The Gaze and Gendered Bodies in Anime Visual Culture

Assessement 01 | JAN 2021

THE GAZE UNIVERSITY OF WEST LONDON BA (Hons) (VISUAL COMMUNICATION & ILLUSTRATION) IDEAS & PERSPECTIVE AD50174E

IN ANIME VISUAL CULTURE IMAAN RAZA 21406150 3137 WORDS

GENDERD BODIES - FOR WHAT GAZE? THE MALE GAZE THE FEMALE GAZE WHO IS IT INTENED FOR?

Are

Strong

F E MA L E A N I ME C H A R AC T E RS FO R TH E MAL E G AZ E O R THE F EMAL E G AZ E? HT TPS://WORDPRESS.COM/POSTS/IMAANDESIGNS.C WORDPRESS.COM

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CO N T E N T S THE GAZE MAGAZINE - ISSUE 01

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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

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INTRODUCTION

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THE GENDERED BODIES

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THE MALE GAZE

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THE FEMALE GAZE

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CONCLUSION

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ILLUSTRATIONS

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

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List of Illustrations Figure 1. Keigo Sasaki (2014) Elizabeth Liones, Dimension Variable [Digital Art], A-1 Pictures, Suginami, Tokyo.

Available at: https://nanatsu-no-taizai.fandom.com/wiki/Elizabeth_Liones (Accessed: 27 November 2020) Figure 2. Keigo Sasaki (2014) Meliodas, Dimension Variable , [Digital Art], A-1 Pictures, Suginami, Tokyo Available at: https://nanatsu-no-taizai.fandom.com/wiki/Meliodas (Accessed: 27 November 2020) Figure 3. Kazuko Tadano (1992) Usagi Tsukino, Dimension Variable , [Digital Art], Toei Animations, Oizumi, Nerima, Tokyo Available at: https://sailormoon.fandom.com/wiki/Usagi_Tsukino_/_Sailor_Moon_(anime) (Accessed: 27 November 2020) Figure 4. Kazuko Tadano (1992) Mamoru Chiba, Dimension Variable [Digital Art], Toei Animations, Oizumi, Nerima, Tokyo. Available at: https://www.pinterest.com/GeniusTheVeil/darienshields-mamoru-chiba/ (Accessed: 27 November 2020) Figure 4. Hiroyuki Okiura (2002) Motoko Kusanagi, Dimension Variable , [Digital Art], Production I.G, Kokubunji, Tokyo Available at: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/655062708272867059/ (Accessed: 27 November 2020) Figure 5. Kazuki Morita (2002) Irina Jelavic, Dimension Variable , [Digital Art], BrainĘźs base, Mitaka, Tokyo.

Available at: https://ansatsukyoshitsu.fandom.com/wiki/Irina_Jelavi%C4%84 (Accessed: 27 November 2020) Figure 6. Kazuki Morita (2002) Karasuma Tadaomi, Dimension Variable , [Digital Art], BrainĘźs base, Mitaka, Tokyo.

Available at: https://ansatsukyoshitsu.fandom.com/wiki/Tadaomi_Karasuma (Accessed: 27 November 2020)

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Introduction

Visual Culture is another side of culture expressed through visual images and it studies a contemporary field that looks into and explains visual images.

A good and most recognisable form of visual culture is the Anime culture, which has a big platform and a very vast field literature and art. Not only is it only available in the art sector, the Anime culture has branched out businesses, graphic design, video games, etc, making it truly versatile. Due to the nature of the Anime culture, the Anime culture is a known to have many with fans and lovers, worldwide.

