Robo Sapiens Japanicus: Robots, Gender, Family, and the Japanese Nation

"I think when people think about Japan today or its future they often associate the country with robots. In a way, that is true. My Japanese parents gave toy robots to my sons for their birthdays! But this book shows some of the ironic, paradoxical consequences of the creation and use of robots in Japan. The robot kind of symbolises the future of Japan, but actually these robots often rely on and reinforce old ideas, with female robots doing domestic work. The vision of a better future with these robots is almost nostalgic. More and more people own, for instance, a vacuuming robot, although they are not in the shape of a person. But that’s the optimistic vision for robots—you know, house cleaning, vacuuming. The idea there is to help women, so they don’t have to spend a lot of time cleaning. It doesn’t mean that, because of the robot, men do more housework. That just helps women by reducing what they do. Robots don’t have to have a gender, robots can be just robots, but Robertson shows that most of the robots are gendered. Those ‘female’ robots mirror what is feminine in Japanese society. Robots don’t have a sex like a human, but with the robot she is discussing in this book, they are given a gender. Physically, female robots are more curved in their constructions, have cute eyes, and male robots are created as more robust. Female robots are used for places where care is important, such as information centres and they can greet and welcome visitors. It exhibits a femininity in its duty of care. It’s not a threat to the visitors! Even for robots, which can be totally a reflection of fantasy and beyond our imagination, physical construction and their gendered roles mirror those of humans. There are ‘male’ robots, but what is often seen as natural is that female robots do care-related work. Yes, in family and in society. The main idea is that the robot is often associated with the idea of the future and liberation from old ideas. But, actually, the robot also relies on and reproduces old ideas about gender and the family."