L’alleato ideale. Elementi per un confronto tra l’immagine del Giappone nell’Italia fascista e nella Germania nazionalsocialista

Recent studies on the Tripartite Pact have highlighted the relevant role played by cultural relations and the construction of mutual images of the allies in the origin and functioning of the military alliance. However, comparative approaches have so far been neglected. In order to lay the groundwork for a comparative analysis of the image of Japan in Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany, this paper examines the historical, institutional, and intellectual background in which the political narratives about Japan had been developed in both countries. The paper will analyse comparatively the differences in the German and Italian relations with Japan, the development of Japanese studies and cultural-political institutions in both counties, and the political discourses about Japan disseminated by German, Italian, and Japanese propaganda from 1940 to 1942.