Japanese public seeks more female media role models

We often turn to films, books, comics and news for entertainment, inspiration and information. However, media can also convey troubling messages, particularly with regards to gender. Every country has its own unique issues with media depictions of certain people and demographics. Japanese entertainment and media often struggle to provide varied female role models for women to aspire to.

Audience resists set gender roles in media

Depictions of women in Japan often reinforce traditional roles. A 2017 survey conducted by Asahi Shimbun asked respondents their opinions about gender-related portrayals in the media. One question was about feeling uncomfortable with certain depictions of women. Responses indicated various causes for discomfort, including the emphasis often placed on highly sexualized images with a fixation on women’s youth and physical appearances. In fact, more than 90% of respondents indicated dissatisfaction with media portrayals. By far, the most frequently cited cause of discomfort at 44.5% was the reinforcement of rigidly defined gender roles.

Many of the survey comments reflected this. One woman from Osaka lamented that women in variety and news programs are young, attractive assistants to older men. Another woman from Tokyo complained that women are always depicted as “mothers” before anything else. Still, others complained about only men being placed in strong roles.

These trends can be seen in media for all ages. It’s not rare for children’s books to show mothers at home and fathers working. Portrayals of female characters in media for older demographics, such as manga, simply reinforce similar if not exactly the same stereotypes. Women characters are often placed in cute supporting roles to the strong and capable male protagonists. As animation, comics and games are some of Japan’s biggest exports, portrayals in these mediums also particularly stand out to overseas audiences.

Japan’s strong female media figures

There are, of course, some stories with strong female leads. There are also stories with female characters that might not deviate too much from the standard but are still well written and sympathetic. Studio Ghibli films famously have several films with leading female characters of various types. These characters include strong princesses to young girls, and many of the stories do not focus on romance or playing a secondary role to men.

There are also works that actively criticize the status quo, including female Japanese authors gaining recognition overseas. One notable example is Mieko Kawakami. Her novel 2008 Breasts and Eggs asks frank questions about motherhood and expectations placed on women’s bodies. An expanded remake of the novel was released in English last year. Kawakami is also well known for a series of interviews with Haruki Murakami, where she presses him on the portrayal of women in his novels.

Media responsible for portraying more, stronger female role models

This is not to say that one should not enjoy works with more traditional gender roles depicted at all. It is possible to enjoy films, books and other mediums while still looking at certain aspects of them with a critical eye, as Kawakami did with Murakami’s novels. The issue is with the sheer consistency of these kinds of portrayals and the relative lack of alternatives. Such depictions are frustrating for both women and men audiences who want to see more varied and interesting portrayals. They can also lead to conscious and unconscious biases that limit the potential of women in society. Better representation is not the only factor in creating more female role models, but it can expand people’s views and give inspiring examples of what’s possible.