Papers originally presented at a symposium held at the University of Pittsburgh in the fall of 2004. - Master and use copy. Digital master created according to Benchmark for Faithful Digital Reproductions of Monographs and Serials, Version 1. Digital Library Federation, December 2002
Includes bibliographical references (pages 159-168) and indexes
Changing Japanese families - Akiko Hashimoto, John W. Traphagan -- - Blondie, Sazae, and their storied successors : Japanese families in newspaper comics - Akiko Hashimoto -- - From spiritual fathers to Tokyo godfathers : depictions of the family in Japanese animation - Susan J. Napier -- - Agony of eldercare : two Japanese women directors study an age-old problem - Keiko I. McDonald -- - Mass arrests, sensational crimes and stranded children : three crises for Japanese New Left activists' families - Patricia G. Steinhoff -- - Is "Japan" still a big family? Nationality and citizenship at the edge of the Japanese archipelago - Mariko Asano Tamanoi -- - Somone's old, something's new, someone's borrowed, someone's blue : changing elder care at the turn of the 21st century - Susan Orpett Long
"The Japanese family is at a crossroads of demographic change and altered cultural values. While the population of children has been shrinking and that of elders rising, attitudes about rights and responsibilities within the family have changed significantly. The realities of life in postmodern society have shaped both the imagined family of popular culture and the lived experience of Japanese family members. Imagined Families, Lived Families takes an interdisciplinary approach toward these dramatic changes by looking at the Japanese family from a variety of perspectives, including media studies, anthropology, sociology, literature, and popular culture. The contributors look at representations of family in manga and anime, outsider families and families that must contend with state prosecution of political activists, the stereotype of the absolute Japanese father, and old age and end-of-life decisions in a rapidly aging society with changing family configurations."--Jacket
