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Daily Life: Rural
 The Lives of Rural Women
In comparison to upper class and urban women, rural women of the Edo (1615-867 A.D.) and Meiji (1868-1912 A.D.) periods had relatively more freedom. Although they were subject to strict Confucian values, the rise of commercialization and advancements in agricultural technology lead to more equality between the sexes in rural areas. In rice fields, women worked along side men planting, weeding, and harvesting the crops. Some believed that women were even better suited for this because their smaller hands allowed them to work more quickly and easily. In the mountainous regions, women would climb steep mountains to return with a large load of wood for winter fires on her back. Young girls and older women would also work in the tea fields picking the tender leaves in large baskets. Silk production was almost entirely in the hands of women. They would care for the worms and cocoons, the spinning of silk, and the weaving of cloth. This duty was perhaps the centerpiece of a woman's labor. Many women were expected to spin, weave, and sew cloth for their family.
As demand in urban centers grew for housemaids and servants to care for the newly affluent middle class, rural women traveled from their villages to the city centers of Edo and Osaka in search of work. Although away from their family, the pay was rewarding. By the 18th century a woman's wage was half of a man's, and by the early 19th century it was in some places two-thirds of a man's wages. Rural women played an important role in their society, taking part in labor both in and outside the home. Whether they were planting rice, raising silk worms, or working in cities, these women represent a part of Japanese culture less bound to the strict rules of the social customs during their time.
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