Vingtième Siècle. Revue d'histoire - Année 1991 - Volume 31 - Numéro 1 - Pages 41-50Japanese democracy at the time of the monarchie transition, Eric Seizelet. With Emperor Hirohito is death in January 1989, Japan lost the man whose longetivity on the throne assured the link between two theoretically distinct moments of its political history. The analysis of the machinery of the monarchic transition thus offers a privileged observation point from which to understand the place of the Imperial institution in Japanese society. Self-censor-ship in the media, ceremonies that illustrate the ambiguity of State secularism, silence on the late Emperor's role in the 1930s and 1940s, uncertainties about the place that his successor, Akihito, will occupy : each of these elements allows a better understanding of the special features of the Japanese political culture. 10 pages Source : Persée ; Ministère de la jeunesse, de l’éducation nationale et de la recherche, Direction de l’enseignement supérieur, Sous-direction des bibliothèques et de la documentation.