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[[File:Nat Wolff - Writers - 7978537723.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|Actor [[Nat Wolff]] portrayed Light Turner, a white American depiction of the racially ambiguous [[Light Yagami]], in the [[Death Note (2017 film)|2017 film adaptation]] of the ''[[Death Note]]'' manga]] |
[[File:Nat Wolff - Writers - 7978537723.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|Actor [[Nat Wolff]] portrayed Light Turner, a white American depiction of the racially ambiguous [[Light Yagami]], in the [[Death Note (2017 film)|2017 film adaptation]] of the ''[[Death Note]]'' manga]] |
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'''''Mukokuseki''''' (Japanese: {{lang|ja|無国籍}}, translated as "statelessness" or "nationlessness") is a [[Japanese language|Japanese]] term describing fictional characters in [[visual media]] (primarily [[anime]] and [[manga]]) who are depicted without a concrete [[ethnicity]] or nationality.<ref name=Gruyter>Kato, Hiloko and Bauer, René. "[https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783839453452-006/html?lang=en Mukokuseki and the Narrative Mechanics in Japanese Games]". Narrative Mechanics: Strategies and Meanings in Games and Real Life, edited by Beat Suter, René Bauer and Mela Kocher, Bielefeld: transcript Verlag, via [[De Gruyter]], 2021, pp. 113-150. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783839453452-006</ref><ref name=CBR>Altiok, Revna. "[https://www.cbr.com/mukokuseki-no-nationality-importance-in-anime/ What Is Mukokuseki in Anime – And Why Is It Important?]" from ''[[Comic Book Resources]]'', 24 June 2022.</ref> It is thought to be particularly significant in the context of foreign influences on Japanese entertainment properties as well as the subsequent marketing of such properties towards non-Japanese audiences.<ref name=Cute>Bîrlea, Oana-Maria. “Soft Power: ’Cute Culture’, a Persuasive Strategy in Japanese Advertising.” TRAMES: A Journal of the Humanities & Social Sciences, vol. 27, no. 3, July 2023, pp. 311–24. EBSCOhost via [[WP:The Wikipedia Library|Wikipedia Library]], https://doi.org/10.3176/tr.2023.3.07.</ref> |
'''''Mukokuseki''''' (Japanese: {{lang|ja|無国籍}}, translated as "statelessness" or "nationlessness") is a [[Japanese language|Japanese]] term describing fictional characters in [[visual media]] (primarily [[anime]] and [[manga]]) who are depicted without a concrete [[ethnicity]] or nationality.<ref name=Gruyter>Kato, Hiloko and Bauer, René. "[https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783839453452-006/html?lang=en Mukokuseki and the Narrative Mechanics in Japanese Games]". Narrative Mechanics: Strategies and Meanings in Games and Real Life, edited by Beat Suter, René Bauer and Mela Kocher, Bielefeld: transcript Verlag, via [[De Gruyter]], 2021, pp. 113-150. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783839453452-006</ref><ref name=CBR>Altiok, Revna. "[https://www.cbr.com/mukokuseki-no-nationality-importance-in-anime/ What Is Mukokuseki in Anime – And Why Is It Important?]" from ''[[Comic Book Resources]]'', 24 June 2022.</ref> It is thought to be particularly significant in the context of foreign influences on Japanese entertainment properties as well as the subsequent marketing of such properties towards non-Japanese audiences.<ref name=Cute>Bîrlea, Oana-Maria. “Soft Power: ’Cute Culture’, a Persuasive Strategy in Japanese Advertising.” TRAMES: A Journal of the Humanities & Social Sciences, vol. 27, no. 3, July 2023, pp. 311–24. EBSCOhost via [[WP:The Wikipedia Library|Wikipedia Library]], https://doi.org/10.3176/tr.2023.3.07.</ref> |
