スクリプトは事前提出されたものですので、ビデオの音声とは異なる場合があります。

My Ideal Family

Muroya Chisa(Kagoshima National College of Technology)

Who does the housework at your house? I can imagine your answer easily. Your mother does. Right? Both my father and my mother have full-time jobs and are very busy, but only my mother does housework. Both of my parents return home from work feeling exhausted after a long day. My mother begins cooking and my father lies down on the sofa to watch TV. After supper my mother clears the table and my father never helps her. My younger sister follows my father's example and does not help my mother. My mother is tired after work and I am the only family member who gives her a helping hand. We are all family members but we do not share the work equally. Every time I saw this happen, I felt sorry for my mother and angry at my father and sister.

Traditionally in Japan, fathers worked outside, while mothers stayed at home doing housework and taking care of children. Since mothers didn't work outside and had enough time to do all the housework, the family was well balanced and functioned smoothly. But mothers in Japan soon started working, just like in western countries and the burden of housework became much more difficult. The family situation has changed and family members must understand working-mother's hardships and adapt to the new family situation.

The Japanese government finally made up its mind to take on the job. In 1986 the Equal Employment Opportunity Law was enforced. Additionally, in 1999 the Basic Law on Gender Equality was promulgated. Various approaches were carried out to better women's working conditions. When the Japanese government enforced these laws, many organizations held symposiums on this problem. Since I will work in the society and get married in the future, I became interested in attending one of them the other day. All the panelists said a husband's attitude was the key to solve this problem and that he should reconsider the present situation and help his wife do housework.

But do you think it's only the husband that solves this problem? I don't think so. It's a problem for all the members of the family. The status of family members should basically be the same regarding housework. The most important thing is that only one member of the family should not have to bear the burden for the whole family. When a father is busy, a mother should help him, and vice versa. When both are busy, children should help them. We should share housework depending on who has time to do it. There are many chores in housework, from difficult to easy, so even a small child can help. Even when one member has a problem, we should share the responsibility of housework. Housework is not work only for a mother, but for every member of the family. In Japan it is still believed that housework is only for a mother and she bears too much burden in the family. All the members should share housework equally. This is my ideal family. What do you think of my idea?

I often talk about my ideal family with male students, but they seem to be uninterested in it. So I haven' t found my ideal boy student who is going to be my husband yet. As soon as I finish my speech, I have to work hard to carry out my plan. What I have to do first is find my future husband and have him understand my idea. Boy students, do you agree with me? If yes, why not try to be my husband to make an ideal family with me?