Embodying Japan: Cultures of Sport, Beauty, and Medicine 2017

Gendered Dynamics of Sexuality

Another prominent thread of state control is the institutional and social imposition of patriarchal gender dynamics. The creation of gender as a location of difference allows for the justification of women’s exploitation and subordination. This subjugation is exacerbated by overlapping oppressions, such as race and class. As such, uniformity of experience is a myth, but women’s realities continue to be shaped by explicitly gendered notions of being. Patriarchy has allowed for women’s sexual autonomy to be misplaced and redirected into heteronormative modes of expression. Inherent in these relations is a disconnect of privilege, as men’s realities are shaped by their experience of gender dominance. From birth, children are imbued with sexual messages and notions about their acceptable role in these arrangements. Male children are taught through the consumption of media and social messages that they are expected to aggressively chase women in the pursuit of romantic and sexual ideals. Conversely, young women are encouraged to make themselves passive and accept advances. This culture results in perspectives that encourage the replication of power dynamics within sexual relationships. This mode of relating is one major reason for the prevalence of violence against women and others who deviate from normative sexual scripts. When men are socialized to think of sexuality as a pursuit rather than an egalitarian communicative practice, feelings of entitlement and ownership run rampant and obscure the potential for uplifting relation.

To explore this issue as it manifests in the Japanese context, refer to Sex & Violence in Snakes & Earrings, Gender and Identity in Modern Japan, Fetishization of Gay Men in Manga, & Cross-Dressing in Shinjuku Ni-chōme and Transgender Culture in Japan. 

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