'Women in an extraordinary time': the transnational network and educational spaces of the Canadian Eiwa Girls' mission schools in 1920s and 1930s Japan

Thesis

The Tōyō Eiwa Jogakkō, Shizuoka Eiwa Jogakkō, and Yamanashi Eiwa Jogakkō girls’ mission schools were founded by the Woman’s Missionary Society of the Methodist Church of Canada (from 1925 the United Church of Canada) in the 1880s in Tokyo, Shizuoka, and Kōfu, Japan respectively. The students, graduates, missionaries, and Japanese educators of these three institutions were physically and intellectually part of a transnational network of Christian women and organizations in 1920s and 1930s Japan. The community these inter-generational and non-diplomatic Eiwa actors built, the communication and exchange students undertook, and the mobility of graduates transcended state boundaries of Japan, Canada, and beyond. By exploring individuals and activities of these three girls’ schools and the network they constructed in the pre-WWII period, this thesis expands our understanding of educational and intellectual life in 1930s Japan. Through network development, physical and intellectual spatial construction, and curriculum and activity design, these historical actors reached outside their institutions to actively connect themselves and their peers with the wider world. In the 1930s, this appears to have been conducted with a sense of urgency. Ultimately, these schools survived a tense and nationalistic period of world history to operate into the present day. By shifting the lens from male educators to little-known women including students, and from missionaries to include Japanese actors, this study shows within these spaces mutual exchange and communication across national borders, international education, and discussions on and activities related to world peace took place throughout the 1930s. These actors envisioned Christianity, women, youth, education, and mutual exchange across state and East-West divides as able to foster understanding between individuals of different nations. This thesis thus looks to Eiwa women and youth in their roles as graduates, educators, and students to demonstrate a dynamic understanding of 1930s Japanese educational and intellectual life.

Authors: Dugal, A

• DOI: 10.5287/ora-8njrxeg9z
• Type of award: DPhil
• Level of award: Doctoral
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford
• Language: English
• Keywords: Japan; women's history; Japanese history; transnational history; history of education; mission schools
• Subjects: History