Beyond Conventional Intimacy: Rethinking the Boundaries of Intimate Connection in Contemporary JapanŠtular, Kiri (Avtor) Kravanja, Boštjan (Mentor) Bértolo, José Luís Magusteiro (Komentor) Japanintimacyrelationalitycommercial sexual labourposthumanismageing societyThis thesis explores how intimacy is being reinterpreted in Japan as conventional forms of intimacy associated with marriage and family formation become increasingly difficult to maintain, contributing to an ageing demographic. It first examines the structural conditions shaping individuals’ decisions to remain single, avoid long-term relationships, and choose not to start families. Having established the social and structural context contributing to the decline in conventional forms of intimacy, the thesis then examines relationality within commercial sexual labour, demonstrating how intimacy can be purchased and repackaged through both physical and emotional labour. Finally, it explores posthuman, technological and fiction-mediated forms of relationality, arguing that intimacy can be further reimagined and may evolve, challenging conventional understandings of authentic intimate connection as exclusively human.20262026-09-20 07:21:46Magistrsko delo/naloga188302sl