In a lot of ways, Japan is a “men’s paradise” where males are able to enjoy certain benefits that would probably be hard to find in the States, even beyond receiving Valentine’s Day chocolate from females on February 14. For example, sometimes when we’re having a family argument about something, my wife will tell the kids, “Everyone stop arguing. Your father has spoken, and we’ll all do what he says because his word is law in this house.” I have to say, it’s kind of nice: like living in the Father-knows-best 1950s, but with high speed Internet. But although I may be the daikoku-bashira or the “big black pillar” that holds up the family, I’m more than happy to follow the standard Japanese custom of allowing my wife to control the family finances, including managing our savings, planning for long-term goals, and so on. This is accepted as joshiki (common sense) in Japan, that women are better at managing money.
I’ve done this for so long, though, that I don’t know if it sounds odd to people not living here. Is it really rare for the wife to handle the family’s financial situation?
My wife is smarter than me, so I don’t mind letting her handle our daily finances.
