Theodora #usf_fys17

[theodora1999-blog]

Conclusion: Are Mail Order Bride Relationships Successful?

Throughout this semester, I explored the success rate of mail order brides’ relationships.  I initially believe that these relationships have a short duration because of many factors: language barriers, cultural differences, marrying for personal benefits rather than for love, and Japan’s homogeneous society. However, further investigation proved that my claim was wrong, and most mail order bride marriages have a high prosperity rate.

Research papers and videos have helped me conclude that not all foreign marriages in Japan end in divorces after a couple of months. In “Faces of ‘Asian Brides’: Gender, race, and class in the representation of immigrant women in Japan,” author Tomoko Nakamatsu discovers that Japanese men are looking for a companion that will fulfill the role of a faithful wife and loving mother. These desires encourage men to face unknown challenges in pursuit for everlasting love. Furthermore, videos such as “Ask Japanese about dating a foreigner? Do Japanese people want to marry a foreigner? (their voices)” and “International Marriage OK?! Ask Japanese about their opinion in marrying foreigners,” interview single Japanese men. Most liked the idea of marrying a foreign woman, ignoring society’s backlash for breaking Japan’s homogeneity. Shifting to the brides’ perspective, “A grounded typology of foreign-born spouses in Japan: The motivations behind migration to Japan,” by Charlie V Morgan, Monica M Trieu, Abigail Stephens, and Reiju Nemoto revealed that marrying a Japanese man allows a woman from a third world country to support her family back at home. The evident problem here is that she is taking advantage of him. Yet, when living in Japan for years trying to aid a growing family back at home, a bride begins to assimilate. She creates a new life and a family of her own with her Japanese husband.

To summarize, obvious obstacles such as not being able to communicate, contrasting cultures, etc. are not the leading causes for failed mail order bride marriages. Foreign brides’ need for money to support her family back at home and Japanese men desperate for companionship do not result in a short duration of a marriage, also. In fact, both wife and husband are open to the concept of having, and falling in love, with a spouse that comes from a different country. Thus, mail order bride relationships have an outstanding marriage period that is unexpected when viewing their relationship on the surface level.

Sources:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sP8ryqDksWM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORjxn2pTlMc

http://0-journals.sagepub.com.ignacio.usfca.edu/doi/pdf/10.1177/1468796816638401

http://0-www.sciencedirect.com.ignacio.usfca.edu/science/article/pii/S0277539505000452#bib32

[theodora1999-blog]

The Importance of Intonation and Expressing Emotions

In the video “What we argue about | Japanese/American marriage,” the couple Rachel and Jun discuss and reenact common arguments that they have. One argument that they usually have is apologizing. Most people, including myself, would expect this is an issue because he is a prideful male that is afraid of admitting defeat. However, this is not the case for Rachel and Jun. It is the language barrier. You may think, “That’s it? Why can’t the husband learn the phrase ‘I’m sorry’ and save himself from future arguments?” That makes sense, but the situation is more complex than having the ability to say a two worded phrase. Rachel has a problem with the way he says it. Although he may be genuinely apologetic, he monotonously says “I’m sorry,” making him seem insincere. Jun does not seem to understand the different intonations he must make while speaking certain phrases. Thus, this is the cause of Rachel’s frustration. Jun then tries to apologize in Japanese, which causes another problem to arise. She says that although she understands what he is saying, she claims that she does not “have the emotional connection to the language that a native speaker has.” Therefore, she still feels like she has not received an appropriate apology.  

I found their problem very amusing to listen to. Initially I believed the communication problem in mail order bride marriages was only a result of not being able to speak in each other’s language. After watching Jun and Rachel’s video, I came to the realization that conversing is not solely based on what is said to one another. Communication also involves the intonation and expressing what is being said. With these two components and the ability to speak the language, an international marriage can interact with each other effectively.

[theodora1999-blog]

Visual Aid

Mail order brides is a phenomenon that has been practiced for years and is still continued today. In Japan, many citizens continue to accept foreign marriages.  

The picture above is a screenshot from a video called “Ask Japanese about dating a foreigner? Do Japanese people want to marry a foreigner? (their voices).” During this recorded interview, Japanese men and women are asked what is their ideal foreign partner. Most, if not all, of the interviewees prefer “white” partners. This picture from a clip of the video confirms what I discovered in my first post, which is why Japanese gravitate towards people who are “white.” The video gives a better explanation as to why Japanese are attracted to foreigners from European decent. Their physical features are considered “unique looking” and “beautiful” in the eyes of citizens who live in a country dominated by Asians. Hence, Japanese are interested in dating and marrying foreigners.

However, a mail order bride wedlock is expected to not be stable if based on appearances. The interviewer follows up in another video called, “International Marriage OK?! Ask Japanese about their opinion in marrying foreigners.”

