PRESENTING: ANOTHER ANIME ESSAY BY THE DEMONIC ONE

From Educated Scientists to Playboy Bunnies: The Role of Women in Anime

To this date, I have been an anime fan for approximately 6 years. "Anime" is a term the Japanese have adapted from the French, to describe all forms of animation. North America in turn, has adapted the term to represent the Japanese style of animation which is quite unique. Therefore, as anime is very reflective of Japanese culture, this essay will not only explore the representation of women in anime, but that of Japanese society as well. Due to some of the cruder forms of anime (Hentai/Ecchi --soft/hard-core anime porn) distributed in mainstream North America, many anime women have been stereotyped at the same level as Hugh Hefner�s Playboy Bunnies. In fact it is common to see even a children�s character such as Sailor Moon�s Usagi/Serena sporting the Playboy Bunny costume of the tight bodysuit, complete with bunny ears, in the manga (comic) form of this popular TV show. If a North American child were to pick this up, on the premise it was about their favourite character, they would have no way of knowing that the costume is a play on Serena�s Japanese name Usagi, which means rabbit. In this essay, I plan to dispel the myth that this ill representation stems from the idea that Japanese women are more oppressed than their North American counterparts. I will combat this view of women in anime, by citing examples which show women in a positive light, both within the animated features and in the industry itself.

One of the largest misconceptions of Japanese society is the notion that women are largely oppressed in comparison to their western counterparts. This is due to the fact that Japan is a highly gendered country in which men and women lead very different lives. They often attend separate schools, engage in different pursuits, and even their language "reinforces gender differences and a patriarchal power structure" (Levi 135). As a result, they become highly divided, and feel a higher degree of comfort with same-sex rather than their female counterparts. By contrast, interaction with the opposite sex is common in the west. This doesn�t mean that Japanese women are not necessarily any more oppressed than contemporary Western women, but they aren�t necessarily any less oppressed either. They are simply oppressed in different ways (Levi 117). Take the role of a housewife for example: in Japan, she is the driving force of the family, as she controls the family budget, keeps her husband on a strict allowance, determines most major purchases and has the majority voice in how her children are reared and educated. "Under some circumstances, they not only keep their own names but also bestow it on their husbands and children" (Levi 117). Most American housewives would never even dream of asking for the same kind of power their Japanese counterparts take for granted. Women with careers and families are increasingly common in Japan, but it is generally preferred that "careers are for single, childless women" (Levi 121). This is common in science fiction anime, where the assumption lies that gender equality is part of progress. Career mothers; however, are popular in anime comedies because their lives don�t give them the time to bring about order in the household like a traditional mother. "They themselves become figures of fun" (Levi 120).

