The Submissive Role of Japanese Women

The role of women in Japanese society has long been characterized as submissive. Although Japanese society has changed with other countries, granting women more rights and freedom, the submissive role of women in Japan still exists. The origins of this submissive role begin with the idea of “ryosai kenbo” which is translated as “good wife, wise mother.” The ideology of “ryosai kenbo” led to the expectation of women to master particular domestic skills like serving and cooking and developing moral and intellectual skills so that they can raise strong, intelligent children. The question remains, how much has actually changed? The progression of the submissive role of Japanese women to a non-submissive role can be identified in literature based upon their portrayal. The texts that will be analyzed include Sandakan No. 8, Downtown, Ants Swarm, Fuji and Family Game.

The film Sandakan No. 8 was released in 1974, but the content of the film takes place in the early 1920s. The film depicts the life of Osaki from when she was a young girl to her elderly state. The basis of the film is centered on karayuki-san which was the term used to describe young women who were forced to work into prostitution on Japanese-ruled islands in the Pacific (Mihapoulos, 1994). The existence of Karayuki-san originated in the second half of the nineteenth century. Osaki was attracted to the idea of working in the Pacific islands because she was told she would be able to wear the finest clothes and jewelry. After being told that, Osaki discussed the opportunity with her brother and ultimately decided to do it because she would be able to work and send money back to her family so that they could have a better life. Although the film does not describe the exact age of Osaki, she is depicted as being no older than 13. Before the plot begins, one already notices the oppression that males exact over females. It was an old man that owned a brothel that presented her with this very attractive offer. At such a young age, how can one resist the temptation of new clothes and jewelry and the opportunity for a better life.

The film shows how even at a young age, women are taking advantage of. The submissive role that Osaki assumes is represented by the brothel that she is forced into. What more of a submissive role can a woman assume than being a prostitute? The practice of karayuki-san ended around 1910-1920s when Japan was becoming more international. Karayuki-San was something that Japan did not want the world to know them for. For this reason, Japanese officials began to work hard to eliminate brothels and develop a prestigious image for Japan. The desire for Japanese officials to eliminate brothels and maintain this image is represented by the fact that karayuki-san is rarely discussed (Mihapoulos, 1994). The Japanese disgust for karayuki-san was represented in the film when Osaki returned home to visit her brother. When Osaki arrived, she was elated to see her brother whom she had not seen for years. However, this excitement was not shared by her brother. When Osaki begins speaking about the gifts that she brought back with her to give to the neighbors, her brother dismissed the idea. He tells Osaki that he is ashamed to be associated with a karayuki-san and that by handing out gifts to his neighbors would only shine bad light on their family. What was most shocking about the brother’s comments is that he would not be in the financial situation that he is in had it not been for Osaki sending money home to him.

The submissive role of women is also represented in Sandakan No. 8 when Osaki’s brothel takes new ownership. In retaliation to the new ownership, the prostitutes attempt to solicit the help of the head mistress to negotiate a deal that would keep the prostitutes together. Instead of getting the demands that she asked for, the head mistress had to compromise by allowing two of the mistresses to be split from the rest. Since the head mistress was forced to compromise, this is an indication of a semi-submissive role.

The text Downtown was released in 1948. The text depicts a woman, Ryo, who is forced to go door to door to sell tea to support herself. It is learned that Ryo is actually married, but her husband has been held prisoner in Siberia for six years, a fact that she is embarrassed to bring up. The text continues to describe the life of Ryo as she meets a man named Tsuruishi. Ryo meets him as she is selling tea. After asking Tsuruishi if he would like to buy tea, she asks him if she can come in to warm herself up. From then on, Ryo began regularly visiting Tsuruishi. The relationship that the two developed was not a submissive one, but more of an equal relationship with each person having an equal say. This was apparent when the couple decided to go to the Asakusa district with Ryo’s son. As the couple was nearing the end of their date, instead of taking the advice of Tsuruishi of staying at the café and waiting for the rain to die down, Ryo suggested that the couple and the young boy watch a film and then go to an inn to relax. Ryo’s suggestion was well-received by Tsuruishi who immediately agreed. What made Ryo’s suggestion unique was that one would think that Tsuruishi’s suggestion would be taken as the “final say” because of the patriarchal dominated society in Japan. The fact that Tsuruishi does not question Ryo’s suggestion implies that he respects her input. The submissive role of women is inexistent in this situation. This may reflect the changing attitude in Japanese society toward women.

