Exceptions to Ideal

• Consideration on the sentiments experienced by the female readers: Did they really correspond/affirm to the ideal female figure portrayed in the magazines, or did they oppose?

Despite some of their motivation to empower the marginalized status of Japanese women, the four female magazines seemingly made transition to the portrayal of ideal female figure accordingly to the political climate of the eras. 

While the majority of female readers were passive to this portrayal towards "a good wife and wise mother良妻賢母", other literary pieces such as "Madame Pearl 真珠婦人", a bestseller genre fiction novel of 1920 in Taisho period indicates a possibility of distinct and true female figure desired by female population.

"Madame Pearl 真珠婦人" depicts the life of a seductive noblewoman 華族 who trifles with several men, but contains essence of utmost kindness towards surrounding people. Although it first started as a short story column posted in newspapers, it was later published as a set of novel after it received positive response from the readers.

 On the contrary to the portrayal of female magazines, the novel presented an innovative and new female figure which overturn the previous moral of women. The positive review towards such distinct portrayal of female figure in fact suggests the presence of underlying desire that Japanese women contained at heart, as opposed to the female figure presented in the magazines.

The other aspect on the adoption of ideal female figure presented in female magazines is, the presence of the female readers in the poorest community who were financially and psychologically unable to fit in these figures. The circumstances of these low class women varies from having lost their family members from war and illness, which leads to be financially unstable. The presence and sentiments of readers were apparent in letters posted by them on Fujin Sekai 婦人世界 as "Readers' Views", where they consulted their unreasonable and miserable circumstances. The other low class female readers would also post their letters with response to the previous contributors, expressing their sympathy and words of encouragements for the contributors. In a way "Readers' Views" acted as a chat space for the readers of the poorest community to share the sentiments of each other, and acknowledge that "we" are overcoming the difficulties of life as one rather than individually. Thus, the presence of this section in the magazine shows a slightly differing role that magazines played in shaping the mentality of female readers.