The portrayal of strong believable women in anime is linked to contemporary Japanese religions and secular traditions. Women have far more dominant roles in religions/secular traditions than their Western counterparts ever did, whether they be rulers or Shinto priestesses known as mikos. Western gods, heroes, and other idols , by comparison, remain predominantly male (Levi 116). This is evident in long-time American archetypes such as Superman and Batman who continue to enjoy their huge popularity. The representation of the spirit world -- namely religion, in anime/manga provides a way for Japanese female deities/mediums to enjoy the same kind of fame their Western counterparts do. An example of one of these is the Taoist goddess Benten. She is the goddess of beauty, fertility, romance, and the womanly arts, and has been known to save children and sailors from less benevolent dragons (Levi 57). She has also been known to help star-crossed lovers. In anime, Benten has made several appearances including a "biker babe, sporting a variety of leather bikinis and hung with chains" --Urusei Yatsura, (Levi 57) a sexy Chinese martial artist (Monlon, from the first Ranma 1/2 movie), and even as a beautiful male transvestite police officer (CyberCity Oedo).
The Shinto priestess (miko) is also a common character to emerge in this category. Prior to the 1930�s, they were oracles who danced themselves into a trance, then spoke with the voices of gods, but they were banned by militarists on the grounds that they made Japan look foolish and superstitious (Levi 125). Since the end of World War II, they have made a comeback dancing at Shinto festivals, and occasionally performing important rituals. The uniform of a Shinto priestess consists of a white kimono-like top and red hakama (divided skirt pants). Therefore, unbeknown to several of the North American children watching Sailor Moon, Sailor Mars (Rei/Raye) was actually a Shinto priestess. To those familiar with Japanese history/religions this was evident as she lived with her grandfather in a Shinto shrine (the entrance is marked by distinctive gates called toori), practiced fire purification rituals, and carried spirit wards. As Sailor Mars, most of her attacks were fire based, and had connotations of fire purifying the soul, such as her "Burning Mantra" attack. These were all changed for the English version, as even I admit, the English used hardly made sense. The fact remains that her character is a Shinto priestess, and although I do not like the show, she is one of the most emotionally/physically strong characters.
Another anime involving Shintoism that has taken Japan (and even North American otaku--anime fans) by storm is Fushigi Yuugi (Mysterious Play). The show involves two girls who travel to another dimension via an old magical book. Early on their journey, they become separated (one of the girls is teleported back to their world, and the other is left to fend for herself). When they are at last reunited (in the world of the book) one has become the another�s antagonist, as a traumatic event has befallen her. Shintoism is involved because each girl is asked to be the respective miko of the animal god of these two countries at war. Although in this case the depiction of Shintoism leans more towards the fantasy than the reality, the characterization of the girls is quite accurate of contemporary Japanese life. They represent the traditional Japanese junior high students, preparing to enter highschool. Their dreams and hopes for the future are uncertain at most, and their forthcoming entrance into highschool marks another chapter in their lives in which they will have to grow up a little more. The world of the book provides an escapism from this pending reality, and lets them remain as children a little while longer, as they know upon their return, their highschool entrance exams await. Surprisingly, this manga/anime, which is classified as shoujo (girl�s comics) in Japan, is actually very popular among North American male otaku. As was mentioned earlier, since Japan is a very gender specific country, even comics are divided into different categories, although both men and women are likely to read either. When I attended the Anime North convention last year, a few older (roughly early to late 20�s) men were even dressed as some of Fushigi Yuugi�s male characters. As Fushigi Yuugi is shoujo manga, the males are portrayed as idealistic partners rather than a realistic portrayal of men. The women by contrast (shoujo is usually written for women by women) are portrayed pretty realistically. Miaka, the heroine of the story, is whiny, somewhat annoying, can�t do much of anything for herself, and in the traditional aspects of Japanese culture, can�t cook or do much of what is expected of a traditional housewife, including take a strong leadership role. Despite her faults however, one can say that she definitely tries to do her best when confronted with adverse conditions. Within seconds of being teleported into the book, her and her friend Yui are about to be raped/attacked by unsavory characters. Never one to give up, Miaka challenges them and fends them off using what she learned from TV! Of course this only temporarily works, and Miaka and Yui end up being saved by Miaka�s future love interest, Tamahome. Most female North American fans of FY (Fushigi Yuugi) despise Miaka because despite all her faults she attracts the love of several handsome men. When she agrees to become Suzaku no Miko (her miko title), Tamahome and 6 others become her Suzaku Seishi (soldiers/protectors), and 3 out of the 6 fall in love with her. When I asked one of my male friends what her appeal is, he had responded "She�s giving, caring, kind, self-sacrificing, never gives up, and is a true friend." What I gathered from his response, was that Fushigi Yuugi has given him a hidden insight into how women think and react. The men on the other hand, are something out of a fantasy. For instance, Miaka�s older brother Keisuke is one of the most unreal characters I have witnessed in anime history. Although he cannot do anything to get his little sister out of the book, he nonetheless can follow her exploits by reading the book, which he has found in the local public library. Several times, Keisuke reads about the love of several male characters unfold between them and his sister. Not only that, he reads about them kissing her (sometimes while she�s naked), without even batting an eyelash. When things go horribly wrong between her and Tamahome because she is almost raped by the antagonist Nakago, all he says is: "Oh no!" and starts crying as if he truly feels her pain. The empathy he shows and the lengths he goes to save her are more representative of a best friend, rather than an older brother. It is an ideal which is not present in most North American households. In fact, if Keisuke�s situation were to be shown on North American TV, he would probably fly into a violent rage at the things being done to his sister, in an effort to prove his manliness. Despite the seemingly backward portrayal of Miaka as a woman of contemporary Japanese society, she actually rebels against the norm as there are many traditional expectations she cannot fulfill such as preparing a good meal for her family, although she loves to eat. "In theory, a miko should be a virgin and remain aloof from such everyday cares as washing the dishes and preparing meals, to say nothing of bearing and raising children" (Levi 127). Although physically, she is not as strong as her male protectors and bears no magical powers, she manages to remain focused throughout her journey, and in fact unexpectedly rescues them several times. In short, the characterization of Miaka is a unique blend of contemporary and traditional Japanese culture.

