Japanese Men Discover Feminine Side

Japan has always been a place with certain traditions, some of which were adopted from elsewhere. Certainly, the concept of manhood is something that has changed over the years, but the latest rebellion against the salaryman ideal installed after WWII will certainly be unfamiliar and awkward for most western readers. The lowdown from the Washington Post is that gender roles are shifting as men take on more of a nurturing role. This is counterbalanced by women becoming more aggressive in daily life and driven to succeed in the workplace.

The cultural transformation is also captured in some other events: the growing popularity of men’s bras and the anorexic as an ideal image.

A quote from the latter link offers some insight into the extent that traditional gender roles have changed:

Both Shirakawa and his girlfriend like the fact that she weighs more than he does, and is the leader of the couple. “She’s a lot stronger than I am, can lift heavy things and go drinking until dawn. I admire that about her, and feel protected when I’m around her,” he said. Older than he by five years, it was Shirakawa’s girlfriend who made the approach, started the dating process and decided what course their relationship would take.

Asian romantic dramas are also notablely different from western ones in that instead of focusing on issues around consummation and the aftermath (adultery, one night stands), the theme is fantastical idealizations (couples that want to be together but are prevented from doing so by factors beyond their control – e.g. class differences, physical distance, another love, or parental intervention). Romantic comedies usually end with the girl “confessing” her feelings and the couple kissing for the first time, after a season of awkward fumbling.

When viewed in the context of global norms, this has been the result.