[Fortune-telling and women--contemporary characteristics of fortune-telling in Japanese society].
It is a well-known fact that women almost monopolize the field of fortune-telling in the present Japanese society--fortune-tellers and their customers (or clients) are mostly women. But once we view the relationship between women and fortune-telling in a general way, we can understand that fortune-telling is not necessarily monopolized by women. In other words, if we take for granted only the relationship between the two, we will overlook some sociological questions. Close observation of the relationship in question reveals several phenomena. One of them is 'the feminization of fortune-telling'. The feminization of fortune-telling is the process by which women's interests are channeled into fortune-telling and their monopolization of it. The purpose of this paper is to focus on this phenomenon--the feminization of fortune-telling'. By focusing on this phenomenon and analyzing its process, we can understand not only some aspects of the relationship between women and fortune-telling, but also bring up other questions regarding the image of Japanese women in the modern era.
Taneda
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Department of Human Relations (Sociology), School of Medicine, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Japan, Yahatanishi-ku, Kitakyushu 807-8555, Japan.
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005544:Forecasting; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011287:Prejudice; D011593:Psychology, Social