There are multiple areas that this essay will examine. By areas, I mean by topics this essay will look at as the areas are: • • •

The Gendered Bodies The Male Gaze The Female Gaze

In this essay, I am going to examine the strong female characters/heroes in anime Ghost in The Shell: Stand Alone TV series from the late 1990s, such as, Ghost in a Shell (Ghost Assassination Classroom, 2015), 7 Deadly Complex, 2002), Assassination Classroom (Assassination Sailor Moon, 1992) Sins (7 Deadly Sins, 2014), and Sailor Moon (Sailor This essay will also examine the stereotypical female character in terms of the male gaze and female gaze according to Laura Mulvey (1989) in Visual and Other Pleasures,a typical strong anime female character is portrayed in anime, for example, is sexy, beautiful, perfect – no matter the situation and that she cannot ever be portrayed as tomboy, whereas a typical Shojou anime female character is seen to be a crybaby or a love sick girl and as to why she is portrayed as the object of the male gaze. This essay will also examine if the strong female anime characters fall under the female gaze or the male or in both (male and female) and to explain why is that the case.

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The Gendered Body There are many variations of the female gendered body in the Anime culture. Meek and timid or Strong and beautiful. In the early Twentieth Century, Japan, a majority of Japanese Animators (Cooper. M.L, 2020). portrayed the female characters as meek and timid such as Elizabeth Liones (Figure 1) and Usagi Tsukino (Figure 3) This is because Japan has sided with the idea of male dominance and female submissiveness (Izawa. E, 2000). According to Izawa (2000) ʻJapan has tended toward idealizing male dominance and female submissiveness.ʼ.

Hence, most Japanese anime have favourited the meek and timid female characters over the strong and beautiful characters. Also, the meek and timid female anime characters are commonly portrayed as ʻcry-babiesʼ or ʻoverly obsessedʼ with their male counterparts (Izawa. E, 2000).

A very well-known example of such character traits is Elizabeth Liones from 7 Deadly Sin (Figure 1) (Seven Deadly Sins, 2014)and Usagi Tsukino from Sailor Moon (Figure 3) (Sailor 2014 Moon, 1992) Princess Elizabeth Liones is the female protagonist from the anime 7 Deadly Sins (Seven Deadly (S Sins, 2014), which is a manga adaptation, written by Nakaba Suzuki. Suzuki had portrayed Elizabeth Liones as a calm and caring character towards her subjects, always ready to lend a helping hand to any of those in need. Elizabeth is shown to hold great amount of respect for her male counterpart, Meliodas (Figure 2) (Sir Meliodas, as Elizabeth calls him). Also, Elizabeth is shown to consistently worry for Meliodasʼs (Figure 2) health as she falls in love with him, later into the story. A clear example of this is shown in the 4th episode of 7 Deadly Sins, (7 ( Deadly Sins, 2014) as Elizabeth is worried about Meliodas (Figure 2) as she searches the town for a doctor to treat his wounds. Although, in the series she is shown to emotionally support Meliodas and consistently worry about him, Elizabeth is shown to be often rescued by Meliodas in the 17th episode (7 Deadly Sins, 2014) 2014 it is shown that Elizabeth needs the assistance of Meliodas (Figure 2) and the other sins to rescue her. According to (Izawa, 2000) ʻThe idea is that the woman, no matter how strong and independent they are, are actually looking for someone who they can depend on and who will protect themʼ. This quote implies that no matter the times Elizabeth is shown to suppress her feelings and worries, she still depends on Meliodas (Figure 2) to be there for her and rescue her at the end of the day, this also make Meliodas (Figure 2) keep his gaze on Elizabeth (Figure 1) as Elizabeth is the object of affection for Meliodas (Figure 2).

