Sato Fumika

Keio University Press, 2022

Publisher’s website

Professor Sato’s book received the Mariko Bando Foundation’s Women’s Culture Research Award in Japan.

About the book: Are female soldiers a symbol of gender equality?

What kinds of men and women join the military and take charge of war? What kinds of harm and victim relations do they engender?

This book offers a critical examination of the gender order underlying war and the military.

Although the number of female soldiers and their roles have increased worldwide in the 21st century, this phenomenon should not be seen as a sign of gender equality. Female soldiers present a conundrum for feminism, and there are different views on them.

The book discusses changes that have occurred over the past 20 years and examines the roles female soldiers have played and their effects.

One central argument is that a gender perspective is essential for critically examining war and the military. The manipulation of masculinities and femininities promotes militarization and the successful prosecution of war. Additionally, as the military and war depend on women, their experiences must be taken seriously to reveal the androcentric characteristics of war and the military.

The book highlights the importance of asking questions from a gender perspective to critically examine war and the military. This perspective enables us to visualize a landscape that reveals the gender dynamics underlying these structures.

Table of contents

Introduction
Part I. The Sociology of War and the Military from a Gender Perspective
Chapter 1: The Sociology of War and the Military from a Gender Perspective

1. Introduction: Military Sociology and International Relations
2. War, Military, and Gender
3. The Military as a Gendered Institution
4. The “New” Military and Gender
5. The Conundrum of the Female Soldiers
6. Conclusion

Chapter 2: Research on Men (and Masculinities) in War and the Military

1. Introduction
2. Cynthia Enloe and R. Connell as Starting Points
3. Constructing Military Masculinities
4. Masculinities of the “New Military”?
5. Conclusion: Remaining Challenges

Chapter 3: Militarism, Militarization, and Patriarchy

1. Introduction
2. Militarism or Militarization
3. From Militarism to Militarization
4. Militarization and Gender
5. Conclusion: The Ghost of Patriarchy, or the Stakes of the Struggle

Part II: The Conundrum of Female Soldiers
Chapter 4: Difficulties Surrounding Female Soldiers

1. Introduction
2. Sexual Violence/Sexual Harassment
3. Gendered Division of Work
4. Conclusion

Chapter 5: Are Female Soldiers a Symbol of Gender Equality?

1. Introduction
2. When the Military Admits Women
3. Conclusion

Chapter 6: War, the Military, and Feminism

1. Introduction
2. The Gendered “Nation”
3. Feminism and the Military
4. Conclusion

Part III Gender in the Self-Defense Forces
Chapter 7 A Camouflaged Military: Japan’s Self-Defense Forces and Globalized Gender Mainstreaming,

1. Introduction
2. We are different from the Imperial Army: Taking off (the 1950s to the early 1960s)
3. Friendship with you: Cementing the relationship (late 1960s to 1970s)
4. Advanced organization: Expansion (the 1980s and 1990s)
5. We are the peacekeepers: “International contributions” (the 2000s)
6. Conclusion: Lessons from the Camouflage of Japan’s Self-Defense Forces

Chapter 8: The Gendered “Postmodern Military”: Mobilizing Femininity and Masculinity for “New Military”

1. Introduction
2. “Postmodern Military”
3. Comparison with NATO Countries
4. Gendered Discourses on “Postmodern Military”
5. Conclusion

Chapter 9 The “Benevolent” Japan Self-Defense Forces and Their Utilization of Women

1. Introduction
2. The History of Women in the SDF
3. Women’s Roles in National SDF Recruitment Campaigns
4. The Japanese Government’s Active Promotion of Female SDF members
5. The Global Featuring of the “Warrior Princess of Peace”
6. Conclusion

Part IV Gender in the U.S. Military
Chapter 10: Women in the Military in the United States

1. Introduction
2. The “Women in the Military” Conference
3. “Women, Peace, and Security” Conference
4. Conclusion

Chapter 11: Militarized “Equality” and “Diversity”

1. Introduction
2. Struggles for Inclusion in the U.S. Military: Blacks, Women, and LGBT
3. The Realities of “Equality” and “Diversity” in the U.S. Military
4. Conclusion

Part V. War, the Military, and Sexuality
Chapter 12 War, the Military, and Sexuality: Reading “What Soldiers Do”

1. Introduction: Reading “What Soldiers Do”
2. Reactions to “What Soldiers Do”
3. Soldiers and Sexuality: Universality and Particularity
4. Romance, Prostitution, and Rape: Continuity and Discontinuity
5. Conclusion

Chapter 13 War and Sexual Violence: The Legitimacy of Narratives

1. Introduction
2. Constructing Narratives of Sexual Violence
3. The Continuity of Wartime Sexual Relationships
4. Conclusion

Conclusion: For Critical Gender Studies of War and the Military

• Recommendation 1: Creating Spaces of Empowerment
• Recommendation 2: Beyond the Ethics of Care
• Recommendation 3 Beyond the Criticism on “Co-optation”

About the author: Sato Fumika was a HYI Visiting Scholar from 2011-12.