The text Ants Swarm was released in 1964. In this text, the prevalence of the submissive female role also appears. The text begins talking about the relationship between Matsuda, the husband, and Fumiko, the wife. The first instance of the submissive role that exists in the relationship appears when the author begins describing the couple’s sex life. The author mentions that while the couple is having sex, Matsuda would often leave marks on her body (Takaru, 168). The marks that he leaves on her body are physical representations of the submissive role that she plays. Fumiko does not fight the physical abuse that she gets from Matsuda, but actually loves it. This could represent Fumiko’s acceptance of her submissive role in the relationship.

Fumiko’s submissiveness is further represented in how the couple engages in sex. The “protocol” for having sex depended on whether Matsuda wanted to have sex or not. In one occurrence, Fumiko was reluctant to have sex with Matsuda because she believed that she was in a risky state that increased her chances of becoming pregnant (168). Despite Fumiko’s warnings, Matsuda continued to pressure her to have sex. Fumiko eventually gave in to Matsuda’s demands. Fumiko’s warnings were completely disregarded as Matsuda’s demands took authority. This represents the patriarchal society that exists in Japan where males are reluctant to give into the demands of the female especially if they are in opposition to the demands of the male.

Prior to Fumiko’s pregnancy scare, the couple both agreed that children were not in their future. As Fumiko’s period was overdue, there was growing concern as to whether she was pregnant or not. She began discussing this with her husband who became concerned about how the pregnancy could affect their opportunity to study in the United States for a year (169). As the author began describing the couple’s preference not to have children, Matsuda then suggests “why not have the baby” (170). His statement has significant influence on her. The author begins by describing how “she had never once wanted to have a child of her own” and how the “very thought of giving birth and having to raise a baby repelled her” (171). Fumiko discussed with herself solutions about how to deal with the pregnancy. The author describes how if she could have the abortion over and done with prior to the couple leaving for America, she would insist on still going to America (172). However, his ebullient attitude combined with his constant inquiry as to whether her period has come caused her to reconsider having the baby. She asks him repeatedly “you really want me to have it, don’t you” with all of Matsuda’s responses being yes. Against her own personal desires, she agrees to have a child “just for you” (173). Once again, we see Fumiko giving into the desires of Matsuda, demonstrating her submissive role in the relationship. Even after Matsuda learns that Fumiko is not pregnant, he tells her that it’s ok and that they would try again after they come back from America. Fumiko has a hard time keeping her feelings inside and tells Matsuda that she doesn’t want a child and that she doesn’t like children (176). Even after expressing her opinion, Matsuda dismisses her claim by saying that “you’ll come round—I don’t like them either” (176). Again, one notices the unyielding attitude of the male even after considering the position of the female.

Fuji is about a young couple’s relationship that begins as interactive and progressively becomes detached. The text was published in 1975 and begins by describing the early life of Masami, the husband, and how he never had a chance to attend a university because he had to support his family at a young age. However, not attending a university did not impede on his curiosity. Masami continually wanted to learn even if it was about the most general things. When the opportunity to attend a university presented itself, Masami immediately took advantage. As one would normally expect, such a decision would require discussion between the husband and wife given the severe impact that the husband’s absence could have on the family. However, given the patriarchal structure of Japan, Masami took the liberty of deciding for himself if he was going to attend the program. His actual words were: “I was going to consult with you first, but then I decided that it was my responsibility to make the decision” (Ayako, 20). After Masami describes the situation to his wife, Tamiko, she does not immediately get angry as one would expect. She actually immediately asks “if you get accepted, you’ll go to Fuji, won’t you” which can be taken to mean two things: 1. By not expressing her anger to Masami, she acknowledges her position in the family as submissive, allowing Masami to do whatever he wants, 2. Tamiko is confident that Masami would not last long in the program as she indicates in the text “he’ll probably fail, so it’s not worth worry about yet” (20).

Family Game is a film that depicts the life of the youngest son, Shigeyuki, from his delinquent days at his junior high school to the time he gets his act together with the presence of his tutor, Yoshimoto. The film was released in 1983 and the presence of the submissiveness of women is still present. In the film, the mother, Mrs. Numata, rarely speaks unless spoken to. Throughout the film, Mrs. Numata assumes the role of the submissive wife by obeying orders directed to her by Mr. Numata. In one instance, Mr. Numata tells Mrs. Numata that Shigeyuki will not attend a second tier high school and instructs her to make sure he goes to the prominent high school. In other instances, Mr. Numata conveys his demands of his kids via Mrs. Numata. In both occurrences, Mrs. Numata listens to her husband, even after stating her position. Not only does the father take advantage of her submissiveness, but Shigeyuki does as well. At the beginning of the film, Shigeyuki tries to convince his mother that he is too ill to go to school. However, his mother does not buy it. In another instance, Shigeyuki is successful in manipulating his mother. He convinces her to make him some green tea. When Shigeyuki gets the green tea, he does not even drink it demonstrating that he was just doing so to see if he could get his way with her.

