Uploaded November 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 days ago
Although few could define it, “civilian morale” emerged as one of the 20th century’s deadliest discourses. In its name, millions of civilians were bombed and starved, as warring nations sought to “break the morale” of the enemy’s civil population in Europe and East Asia by air raids and food blockades. How did it become “normal” to win wars by attacking cities and civilian morale? From World War I through World War II, ideas and practices relating to morale circulated rapidly around the world. Key transnational developments include the British and German blockades of 1914-18, the rise of “morale reports,” aerial bombardment, and America’s “Operation Starvation” against Japan.
Lecturer
Sheldon GARON (Invited Professor, Tokyo College, The University of Tokyo; Professor, Princeton University)
Moderator
Michael FACIUS (Associate Professor, Tokyo College, The University of Tokyo)
00:00 Introduction
02:20 Lecture
32:17 Q&A
---------------------------------------------------------------
Tokyo College invites leading researchers and intellectuals from around the globe to come together and engage in open discussions about the future of society.
・Subscribe to Mail Magazine 【メールマガジン登録】
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・Tokyo College Website 【東京カレッジウェブサイト】
tc.u-tokyo.ac.jp
・東京カレッジへの寄付はこちらから。寄付者限定イベント等も予定しています。
utf.u-tokyo.ac.jp/project/pjt138
・X (Twitter)
https://x.com/CollegeTokyo
・Facebook
/ utokyo.tokyocollege
Although few could define it, “civilian morale” emerged as one of the 20th century’s deadliest discourses. In its name, millions of civilians were bombed and starved, as warring nations sought to “break the morale” of the enemy’s civil population in Europe and East Asia by air raids and food blockades. How did it become “normal” to win wars by attacking cities and civilian morale? From World War I through World War II, ideas and practices relating to morale circulated rapidly around the world. Key transnational developments include the British and German blockades of 1914-18, the rise of “morale reports,” aerial bombardment, and America’s “Operation Starvation” against Japan.
Lecturer
Sheldon GARON (Invited Professor, Tokyo College, The University of Tokyo; Professor, Princeton University)
Moderator
Michael FACIUS (Associate Professor, Tokyo College, The University of Tokyo)
00:00 Introduction
02:20 Lecture
32:17 Q&A
---------------------------------------------------------------
Tokyo College invites leading researchers and intellectuals from around the globe to come together and engage in open discussions about the future of society.
・Subscribe to Mail Magazine 【メールマガジン登録】
tc.u-tokyo.ac.jp/subscribe
・Tokyo College Website 【東京カレッジウェブサイト】
tc.u-tokyo.ac.jp
・東京カレッジへの寄付はこちらから。寄付者限定イベント等も予定しています。
utf.u-tokyo.ac.jp/project/pjt138
・X (Twitter)
https://x.com/CollegeTokyo
/ utokyo.tokyocollege
