Introduction

The Project Plan

The project plan to assist you in exploration of the Japanese history between the late Meiji to Taisho period through the perspective of women. More specifically, the project presents the ideal female figure of the period between 1892 to 1926 portrayed through female magazines of the time. Female magazines were selected as the object of this investigation, as Meiji period was the time newspapers and magazines developed as the major medium to be consumed by the public as a result of the advancement of printing technology. 

As for exploration on late Meiji period, the project specifically investigates the ideal female figure presented through Katei Zassi 家庭雑誌, and Sekai Fujin 世界婦人, which were published with the motivation to empower the previously marginalized status of women. The investigation will then be continued on Taisho period with focus on Shufu no Tomo 主婦乃友, and Fujin Koron 婦人公論. While the first two magazines: Katei Zassi and Sekai Fujin are both targeted towards the high class women, the latter magazines of the Taisho period differ in their target readers, as Shufu no Tomo is fitted for working women in low to mid class, while Fujin Koron is favored by the high class women with prestige.

By tracing the historical background of each era, the project intend to make sense of how it is reflected in the transformation of ideal female figure expressed throughout the two eras. In addition, the analysis of the female figure will be proceeded through the columns by professional female journalists, interviews between feminists and political activists, and letter posts made by the readers.