Ryōsai Kenbo: The Educational Ideal of 'Good Wife, Wise Mother' in Modern Japan - Paperback

by Shizuko Koyama (Author)

Winner of the 2013 Choice Outstanding Academic Title Award.

The famous ryōsai kenbo or 'good wife, wise mother' role of Japanese women was, in fact, not a traditional Confucian view but a modern construct - its first appearance in Japan being the latter half of the nineteenth century. Girls at the time were proud to fulfill their new role of contributing to not just the family but to the formation of the state. Koyama's discovery has transformed how we see modern women's history in Japan and East Asia as a whole.

Author Biography

Koyama Shizuko, Ph.D. (2003), Kyoto University, is Professor of Human and Environmental Studies at that university. She has published monographs and many articles on the history of Japanese education and women.