Another (more typical lovesick anime character) is Usagi (Serena) Tsukino, from the mainstream anime, Sailor Moon (Sailor Moon, 1992), which is another anime, is the manga ad( aptation, written by Naoko Takeuchi. Takeuchi portrayed Usagi as a typical lovesick teenage girl, who is infatuated by any handsome male, before falling in love with her male counterpart, ( Mamoru (Darien Shields) Chiba (Figure 4) (Sailor Moon, 1992) Usagi is shown to be a cry-baby, who is infatuated with the idea of falling love and getting married, which is a typical trait that is commonly found in Shoujo female anime characters. According to (Crawley and Foley and Shehan, 2007 pp.1) ʻWe too commonly assume that social expectations come from bodily needsʼ. This quote implies social expectations can only be met when oneʼs appearance wise meets what society expects out of an individual. This implies to Usagi as she is shown to be very conscious about how she appears in front of her peers and her male counterpart, Mamoru. This relates to the gaze theory because of Usagiʼs (Figure 3) fear of what society would think of her and whereas Usagi (Figure 3) doesnʼt want her counterpart Mamoru Chiba (Figure 4) to think less of her.

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21406150 In contrast to the meek and timid nature of anime female characters, there also is the strong and beautiful anime female characters and heroines. A very well-known example of such characters is Motoko Kusanagi. The main protagonist from the anime, Ghost In The Shell (Ghost in The Shell: Stand Alone Complex, 2002).

Hiroyuki Okiura portrays Motoko as a character, who questions the world rather than herself rather than portrayed in the movie, as shown in the Stand Alone Complex series (Ghost in The Shell: Stand Alone Complex, 2002).

When the appearance of Motoko is taken into consideration, as shown in figure 3, she is shown to look somewhat feminine whereas her curves make her strong, beautiful and sexy. Although, Motokoʼs personality varies from the original anime series, where she is portrayed to be a brooding and thoughtful character. According to Atwood (2018) in the Ghost In The Shell, Stand Alone Complex series, Motoko Kusanagi is shown to dress in a proactive manner (walking around in a tank top and underwear)as this is because Motoko wants to grasp a better understanding of her femininity and humanity. According to Sorra A.R (2019)ʻJapanese science-fiction anime provides a rich literature with which post-human research has been conducted, such as in body representation in the famous anime Ghost In The Shellʼ (Sorra, 2019 pp.6).

This quote indicates that Motoko is portrayed as a strong and beautiful character, which is represented by her anatomy, According to Eco (2004) Motoko Kusanagi is considered to be a strong and beautiful character because of her ʻpowerful physiqueʼ (Eco, 2004 pp.92) and that she is the ʻideals of physical good looksʼ (Eco, 2004 pp.92) Another strong and beautiful anime character, I am about to highlight in this essay, is Irina Jelavich, from anime series, Assassination Classroom (Assassination Classroom, 2015). Irina Jelavich is a character from the anime series, Assassination Classroom as she poses to be the English teacher for class 3-E, but under her teacher disguise, she is a professional hitwoman, who was sent by the government to kill Koro Sensei.

Irina Jelavich is portrayed to be a beautiful and sexy woman, who gives off the typical femme fatale vibes. She is shown be very proactive towards Koro Sensei as her aim is to kill him. According to Mulvey.L (1989)ʻFemale protagonists that are outside the melodrama genre and are central to the narrative action and the plot development bring back the motif of riddles and curiosityʼ. (Mulvey, 1989 pp.12). This quote implies that Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) intentions were not clear to the audience in the beginning of episode 4 (Assassination Assassination Classroom, 2015) as she was shown to be falling all over Koro Sensei, which made the audience believe that she may have liked him despite his appearance, but later on in the episode, when she was talking to Tadaomi Karasuma (Figure 6) makes her intentions very clear that she came to Class 3-E to assassinate Koro Sensei. Although, Irina Jelavich isnʼt the protagonist in the series, she is central to the narrative and the plot development in the series. Also, according Karasuma (Figure 6) who is another character in Assassination classroom, in episode 4, Irina Jelavich is described to Assassination Classroom, 2015) as I believe she is a good be ʻbeautiful, intelligent and athleticʼ (Assassination example of a strong and beautiful character, who is perfect in every situation, who isnʼt porGhost in The Shell, 1995). trayed as a tomboy, unlike Motoko Kusanagi in Ghost In The Shell (Ghost This is because, characters such Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) isnʼt portrayed as a typical Shoujo anime character like Elizabeth Liones (Figure 1) and Usagi Tsukino (Figure 3), who are portrayed as childish or baby-ish. Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) is shown to have the element of danger with her design, a notable factor would be her eyes as they are designed as it is sleek and cat-like, whereas Usagi Tsukino (Figure 3) is shown to have round eyes with sparkles to her a bubbly appearance.

