ABSTRACT
Takata Yasuma (1883–1972) was unarguably one of the greatest economic sociologists in 20th century Japan. While he was a radical individualist influenced by Georg Simmel’s sociology, he finally became one of the leading racialists in Japan and supported the government in the period of WWII. He considered that a construction of a political regime in the name of “extended racialism” was a necessary step toward an ideal individualistic society with a world government. However, why should we recognize that ethnic group is important, while our final ideal is a world society based on individualism? How can the affirmation of racialism reach its negation, that is, an individualistic world society? In this chapter, I first examine his theoretical consistency in the light of its practical implications. Second, I examine the logical consistency between his understanding of race and his policy proposals. Third, I examine why and where his theory on race failed.