Returning to the idea of the spirit world allowing for intelligent, strong women to emerge in anime, "Tenkuu no Escaflowne" -- Escaflowne of the Heavens/The Vision of Escaflowne as it is also known, greatly manifests this idea. Two of the reasons for Escaflowne�s success are: the storyline which is an excellent blending of shounen and shoujo elements, namely through the usage of mecha (gigantic robots) combined with large doses of romanticism especially in the love triangles formed by the main characters. Secondly, Escaflowne boasts character and mecha designs which are acceptable to both sexes (Pelletier and Ouellette 18). The characters seem to be inspired by shoujo manga through their large expressive eyes "(eyes) are used to convey a character�s feelings" (Levi 12) and shoujo manga effects such as rose petals floating around a character to indicate "love in bloom" (Levi 12). "As for the mecha, their uniqueness and �knight in shining armor� feel make them quite acceptable to female viewers" (Pelletier and Ouellette 18). The title character, Hitomi, is a young tomboyish psychic, who not only is a star athlete in her highschool, but an intelligent, caring person as well. To fulfill the shoujo manga character designs, she does indeed have large expressive eyes, but sports a modern boy-cut, rather than the long hair most traditional heroines sport. An interesting fact about her characteristics, was prior to her characterization in the anime, she was portrayed very differently in the shounen (boys) manga (prior to the anime, a shoujo manga of Escaflowne was non-existent). In the manga, she sported traditional long hair and was a frumpy bookworm who also wore glasses. In most anime, women who wear glasses are deemed as frumpy nerds, with the exception of Sonic Soldier Borgman�s Memory Geen, who is a very confident stylish, beautiful, cybernetics expert (Munson-Siter 43). In order to use her psychic powers, Hitomi underwent a drastic physical change, where she became a scantily-clad, big breasted warrior. In the anime, however, this element was taken out, and Hitomi�s powers came by naturally. Also, in the manga she was insecure, and unsure of herself as an individual, and stayed under the protection of her true love, the boorish Van.
In the anime, both Van and Hitomi�s personalities were given a major facelift, as they became three-dimensional characters. Hitomi was charming and winsome, but unsure of herself as a woman, mainly in the matters of love. For the most part, she was optimistic and cheerful, but possessed a temper and experienced streaks of jealousy towards another prominent character. She didn�t even realize she loved Van until the very last episode of the series. Van on the other hand still remained short tempered, aggressive and reckless, but it was somewhat understandable as he witnesses the destruction of his kingdom (he is the 15 yr. old king of Fanelia) and his mentor (both of his parents have passed away prior) in the second episode. For the remainder of the series, he fell deeply in love with Hitomi, but was full of self-doubt, so he had trouble articulating his feelings towards her (Pelletier and Ouellette 20-21). The tension between Hitomi and Van is articulated in the first episode, when Hitomi saves him from being slaughtered by a dragon, and he as gratitude, he tells her that it wasn�t because of her that he was able to slay the dragon. If she really wants a reward, come to his kingdom, and he will arrange it. Hitomi responds by slapping his face, and calling him an idiot (Tenkuu no Escaflowne episode 1).
As the producers of the anime decided to give Escaflowne a whole new look from the manga, certain characters were also revamped to fit the shoujo manga criteria. For instance, in the original shounen manga, most of the female characters prominent in the anime, were mere decorations. An example of one of these is the Princess Millerna, who was practically non-existent in the manga except as Allen Schezar (a dashing swordsman)�s love interest. In the anime, her role was changed to a princess who has studied to be a doctor, and therefore very valuable to the team. Although the royal family is against her studies, she ignores them and pursues her dreams anyway. As a result, she saves Allen from the brink of death, but sacrifices her love for him and marries another man in order provide financial and political stability for her family. Although this is seemingly a traditional Japanese action for the ambitious Millerna to take, in the end her self-sacrifice is well rewarded, as Dryden (the man she marries) willingly lets her go, as he knows she truly loves Allen. He tells her that they should only remain together if their love is true, and he will learn how to be a better man so she will come to him willingly. In truth, Dryden is a wonderfully respectful, charming, character where as Allen is a playboy with an illegitimate child, but to each his/her own. Actually, Millerna and Allen make no promises to marry each other, but she says that she will wait for him to return from war.

