Gender (in)equality in Japan

• Main Author: Monika Ksieniewicz
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Polskie Towarzystwo Retoryczne/ Polish Rhetoric Society 2016-06-01
• Series: Res Rhetorica
• Online Access: http://resrhetorica.com/index.php/RR/article/view/140

This essay opens with the rhetorical analysis of the article which appeared in April 2016 in the Japan Times entitled “An Open Letter to the Japanese Womanhood. Advice on How to Take the Best Parts of the Stereotypes without Becoming One Yourself” in the context of gender inequality in Japan. Japan is one of the three largest economies in the world and a member of G7 group, yet the level of discrimination of women in Japan is without equal in the developed world. Widely criticized by international institutions such as the United Nations or the World Economic Forum, Japan fi nally introduced a new government policy in order to balance the status of women with men. The article examines the recent changes and argues that it is diffi cult to introduce them because of the gender biased rhetoric and a long history of patriarchal patterns in the society.