Abstract
In Rethinking Representations of Asian Women: Changes Continuity, and Everyday Life, editors Ijichi, Kato, and Sakurada brought together a collection of ethnographic case studies that document the diverse experiences of women in various Asian countries whose lives were affected by colonialism, nationalism, sexism, transnationalism, and economic changes in the region. The intended purpose of the text is to expand the discourse of Asian women’s studies to include individuals’ experiences that have been largely invisible in the literature, while inviting readers to consider the ideological representations and misrepresentations of Asian women. This book effectively achieved its goals––and more––by positioning Asian women as active participants in the reconstruction of their identities and their relationships with family, enclave community, and local society.
The contributors draw from primary sources, demographic statistics, participatory observations, and longitudinal qualitative inquires to describe the women’s daily lives in great detail. The authors effectively convey individuals’ personal narratives without losing sight of the societal forces that intimately influence Asian women’s lives. A particular strength of the contributors is their careful attention to positioning women’s experience within rich layers of cultural, political, historical, economic, and social contexts.
The book is primarily written for an academic audience in many disciplines; it is particularly apt for advanced undergraduate and graduate students, and scholars interested in sociological, historical, and psychological inquiries into Asian women’s experiences. This book would likely be of interest to psychologists, sociologists, and gender and ethnic studies scholars who investigate the experiences of identity construction, marginality, intersectionality, and transnational movements of individuals.
The narratives capture the multitude of strategies Asian women have employed across different eras to reconstruct their identities within the private and public spheres. For example, chapters on Korean diaspora women in Japan, mothers of multiple children in Mongolia, and women of Khadgi caste in Nepal present various strategies women used to negotiate spaces for themselves to act, beyond the conventional gender roles as mother and spouse. Specifically, the women participated in their communities as activists, businesswomen, and patriots. Chapters on Japanese women who converted to Islam upon marrying Pakistani migrants, female skin divers of Jeju Islands, and divorced Korean women in Japan illustrate the movement of Asian women across national borders, with an emphasis on the individuals’ choices and agency within the global context. The intentional and overt integration of feminist perspectives is another particular strength of this book.
The task of expanding the representation of Asian woman is not an easy one. This book does an impressive job of presenting the depth of intersectionality within each particular community of women. It is also ambitious in trying to capture the generational experiences of Korean women in Japan across the span of 100 years of history. The richness of inquiries opens up future investigation to continue the discourse on the experiences of Asian women. More inclusivity, beyond East Asian narratives, would have enhanced the book. Overall, however, it is an excellent representation of Asian women in the literature and a source for raising feminist consciousness about identity construction of Asian women within a global context.