Feminist Movements in Contemporary Japan (ASAA Women in Asia)
Edition: 1 edition
Publisher: Routledge
Published: August 29, 2008
Language: eng
Format: Hardcover
Number of pages: 256
ISBN-13: 9780415459419
Subjects: Feminism; Political Science / General
Description: "In contemporary Japan there is much ambivalence about women's roles, and the term 'feminism' is not widely recognized or considered relevant. Nonetheless, as this book shows, there is a flourishing feminist movement in contemporary Japan. The book investigates the features and effects of feminism in contemporary Japan, in non-government (NGO) women's groups, government-run women's centres and the individual activities of feminists Haruka Yoko and Kitahura Minori. Based on two years of fieldwork conducted in Japan and drawing on extensive interviews and ethnographic data, it argues that the work of individual activists and women's organisations in Japan promotes real and potential change to gender roles and expectations among Japanese women. It explores the ways that feminism is created, promoted and limited among Japanese women, and it advocates a broader construction of what the feminist movement is understood to be and a rethinking of the boundaries of feminist identification. It also addresses the impact of legislation, government bureaucracy, literature and the internet as avenues of feminist development, and it details the ways that these promote agency - the ability to act - among Japanese women."--Jacket.