「職場の花」と「スーパーウーマン」の共存と相克

均等法以前の『とらばーゆ』

抄録

    This paper analyzes Travail, Japan’s first job information magazine for women, launched in 1980, focusing on how the ideal images of working women portrayed in the magazine evolved. Targeting primarily women under 30, Travail not only provided job listings but also helped broaden the range of occupational roles perceived as accessible to women. The magazine presented two seemingly contradictory ideals of working women: the “office flower,” representing traditional femininity, and the “superwoman,” symbolizing strength and ambition. In 1984, because of growing public debate over gender equality legislation, Travail underwent a major rebranding called “Jibun Ishin” (“Self-Reformation”). This reformation enhanced the magazine’s Western-inspired aesthetic in its covers, TV commercials, and editorial content, emphasizing the ideal of the empowered, self-actualized working woman. Although these two images-the “superwoman” and the “office flower”-carried inherent tensions, they coexisted, offering readers aspirational yet realistic role models to choose for career transitions and professional growth.