The aim of the program. Before World War II, the Japanese family was generally an extended one, in which several generations lived together in the same household. At the centre, the father—breadwinner—dominated. His authority was unquestionable, his power absolute, and his word final. Fathers of that period are often depicted as tyrants. Yet even the most tyrannical was conscious of his responsibility to provide for his family and protect them from hardship. And in this drama, we discover something of the affection and dedication which once a patriarch’s discipline. It is 1940, just before the outbreak of the was in the Pacific. Kyoko’s father, head of a regional branch of an insurance company is transferred to Tokyo. He is an upright man, a man who has worked his way from office boy to branch head, and he is proud of his honesty and sobriety. From the start, he works hard to provide for his family in their new circumstances. Aside from Kyoko, he is responsible for his wife a son, two other daughters, and his mother, all of whom live together. Always well-meaning, the father’s words are not always followed up by action. But his wife, kind and loyal, holds everything together with an admirable cheerfulness. It is she who must bear the consequences of her husband’s errors.