1996 (the year Escaflowne was produced) started a trend of great animes being produced, chockfull of strong prominent women, who did not only rely on their sex appeal. Fushigi Yuugi (mentioned earlier) was also produced in this year, as well as the blockbuster hit Neon Genesis Evangelion which showcased women of regular proportions in intelligent roles such as a scientist, two robot pilots, and a military major. As the reviewer of Escaflowne article stated, "Evangelion had stared the trend of the mecha show that could please both male and female viewers and Escaflowne simply followed the trend" (Pelletier and Ouellette 18). 1996 also produced my personal favourite show, Rurouni Kenshin.
Rurouni Kenshin moves away from the idea that most strong anime women come out of the "spiritual world" genre, and brings them into the historical drama. This is really interesting, as Japanese women suffered severe oppression in the 19th century, which is when Rurouni Kenshin takes place. Rurouni Kenshin takes place roughly 1878 Japan, about 10 years into the Meiji Restoration (sort of like the Industrial Revolution of Japan). The title character, Himura Kenshin, is a wandering vagabond, who helped bring about the Meiji era during the Bakumatsu period (the war fought between the Bakufu and the Ishin Shishi over 10 years before) (Ouellette 27). Unlike Escaflowne, Rurouni Kenshin�s producers have followed the shounen manga extremely closely, as author Nobuhiro Watsuki has written a great work that blends shounen and shoujo elements together, so it is not surprising that Rurouni Kenshin has a large following of both sexes. Also Rurouni Kenshin, both in its TV and manga forms is stacked to the brim with good, strong female role models, who possess no special powers other than their minds. For instance, Kamiya Kaoru, Kenshin�s future love interest, is already the master of a budo (Japanese swordsmanship) dojo, at the tender age of 17. In her first appearance, she is somewhat tomboyish, as she is out to get a man who is slandering her deceased father�s name; however, she still retains her femininity, with an intelligent air about her. Kaoru also embodies the Japanese career woman persona, as she is the bread winner of her new found family, comprising of Kenshin and her student Yahiko. There is also a reversal of roles in Rurouni Kenshin, as Kenshin (the male) takes care of most of the traditional housewife duties, such as cooking, cleaning, and even baby-sitting the local neighbor�s grandchildren. Kaoru is not a very good cook, so she usually leaves it to Kenshin. She earns their money by teaching budo to the local schools around her area. She used to have students of her own, other than Yahiko, but they left her when her school was the subject of slander by an ex-student of her father�s. Kaoru is also described as "Kenshin�s anchor to sanity when things get crazy around him" (Ouellette 29).
Another character which provides good role models for Japanese women is Takani Megumi, a 21 year old doctor, who is one of the best in Japan (Ouellette 29). Her family was renowned for their practice of medicine (they studied Western medicine as well as Japanese) but they died an untimely death, and Megumi was left to fend for herself. Although she originally got off on the wrong start, (she was manufacturing opium for a corrupt organization), the Kenshin-gumi (group; basically everyone Kenshin hangs around with) came to her rescue, and helped her get started in the right places. They got her a job working with Dr. Genzai, the local doctor. Like Escaflowne�s Millerna, Megumi is also a valuable member of the Kenshin-gumi. Upon her first appearance, she saved Yahiko from dying from opium poisoning, and she has treated the wounds of Kenshin enough times in the duration of the show. Megumi has also been faced with oppression, as in one episode, a couple with a sickly daughter would rather trust a placebo given by a male priest, rather than her sound advice, but she is a strong woman, and continues to practice medicine, despite what those around her think. Other strong female characters who have made an appearance in Rurouni Kenshin, are the young ninja leaders Makimachi Misao (who later becomes a main character) and Musanagi Suwa, traditional former courtesan Komagata Yumi, Sea pirate and boss of many cutthroats, Shura, restaurant owner Tae, Marimo the Flying Bullet Girl, as well as many more. Each of their appearances have been very believable, and their characteristics have been for the most part independent and strong. Sometimes (though not always) these women have been faced with oppression, but in all cases, each of them have emerged a winner, in their own hearts.