After analyzing the selected texts, it was determined that the submissive role of women over time has changed very little since the early 1900s. In only one of the texts analyzed, Downtown, does one notice a change in attitude of males toward females. However, the texts that were analyzed does limit the amount of analysis that can be conducted concerning the history of women’s submissiveness. Considering the trend of the Japanese in wanting to become more western, it is believed that the submissive role of Japanese women will improve.

Sources

Mihapolous, Bill. 1994. The Making of Prostitutes in Japan: The ‘Karayuki-San. 1994. 3 May 2011.

Sandakan No. 8

Family Game

Ants Swarm by Ari Takaru.

Downtown by Hayashi Fumiko

Fuji by Sono Ayako

The Changing Japanese Family Structure: an Analysis of Present and Past Practices

Today, Japan is regarded as one of the most technologically advanced nations in the world. Although Japan has become increasingly modern, its traditions have not been forgotten. One author argues that “in actuality, Japan is not nearly as modern as it presents itself; the essence of Japanese society is an integration of both modernity and tradition” (Kumagai, 1996). With the integration of both modernity and tradition, some traditional practices are lost as the new generation becomes increasing detached from traditions. The actions of the characters in Tokyo Story, Fuji, Ants Swarm, and Family Game represent the changing family structure that is completely dissimilar from traditional times.

The foundation of the contemporary Japanese family relies upon the feudal concept of “ie,” which is translated as “stem family” (Kumagai, 15). It is specifically defined as “a vertically composite form of nuclear families, one from each generation” (15). One can also interpret ie to mean “the household characterized as a corporate body of coresidents, each performing his or her role to maintain it (15). It can be concluded from these definitions that the ie structure relies heavily on the duties of each family member as well as the existence of male offspring, the key to the continuation of the family line from one generation to another. The importance of the male offspring was lost in Ants Swarm.

In Ants Swarm, a young couple (Fumiko, the woman, and Matsuda, the man) is preparing to study in the United States. Prior to leaving, the reader learns that the only precaution that couple used to avoid having children was monitoring the regularity of Fumiko’s periods. The couple was always fearful of getting pregnant, but used lax measures to address the issue. This fear was especially evident with Fumiko who “had never once wanted to have a child or her own” (Takaru, 171). In the couple’s situation, they are overly preoccupied with their own lives to even think about having a child. The story mentions that the two worked at unpredictable hours and sometimes the couple never saw each other. To work so much that one may not get the chance to see his or her loved one supports the emphasis of personal success in Japanese culture. This emphasis of personal success has shadowed the importance of “ie.” If it were not for the Fumiko’s accidental conception, ie would have been lost. After Matsuda learned of the possibility of having a child, his attitude changed from not wanting a child to wanting one. The concept of ie revived itself in Matsuda. This was especially apparent when the couple starts speaking about Fumiko having to stay in Japan to give birth to the child. During that conversation, Matsuda assumes that the baby will be a boy. He says that “he’ll be the apple of my eye. You just see how many presents I buy him” (173). Considering that the story was written in 1964, Matsuda’s mentality was typical of the day. The dissatisfaction of having a girl in a Japanese family was noticeable and surprising when the mother conveyed her disgust to the idea. Fumiko mentions that she “might spoil a boy, but if it’s a girl, I’ll just be mean and cruel—I’ll be so cruel, people will think I’m her stepmother (176). The importance to having male offspring was accidentally reignited in a couple that was overly occupied with their own lives to care about the future.

The modern Japanese family dynamics no longer mimics the “hierarchical-vertical” that was found in the traditional ie (Kumagai, 24). Analyzing the filial violence in Japan reveals two patterns of family interaction: “unintegrated conjugal relationships and the psychological absence of the father in the family” (24). The continued lack of real companionship between the father and the mother is believed to be the cause of unbalanced relations in the family. This lack of interaction between the father and mother has resulted with strengthened relationships between the mother and the children. This has resulted with distant interactions between the father and his children and increased “benefits” for the mother. With the introduction of modern technology, mothers have been devoting most of their time to child rearing (24). One would think that the mother’s increased time with her children would be a good thing, but it is not the case. The mother’s increased time spent with her children has lead to mother’s becoming overprotective and overindulgent of their children. Also, mothers become overly obsessed with education to the point where mothers end up paying less attention to the “emotional nurturing” of their children (25). This motherly attitude as well as the distant relationship that modern Japanese fathers share with their children was especially evident in Family Game.