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The Male Gaze

The term ʻMale Gazeʼ refers to how men are the spectators of the gaze as well as the possessiveness they carry in that gaze (Mulvey, L. 1989). According to Mulvey, L (1989)ʻThus the woman as icon, displayed for the gaze and the enjoyment for men,.ʼ (Mulvey, 1989 pp.21).. This directly implies to Elizabeth Liones (Figure 1) and Usagi Tsukino (Figure 3) as they are shown throughout the series to be consistently worried that their male counterparts do not think of them as weak and as Laura Mulvey has quoted ʻevokes the anxiety it originally signifiesʼ as this type of anxiety is shown throughout the series characters such as Elizabeth Liones (Figure 1) and Usagi Tsukino (Figure 3). In Japan this is norm, since the Japanese favour the male dominance and the female submissiveness, but on the other hand, Western culture, such as the American, European and British find this type of attitude pathetic as the western culture favours the strong, independent and beautiful characters more as they have more of an equal footing with their male counter parts (Jacobsson, 1999).

Characters such Elizabeth Liones (Figure 1) and Usagi Tsukino (Figure 3) are best suited for the male gaze. This is because the male gaze favours such characters as they shown to depend/ heavily rely on their male counterparts as this feed onto the male dominance, whereas characters such Motoko Kusanagi and Irina Jelavich evoke fear within the male gaze as they are portrayed to strong and independent characters. This is because, according to (Jacobsson, 1999) ʻAn independent and strong woman, who can be seen as a threat towards men,ʼ this quote implies that men likely prefer the woman to depend on the man for everything, whereas an independent and strong woman is someone to fear as she doesnʼt need male assistance as this also links to (Izawa 2000) quote of male dominance and female submissiveness. This clearly explains why the male gaze appreciates characters such Elizabeth Liones (Figure 1) and Usagi Tsukino (Figure 3). Another example to explain my previous point, ʻMen do not simply look; their gaze carries with it the power of action and possessionʼ (Bower, 1990 pp.127).

Elizabeth Liones (Figure 1) and Usagi Tsukino (Figure 3) can be seen as an object in the male gaze. ʻThe woman is a passive receiver of the gaze and the man is the active spectator of the woman, the one objectifying the womanʼ (Jacobsson, 1999). Characters such Elizabeth Liones (Figure 1) and Usagi Tsukino (Figure 3) are certainly not use to such gaze from their male counter parts as well as the male audience as they become passive around their male counterparts ʻThe woman is presented as the object of the male gaze and is thereby rendered passiveʼ (Jacobsson, 1999), whereas characters such as Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) and Motoko Kusanagi (figure 7) are immune to such gaze and donʼt seem to be faze by it .

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The Female Gaze If there is a male gaze, there is the female gaze, as one looks through the male perspective, the later see visuals through the female perspective. According to (Korsmeyer, 2004) ʻFeminists analysis of aesthetic practices of the past have influenced the production of feminist art of our own times.ʼ(Korsmeyer, C. 2004). This quote implies that the female gaze holds just as much power as the male gaze, if not, more as the female gaze doesnʼt see visuals through stereotypes as it can past through norms of that time as the male gaze would.

