Social norms in Japanese history (Connecting to recently read Memoirs of a Geisha)

I have recently finished reading the book Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden. I began reading the book over Christmas break, having no idea that I would be reading Snow Flower and the Secret Fan for this class. However, reading the two side by side has proved most enjoyable, but also quite sadly disturbing. Although the two books were set in different times of the 20th century, there are social constructs and norms that are brought up and featured prominently in both plots. The majority of these sadly revolve around the lack of free will and choice that these women possessed. What I focused on the most was the connection between the arranged marriages in Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, and the lack of ability to choose "clients" (for lack of a better word) in Memoirs of a Geisha. I feel that these two themes coincide directly each other.

On a personal level, it was troubling to read about these women who had very little choice in their own lives and the goings on within. Although I realize that we still have far to go in women's equality, I feel somewhat blessed to be born into a society and time where I am able to (for the most part) make my own choices and decisions regarding how I wish to carry out my life. I possess freedoms and liberties that these women could never imagine in their arranged marriages and troubling careers of performance. But also, rather than imagining how these women would feel in my place and what great and powerful things they would have the freedom to do in my position, I feel that it is necessary and important to also sit back and think about what we women (and three men :P) would do if we were to be in their positions of social constriction. How would we react to being told who we are to spend the rest of our lives with, and being reminded that we shouldn't bother fighting it because we have no choice in the matter? How would we react to growing up having our feet repeatedly broken so the bones could grow back into a smaller form, appearing more beautiful to the strictly trained eye of society? These questions, and many more wafted through my mind as I read these books side by side, appreciated my tea and social freedoms with every page.

~ EM