“My pussy is worth $600. Now that's pretty
flattering.” This is the comment of Miss Alice
Yamada’s friend, who has been doing enjo-kosai.
Enjo-kosai is known as the phenomenon that teen-age
girls receive money from middle-aged men in return for dating
with them. The definition of “dating” in this context
varies from just chatting with them at cafe, to having
intercourse, and some of the girls even cheat them out of their
money. Miss Yamada has not involved in enjo-kosai, but
she has some friends who have gone through all the way and are
still doing enjo-kosai as a part-time job. Miss
Yamada says that she does not have much money compared to her
friends who carry beepers and cellular phones to call up their
‘papa’, but she claims that enjo-kosai
is not the right way to earn money and that she is hoping
her friends will stop. Miss Yamada has analyzed the factors
causing teenagers to enter such a business. She blames the media
in Japan, and then the adults in Japan. Also, she describes how
her friends feel about enjo-kosai.
To build upon Yamada’s analysis, we need to understand
that there are many types of enjo-kosai. Likewise, the
purpose for doing enjo-kosai also differs from girl to
another. Some girls use enjo-kosai as a tool for
solving their problems, while others use it just to earn more
pocket money. Unfortunately, when we talk about
enjo-kosai, we tend to have a stereotype of these girls
that allows for nothing but superficial criticism. Although the
teenage girls involved in enjo-kosai have been
generalized as uneducated people degrading Japanese society,
their decision-making shows these girls have grown tough in order
to make their ideal life come true.
“To be a teenage in Japan is to lead an expensive
life,” Miss Yamada rightly observes, and hence we see that
first main reason for enjo-kosai: the need that many
girls have to lead a “normal life.” The media
accelerates the ‘necessity’ for teenagers to look and
dress like the actors and singers on television” (Yamada).
Although we may not lack essentials in our life, we tend to want
more and more and understand this as normal. For example,
although we cannot afford to buy expensive brand bags, we feel
that we should have them―otherwise, our lives seem less
than normal. Miss Yamada blames the media for this problem, and I
believe she is right to do so. When we look at magazines for
teen-age girls, they always have special pages for brand products
such as bags, accessories, etceteras, and they often feature
brand clothing that some popular models are wearing. Likewise, on
television, we see many advertisements on cosmetics. In Japan,
the media has such a great impact on our life that even our way
of thinking can be easily changed by the media.
The media contributes to the problem because it does not offer
a balanced treatment of news items. For example, when we think
about the construction of nuclear power plant, the media focuses
on the danger of nuclear and local people there, but they rarely
recommend the merits of nuclear power. After watching the
program, viewers are likely to oppose the construction, but their
opinions might be changed if the media explains our situation
[that Japan lacks natural resources and we need something to
substitute] and the merits of nuclear power. By using effective
outline and popular stars, the media has succeeded in raising a
rating. Especially, teen-agers are easily influenced by the
media. They have always wanted something new and cool, and they
try to dress up and look like the famous stars, which is
accelerating their necessity.
As for the second factor, Miss Yamada points out the adults in
Japan. According to Miss Yamada, “Japan is experiencing a
degeneration of morals and ethics after the entire nation had
devoted itself to becoming a strong economic power. Children were
left to fend for themselves because the adults were too busy
making money and as a result, the teenagers now are living lives
as they please.” Traditionally, ideal roles for men and
women in Japan were that men are to work to support a family
financially and women are expected to stay at home to do
housework and take care of the children. In the 1980s, at the
stage of economic growth, many women started to have a job
outside, likewise, the equality of men and women has been an
issue since then. However, many mothers still do not have a job
and stay home. It is true that some adults were so into making
money that they do not have time to care about their
children.
Furthermore, we can notice that the bond of family in every
household in Japan is not as strong as before not because the
parents are too busy, but because the family does not care about
each other. As well, the awareness of parents toward children is
changing. Many parents tend to feel secure when they give their
children enough pocket money. In fact, most of the teen-agers who
have been doing enjo-kosai are from decent families.
Some of them are doing it to get more pocket money, but some of
them have confessed that they are doing it because they want to
escape from family where there is a discord. Since their parents
do not accept them, they look for somebody else to accept
them.
As we can see, a lack of communication in family might be one
factor causing enjo-kosai. As for the third
factor, let us talk about the awareness of teen-agers who are
involved in enjo-kosai. Miss Yamada claims,
“The reality is that prostitution in Japan is no longer a
secret and sometimes even very casual.” Her friends
actually use prostitution as a “part-time job” and
spend the money they make as if the money was made by another
[normal] part-time job. Some of the girls do not feel guilty at
all, and their boyfriends will not try to stop them because they
believe it a kind of “trend”. Some of them are even
proud of making money by their own rather than just receiving
pocket money from their parents. To these girls, morals or ethics
do not seem to matter. What is most important to them is whether
they can follow the trend or not, and whether they can be
independent from their parents or not.
As I discussed above, the media and the adults in Japan, and
also the awareness of teen-agers are the three main factors
causing enjo-kosai. However, one point we should notice
is that teenagers involved in these activities are not always
uneducated. Some of them actually go to one of the best schools
in Japan. Before it seemed that only uneducated people do
prostitution to survive, but it is different today’s
society in Japan. There are many types of enjo-kosai and
many reasons for doing it. According to Yukiko Hayami, a
journalist who has written books about psychology of teenagers,
the standard which to decide teenagers’ behavior is not
quite simple, and what is “safe” [meaning acceptable]
and what is “out” [meaning not cool] depend on their
own feelings and their pride but not on moral values (17). In
fact, through researches and interviews done by some sociologists
and psychologists, it has become clear that many teen-agers doing
enjo-kosai have their own policy. The following is the
answers given by the teen-age girls involved in
enjo-kosai:
- *S, a girl in the first year of girls’ high
school
- receives money when she lets middle-aged men touch her body,
but she never goes on to intercourse. She also takes part in
shoplifting and she doesn’t feel guilty at all.
