Gender equality in Asia has long been an interesting yet challenging study conducted by many researchers. Japan, a developed and prosperous country, also has a rich history of female-led gender revolution. Regarding the changing roles of Japanese women in family and society discussed by many researchers, this essay analyzes and compares traditional and modern Japanese women through two popular cultural texts: the television drama Oshin (1983-1984) and the talk show “ Culture change in Japan” (2007) of the Everywoman program of AIJazeera English. Traditional Japanese women have long been considered submissive, dedicated, and loyal to their families. They endured miserable lives in silence as their fate, but still maintained perseverance and resilience. The Japanese television drama Oshin, broadcast in Japan in 1983-1984 and broadcast overseas since 1984, details those traditional characteristics through the struggling life of a girl named Oshin from the age of seven until the age of eighty-three years. She was sold twice by her poor father to work as a babysitter. Her childhood was filled with housework and abuse from her employers. In this part of the drama, her father seemed to be unsentimental when he sends Oshin away many times to work as a maid even though she was only seven years old. Oshin's mother loved her but could not oppose her husband. Then, when Oshin grew up and married a person of a different social class without the approval of his stepfamily, he suffered persecution from his evil mother-in-law. One of Oshin's scripts to her husband goes like this: “Every single day I work until I become too exhausted to speak… I am poorly nourished but I endure in silence as I am told that every wife must bear her lot…” (Mulhern, 1994) As she m...... middle of paper ......succeed. The television drama Oshin reflects the miserable lives of traditional Japanese women in three historical periods and to a certain extent highlights the evolution of women in achieving justice and success. In contrast, Everywoman's talk show “Culture change in Japan” examines the new trends of young women's delaying marriage and middle-aged women's choice of divorce in modern society. Through these two examples of popular culture texts and the references of many researchers on the topic, this essay analyzes and compares the changing roles of Japanese women in the family and society from the past to the present. Nowadays, most Japanese women have gained equality and respect from society and are no longer submissive to their husbands. It is important for Japanese women and men to understand their equal roles and maintain this peaceful gender relationship.