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 MangaLife: Why We're Living It Written by Liz Reed What makes manga so special and distinct from any other type of comic book and cartoon in the world? Why do Western audiences love that a character has blue hair, pink eyes, and a mouth half the size of his/her face? What drives people all over the world to gather at conventions dressed like their favorite characters, complete with ten-foot swords and spiked wigs?  In the coming weeks, I hope to analyze why we love manga and what actually makes manga… well, “manga.” While it’s all a very subjective topic, I hope to look at the “essence” of the art form, both Eastern and Western, broken down into the different components of a whole: Culture, Art, Characters, Plot and Dialogue, and Tone/Mood. While this may (hopefully not painfully) remind you of high school English class, in any literature analysis you must look at all the pieces of the puzzle if you wish to understand what makes manga a worldwide phenomenon. It isn’t just one component, but rather, the way each gear turns to get the machine in motion. Many of these gears may overlap, but all in all, you can’t really go forward without one or the other.I mean, if Goku or Usagi didn’t have their memorable one-liners and the ditzy personalities behind all their power, would Dragon Ball Z or Sailor Moon have become two of the most popular series in the history of anime/manga? But what do culture, art, character, plot and dialogue, and tone/mood mean? How about I introduce “Culture,” as it’s the first component I’m eager to analyze in the world of manga. Using the all-knowing Wikipedia, we find that culture stems from the Latin colere, which means “to cultivate.” Wikipedia lists the following as definitions: • Excellence of taste in the fine arts and humanities, also known as high culture. • An integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behavior that depends upon the capacity for symbolic thought and social learning. • The set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution, organization or group. Now, recognizing culture as an element of manga, I believe we can use a combination of all three definitions to understand it better. For the first, Japanese manga has collectively preserved the history of the country in pre-World War II (pre-Meiji) and post-WWII (Meiji). Manga reflects high society, wartime society, children’s society, popular society etc., etc. While many may not consider manga itself a fine art, it’s hard to argue that the stories and characters behind the art have influenced Broadway plays, feature length films, and even actual novels that gain national attention and awards. For the second and third definitions, Japanese manga embodies cultural customs, relationships, values, and landscapes that enchant readers worldwide. This demonstration of tradition and principles entices me as a reader, and I know I can’t be alone. It’s exciting and fresh… it’s exotic.  Sailor uniforms, Tokyo Tower, Christmas as a “romantic” holiday, the honorifics san, sama, chan, etc., and the offbeat cultural jokes are only a few traits I can begin to think about when I envision manga. I love learning about Japanese culture and school life when I pick up a new title—it’s much more striking and romantic than the American lifestyle I’ve always known. To me, the relationships and romance of shoujo manga is more intense and intriguing than that of American TV shows like Gossip Girlbecause of the cultural differences. The reserved, I-must-protect-her-virtue nature of shoujo bishounen characters are much more chivalrous and charming than the hormone-crazed teenagers America is known for.But how does this all play into the growing popularity of Amerimanga (Original English-language manga, commonly used to describe comic books or graphic novels in the "international manga" genre of comics whose language of original publication is English), Korean manhwa, Chinese manhua, French la nouvelle manga, etc.? Let’s explore further in “Culture,” the first in the series of features in which I hope to discover the relationship of Eastern and Western manga, how this dynamic may impact the future, and if Japanese manga is truly an irreplaceable form. You can find more of Liz's work at her site, Japanization. Share |
21 July 2010 14 July 2010 13 July 2010
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