- *A, a girl in the second year of metropolitan high
school
- has an intercourse every time. When she receives money, she
considers the money to be very “precious” since those
money came from the men’s earnings. Hence she never wastes
her money and never takes part in shoplifting.
- *G, a girl in the first year of private high school,
confesses
- “Among us [her friends], we look down on those girls
who prostitute themselves. Earning money by cheating them is OK,
but prostituting ourselves is stupid” (qtd. in Hayami 18;
trans. mine).
Here, some of their policies were introduced.
Then I would like to examine some reasons that cause
enjo-kosai. As I discussed above, the media in
Japan has brought about materialism in our society. The more one
has, the more one wants; materialism creates more greed. It seems
that some teen-age girls involved in enjo-kosai simply
want to have ‘average’ or ‘ideal’ high
school lives. The author Setsuko Inoue criticizes this and
claims, “We lost the most important thing to find value in
something invisible, like love.” Although her comment is
understandable, it is not easy to change our society immediately.
Through this materialism, we need to learn how to control our
greed, but making money to satisfy our greed is one way. Teen-age
girls involved in enjo-kosai earn money themselves
to buy what they want, and they do not give troubles to their
parents financially. They might be actually reasonable and
independent.
In addition to the comments made by teen-age girls, researches
by Shinji Miyadai, one of the famous sociologists in Japan,
indicate that the motive which girls want to eliminate themselves
leads them to enjo-kosai, this is one case and the
percentage of this case is higher than that of the case when
girls do enjo-kosai to satisfy their greed discussed in
the previous two paragraphs (Miyadai 283). In other wards, the
girls who want to create their ‘own place’ in order
to escape from the reality tend to take part in
enjo-kosai. A girl who had an interview with Ms.
Hayami does enjo-kosai because she doesn’t have
her own place at home where her father decides everything.
Another girl started enjo-kosai to heal her pain
from a broken heart. Because of these reasons, the discord within
the family, too much interference by parents, teenagers are
likely to look for acceptance and find this from middle-aged
men.
In considering this issue, we too often have a certain
stereotype of these girls: uneducated and ignorant of their
actions. However, many of the teenagers who are involved in
enjo-kosai are educated. On the contrary what has
been too often said, some of the girls involved actually go to
the best schools and they use enjo-kosai as a tool
of solving their problems. Whatever those problems are, they go
out and try to divert their minds in stead of just shutting
themselves in. They know how to cope with their problems and are
strong enough to live their lives. Still, many people might think
that enjo-kosai is not the right way for solving
problems. The reason might be like this: there should be other
alternatives, so the girls have to value themselves. But in fact,
it is the girls concerned who decide whether they are going to
value themselves or not. Mr. Muyadai explains, “The term,
the right to decide oneself, is defined as the right which the
person can decide something though one is put at a disadvantage
as a result, unless one does not give trouble to anyone”
(252).
Today, many teenagers have their own sense of value for
decision-making about sex. They know what they are doing, and
they are responsible for their results. The decision-making for
sex is a very private matter that neither parents nor others
should interfere with. After the Tokyo Metropolitan Government
adapted a new law to penalize adults who buy sexual relations
from teenagers, Metropolitan government spokesman Toshihiro
Nakazawa has commented: “Considering that restricting
teenagers’ sexual activity is a very sensitive and private
issue that might violate their human rights, the ordinance aims
to penalize adults who buy sexual relations”
(“Violators”). However, it is clear that police will
have difficulty in proving if teenagers received money or
valuables, and the adult knew the girl was a minor. Likewise, it
will be hard for the law to penalize adults if both the adult and
the teen-age girl want their relationship and try to hide it.
Although the law has an effect, there is a great possibility of
affairs secretly taking place. Indeed, restricting these
girls’ behavior is beyond our power.
Teen-agers in today’s society in Japan have a great
power. They create fads, they actively go for what they want, and
they seem very positive. Sometimes we get perplexed at their
behaviors, but I’m often impressed with their mental
energy. They take actions when they long to do something without
asking for help to their parents. Although we tend to blame those
girls doing enjo-kosai, they have various reasons and
their own value of decision-making about sex. Through this time
of dynamic changes, these girls are trying to adapt themselves to
it. Instead of just criticizing them, we need to make an effort
to understand them and accept them.
by Kaoru Fuijiwara
Works Cited
Bartholett, Jeffrey. “Japan’s schoolgirls go out of control.”
Manila Bulletin
http://www.mb.com.ph/DEC/19db11a.html (7 May
1998).
Hayami, Yukiko. “The girls who choose to do
enjo-kosai (trans. mine).” Original theory of
self decision-making for sex. (trans. mine). 17‐31
Miyadai, Shinji., et al., Original theory of self
decision-making for sex (trans. mine). Tokyo: Books
Kinokuniya, 1998.
Miyadai, Shinji. “Original theory of self
decision-making: Freedom and dignity (trans. mine).”
Original theory of self decision-making for sex (trans.
mine). 252‐283
“Violators may be jailed: New metro law bans adult sex
with minors.” The Japan Times 10 Oct.1997. http://www.ishius.com/tokyolaw.html (9 June
1998).
Yamada, Alice. “Teenage Prostitution in Japan.
http://www.tricoll.edu/~tj/tj02.06.97/articles/inter.html
(9 June 1998).
