Changes In Japanese Society

"In 1950 about one in three women participated in the labor force. By 1998, nearly three of every five women of working age were in the labor force" (Heatherfield, n.d., para. 4). In 2008, the U.S. Department of labor estimates that women will make up 48% of the workforce (Heatherfield, n.d., para. 6). As the number of women in the workforce rises so do the numbers of women who hold higher titles such as Chairman, CEO, Vice Chairman, President, Chief Operating Officer, Senior Vice President, and Executive Vice President. This number has increased from 7.3% in 2000 to 9.9% in 2002 (Diversity statistics, 2006).

Over the past few decades, great strides have been made by women in the workplace. This increased number in women in the workplace does not mean equality however. Even with equal qualifications and achievements, women are still not given all the opportunities that men have. The chapter in the textbook, “Gender at Work”, shows us more of these inequalities in the workplace. Such inequalities cause gender segregation of jobs and can be linked with the pay inequality in the labor force. Even in jobs that are predominantly filled by women, men earn more than women. Women are often stereotyped as being family focused and not as able to travel, therefore they tend to get passed up for promotions (Garson p.353). This invisible barrier that keeps women from moving up the executive ladder is referred to as the “glass ceiling” (Baxter and Wright p. 346). Women also tend to do more domestic work, or unpaid labor and caregiving. This extra unpaid work is referred to as “the third shift” and is largely rested on the shoulders of women (Gersel p. 352). Consequently, this seems to be one of the biggest things holding women back from taking on jobs that are normally considered male

Jobs are currently available to women of any race, background, or ethnicity, and the age to go into an area of work has gradually decreased; for instance, some careers allow students to begin a job starting at the young age of fourteen. But working was not always an option for women. World War I was the stepping stone that pushed women into the workforce. As men were being drafted into the military, women stepped up into factory jobs, creating the necessary technology for America’s victory and emergence as a world power. In today’s government, women are joining the workforce because the economy calls for it. With high costs of raising children, college debt shooting through the roof, and gas prices going up, women are taking on similar roles to their husbands and providing two set incomes as opposed to

Emerging businesses created new job possibilities for women, such as; saleswomen, clerks, secretaries, factory workers, etc. Factory work meant mass production of household items that were easily obtainable for the average middle class family, thus allowing women more time for leisure. Not only did the job market expand, but education also became more accessible, allowing younger females to seek achievement outside the household. Despite all these positive changes, women often felt defeated as men still viewed them as being good at domesticity and childbearing and not much else. Women still were unable to vote in

Another demographic change we are seeing in the labor force today are changes in the men to women ratio. According to the United States Department of Labor, in 1970 women only made around 37% of the working population, leaving men to make up the additional 63% (Women in the Labor Force, 2012). By 2012, women accounted for 47% of the total working population. Although this may not seem like a large increase from 1970, women did account for more than half of all laborers within several of the industry sectors including; financial activities (53%), education and health services (75%), leisure and hospitality (51%), and other services (52%). However, when looking at jobs in the agricultural, construction, mining, manufacturing, and transportation and utilities fields, women are still significantly underrepresented. Over the years we have seen not only the percentage of women in the labor force grow, but the large pay gap between men and women has slowly began to close. As of 2012, women with full time jobs

Japan is a small island nation off the coast of Eastern Asia. Despite its size, Japan has proved to be formidable both economically and militarily. Since the expedition of Commodore Matthew Perry in 1853 opened up the past feudalistic and reclusive Japan, this nation has expanded and adopted many imperialistic policies as well as taken a more aggressive military stance. Japan has changed in many ways, but has also continued upholding traditional practices throughout 1853 and 1941.

