The Monstrous-Feminine in Contemporary Japanese Popular Culture (East Asian Popular Culture)

This book explores the monstrous-feminine in Japanese popular culture, produced from the late years of the 1980s through to the new millennium. Raechel Dumas examines the role of female monsters in selected works of fiction, __manga__, film, and video games, offering a trans-genre, trans-media analysis of this enduring trope. The book focuses on several iterations of the monstrous-feminine in contemporary Japan: the self-replicating __shōjo__ in horror, monstrous mothers in science fiction, female ghosts and suburban hauntings in cinema, female monsters and public violence in survival horror games, and the rebellious female body in mytho-fiction. Situating the titles examined here amid discourses of crisis that have materialized in contemporary Japan, Dumas illuminates the ambivalent pleasure of the monstrous-feminine as a trope that both articulates anxieties centered on shifting configurations of subjectivity and nationhood, and elaborates novel possibilities for identity negotiation and social formation in a period marked by dramatic change. This Book Explores The Monstrous-feminine In Japanese Popular Culture, Produced From The Late Years Of The 1980s Through To The New Millennium. Raechel Dumas Examines The Role Of Female Monsters In Selected Works Of Fiction, Manga, Film, And Video Games, Offering A Trans-genre, Trans-media Analysis Of This Enduring Trope. The Book Focuses On Several Iterations Of The Monstrous-feminine In Contemporary Japan: The Self-replicating Sh�ojo In Horror, Monstrous Mothers In Science Fiction, Female Ghosts And Suburban Hauntings In Cinema, Female Monsters And Public Violence In Survival Horror Games, And The Rebellious Female Body In Mytho-fiction. Situating The Titles Examined Here Amid Discourses Of Crisis That Have Materialized In Contemporary Japan, Dumas Illuminates The Ambivalent Pleasure Of The Monstrous-feminine As A Trope That Both Articulates Anxieties Centered On Shifting Configurations Of Subjectivity And Nationhood, And Elaborates Novel Possibilities For Identity Negotiation And Social Formation In A Period Marked By Dramatic Change.-- Raechel Dumas. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. "This book explores the monstrous-feminine in Japanese popular culture, produced from the late years of the 1980s through to the new millennium. Raechel Dumas examines the role of female monsters in selected works of fiction, manga, film, and video games, offering a trans-genre, trans-media analysis of this enduring trope. The book focuses on several iterations of the monstrous-feminine in contemporary Japan: the self-replicating shōjo in horror, monstrous mothers in science fiction, female ghosts and suburban hauntings in cinema, female monsters and public violence in survival horror games, and the rebellious female body in mytho-fiction. Situating the titles examined here amid discourses of crisis that have materialized in contemporary Japan, Dumas illuminates the ambivalent pleasure of the monstrous-feminine as a trope that both articulates anxieties centered on shifting configurations of subjectivity and nationhood, and elaborates novel possibilities for identity negotiation and social formation in a period marked by dramatic change."-- Provided by publisher Front Matter ....Pages i-ix Open Wounds: Situating the Monstrous-Feminine in Contemporary Japan (Raechel Dumas)....Pages 1-20 The Girls That Never End: The Infinite Seduction of Tomie and Ring (Raechel Dumas)....Pages 21-56 Xenogenesis: Monstrous Mothers and Evolutionary Horrors in Contemporary Japanese Science Fiction (Raechel Dumas)....Pages 57-87 Faces of Horror, Dances of Death: Female Revenants and Suburban Hauntings in New Millennial Japanese Horror Films (Raechel Dumas)....Pages 89-129 Corrupted Innocence, Sacred Violence, and Gynoid Becomings: The Monstrous-Feminine on the Gaming Scene (Raechel Dumas)....Pages 131-169 Disobedient Bodies, Monstrous Affinities: Reframing Female Defilement in Natsuo Kirino’s The Goddess Chronicle (Raechel Dumas)....Pages 171-206 The End? (Raechel Dumas)....Pages 207-212 Back Matter ....Pages 213-217