Introduction to Topic

Over the past three decades, Japanese media productions have been primarily examined with the question of which hegemonic images of 'femininity' are constructed within them, which counter-concepts can be identified, and to what extent this indicates social change. Very few studies, however, have focused on analyzing media constructions of 'masculinities'.

In this dissertation project, various manga in which male characters as protagonists perform tasks in the household that are usually assigned to the 'female sphere' in Japan will be analyzed in order to find out how images of masculinity are presented in them and whether a change can be noticed since the 1970s.

Method

• Content analysis
• Discourse analysis

of a corpus of more than 30 manga series from 1946 to the present

Research Questions

Main research question 1:
How are men doing household chores portrayed in manga?

• How are these male figures designed visually (at the level of the creative stylistic means)?
• What statements are made about these figures on a content level?
• How are they characterised?
• What is their relationship to other (male and female) figures?
• Are stereotypes referenced, and if so, which ones and with which design devices?
• What are the motivations for their participation in household tasks?
• How are they perceived by other figures?
• What gender roles/values ​​are ultimately conveyed in the manga?

Main research question 2:
Are changes in these representations noticeable over a longer period of time? 

• If so, how do they manifest themselves?
• Do these changes correspond to the collected data on the gender division of labor in Japan at the time the manga was created?
• What connections can be identified between social reality and fiction?