Wake up to domestic violence!
from mainichi Daily News, by Dr. Kunio Kitamura
Gender disorder, domestic violence, love triangles -- "Last Friends," a drama series currently showing on Fuji TV, has got it all. But there's something about Masami Nagasawa's performance in the lead female role of Michiru, a young woman caught in a trap of domestic violence that she can't escape, that has got this old man fired up.
warning: spoilers up to episode 5
I'd say this show is probably attracting decent ratings. What I'm worried about, though, is that the show may well be giving young people watching it the wrong idea about what domestic violence really is. Michiru is repeatedly subjected to violence from her boyfriend, Sosuke, played by Ryo Nishikido. She's thrown onto beds, her face hurt and she is attacked so violently the bruises remain on her arms. But immediately after unleashing this violence, Sosuke suddenly becomes all gentle with Michiru, as though he were playing with her mind.
"Michiru, I also want you close by me," he says one time, while on another instance he tells her: "I'll kill myself, Michiru, if you don't come home." These are phrases aimed at touching the woman's heart. But they're also a typical pattern perpetrators of domestic violence carry out, not that Sosuke realizes this. When Sosuke persistently calls Michiru's mobile phone, she hardens her heart, telling herself she can't be led around by him, but then she gets anxious when he doesn't call. It's the kind of scene commonly seen in many relationships.
During the show's past five episodes, some of Sosuke's violent actions came to mind.
[cut. please refer to the full article for the list (no need if you've watched the first 5 eps. if you haven't, there are spoilers)]
Any behavior or actions that threaten or hurt another to get them to obey your wishes is domestic violence. Nonetheless, despite being subjected to such violence, when Michiru sees a soaked Sosuke who has been lying in wait for her, she greets him with a hug, thanks him for waiting for her and then sends him home by taxi, acts I find almost unbelievable considering what she's been through. It really seems Michiru is caught in a trap she can't get out of, just like a fly in a spider's web.
A Cabinet Office survey showed that one in five Japanese women in their 20s has been subjected to domestic violence from a date partner. Women should not be like Michiru and think that they're partly to blame for domestic violence they have been subjected to. I think it's probably better for these women to take a calm, close look at the situation in which they find themselves. From my field of expertise, I regard those who refuse to be cooperative when it comes to using birth control, or taking steps to prevent contraction of sexually transmitted diseases, as also guilty of domestic violence. Of course, there are also men subjected to abuse from women, but this old man simply finds it impossible that love can exist when violence is around.
(By Dr. Kunio Kitamura, special to the Mainichi)
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Kunio Kitamura (born 1951) is an author and researcher. He graduated from Jichi Medical School and through his 30 years of research, is now the "voice of Japanese sexuality." Among his many books are Shiawase no Sex (Happy Sex), Piru (The Pill) and Karada no Hon (The Body Book).
[source: wikipedia.org]
Gender disorder, domestic violence, love triangles -- "Last Friends," a drama series currently showing on Fuji TV, has got it all. But there's something about Masami Nagasawa's performance in the lead female role of Michiru, a young woman caught in a trap of domestic violence that she can't escape, that has got this old man fired up.
warning: spoilers up to episode 5
I'd say this show is probably attracting decent ratings. What I'm worried about, though, is that the show may well be giving young people watching it the wrong idea about what domestic violence really is. Michiru is repeatedly subjected to violence from her boyfriend, Sosuke, played by Ryo Nishikido. She's thrown onto beds, her face hurt and she is attacked so violently the bruises remain on her arms. But immediately after unleashing this violence, Sosuke suddenly becomes all gentle with Michiru, as though he were playing with her mind.
"Michiru, I also want you close by me," he says one time, while on another instance he tells her: "I'll kill myself, Michiru, if you don't come home." These are phrases aimed at touching the woman's heart. But they're also a typical pattern perpetrators of domestic violence carry out, not that Sosuke realizes this. When Sosuke persistently calls Michiru's mobile phone, she hardens her heart, telling herself she can't be led around by him, but then she gets anxious when he doesn't call. It's the kind of scene commonly seen in many relationships.
During the show's past five episodes, some of Sosuke's violent actions came to mind.
[cut. please refer to the full article for the list (no need if you've watched the first 5 eps. if you haven't, there are spoilers)]
Any behavior or actions that threaten or hurt another to get them to obey your wishes is domestic violence. Nonetheless, despite being subjected to such violence, when Michiru sees a soaked Sosuke who has been lying in wait for her, she greets him with a hug, thanks him for waiting for her and then sends him home by taxi, acts I find almost unbelievable considering what she's been through. It really seems Michiru is caught in a trap she can't get out of, just like a fly in a spider's web.
A Cabinet Office survey showed that one in five Japanese women in their 20s has been subjected to domestic violence from a date partner. Women should not be like Michiru and think that they're partly to blame for domestic violence they have been subjected to. I think it's probably better for these women to take a calm, close look at the situation in which they find themselves. From my field of expertise, I regard those who refuse to be cooperative when it comes to using birth control, or taking steps to prevent contraction of sexually transmitted diseases, as also guilty of domestic violence. Of course, there are also men subjected to abuse from women, but this old man simply finds it impossible that love can exist when violence is around.
(By Dr. Kunio Kitamura, special to the Mainichi)
------
Kunio Kitamura (born 1951) is an author and researcher. He graduated from Jichi Medical School and through his 30 years of research, is now the "voice of Japanese sexuality." Among his many books are Shiawase no Sex (Happy Sex), Piru (The Pill) and Karada no Hon (The Body Book).
[source: wikipedia.org]