This lecture series sets out to explore ‚Gender and Sexuality in East Asia‘ from a cultural studies and social science perspective. It is structured as a set of three online lectures to be followed by a DIJ Forum and a film screening and talk with the producer and one protagonist (dates t.b.c.). Topics that will be addressed are: Sexualities and migration, ‘new’ masculinities, ‘new’ life courses for women, gender constructions in film and literature, bodies and postfeminism.
Online Lectures
An Huy Tran, University of Duisburg-Essen/Waseda University: ‚Towards a Transnational Sexual and Masculine Field: Male Vietnamese Migrants in Contemporary Japan‘ (9 June)
Sharon Kinsella, The University of Manchester: ‚Cute Masculinity: Investigating the Meaning of Virtual Shōjo and Girl Parody by Young Men in the 2010s‘ (25 June)
Ronald Saladin, Trier University: ‚Murata Sayaka’s ‘Convenience Store Woman’ – Discussing Gender Identity and Society in Contemporary Japanese Literature‘ (7 July)
Join us to discuss these issues with internationally established scholars! Further information, incl. technical details will be announced here and on Twitter (@dij_tokyo) in due time. Download Poster

Lecture Series ‘Gender and Sexuality in East Asia’ (1/5)
Transnational movements of people across borders have been one of the most prominent forces in shaping sexualities and genders. While migrants’ economic and labour practices have constituted a relatively wide spectrum of both academic and non-academic interests, the sexual and gendered dimensions of migration attract less attention. In particular, sexualities have historically been marginalized, and are still ‘absent as a social factor in mainstream sociological studies of migration’ (Carrillo 2017; Manalansan IV 2006). Moreover, in contrast to female migrants’ sexual and gender identities and behaviours, the sexual and gendered experiences of male movers have not been adequately investigated. Details

Speaker:
An Huy Tran, University of Duisburg-Essen/Waseda University

Access (Zoom Meeting):
https://zoom.us/j/92470344725?pwd=c09oRFFoMnRDVktvY2l5cVplT2x3QT09
Meeting ID: 924 7034 4725
Password: 329921

DIJ DWIH Web-Forum
The perception, assessment, communication and containment of risks is an ongoing challenge for individuals, organizations and societies at large. The present COVID-19 pandemic reveals the profound problems countries confront and the difficult trade-offs they have to make when facing systemic risks combined with a high degree of uncertainty. It also shows remarkable differences in the way national governments, businesses and citizens are prepared for the crisis and are trying to cope with its various dimensions. In our online forum, two leading risk researchers from Japan and Germany will analyze and evaluate the crisis responses in their countries. The discussion will explore the similarities and differences in the national approaches, possible reasons and implications. Details
Speakers:
Ortwin Renn, Director, Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies
Norio Okada, Prof. em. Kyoto University, Disaster Prevention Research Institute
You can access this online event here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdGa3jF7et0

Please note: this event has been postponed. A new date will be announced in due course. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.

The transformation of the Japanese agricultural sector and the development of rural regions in the course of extensive infrastructure measures during the economic boom led to changes in many areas of rural life. Not only the often mentioned out-migration of younger generations but also the changing economic structures and the conditions for a livelihood in rural settlements were subjected to fundamental change. Among others, this also affected common work and the management of commons (common-pool resources) in the settlements, which had been embedded as a complex local system of cycles for a livelihood fitting the local environment.

By examining the grassland management of Aso (Kumamoto Pref.), I will first outline the natural conditions and then proceed to show how this transformation took place in the livestock farming sector and what problems the local population involved is currently exposed to. The lecture closes with an outlook on possible solutions, which I am currently exploring during a three-year field stay on behalf of the Japanese Ministry of Environment researching “Regionally cycling and symbiotic area” (地域循環共生圏) in order to initiate a discussion within this working group about other possible forms of sustainable development in rural Japan.

Speaker:
Johannes Wilhelm, Kumamoto University (Kumamoto)

Please note: this event has been postponed. A new date will be announced in due course. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.

Kabuki actors learn their skills from their fathers. Ikebana students pay their master for lessons. In contrast, artistic lineage in rakugo is not hereditary, and performers do not acquire their stories and acting skills in acting schools or from their fathers. Newcomers to the rakugo profession start their apprenticeship with a shishō, a master, without paying any compensation. For the rest of both of their lives the shishō is responsible for his deshi’s (disciple) education and accountable for his off-stage behaviour. In return, the shishō expects his deshi’s unquestioning loyalty, obedience and subordination.

The presentation provides a perspective on access to knowledge, knowledge acquisition, learning processes and structures inside Tokyo’s yose theatres, as well as social relations among the stakeholders of the rakugo world. Sarah Stark’s research is based on an analysis of printed interviews, autobiographies as well as one-on-one interviews with Tokyo rakugoka.

Speaker:
Sarah Stark, Ghent University

Die Bevölkerung Japans und Deutschlands altert zusehends. Vor dem Hintergrund sich auflösender Familienstrukturen, immer mehr alleinlebender Seniorinnen und Senioren und nicht mehr selbstverständlicher nachbarschaftlicher Unterstützung wird die gesellschaftliche Teilhabe und Inklusion älterer Bürgerinnen und Bürger zu einer großen gesellschaftspolitischen Heraus¬forderung. Teilhabe und Inklusion bilden die Grundlage für ein „aktives Altern“. Davon profitieren die Älteren, die Gemeinden und die Gesellschaft insgesamt. Digitalisierung und Vernetzung bieten in diesem Kontext große Chancen. Um diese nutzen zu können, müssen die Technologien allerdings zugänglich und nutzbar gemacht werden. Aus diesem Grund ist es wichtig, „digitale Kompetenzen“ unter der älteren Bevölkerung zu fördern. Im Rahmen des Symposiums soll erörtert werden, was in Japan und Deutschland unternommen wird, damit die ältere Generation von den Vorteilen der digitalen Transformation im Hinblick auf Teilhabe und Inklusion profitieren kann.

Sprachen: Deutsch und Japanisch mit Simultanübersetzung

This presentation will offer an overview of Japanese popular musical theater focusing on its systematic and strategic adaptation for the growing and changing needs of its diversifying audience groups. In the past decades, Japanese popular musical theater has drastically transformed, expanding its presence in the domestic entertainment industry by ticket distribution adaptive to new communication systems for better accessibility and consumability.

Speaker:
Rina Tanaka, Meiji University

Money and parenting are two key factors that can bring considerable joy or misery to our daily lives. Empirical studies have shown that while money is generally associated with greater happiness, having small kids can actually be a source of unhappiness, especially for women. In this session, two experts – a sociologist and an economist – explore the intricate relationship between money, parenting and happiness, from a comparative and historical perspective.

Speakers:
Hiroshi Ono, Hitotsubashi University Business School
Matthias Doepke, Northwestern University