The two clips from the same video discusses the concerns of being in a foreign relationship. The Japanese ability to identify obstacles in an international relationship allows them to have a successful connection. They are able to overcome difficulties and find solutions in order for a marriage with a foreign spouse that originates from a different background and speaks a different language. Husbands do not only expect brides to assimilate Japan’s culture, but men must understand their wives culture too. Because of their accepting attitudes, Japanese mail order bride marriages are able to have a secure and high successful matrimony rate than most would expect.

Source: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sP8ryqDksWM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORjxn2pTlMc

[theodora1999-blog]

Qualitative Data for Mail Order Bride Marriages

Using the same article as before, “A grounded typology of foreign born spouses in Japan: The motivations behind migration to Japan,” the four authors explore factors that lead to long lasting foreign marriages in Japan. I believe that this source is reliable because the authors include sources they use, and they all include their educational background.

A factor that is mentioned possibly explaining long foreign marriages is the “social and economic necessity” of a woman. Brides who are categorized as “low social and economic necessity” have a higher pressure to marry a Japanese male. Imelda, a bride who was interviewed by the authors, admitted that there were not as many employment opportunities back in her homeland compared to Japan. Imelda confessed that because she needed to support her large family back in the Philippines and her work visa was about to expire, she felt obligated to marry a Japanese man. This is important when considering why the length of mail order bride marriages are so prolonged. Women that come from poor countries and that are considered in the lower division of the social and economic class need visas in order to reside and work in Japan. Therefore, most women saw that in order to attain visas they need to marry a Japanese man and work until their families are financially stabled.

Another factor that potentially allows for a successful marriage is “social and economic opportunity”. In a case for a woman name Xiu, she first entered Japan wanting to attend a Japanese university and earn a master’s degree. By residing in Japan beforehand, brides similar to Xiu are able to assimilate into the culture. They are able to understand the language, have firsthand experiences with the Japanese social life, and are already integrated in their society. This allowed Xiu and other brides to be in successful foreign marriages.

After reading this article, I found it interesting seeing the different motivations as to why mail order brides marry Japanese males. I no longer see females as subordinates to their male counterparts but equal to them. Brides have the power and motivation to earn their own living and not fully depend on their husbands to provide for them.

This image exemplifies a foreign bride that has assimilated herself into the Japanese culture.

Sources:

http://0-journals.sagepub.com.ignacio.usfca.edu/doi/pdf/10.1177/1468796816638401

http://doninjapan.blogspot.com/2005/06/japanese-wedding.html

[theodora1999-blog]

Statistics of Mail Order Bride Relationships

As a recap, I am exploring the successes of mail order bride marriages in Japan between races. Women primarily marry a Japanese man for the same reason, being that it will create more opportunities. This is same reason why a Japanese man is willing to devote his life to a woman he has seen online. It will not give him opportunities but will fulfill his basic needs. But will this be enough to make a marriage last? There are multiple problems that can occur during an international marriage, such as incompatibility, language barriers, and clashing of cultural beliefs. If a person’s needs are not seen worthy enough in an unhappy relationship than that can potentially lead to a divorce.

In the research paper “A grounded typology of foreign-born spouses in Japan: The motivations behind migration to Japan” conducted by Charlie V Morgan, Monica M Trieu, Abigail Stephens, and Reiju Nemoto, they interview a small group of international women in or were married to a Japanese male.

  The interview resulted in surprising data. From the chart, we see that half these marriages last for over 20 years. Dissecting the data, we see that the United States bride has the longest lasting marriage (25+ years) out of all the women. I expected that the success of a mail order bride relationship to not have a long duration, because these marriages have not a romantic foundation but a foundation built of social and economic benefits. I suspect that the success of her lengthy relationship is not only because of her ethnicity but because her of class. Now, I question what other factors in a woman lead to a lasting mail order bride relationship.

Source: http://0-journals.sagepub.com.ignacio.usfca.edu/doi/pdf/10.1177/1468796816638401

[theodora1999-blog]

Mail Order Brides

With the depleting population, the Japanese desperately need to reproduce. The is no need, because a solution has been formulated in hopes to repopulate the island. Mail order brides. Mail order brides is a type of process marriage agencies use that allows single Japanese men to choose a potential spouse to live out the rest of his life with.  Although this may seem like a great idea, this has led to the profiling of women. Men began to become in entice with Russian and Eastern European brides, making them be advertised as “white,” “beautiful,” and “sexual gratification.” Everyone is entitled their own personal preference, of course. Yet, this has shifted the focus of men marrying to reproduce to men marrying for sexual gratification and the status of power. Another example are the Filipina women. The mail order industry has change their status so that they are seen as “reach-able West.” Being seen as “west” connoted to “marrying up.” Japanese men felt urban and successful.

During this semester, I want to explore the influence mail order brides have in Japanese society.  If mail order brides help men find potential partners by profiling women, how successful will their marriages will be? Does the race of the wife relate to how successful a man is, and if so, is there a correlation with how successful a man is to how well a marriage and a family dynamic will work? I also want to explore how biracial couples affect Japanese society.

[theodora1999-blog]

#usf_fys17