ABSTRACT
Chapter 2 employs the neo-Gramscian concepts of a) the coercive and consensual aspects of hegemony (or historic blocs) and b) organic intellectuals in an effort to show the cohesiveness of the relationship between the two countries. In doing so, it is revealed that organic intellectuals played an important role in developing and harnessing the US-led historic bloc in the Asia-Pacific region. In order to unbundle the historical development of the alliance, this chapter considers the features of Pax Americana and the role of Japanese conservative politicians as factors that may have contributed to the establishment of the US-led historic bloc in the region.
