2. Is anime a high or low cultural medium, according to Susan Napier (2005) and what are some of its subgenres?
As stated by Napier (2005), the nature of providing cultural value to any given text is often immensely mercurial – with factors such as time period, audience demographics and social-economic context all affecting whether various genres are considered ‘high’ or ‘low’ culture. With this in mind, Napier provides an argument as to why by the subjective standards of the time, many anime works could be considered high culture – with their ability to address complex sociological themes, expand upon cultural traditions and engage a wide range of audiences. While anime operates like any other medium in the sense that there is a wide variety of quality and complexity which is present within the genre, Napier suggests that specific texts provide similar thematic depth and cultural reflection to that of anime’s more traditional counterparts such as Manga, woodblock printing and live-action film.
Unlike western animation, which has only just recently managed to begin diversifying away from children’s entertainment and adult comedy, with shows such as Bojack Horseman and Midnight Gospel starting to explore mature themes of addiction, depression and mental health (Chow, 2019), Japanese animation has managed for some time to tell mixed stories in a wide range of mature and immature genres. Sci-fi, fantasy, horror, medieval drama, mystery and romance are among some of the narrative types which are present within anime, many of which are consumed by a wide range of demographics, from children to the elderly. This diversity in subgenre enables a diversity in theme which aids in anime’s ability to be considered a ‘high’ cultural medium. Anime is also intrinsically tied to, and informed by previous high cultural Japanese traditions. Japan has a rich pictographic tradition between the ancient woodblock printing responsible, and the deeply visual literature of manga which borrows from this earlier tradition. Anime’s art style is heavily inspired by these historical movements, and the narratives depicted are often directly borrowed from manga series, especially in televised anime shows which are more capable of depicting the content dense narratives of the manga they are adapting. This intrinsic link to Japan’s cultural heritage, according to Napier (2005) adds a further layer of legitimacy to anime as a high cultural medium.
Finally, Napier highlights that thematic complexity, which reflects, subverts and enhances Japanese cultural understandings is often presented within Anime movies and series using three major thematic modes which their creators use to construct meaning. The first mode is that of Apocalypse. In many apocalypse anime, society has experienced some form of collapse – whether it be via physical or ideological destruction – and a main cast of characters must attempt to traverse the world that is left behind. This mode is most frequently used as a vehicle to explore Japanese social anxieties regarding the decay of traditional values, the growing destructive scope of technology and environmental degradation. Katsuhiro Otomo’s 1988 anime Akira embodies this mode in a number of significant ways. Akira’s cyberpunk dystopia depicts a world where an apocalypse which caused mass death has facilitated the birth of a new society which lacks significant care for family and community and emphasises unrestrained individualism and greed. The multiple cataclysms that occur within the film are very much an analogy for the atomic bombings that decimated Nagasaki and Hiroshima, as well as a reflection of Japan’s newfound fear of rapid and irresponsible technological advancement. Similarly, the ideological apocalypse that has occurred within the world of Akira reflects the post-war anxiety that such widespread destruction, which tore many families apart, had dealt irreparable damage to the country’s entrenched social values (Schley, 2018). As represented here, the mode of apocalypse is capable of expressing complicated social understandings and exploring broad questions of human nature and cultural trauma. The second mode identified by Napier, carnival, is more so an expression of frustration at the current restrictive status quo, and a cathartic escape from these norms. In carnival, the absurd is embraced and traditional roles, which are often quite restrictive in japan, are reversed and upturned, if only momentarily, celebrating the taboo and unconventional. Finally, the mode Napier describes as elegy evokes a sense of loss and tragedy, where texts explore the impermanence of many of life’s pleasures, the loss of innocence, the lasting impacts of trauma and the passage of time – concepts core to the human experience. These modes, used together within Japan’s anime scene, have constructed a rich thematic tapestry which has facilitated impactful cultural discourse throughout both Japan and much of the globalised world. With this in mind, it can hardly be argued that anime doesn’t constitute a high cultural medium, if such a category should exist.
Napier, S. (2005). Why anime? In Anime: from Akira to Howl’s Moving Castle (pp.3-34). Hampshire: Palgrave/ Macmillan.
Chow, A. (2019). Adult Animation Is Pushing New Boundaries. A Look Inside Its Evolution from The Simpsons to BoJack Horseman. Time. https://time.com/5752400/adult-animation-golden-age/
Schley, M. (2018). ‘Akira’: Looking back at the future. The Japan Times. https://features.japantimes.co.jp/akira-new/
Pop Genres 2020 