Japanese gender scholar visits ECU

Representation workshop of Japanese women

By: Sarah Campbell

Posted: 10/10/06

Saturday, Oct. 7, the ECU community received a rare treat when Dr. Jan Bardsley visited the campus to present a lecture about women in Japanese culture. The all-day workshop began at 9 a.m., with the viewing of the documentary Women in Japan, and concluded around 4 p.m., after a lecture entitled "Representations of the Feminine in Japanese Literacy and Popular Culture."

Bardsley, an associate professor of Japanese Humanities in the Department of Asian Studies at UNC-Chapel Hill, presented the information from various aspects of her research. She used the documentary Women in Japan, which she co-produced as well as co-directed, as the central focus of the lecture.

Women in Japan: Memories of the Past, Dreams for the Future focuses on the lives of six women in contemporary Japan whose identities are examined through the transitional journeys they travel through in their personal lives, work and language. It was filmed in five different locations throughout Japan in 2001.

"Anyone who thought Memoirs of a Geisha was a good book must see this film. It is a perfect antidote to the West's desire to see Japanese women and women in Japan as the docile essence of femininity or the subservient victims of a male-dominated society.

"The film successfully brings to our attention a variety of personal histories, strengths and choices of women for whom work is an integral part of their lives. Awareness of this diversity is essential to an understanding of contemporary society," raves Laura Miller, associate professor at Loyola University of Chicago, on the film's Web site, womeninjapan.com.

Bardsley also co-authored the book Bad Girls of Japan, which examines the deviancy equated with women in Japanese culture. A variety of women and their lifestyles make them the central focus of this book by magnifying the significance of gender roles in Japan and mirroring those of our own culture.

In order to obtain more information about Bardsley's publications visit her Web site at unc.edu/~bardsley. You can also visit womeninjapan.com for an in-depth synopsis, character listing and comments from critics on her documentary.

This writer can be contacted at pulse@theeastcarolinian.com.