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| ⚫ | Implications of the term in visual media can vary considerably between artstyles,<ref name=CBR/> either employing culturally "neutral" elements or [[cultural hybridization|hybridizing]] multiple disparate cultural influences;<ref name=Cute/><ref name=Fantasy/> Features common across anime and manga notably described as ''mukokuseki'' include light-colored or brightly dyed hair, pale skin, and large eyes;<ref name=Gruyter/><ref name=Cute/><!--[[Blond hair]] is particularly seen as fantastical or "exotic" in Japanese culture, resulting in its frequent depiction in franchises such as ''[[Final Fantasy]]''.--> One author nonetheless argued that "[o]n closer inspection [...] the communication of cultural markers and characteristics is far more intricate than the mere display of Japanese facial features."<ref name=Gruyter/> Notable examples of ''mukokuseki'' characters include [[Hello Kitty]], [[Light Yagami]] from ''[[Death Note]]'', and [[Asuka Langley Soryu|Asuka Soryu]] or [[Rei Ayanami]] from ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]''. |
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==Analysis== |
==Analysis== |
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| ⚫ | Implications of the term in visual media can vary considerably between artstyles,<ref name="CBR" /> either employing culturally "neutral" elements or [[cultural hybridization|hybridizing]] multiple disparate cultural influences;<ref name="Cute" /><ref name="Fantasy">Ruh, Brian. “Conceptualizing Anime and the Database Fantasyscape.” Mechademia: Second Arc, vol. 9, 2014, pp. 164–75. JSTOR via [[Wikipedia:The Wikipedia Library|Wikipedia Library]], https://doi.org/10.5749/mech.9.2014.0164. Accessed 13 Dec. 2023.</ref> Features common across anime and manga notably described as ''mukokuseki'' include light-colored or brightly dyed hair, pale skin, and large eyes;<ref name="Gruyter" /><ref name="Cute" /><!--[[Blond hair]] is particularly seen as fantastical or "exotic" in Japanese culture, resulting in its frequent depiction in franchises such as ''[[Final Fantasy]]''.--> One author nonetheless argued that "[o]n closer inspection [...] the communication of cultural markers and characteristics is far more intricate than the mere display of Japanese facial features."<ref name="Gruyter" /> Notable examples of ''mukokuseki'' characters include [[Hello Kitty]], [[Light Yagami]] from ''[[Death Note]]'', and [[Asuka Langley Soryu|Asuka Soryu]] or [[Rei Ayanami]] from ''[[Neon Genesis Evangelion]]''{{Fact|date=March 2024}}. |
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| ⚫ | ''Mukokuseki'' has particularly received some criticism in the context of the [[soft power]] it does or does not afford Japanese culture in the Western World,<ref name=Cute/> with the lack of distinct Japanese values described as rendering the [[cultural capital]] of Japanese media "nothing but an illusion".<ref name=Gruyter/> A writer for ''[[Comic Book Resources]]'' also criticized Western film adaptations for taking ''mukokuseki'' characters as an opportunity to [[Whitewashing in film|whitewash]] lead roles in works such as ''[[Death Note (2017 film)|Death Note]]'' (2017) or ''[[The Last Airbender (film)|The Last Airbender]]'' (2010).<ref name=CBR/> |
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| ⚫ | In addition to the increased international appeal of culturally neutral properties, Brian Ruh paraphrased Napier in describing ''mukokuseki'' as "a way for contemporary Japanese to playfully escape their own concepts of Japan and their own feelings of Japaneseness... fantasized ''mukokuseki'' anime bodies can be free from the cultural and societal baggage of physical bodies."<ref name="Fantasy" /> Other popular narratives have stated that, due to their fictionalized or aestheticized settings and "abstracted" representations of the human body, manga and anime are inherently divorced from real-life categories of ethnicities and that their characters are therefore all naturally ''mukokuseki''.<ref name="Fantasy" /><ref name="CBR" /> |
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== Criticism == |
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| ⚫ | In addition to the increased international appeal of culturally neutral properties, Brian Ruh paraphrased Napier in describing ''mukokuseki'' as "a way for contemporary Japanese to playfully escape their own concepts of Japan and their own feelings of Japaneseness... fantasized ''mukokuseki'' anime bodies can be free from the cultural and societal baggage of physical bodies."<ref name=Fantasy |