An interesting fact about Kenshin�s character design, is that he looks rather womanly. He is rather short (158 cm) and skinny, and sports a head of long red hair. His attire is supposed to be a red kimono-like top with white hakama, but the colouring of his shirt actually looks closer to pink. Nobuhiro Watsuki says he didn�t mean for him to turn out so feminine, but he wanted to bring out a sensitivity in Kenshin, that was not present in his original character design. In fact, in his original design, Kenshin was a rather manly looking character, with smaller eyes and dark hair. When he was commissioned by Shounen Jump (a weekly comic anthology) to turn Kenshin into a weekly serial, he changed the design into a short effeminate kind of man with large soulful eyes. The enlargement of Kenshin�s eyes was in my opinion, a pretty good idea, because whenever Kenshin must fight, they narrow into small little slits, and his speech patterns become slightly rougher. As I mentioned before, eyes tell the current nature of a person in anime/manga, and when Kenshin�s eyes are narrowed, a hint of yellow is coloured into them in the anime, to show his rage. Further more, in the anime he is played by a woman (Suzokaze Mayo) who is also a famous musical artist.
It is common for a woman to play the role of a man in anime, and some of these voice actresses even achieve super-stardom, such as Ogata Megumi, best known for her role as Kurama in Yu Yu Hakusho. Actually, before Suzokaze Mayo landed the role of Kenshin, she had actually been an actress in several Japanese TV drama. Another one of these voice actresses who has done extremely well is Takayama Minami who played the role of the antagonist Dilandau in Escaflowne. Currently she fronts the music band TWO-MIX, of which she is also a song and music writer. She has also been enjoying success as the title character in the anime Detective Boy Conan. Not only seiyuu (voice actors) are offered a stronger degree of freedom within the confines of the anime industry. Some of the greatest anime/manga writers are female. An example of one of these is the famous Rumiko Takahashi (creator of Ranma 1/2 and Ursei Yatsura) who has enjoyed immense popularity for close to 20 years now. There are no restrictions to what a female artist can do in the world of anime and manga.

As anime progresses towards the millennium, stronger females continue to emerge both as characters, voice actors (seiyuu), and artists. Though there are still sexist representations of women as busty-scantily-clad-butt-kickers, they are slowly but surely being overrun by their intelligent well proportioned female counterparts. Even male manga artists such as Nobuhiro Watsuki are beginning write/design female characters in storylines where they feel no urge to bare it all, it has turned out to be a recipe for success, as Rurouni Kenshin has a massive following of otaku, both in North America and Japan. As long as others take hint and follow suit, the future of women in this genre is definitely looking upwards.

Bibliography

1. Levi, Antonia Samurai From Outer Space: Understanding Japanese Animation. Illinois, 1998

2. Munson-Siter, Patricia A. "Sonic Soldier Borgman TV Series". Protoculture Addicts 52, (1998) pp. 41-47

3. Ouellette, Martin "Rurouni Kenshin" Protoculture Addicts 52 (1998), pp. 27-40

4. Pelletier, Claude J. and Martin Ouellette "The Vision of Escaflowne" Protoculture Addicts 43 (1997), pp. 18-36

Click on the banner to return to my world!!