Abstract
This study investigates the meanings of the term familism by evaluating the discourses of intellectuals in the Meiji-Taisho era. Firstly, this study shows the modern character of familism by clarifying the fact that familism was praised by critics of feudalistic ideas and societies or those longing for charitable works. Secondly, examining the opposition between ‘family and home,’ this paper shows that the ideal of home as a longing for democracy was paradoxical. Finally, based on these historical analyses, I reconsider the relation between familism and democracy from the point of view of ‘passion.’ Thus, this study provides suggestions for a contemporary problem of family studies.
