Anime from 'Akira' to 'Princess Mononoke': experiencing contemporary Japanese animation

With the popularity of Pokémon still far from waning, Japanese animation, known as anime to its fans, has a firm hold on American pop culture. However, anime is much more than children's cartoons. It runs the gamut from historical epics to sci-fi sexual thrillers. Often dismissed as fanciful entertainment, anime is actually quite adept at portraying important social and cultural issues such as alienation, gender inequality, and teenage angst. This book investigates the ways that anime presents these issues in an in-depth and sophisticated manner, uncovering the identity conflicts, fears over rapid technological advancement, and other key themes present in much of Japanese animation. Cover......Page 1 Contents......Page 6 Acknowledgments......Page 8 PART ONE: INTRODUCTION......Page 10 CHAPTER ONE: Why Anime?......Page 12 CHAPTER TWO: Anime and Local/Global Identity......Page 24 PART TWO: BODY, METAMORPHOSIS, IDENTITY......Page 44 CHAPTER THREE: Akira and Ranma 1/2: The Monstrous Adolescent......Page 48 CHAPTER FOUR: Controlling Bodies: The Body in Pornographic Anime......Page 72 CHAPTER FIVE: Ghosts and Machines: The Technological Body......Page 94 CHAPTER SIX: Doll Parts: Technology and the Body in Ghost in the Shell......Page 112 PART THREE: MAGICAL GIRLS AND FANTASY WORLDS......Page 126 CHAPTER SEVEN: The Enchantment of Estrangement: The Shōjo in the World of Miyazaki Hayao......Page 130 CHAPTER EIGHT: Carnival and Conservatism in Romantic Comedy......Page 148 PART FOUR: REMAKING MASTER NARRATIVES: ANIME CONFRONTS HISTORY......Page 166 CHAPTER NINE: No More Words: Barefoot Gen, Grave of the Fireflies, and “Victim’s History”......Page 170 CHAPTER TEN: Princess Mononoke: Fantasy, the Feminine, and the Myth of “Progress”......Page 184 CHAPTER ELEVEN: Waiting for the End of the World: Apocalyptic Identity......Page 202 CHAPTER TWELVE: Elegies......Page 228 CONCLUSION: A Fragmented Mirror......Page 244 APPENDIX: The Fifth Look: Western Audiences and Japanese Animation......Page 248 Notes......Page 266 Bibliography......Page 300 A......Page 310 C......Page 311 F......Page 312 G......Page 313 J......Page 314 M......Page 315 P......Page 317 S......Page 318 T......Page 319 W......Page 320 With the popularity of Pokémon far from waning, Japanese animation, known as anime to its fans, has a firm hold on American pop culture. However, anime is much more than children's cartoons, running the gamut from historical epics to sci-fi sexual thrillers. Often dismissed as fanciful entertainment, anime is actually quite adept at portraying important social and cultural issues. From teenage alienation in Akira, perhaps the most famous anime film in the United States, to the problems of industrialization and modernity in one of Miyazaki Hayao's masterpieces, Princess Mononoke, anime tackles tough questions that confront individuals and society as a whole.

In this knowing and insightful introduction to anime as a cultural phenomenon, Susan J. Napier goes inside the world of anime to explore how it reflects and colors both Japanese society and our growing global culture. Topics include the apocalyptic visions in Akira, Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, and Neon Genesis Evagelion; gender identity in Ranma 1/2; questions of history and memory in Grave of the Fireflies and Barefoot Gen; feminism in the films of Miyazaki Hayao; and more. Napier also provides an even-handed look at anime's darker side: its frequent displays of pornography and sexual violence in such films as Twin Dolls and La Blue Girl.

Cover 1 Contents 6 Acknowledgments 8 PART ONE: INTRODUCTION 10 CHAPTER ONE: Why Anime? 12 CHAPTER TWO: Anime and Local/Global Identity 24 PART TWO: BODY, METAMORPHOSIS, IDENTITY 44 CHAPTER THREE: Akira and Ranma 1/2: The Monstrous Adolescent 48 CHAPTER FOUR: Controlling Bodies: The Body in Pornographic Anime 72 CHAPTER FIVE: Ghosts and Machines: The Technological Body 94 CHAPTER SIX: Doll Parts: Technology and the Body in Ghost in the Shell 112 PART THREE: MAGICAL GIRLS AND FANTASY WORLDS 126 CHAPTER SEVEN: The Enchantment of Estrangement: The Shōjo in the World of Miyazaki Hayao 130 CHAPTER EIGHT: Carnival and Conservatism in Romantic Comedy 148 PART FOUR: REMAKING MASTER NARRATIVES: ANIME CONFRONTS HISTORY 166 CHAPTER NINE: No More Words: Barefoot Gen, Grave of the Fireflies, and “Victim’s History” 170 CHAPTER TEN: Princess Mononoke: Fantasy, the Feminine, and the Myth of “Progress” 184 CHAPTER ELEVEN: Waiting for the End of the World: Apocalyptic Identity 202 CHAPTER TWELVE: Elegies 228 CONCLUSION: A Fragmented Mirror 244 APPENDIX: The Fifth Look: Western Audiences and Japanese Animation 248 Notes 266 Bibliography 300 Index 310 A 310 B 311 C 311 D 312 E 312 F 312 G 313 H 314 I 314 J 314 K 315 L 315 M 315 N 317 O 317 P 317 R 318 S 318 T 319 U 320 V 320 W 320 With the popularity of Pokemon still far from waning, Japanese animation, known as anime to its fans, has a firm hold on American pop culture. However, anime is much more than children's cartoons. It runs the gamut from historical epics to sci-fi sexual thrillers. Often dismissed as fanciful entertainment, anime is actually quite adept at portraying important social and cultural issues like alienation, gender inequality, and teenage angst. This book investigates the ways that anime presents these issues in an in-depth and sophisticated manner, uncovering the identity conflicts, fears over rapid technological advancement, and other key themes present in much of Japanese animation. Japanese animation runs the gamut from historical epics to sci-fi sexual thrillers, and deals with important social and cultural issues like alienation and gender inequality. This book examines how animé presents these issues THERE ARE MANY ANSWERS to the question that titles this chapter, as the rest of this introduction will demonstrate, but for now it is worth exploring the question itself.