Gender Inequality in Japan from a Linguistic Perspective
Introduction
Japan is often described as the most developed, westernised country in Asia and with its economy being the third largest in the world – falling behind the United States and China (Nagano 2014) – it faces many of the same issues those of us in the western world are familiar with. One such issue, not limited to the western world, disadvantages roughly one half of the population, that of sexism and gender equality. Seeing as ideas, beliefs and stereotypes are all spread through language, the Japanese language itself is argued to be the greatest contributor to sexist notions. In the essay to follow I shall examine the roots of the modern Japanese woman and modern women’s language;
In Gulliver’s (2012) case studies of modern women living in Japan in the period between the two world wars she notes the traditional restraint placed on women both in their occupational lives and their self-expression. Due to these boundaries many women mainly performed duties around the house and if they had careers most women turned to novel writing, which was done at home.
The expectation for women to be stay-at-home mothers and wives is still very much prevalent in Japan to this day (Nagano 2015). From the occupational perspective, the greatest example of gender inequality in Japan can be seen in the low percentage of professional women working in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). Female scientists trained in STEM make up only 13.8% of the workforce (Homma et al. 2013). This is the lowest among developed countries. Surveys conducted suggest that women are less likely to pursue a career in STEM due to a lack of female authority in the area, as well as an unconscious bias from male scientists when evaluating female colleagues (Homma et al.
Efforts by feminist groups and youth movements are challenging the societal expectations placed on them and are rejecting outdated Japanese concepts of femininity, altering the language used by them and about them. The desired result of such language reform is a change in the view of Japanese women being submissive, delicate and innocent, moving towards a more assertive, authoritative female identity. Such a change will render such notions as a woman’s duty being a “good wife and a wise mother” outdated and grant them greater opportunities in their
The critical rank for reducing gender inequalities should be education, labor force participation, and lastly, wages. There are obvious differences between men and women whether it’s anatomically, financially, and so forth. The gender inequalities women face compared to men is alarming and saddening. Gender stereotypes reinforce gender inequalities because stereotypes can often be internalized which results in biases against either sex. These biases against a person can result in negative results. Gender inequality has been within our society for a long time especially amongst women.
his Essay will analyse, introduce, and discuss the terms Hegemonic Masculinity and Emphasized femininity, if it still applies in modern times and the use of these concepts to comprehend the role of the man and female in Eastern Asia, in relation to post-war Japan. In order to present a clear and linear argument I will divide this essay into three parts: In the first part I will define the term hegemonic masculinity, the common traits and the influence that it has in society; the essay will continue then in explaining and outlining the term emphasized femininity. The second part will analyse the impact of the notions of hegemonic masculinity and emphasized femininity in relation to post war Japan has. The last part will briefly identify some
Saikaku, Ihara. Life of a Sensuous Woman. The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 3rd Ed. Volume D. Ed. Martin Puchner. New York: Norton, 2013. 591-611. Print.
Nilsen began this study of the dictionary not with the intention of prescribing language change but simply to see what the language would reveal about sexism to her. Sexism is not something that existing independently in American English or in the particular dictionary that she happened to read. Rather it exists in people's minds.
We’d all like to believe that we are equals within our society, but democracy doesn’t necessarily ensure equality. We all must work for a living, and the constitution would have you believe that racial minorities and women would have equal opportunities and equal wages as white men. But this is not the case. For many years people, mainly girls and women, have fought to equalize genders with some success, specifically in the work force. Gender inequality is not only a historic issue but one that still exists today in the form of the gendered pay gap.
Gender inequality specifies to unequal treatment or approach of individuals based on their gender. It occurs from differences in socially constructed gender roles as well as biologically through chromosomes, brain structure, and hormonal differences. In 2006, the World Economic Forum introduced The Global Gender Gap Index. It is a framework that captures the magnitude and capacity of gender-based disparities and tracking their progress. The index measures national gender gaps on political, economic, education and health based criteria, and provides country rankings that allow for effective comparisons across regions and income groups, over time. The rankings are mainly designed to create a greater awareness among a global audience of the challenges posed by gender gaps and the opportunities created by reducing them.
Gender inequality is well reflected in our society today and has been going on for years. Gender has its difference but along the way the judgment of sex, gender and gender roles has a lot to deal with the gender inequalities. These aspects make up the social problems towards discrimination.
Gender inequality can be quite different when considering the varying perspectives of all different kinds of women throughout history. For a middle class white woman of the 19th century, gender inequality can be as simple as “men are superior to women” and because of that they have rights and privileges women don’t, but for a black woman of the 20th century, gender inequality isn’t just defined by men being superior to women because the sexism black women face is affected by racism.
Women – beautiful, strong matriarchal forces that drive and define a portion of the society in which we live – are poised and confident individuals who embody the essence of determination, ambition, beauty, and character. Incomprehensible and extraordinary, women are persons who possess an immense amount of depth, culture, and sophistication. Society’s incapability of understanding the frame of mind and diversity that exists within the female population has created a need to condemn the method in which women think and feel, therefore causing the rise of “male-over-female” domination – sexism. Sexism is society’s most common form of discrimination; the need to have gender based separation reveals our culture’s reluctance to embrace new ideas, people, and concepts. This is common in various aspects of human life – jobs, households, sports, and the most widespread – the media. In the media, sexism is revealed through the various submissive, sometimes foolish, and powerless roles played by female models; because of these roles women have become overlooked, ignored, disregarded – easy to look at, but so hard to see.
STEM is best known as science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. STEM for many years has been primarily seen as and stereotyped into a masculine work field. But as of recent years, while it expands, more and more women have been rising in these fields. However, there is still a tremendous gender gap between men and women in these fields and areas of work. The gender gap between men and women in STEM is alive and well. There is no denying that the gender gap between men and women in STEM is immense. But there instead are many sufficient reasons as to why there is such a huge gap between men and women within in fields. Some probable causes for the lack of women seen in these areas are biased towards women, unconscious bias girls receive
Carol B. Muller, “The Underrepresentation of Women in Engineering and Related Sciences: Pursuing Two Complementary Paths to Parity.” National Academies Press (US); Web. 2003.
Iron Out the Past Gender inequality has become a social issue in the U.S. and has been discussed multiple times. The social issues of men and women all have different roles in their lives. There have been traditional roles that have been ways of doing what both genders should do, but there will be criticism when they cross the line. Therefore, gender inequality is already socially constructed in the past, and this problem still happens now. There is a huge pay gap between both genders and males will always get paid more than females even if they are in the same position.
Gender inequality exists in any given society. In spite of the fact that gender is not as elementary as it may seem. Gender becomes an integral factor alongside various diverse angles, for example, sex, and sexual orientation and gender roles. Each of these points has a basic impact when discussing the particular social issues experienced by men and women. Gender is the socially learned practices that are connected to the genders, which make Gender Roles.
American society has come a long way in identifying and defending women’s human rights and humanity. However, women will always be essentially different than men because of their ability to convey with children. We are reminded of this by current political debates concerning abortion and contraception, which some have called a “war on women”. The transformation of gender relations since the beginning of the 20th century is one of the most rapid change in human history. Men had legal powers over the lives of their children and wives. Wife beating was never strictly legal in the Unites States. The ruling of men over women had emerged by the end of the 18th century. The movement for the right
‘ Gender inequality in the workplace refers to the income disparity between the wages of men and women around the world. This term primarily describes discrimination against women.’