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| ⚫ | ''Mukokuseki'' has particularly received some criticism in the context of the [[soft power]] it does or does not afford Japanese culture in the Western World,<ref name="Cute" /> with the lack of distinct Japanese values described as rendering the [[cultural capital]] of Japanese media "nothing but an illusion".<ref name="Gruyter" /> A writer for ''[[Comic Book Resources]]'' also criticized Western film adaptations for taking ''mukokuseki'' characters as an opportunity to [[Whitewashing in film|whitewash]] lead roles in works such as ''[[Death Note (2017 film)|Death Note]]'' (2017) or ''[[The Last Airbender (film)|The Last Airbender]]'' (2010).<ref name="CBR" /> |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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Revision as of 12:34, 12 March 2024
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Mukokuseki (Japanese: 無国籍, translated as "statelessness" or "nationlessness") is a Japanese term describing fictional characters in visual media (primarily anime and manga) who are depicted without a concrete ethnicity or nationality.[1][2] It is thought to be particularly significant in the context of foreign influences on Japanese entertainment properties as well as the subsequent marketing of such properties towards non-Japanese audiences.[3]
Analysis
Implications of the term in visual media can vary considerably between artstyles,[2] either employing culturally "neutral" elements or hybridizing multiple disparate cultural influences;[3][4] Features common across anime and manga notably described as mukokuseki include light-colored or brightly dyed hair, pale skin, and large eyes;[1][3] One author nonetheless argued that "[o]n closer inspection [...] the communication of cultural markers and characteristics is far more intricate than the mere display of Japanese facial features."[1] Notable examples of mukokuseki characters include Hello Kitty, Light Yagami from Death Note, and Asuka Soryu or Rei Ayanami from Neon Genesis Evangelion[citation needed].
In addition to the increased international appeal of culturally neutral properties, Brian Ruh paraphrased Napier in describing mukokuseki as "a way for contemporary Japanese to playfully escape their own concepts of Japan and their own feelings of Japaneseness... fantasized mukokuseki anime bodies can be free from the cultural and societal baggage of physical bodies."[4] Other popular narratives have stated that, due to their fictionalized or aestheticized settings and "abstracted" representations of the human body, manga and anime are inherently divorced from real-life categories of ethnicities and that their characters are therefore all naturally mukokuseki.[4][2]
Criticism
Mukokuseki has particularly received some criticism in the context of the soft power it does or does not afford Japanese culture in the Western World,[3] with the lack of distinct Japanese values described as rendering the cultural capital of Japanese media "nothing but an illusion".[1] A writer for Comic Book Resources also criticized Western film adaptations for taking mukokuseki characters as an opportunity to whitewash lead roles in works such as Death Note (2017) or The Last Airbender (2010).[2]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d Kato, Hiloko and Bauer, René. "Mukokuseki and the Narrative Mechanics in Japanese Games". Narrative Mechanics: Strategies and Meanings in Games and Real Life, edited by Beat Suter, René Bauer and Mela Kocher, Bielefeld: transcript Verlag, via De Gruyter, 2021, pp. 113-150. https://doi.org/10.1515/9783839453452-006
- ^ a b c d Altiok, Revna. "What Is Mukokuseki in Anime – And Why Is It Important?" from Comic Book Resources, 24 June 2022.
- ^ a b c d Bîrlea, Oana-Maria. “Soft Power: ’Cute Culture’, a Persuasive Strategy in Japanese Advertising.” TRAMES: A Journal of the Humanities & Social Sciences, vol. 27, no. 3, July 2023, pp. 311–24. EBSCOhost via Wikipedia Library, https://doi.org/10.3176/tr.2023.3.07.
- ^ a b c Ruh, Brian. “Conceptualizing Anime and the Database Fantasyscape.” Mechademia: Second Arc, vol. 9, 2014, pp. 164–75. JSTOR via Wikipedia Library, https://doi.org/10.5749/mech.9.2014.0164. Accessed 13 Dec. 2023.