Week 5 Question

What is the ‘shōjo’ and how does it often function in anime?

The “Shojo” is a popular Japanese term that translates into “girl or maiden” (Dollase, 2003). The term is often related to that of a young female character within both anime and manga and is aimed primarily at an audience of younger females. The Shojo is often portrayed in romanticised art styles with flowery language and feminine outlooks to attract the attention of young girls. 

The shojo first became popular throughout the late 19th century through manga and magazines that most Japanese girls would read (Thorn, 2001). Often, the shojo is depicted as the protagonist and heroine in the story, and many famous anime films created by the famous Studio Ghibli such as Spirited Away, Nausicaa, and Princess Mononoke show this character perfectly. Within anime, the shojo functions through the character of a girl, typically pre-teen, that embarks on otherworldly adventures to complete tasks that save either themselves or their entourage of friends, families, and people (Mountfort, 2020). Spirited Away stands as a perfectly famous anime film that represents the shojo because, through its wackiness, a young girl by the name of Chihiro must save herself and her parents from a curse by working within the realm of spirits in a typical Japanese bathhouse. Within the early stages, the shojo was presented originally through manga and became increasingly popular, not just because it empowered females, but because it showed a different style of setting and artistic style through friendship and quite commonly love (Prough, 2010). 

Dollase (2003), includes an example of the shojo through the famous Hanamonogatari book and explains that the stories are made particularly for school girls that wish to neglect expectations around them and focus on appreciating their ‘girlhoods’ for longer. Dollase (2003), also uses the words of others to bring in the idea that many stories that use the idea of the shojo are often a symbolic jail for girls to hide from freedom, and also seek safety and protection from the outside world that takes advantage of them. Young girls are deprived and frequently turn to their inner selves for discovery.

References

Dollase, H. T. (2003). Early twentieth-century Japanese girls’ magazine stories: examining shojo voice in Hanamonogatari (Flower tales). Journal of Popular Culture, 36(4), 724.

Mountfort, P. (2020). ENGL602 Pop Genres 2020 Week 5 Anime Part 2 [PowerPoint Slides]. Blackboard. https://blackboard.aut.ac.nz/

Prough, J. (2010). Shojo manga in Japan and abroad. Manga: An anthology of global and cultural perspectives, 93-106.Thorn, M. (2001). Shōjo Manga—Something for Girls. Japan Quarterly, 48(3), 43-50.

Thorn, M. (2001). Shōjo Manga—Something for Girls. Japan Quarterly, 48(3), 43-50.