Cultural Issues

Cultural Issues of Gender, Gender Roles, and Their Treatment of Men and Women

The purpose of this paper is to compare Japanese and Middle Eastern Arab-

Muslim cultures concerning the issue of gender, gender roles, and the treatment of

women and men throughout history. Muslim women and men, in the Middle East,

definitely differ from Japanese men and women, particularly in current issues of

marriage, workforce, education, family, and social living. Although they may have

differences in current issues, they also have similarities of oppressing women historically.

Throughout my research, I will compare Japanese and Arab Muslims in various aspects of

their culture. To have a better understanding of these issues, traditional background

information on each culture is required to understand current issues.

I examined Japanese historical traditions of gender roles and how these roles

became established within their culture. Before WWII, Japan's status of women were

very low under the matrilineal and patriarchal ideology. (Yumiko, 2000, pg. 41) Women

were restricted from government activities, such as voting and owning property. Japanese

women during this time, also could not make decisions on where they wanted to live.

(Yumiko, 2000, pg. 41) Men on the other hand, were considered head of the family and

were permitted to make decisions of where his wife lived and worked. (Yumiko, 2000,

pg. 41) According to Bernstein, in her book "Recreating Japanese Women, 1600-1945",

the Confucian belief reinforced these social gender roles and the ideal family. The

Confucian concept of women was "good wife, wise mother", and has influenced beliefs

about gender roles. (Dolan and Worden, 1992) The Confucian concept of women

discouraged young mothers from raising their children alone, because they were seen to

be morally unfit. (Bernstein, 1991, pg. 4) For instance, child rearing was the role for

all family members as well as the mother. After WWII however, women were given

equal rights by legal occupation authorities. (Dolan and Worden, 1992) These included

rights such as the right for women to vote, inherit their own property, they could choose

their spouses and occupations, initiate divorce, and maintain custody of their children.

(Dolan and Worden, 1992) Educational opportunities opened up for women during this

time period also. Although women were granted equal opportunities in public society,

these gender stereotypes and inequalities continued to be present in the home. These

stereotypes have passed down through Japan's history and have had a vast effect on

women in current society. The deprived opportunities Japan's women faced earlier can

Equally, be compared to the women within the Muslim culture.

In comparison of Japanese women, Arab Muslim women have faced some of the same difficulties of equal rights historically. Muslims have traditionally been followers of the doctrine of Qur'an, which evolved from the revelations of Muhammad, founder of Islam. The Qur'an prescribed women and men to have equaled rights and was specific about the roles of males and females. All Islamic countries follow the Qur'an, although their interpretations are different. After the death of Muhammad, the perception and attitudes of women began to decline. Muslim women were forced to pray within their home, they were secluded, isolated, forced to veil, and eventually were removed from society. (Sechzer, 2004) Modesty has also been a factor among Muslim culture, according to the Qur'an, but this practice eventually evolved into suppression of women. The practice of exclusion and seclusion of women also deteriorated women statuses during this time. (Sechzer, 2004) These customs assured women's chastity and therefore their main role was procreation. (Sechzer, 2004) The practice of seclusion and exclusion has also suppressed women in other areas, such as religion. Islamic religion is believed to be infused in all aspects of their lives, particularly the household. (Huntington, Fronk, Chadwick, 2001, p.3) The Islamic religion laws have played major roles in the development of gender roles, and these orders have been integrated into contemporary law. (Women's International Network News, 2002)

Family and Marriage

The basic building block among Muslim and Japanese culture is family. Muslims and Japanese have had strong family ties historically. The household was primarily the function of the women within Muslim culture. According to Hertz-Lazarowitz and Shapira, in "Muslim Women's Life Stories: Building Leadership", the two factors that define Arab women is her biological role as a mother and her relations with the men in her life, including husband, father, and brothers. (Hertz-Lazarowitz, Shapira, 2005, p.166) In comparison, Japanese women were defined as "good wife, wise mother". These attitudes towards women have established gender roles between both cultures. Men on the other hand, were the most dominate figure within the family, especially Japanese men before WWII. In addition, women and men had different responsibilities in the household. In Japan, the wife's responsibilities included managing the household, household expenses, and child rearing. Men in contrast, had the financial responsibility of taking