Walker displays this idea by, “[…] marriage and motherhood were the only futures anyone envisioned for the young women […]” (Walker 4). This quote explains how women were expected to be a mother and wife. Society did not encourage women to do anything else, but these things. This made women settle in to the mind frame that they were only allowed to stay at home to take care of the children, and the house. Once a woman got married in the 1800s, her main focus would be on her husband and the children (once she had them). Moody explains this through, “When a woman marries she assumes two new sets of relations-those of sentiment, through which she becomes the loving, faithful companion of one man and the mother of his children, […] (Moody 153). This quote explains how women gain new experiences by being married. These sets of experiences relate to being a good wife to her husband and having children. Women are able to actually see what being a wife is actually like after they are married. Before marriage women were taught how to be a good wife and how to take care of their household as well. This quote emphasized that women were supposed to be faithful to their husband and that they should take good care of him. This shows how women’s sole purpose after getting married was to take care of their husband and kids. They were not supposed to do anything that would take too much of their

In the 21st Century the number of women enrolling in higher education institutions is surpassing the numbers of men enrolled. The graduation rates of women from high school and higher education are most often higher than for men. The number of women graduates from most professional occupations, including higher paying medicine, law and business, will exceed the number of men graduates in the near future. In numerous occupational areas with a majority of women graduates, salaries already surpass salaries in occupational areas with a majority of men graduates.

In the 1900s women's lives were centered around their house duties such as cleaning, cooking, laundry, and anything around the house that needed to be kept up with. Some might say their lives were almost like a form of slavery, womens sole purpose in this time period was to find a husband, get married, have children with him, and serve him for the rest of her life. Back then when a woman was married they belonged to their husband and couldn't just exist on their own apart from their husband. They were forced to rely on their husband as he was the only source of income to their household since the wives stayed at home. Things weren't always like this though, 2012 a wife married with kids wasn't forced to stay at home. Jacqueline sauvage a simple frenchwoman who

Unlike some countries, men are expected to earn money and support their family. On the other hand, women are expected to raise the children, be home, and do everything else needed in the house. “More middle- and upper-class females now go to work, although they are still generally relegated to clerical or support positions. However, women are increasingly becoming doctors, dentists, or teachers. When this will carry over into the business world remains to be seen,” said Commisceo Global.

Women’s role has significantly changed in today’s world. Back in the 1950s, women were viewed as dedicated housewives whose only goal was to meet the pleasures of their and husband and children’s. Society believed these were the only role for women. During this time, a husband was considered far more important than a degree. In fact, women who chose to work and earn their own money were considered selfish. The number of girls who entered college dropped during the 50s. Many women left college early to marry after World War II and other women who stayed were not planning on working toward a job. Beginning in the 1960s and last 70s, deep cultural changes were altering the role of women in the U.S society. More females than ever began entering into the workforce back in which the only jobs available for them away from their homes were teachers, secretaries, nurses etc.

The example is followed by some simple statistics and facts comparing marriage in Japan to the rest of the world. Japan’s divorce rate is less than half the divorce rate of the United States’ even though it is at a record high. It is shared that the traditional family structure is crumbling in the US and Europe while Japan’s is still going strong. Kristof also supports the strength of the family structure by offering the evidence of a study that was published by the Population Council declaring that the rate of two family traditional household is falling significantly worldwide with one

Westernization, which primarily spread in the mid to late 19th century, brought forth a profound change of ideas and cultures across the world. Both Japan and India were affected greatly as Western practices and ideologies seeped into the minds of individuals throughout various societies. Influential individuals, such as Thomas Babington Macaulay and Fukuzawa Yukichi wished to reform India and Japan by introducing Western ideas into these countries. Artists such as Honda Kinkachiro and Werner Forman showed the effects of Westernization on Japan. Through the writings and artwork of Macaulay, Yukichi, Kinkachiro, and Forman, we are able to understand that Europe’s colonizing mentality, as well as Asia’s acceptance of new ideas, were both supported by the belief that the West is superior.

Perhaps you are saying to yourself "I already knew this but couldn't prove it." Whether or not you could have guessed this information or have possibly lived to tell your own stories about juggling the responsibilities of family-life and work, the underlying and disturbing question is, how can this be so today? How can it be that modern women who have seemingly come so far in becoming recognized as thriving active members of business, politics, and society in general still be struggling with the same gender roles with which their grandmothers dealt? How is it that women have broken out of many of the confines holding them back from the public sphere, but women are still expected to fulfill traditional roles within the private sector?

There has also been a demand to increase women in the workforce because of more “women-like” jobs.