Projection of Tradition in Japanese Export Media : The Feminization of Japaneseness

Abstract

The positioning of women as the protectors of tradition in a number of cultures has been widely examined. Researchers have examined the image of Japanese women in both Japanese media and Western media about Japan. This paper looks at the maintenance of national myths and the feminization of traditional Japanese society in externally directed media; that is, the paper will consider the images of Japanese women as portrayed in an English-language journal of public diplomacy. Relying on the theoretical framework of propaganda provided by Jacques Ellul＇s work on the formation of attitudes and the creation of societal myths and symbols, particularly his focus on propaganda, this paper examines the images of women in Look Japan from 1964 to 1980, the period associated with Japan＇s rapid economic growth. The role of Japan＇s externally directed media in maintaining the feminization of Japaneseness in Western images of Japan will be discussed.