“Moon Prism Power Make Up!” Usagi says in an orotund tone, momentarily starting to transform into a superhero called “Sailor Moon,” gorgeously dressed, getting ready for the battles. I had been truly fascinated by how an ordinary girl could bravely...
“The Full-Time Wife Escapist,” or “We Married as a Job” (original title: “Nigeru ha Haji daga Yaku ni Tatsu”), became a social phenomenon in 2016. Many audiences, including me, thought it was merely one of the trendy romcoms. However, this drama was...
In 2019, the #KuToo movement became a hot topic in Japan. This was a wake-up call to the gender expectation that women should wear heels in general business settings. In these days of much discussion about gender equality and genderless fashion, the...
“Gender equality,” as stated in the SDGs, is to realize a society where each person is free to make choices regardless of gender. This trend has recently spilled over into the Japanese toy industry by introducing products that challenge gender...
Banana Yoshimoto is one of the most famous Japanese female authors in the world. Her books are published in over 30 countries. I have reread her debut novel and masterpiece, “Kitchen” for the first time in a while. I surprisingly have...
Japan is generally thought of as a country with a conservative culture and traditional gender role expectations. Men are still generally expected to be breadwinners working long hours and women are expected to stay at home and raise children. There...
Japanese women face many professional and personal challenges. Traditional gender roles and other societal factors play a large part in holding them back in both areas of their lives. Such factors have real consequences for the quality of women’s...