The main focus of Family Game was centered on the life of the youngest son, Shigeyuki. Shigeyuki was a product of the overprotective and overindulgent nature of his Japanese mother. In the film, we notice the mother being especially concerned whenever Shigeyuki came come from school with bruises to his face and when she made him coffee immediately when he asked for it. Also in the film, one notices the expensive items in Shinchi’s (the eldest son) room such as the telescope and the computer in his room. The overindulgent nature of the mother resulted with the lack of “emotional nurturing” mentioned by Kumagai. It was evident in the film that while the focus was shifted toward Shigeyuki testing into a good high school, Shinchi, who was characterized as the pride and joy of the family, was entering a very emotional state. There were many instances in the film where Shinchi looked completely detached from his family. This attitude was especially apparent after he learned that the girl that he had a crush on was actually seeing someone else. Shigeyuki also never had an emotional conversation with his mother. However, Shigeyuki was not as negatively affected by the lack of “emotional nurturing” as Shinchi was due to the social interaction he had with his tutor.

The detachment of the father in Family Game was evident when the father asked the mother about how his children were doing. This action was particularly unusual, especially coming from an American standpoint because one would simply ask their child how they were doing rather than hearing it from an intermediary. Throughout the film, one rarely sees the father interact with Shigeyuki and Shinchi. The only occurrence that I can remember of any sort of interaction between the father and the son was when the father told Shigeyuki at the dinner table where he would be going to school. This continuing behavior from Japanese fathers has lead to their deteriorating status as the authoritarian figure in the home (Kumagai, 25).

The detachment of the father from his family was clearly evident in Fuji. The story speaks about a father, Masami, who did not have the opportunity to attend college and his continuous curiosity to learn everything that he possibly could (Ayako, 19). This curiosity is what would ultimately lead to his detachment from his wife, Tamiko, who “had almost no interest in learning” (19). Masami would then apply for an opportunity to study at Fuji where he would attend a 4-year university and only be able to come home to visit once a month (20). His application was accepted and the detached Japanese father relationship with his children was created. Initially when Masami came home on his visits, his son Masayoshi would run away when he would try to hug him because he had “completely forgotten his father’s face” (21). To have one’s son not even recognize oneself must be one of the most terrible feelings in the world. The detachment of the father was not limited to the son, but was also present with his wife. Whenever Masami returned home, he became irritated with the gossip that Tamiko always talked about. The change in Masami’s relationship with his wife resulted with anger from both sides.

The traditional Japanese stem family system consists of multiple generations living under the same household. In 1992, the stem family existed in 13.1% of all Japanese households which is significantly less than the 37.5% of stem families that existed in 1955 and the 19.2% that existed in 1965 (Kumagai, 19). It is apparent that the traditional practice of the stem family is being phased out as the cost of living and the cost of homes with enough rooms to house relatives is increasing. The absence of the stem family system was particularly apparent in Tokyo Story.

In the movie Tokyo Story, one notices the detachment of grown-up children from their parents. The grandfather, Shukichi, and the grandmother, Tomi, live in Onomichi which is about 6 hours away from Tokyo where two of their four children and their widowed daughter-in-law live. Although one can argue that the professions of the children have caused them to leave their hometown of Onomichi, there is no argument to justify the cold welcome that the parents receive when they decide to visit Tokyo. During their visit to Koichi’s house (the eldest son who is also a doctor), he barely spends anytime with them because he is constantly working. However, when he was not working, he opts out of spending time with his parents and talks with his sister, Shige (who is a hairdresser) about sending their parents to a cheap hot spring for a night. The idea initially sounded great, but the entire experience was miserable for the old couple. They were given a room in a hotel that had younger people living there. The young people were loud and rowdy throughout the night and the old couple was unable to sleep. One of the major concepts in the ie system is filial piety which is a Confucian ideal that signifies the respect that all members of the family should have for their elders and ancestors (Kumagai, 16). This idea of filial piety was clearly lost during the parent’s visit. Surprisingly enough, the only person that demonstrated filial piety was the widowed daughter-in-law, Noriko, whom the grandparents initially disregarded. Filial piety was also inexistent when the grandparents attempted to greet their grandchild who initially ran away from them. The loss of the stem family system in Tokyo Story has contributed to this loss of filial piety as well as the detachment of the children from their parents.

The changing structure of the family from old traditions to modern practices was not seen as a step forward, but as a step back. The lack of importance set on the ie system has resulted with couples fixated on working for themselves and not thinking about the future. The continuing lack of presence of the father figure in the household has lead not only to increased authority of the mother in the household, but also detachment of the father from his children. This void is extremely important to address in that a son can only learn to be a man from their father. The lack of filial piety in modern families has resulted with significant disrespect toward elders. Japanese society must revise the integration of both modern and traditional values so that the traditional values that are the basis of Japanese culture are not forgotten.

Bibliography

Kumagai, Fumie. Unmasking Japan Today the Impact of Traditional values on Modern Japanese Society. Praeger, 1996.