Abstract
This chapter clarifies the unrecognized differences in gender relations in the societies in the Confucian cultural sphere by showing how the characteristics of patriarchy in each society are related to Confucianism. It discusses patriarchy and the emergence of the housewife in early modern Japan. Japan's industrialization relied on workers leaving their farming villages to work in industry. Young, unmarried women accounted for a high percentage of this labor force. The chapter examines Confucian norms for women and origin and characteristics of ideology of the good wife and wise mother. It describes the relationship of this ideology with Confucianism and the role it played in East Asian societies. Women's magazines in the Taisho period played a key role in this trend due to the scale of their readership which gave them great influence. The salaryman appeared as the backbone of the white collar workforce employed by government agencies and large corporations.Keywords:Confucianism; East Asia; industrialization; Japanese Housewife; labor force; patriarchy; salaryman; Taisho period
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