The type of gaze (male or female) depends on the spectator of the gaze, such as, the man and the woman. Characters such as Motoko Kusanagi (Figure 4) and Irina Jelavich (Figure 5), who are well suited for the female gaze. This is because Motoko Kusanagi (Figure 4) and Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) are portrayed as strong, beautiful and sexy women, who are always perfect in any situation, appeals to the female gaze more than characters such Elizabeth Liones (Figure 1) and Usagi Tsukino (Figure 3) who portrayed as cry-babies and are constantly dependent on their male counterparts, as this type of attitude was acceptable for women in the past, but not so much for women of today. Although, the character such as Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) is portrayed as a strong and sexy character, she is shown to have moments where she is somewhat dependent on her male counterpart, but that is not the case throughout the whole series. Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) is shown to work independently and as a team, when the situation is requires her to do so. According to Jacobsson (1999) ʻThe masculine does not have to be active and the female passive, although it might seem relevant in social structures of today.ʼ (Jacobsson, M.E. 1999). This quote implies that Irina Jelavich (Figure 5), is more or less the active spectator of the gaze than her male counterpart, Karasuma (Figure 6) (Assassination Classroom, 2015 ).

It can be said that characters such as Motoko Kusanagi (Figure 4) and Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) were designed to for the female gaze. This is because according to Bower (1990) ʻa feminist reading of medusa will reveal that she is the icon of the female gazeʼ (Bower, 1990 pp. 128).

This indicates that characters such as Motoko Kusanagi (Figure 4) and Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) are intended for the female gaze. The characters, Motoko Kusanagi (Figure 4) and Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) hold such an intense gaze, like the mythical gorgon, Medusa. The quote from Medusa and the Female Gaze (1990) ʻThe great irony of Medusa is that she has become the classic example of the female object, though the greatest emphasis in the Medusa myth of the terrifying power of her own gaze.ʼ This indicates that characters such Motoko Kusanagi (Figure 4) and Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) hold a powerful gaze to the male or their male counterparts, that they can be considered as the Anime Medusa, but presented in a much pleasant way rather than how Medusa is typically portrayed.

It can be said that characters such as Motoko Kusanagi (Figure 4) and Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) are designed to entice females as well as the males. This is because according to Gamman and Marshment (1989) ʻThe body of a woman is coded in differing ways, so as to produce particular kinds of pleasureʼ (1989 pp. 103). This quote implies that characters such as Motoko Kusanagi (Figure 4) and Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) were specifically designed not only for the male gaze but for the female gaze. This is because the female gaze wouldnʼt want to see a female anime character consistently depending on her male counterpart (trust me, I wouldnʼt), but they want to see a anime female character make her own decisions, a character who can make stand up for herself and take problems thrown at her, by the horns, whilst looking good doing it.

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Conclusion

In conclusion, after looking into the meek and timid characters and the strong and beautiful characters, the strong and beautiful anime female characters such as Motoko Kusanagi (Figure 7) and Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) are more commonly the icons for the female gaze, as they can be considered as a anime Medusa. This is because a majority of the male gaze would prefer the meek and timid characters such as Elizabeth Liones (Figure 1) and Usagi Tsukino (Figure 3), who heavily depend on their male counterparts for the emotion support, thus feeding into the male ego as they want to possess them and comfort them as it makes the male gaze enjoy the feeling of dominance on such character. Whether we like to admit it or not, this is still a male dominant world, except if you are feminist, who believe so otherwise.

Whereas, characters such as Motoko Kusanagi (Figure 4) and Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) is because the male sees the independent and strong women as a threat, not needing the protection and dominance of the man, thus the woman being the dominant and the male being the submissive. This links back to Jacobsson (1999) A Female Gaze? quote of men feeling threatened by the strong and independent woman, which can also be linked back to Izawa (2000) quote where the Japanese tends to favour the male dominance and female submissiveness. Even when I design my original character, I tend to favour the strong and beautiful characters more over the meek and timid, where my original characters look beautiful, strong and sexy, never being portrayed as a tomboy and that she is always perfect no matter the situation.

