperor of Manchukuo”. Puyi was deceived by the beauty of Japan and the false personality of the people around him in the Japanese government. He believed that he was an equal partner to the people of Japan and because of that, he publicly declared his and his people’s loyalty to Japan. This declaration from Puyi further helped Japan fool the entire world about the equal partnership that Japan and
The relationship between Puyi and the Japanese officials was built upon mutual benefaction; the goal was that Puyi would be able to regain his title in the royal family and Japan would be able to take over parts of China. To other countries, the media, and Puyi, the Japanese government made everyone believe that any decision that was made regarding Japan or Manchukuo was thoroughly discussed between both countries when the truth was that Japan was made any and all decisions regarding Manchukuo without Puyi’s approval. Puyi wants to restore the Qing empire and regain his throne while the Japanese wants him to help establish a puppet state in Manchuria. Puyi explains his true intentions with Japan when he says, “Moreover, if I got along with the Japanese they might even help me recover my imperial title”. This quote explains that Puyi only agreed to help the Japanese government in order to regain his title as emperor. His only intention was to regain his status, even if he unintentionally agreed to let Japan call the shots from the shadow. Puyi didn’t think about the consequences of having this “partnership” with Japan, he only thought of his selfish goals. He viewed his leadership of Manchukuo as a stepping stone on his way to restoring the Qing Empire and ruling over all of China. However, because of his ignorance, Puyi was led into a world