Kozo Uno

Uno based his work on a rigorously Hegelian reading of Marx's Capital. This led him to his well-known conclusion that Marxian analysis had to be conducted at three separate levels:

1. Theory of Principles [原理論]: The "pure" theory of Capital, freed from the complications of history – highly abstract exercises in dialectical logic on the basic, core dynamics of capitalist economy.
2. Theory of Stages [段階論]: A "middle" level, which traces the general development of capitalism through distinct historical stages – mercantilism, classical liberalism and so on.
3. Analysis of the Present [現状分析]: The analysis of the 'messy' details of capitalist economy in the real world, concentrating on particular narratives rather than an overall picture.[1]

Uno and his followers have come in for criticism from the wider Marxist tradition for insisting on this separation. Simon Clarke[2] sees this schema as "scholastic formalism", and the second level as an arbitrary addition to provide a link between the other two, rather than an analytically necessary one. As Kincaid[2] points out, though, Capital is primarily a logically rather than chronologically argued work, which looks at the laws of capitalist development and draws mainly supporting evidence from historical data. Thus, the separation of the Uno school represents an acknowledgement of this logical nature, and registers the key problem of how the critique can be linked to actual economic development in a way that competing schools often cannot.

1897[3]

• November 12 — Born in Kurashiki Town, Okayama Prefecture [岡山県倉敷町]

1915

• March — Graduates from Okayama Prefectural Takahashi Middle School [岡山県立高梁中学校]
• July — Enrolls at the Sixth Higher School [第六高等学校]

1918

• June — Graduates from the Sixth Higher School
• July — Enrolls in the German Law section at the Faculty of Law, Tokyo Imperial University [東京帝国大学法科大学独法科] but soon transfers to the Economics section

1921

• April — Graduates from Economics section at the Faculty of Economics, Tokyo Imperial University [東京帝国大学経済学部経済学科]
• May — Becomes a non-regular employee [嘱託] at the Ōhara Institute for Social Research [大原社会問題研究所]

1922

• July 2 — Marries Takano Maria [高野マリア]
• September — Leaves for Europe to research economics, residing mainly in Berlin

1922-24[4]

• Resigns from the Ōhara Institute for Social Research
• Enrolls at the University of Berlin and attends a few lectures by Werner Sombart, Hermann Schumacher, Ernst Wagemann, Heinrich Cunow and Gustav Mayer, but does not study under anyone and mainly studies by himself
• Attends a SPD conference (where Hilferding was present) with Sakisaka Itsurō, goes to socialist and communist meetings, reads Vorwärts and Die Rote Fahne
• Focusses on studying Marx’s Capital along with the recently published German edition of Lenin’s Imperialism, but finds Lukács’s History and Class Consciousness and Korsch’s Marxism and Philosophy “too ideological”

1924

• September — Returns to Japan; brings back Hilferding’s Finance Capital and studies it
• October — Appointed as an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Law and Literature, Tohoku Imperial University [東北帝国大学法文学部]

1925

• September — Becomes responsible for the Economics III module (Theory of Economy Policy) [経済学第三講座 (経済政策論)] at Tohoku Imperial University

1930

• June — Debut article ‘The Necessity of Money: Hilferding’s Monetary Theory Reconsidered’ [貨幣の必然性——ヒルファディングの貨幣理論再考察] published in the journal Shakai Kagaku [社会科学]

1938

• February — Arrested in Sendai in connection with the so-called Rōnōha Professors Incident [労農派教授グループ事件] and remains in custody until May
• December — Indicted under the National Security Law [治安維持法] and ordered to take a leave of absence

1939

• October — Ruled not guilty in the first hearing at the Sendai District Court

1940

• December — Ruled not guilty in the second hearing at the Miyagi Court of Appeal

1941

• January — Reinstatement is approved by the Committee of Professors [教授会] of the Faculty of Law and Literature, Tohoku Imperial University, but declines and resigns
• March — Employed at the Institute for Japanese Trade at the Japan Trade Promotion Association [財団法人日本貿易振興協会日本貿易研究所]

1944

• June — Resigns from the Institute for Japanese Trade at the Japan Trade Promotion Association
• July — Employed at the Mitsubishi Economic Research Institute [財団法人三菱経済研究所]

1946

• March — Becomes a lecturer at Tohoku Imperial University

1947

• January — Resigns from the Mitsubishi Economic Research Institute and becomes a non-regular employee [嘱託] at the Institute of Social Science, Tokyo Imperial University [東京帝国大学社会科学研究所]
• June — Appointed as a Professor at Tokyo Imperial University and employed at their Institute of Social Science

1949

• June — Appointed as the Director [所長] of the Institute of Social Science, University of Tokyo

1952

• February — Resigns as Director from the Institute of Social Science, University of Tokyo

1953

• January — Becomes a Secretary [理事] of the Institute of Statistical Research [財団法人統計研究会]
• May — Given a role at the Social Science section at the Graduate School of the University of Tokyo [東京大学大学院社会科学研究科] and becomes responsible for their theoretical economics and history of economics courses [理論経済学・経済史学専門課程]

1954

• December — Receives a doctorate in economics

1958

• March — Resigns from the University of Tokyo after reaching their mandatory retirement age
• April — Appointed as a Professor at the Department of Sociology, Hosei University

1968

• March — Resigns as Professor from Hosei University
• April — Becomes a lecturer for the Social Science section of the Graduate School of Hosei University [法政大学大学院社会科学研究科]
• Junes — Becomes a non-regular employee [嘱託] at the Institute for Economic Research, Rissho University [立正大学経済研究所]

1969

• March — Resigns as lecturer from the Graduate School of Hosei University

1972

• March — Resigns as non-regular employee from the Institute for Economic Research, Rissho University
• May 21 — Suffers a stroke and is bedridden thereafter

1977

• February 22 — Dies at home in Kugenuma, Fujisawa City [藤沢市鵠沼]

• Verified, continuously updated selected bibliography with links and materials. (Broken link. See partial fix for same link at end of page for Isaak Rubin. Also check for other pages re value form school likely to need same fix)