Overall, the strong and beautiful characters such as Motoko Kusanagi (Figure 4) and Irina Jelavich (Figure 5) are intended for the female gaze, the same way how Medusa has become the icon for the female gaze, whereas meek and timid characters such as Elizabeth Liones (Figure 1) and Usagi Tsukino (Figure 3) are intended for the male gaze as they have been objectiďŹ ed by the active male spectators, making them out to be passive as they are shown to be heavily depended on the male assurance and protection.

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Illustrations

Figure 1. Keigo Sasaki (2014) Elizabeth Liones, Dimension Variable [Digital Art], A-1 Pictures, Suginami, Tokyo.

Figure 1. Keigo Sasaki (2014) Meliodas, Dimension Variable[Digital Art], A-1 Pictures, Suginami, Tokyo.

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Figure 3. Kazuko Tadano (1992) Usagi Tsukino, Dimen- Figure 4. Kazuko Tadano (1992) Mamoru Chiba, sion Variable , [Digital Art], Toei Animations, Oizumi, Dimension Variable , [Digital Art], Toei Animations, Nerima, Tokyo Oizumi, Nerima, Tokyo

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Figure 5. Kazuki Morita (2002) Irina Jelavic, Dimension Variable , [Digital Art], BrainĘźs base, Mitaka, Tokyo.

Figure 6. Kazuki Morita (2002) Karasuma Tadaomi, Dimension Variable , [Digital Art], BrainĘźs base, Mitaka, Tokyo.

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Figure 7. Hiroyuki Okiura (2002) Motoko Kusanagi, Dimension Variable , [Digital Art], Production I.G, Kokubunji, Tokyo

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Bibliography Mulvey, L. (1989) Visuals and Other Pleasures. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Sorra, A.R. (2019) Post-Gendered Bodies and Relational Gender in Knights of Sidonia.

Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/341161036 (Accessed at: 21 November 2020) Funimation Global Group, LLC (2017) Funimation (Version 3.1) [Mobile App] (Accessed at: 21 November 2020) Korsmeyer, C. (2004) Feminist Aesthetics. Available at: https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/feminism-aesthetics/ (Accessed at: 21 November 2020) Bower, R.S. (1990) Medusa and the Female Gaze. (Vol. 2) The Johns Hopkins University Press Jacobsson, M.E. (1999) A Female Gaze?. Available at: http://cid.nada.kth.se/pdf/ cid_51.pdf (Accessed at: 21 November 2020) Gamman, L. and Marshment, M. (1989) Female Gaze: Woman as Viewers of Popular Culture. Real Comet Press.

Izawa, E. (2000) Gender and Gender relations in Manga and Anime. Available at: https://www.mit.edu/~rei/manga-gender.html (Accessed at: 21 November 2020) Baker, A. (2015) Cosplay: A Second Identity. Available at: https://www.teenink.com/ hot_topics/all/article/793577/Cosplay-A-Second-Identity (Accessed at: 21 November 2020) ONE and Murata, Y. ʻPunch 61: Dark Horseʼ (2017). One-Punch Man. (Vol. 11) 7 March, pp. 151.

Assassination Classroom (2015) Funimation, 6 February. Available at: Funimation Global Group, LLC. (Accessed at: 21 November 2020) Ghost In The Shell (1995) Funimation, 8 December. Available at: Funimation Global Group, LLC. (Accessed at: 21 November 2020) Atwood, K (2018) Major Motoko Kusanagi: A ʻGhost In The Shellʼ Character Analysis. Available at: https://reelrundown.com/animation/Major-Motoko-Kusanagi-A-Ghost-in-the-Shell-Character-Analysis (Accessed at: 26 November 2020) Vanessa (2019) Japanese Anime Culture. Available at: https://tokyotreat.com/news/ japanese-anime-culture (Accessed at: 28 December 2020) Umberto, E. (2004) On Beauty: A History of a Western Idea. Maclehose Press

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Imaan Raza 21406150 Assessement 01 22nd January 2021 3121 words University of West London BA (Hons) Graphic Design - Visual Communication & Illustration Ideas & Perspective AD50174E