The Image of Japanese Women in Takarazuka: Sexual Politics and Modern Culture in Japan by Jennifer Robertson
In the domain of Japanese theater, kabuki plays have dominantlygained patronage in Japanese society. It has also enjoyed male dominance,for its actors are mainly males, with only few females knowledgeable aboutJapanese theater and rudimentaries on theater acting. Just like itsimperial society during the 17th-19th centuries, Japanese society have beenfamiliarized, in every aspect of their life, to be led by males, be it inthe domain of politics, economic, or Japanese culture. By the turn of the 20th century, however, Japanese culture haswitnessed a change in the form plays are to be presented in public.Although kabuki is still a popular theater form of theater, a new form oftheatrical presentation was introduced in 1914. Called the takarazuka,this new theater form is all female, which was established
Robertson's analysis of the different elements and meanings impliedin the context of takarazuka reflected that this new art form have, amongother factors enumerated by the author, two primary roles: takarazukaserves as a medium through which Japanese women can escape in theirrepressive society. In her book, Takarazuka: SexualPolitics and Modern Culture in Japan (1998), Robertson confronts the issueof women marginalization in a highly patriarchal Japanese society, andeffects of this new cultural movement in the lives of women and the rest ofthe society in contemporary Japan. Latentmeanings are embedded in the new discipline, providing a new venue forwomen to look for new professions, activities, and venues that have neverbeen explored or tried out before. Takarazuka is more than a form of Japanese art and culture. The coming of takarazuka as a newtheater form paved the way for women to become involved and known for theirskills and talent in their society. Through assimilation, women finallyfind their place in the society, providing them the opportunity to,finally, form and assert their self-identities: ". Byparticipating and involving themselves in Japan's most popular art form(theater), women are able to be gain recognition and prestige in theirsociety. Accordingto critics on takarazuka, this new theater form is to a "dreamworld" (yumeno sekai) free from the constraints of fixed, dichotomous, and hierarchicalgender roles. Takarazuka was not aninert area: rather, it interacted with social and psychological space,creating a site where ambiguous gender and protean ethnicity were linked. Jennifer Robertson studies anddiscusses the implied meanings behind the practice of takarazuka as itrelates to the modern Japanese society. This allows them to assume a new, diversified role, which canlead to a more liberal outlook about how women are perceived in theircountry and the whole world as well.
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