J. Victor Koschmann

Who is J. Victor Koschmann?

Julian Victor Koschmann was the chairman of the Department of History at Cornell University until 2009. His primary field of expertise is the history of Japan. He earned his B.A. at International Christian University in 1965, his M.A. at Sophia University in 1971, and his Ph.D at the University of Chicago in 1980.

Koschmann is interested in the nexus between political thought and action, primarily but not exclusively in twentieth-century Japan. In his most recent work he explored new perspectives on thought and action during Japan’s war years, in the context of themes such as pan-Asianism, the discourse on economic ethics, colonialism, and left-wing movements. Koschmann is also interested in the rise and decline of citizens’ and other new social movements in postwar Japan and elsewhere, especially in relation to the rise of neoliberalism; the history of Marxism; and the dynamics of empire.