If you were late with your previous entries or feel you need extra credit for whatever reason, comment on any of the numbered blog entries (LBGTQIA+ YA, Hayao Miyazaki, Adventure Time.) The more you do, the more extra credit you accrue.
Post reactions ( minimum 250 words) to the reading linked below. Students are encouraged (but not required) to additionally respond to other student reactions.
"The Fantastic Worlds of Hayao Miyazaki." A new book by Tufts professor Susan Napier analyzes the Japanese anime director’s films—and his life. Click heading to read article.
"Hayao Miyazaki and the Art of Being a Woman" by Gabrielle Bellot. The famed Japanese animator and director created heroines who defied feminine stereotypes and showed me how to be at home in my own skin. Click heading to read article.
"Hayao Miyazaki's 50 Favorite Children's Books." Click heading to review list.
"The Animated Life." New Yorker staff writer Margaret Talbot discusses the animator Hayao Miyazaki’s films, his influences, and his temperament. Click heading to read interview
5 comments:
I watched a few Miyazaki films as a child and really enjoyed reading these articles, as they offered deeper insights into the stories’ backgrounds and what makes them so special. In the Tufts article, Professor Susan Napier discusses how many of Miyazaki’s movies have a certain ambiguity—with endings that are not entirely happy, good characters with bad in them, bad characters with good in them, etc. While some might argue that this makes the movies more confusing for children, I never felt that way as a child. To me, these films presented a world that was both wonderful and strange, and I was happy to be immersed in the storyworld, which always felt real somehow, even if it didn’t always make sense.
This idea of ambiguous endings also reminded me of one of my favorite childhood books, The Little Prince (which was on Miyazaki’s list of favorite children’s books too). At the end of the story (spoiler alert for those who haven’t read it), the little prince dies. However, his death is written so vaguely that I didn’t realize he had died when I first read it as a child. Something I love about the book is that, as an adult, I can revisit it through a new lens and discover things I hadn’t noticed before. I feel the same way when rewatching Miyazaki’s movies, which seem to take on new layers of meaning with age and perspective.
Another interesting point in these readings came from Gabrielle Bellot’s Atlantic article, which highlights how quiet, mundane scenes in Miyazaki’s films—moments that might seem unrelated to the main plot—still create a sense of meaning and humanity through their realism. This observation made me appreciate those slower moments more. As a child, I didn’t have a strong sense of how a film was “supposed” to be paced, so I rarely grew bored during those scenes. Now, I find myself more likely to lose patience with slower moments, which is something I’d like to unlearn.
I have been fortunate to see one of Hayao Miyazaki’s films, Spirited Away. The Tufts’ article, The Fantastic Worlds of Hayao Miyazaki, was a good read for me to understand the meaning of Spirited Away and the rest of Miyazaki’s work. To American audiences, some themes or ideas in Miyazaki’s works are always met with great understanding or acceptance. “I think that’s a really important process that many Americans don’t give their children, because we are so uncomfortable with ambiguity and we are uncomfortable with tragedy.” The article points to cultural differences between America and Japan as a reason why media differs; America can be seen as more optimistic, while Japan can be seen as more accepting of the unhappy. From what I remember of Spirited Away, the film's ending had the main character reunite with her family, but the friend she made did not come with her. So, the ending would be more somber than overwhelmingly happy. From my point of view, it seems that Miyazaki infused his work with a combination of realistic human experiences/feelings and fantastical settings. But that is why Miyazaki’s work resonates strongly with many people. “When you are growing up, you would like things to be perfect, but they are not necessarily perfect, and sometimes you have to learn that, and work through that.” Miyazaki’s work can be seen by viewers as a guide for dealing with life. Miyazaki’s work seems necessary for people, regardless of age, to watch and digest. That is why I think stories that stick around with people need to grab peoples’ attention on both a creative level and a connecting level.
I recognized the name Hayao Miyazaki because I watched “Totoro” and “Spirited Away” growing up and fully was immersed in the worlds and characters he created within these iconic heartfelt films. As someone who enjoys anime, I’m thankful these films were as impactful as they were to reach mainstream American media. The article, “The Fantastic Works of Hayao Miyazaki,” The author discusses how different these animations are from others. I never realized how truly unique his works are compared to the original objectives of cartoons which were to create a comedic or intellectual premise for younger children and later adults to watch for a quick laugh. His films draw a more darker emotion from the viewer displaying scenes of grief, loss, or sadness producing a graceful and feel good film. It is not a surprise that many individuals assumed animations at face value are produced for a children audience. The vibrant colors, the limitless canvas to portray impossible acts, the disregard of consequence, and at most times a comedic touch is extremely and easily consumable by the younger eye because they lack the limitations to imagine. It is genius that Hayao Miyazaki would create animations designed for children and their parents as said by Susan Napier. Because the parents are invoked by these animations why not create more adult centered themes which unfortunately covers more topics of sadness, loss, heartbreak, and tragic experiences. The complexities in the stories are not comparable to American animations. Like the article describes there aren’t obvious character traits or roles, it resembles and relates to the viewer’s reality especially because the emotion and inspiration derives from real events. In the article “Hayao Miyazaki and the Art of Being a Woman,” they discuss his ability to create empowering female characters in a unique and realistic capacity. This drastically differentiates from American cartoons or live action films and their lack of ability more often then not to portray strong women. I love that his goal was to create characters the daughters of his friends can look up to such as in his work “Spirited Away.” It sets a president that female characters can be represented in stories in a realistic and relatable portrayal.
I love the works of Hayoa Miyazaki and have watched them throughout my entire life. I have seen nearly all Studio Ghibli movies and also seen Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, which was a movie made by Miyazaki before Ghibli existed. And yes I have made myself watch Grave of the Fireflies, its a great movie but very hard to watch. My favorite one of his movies is Princess Mononoke. I have always had great love for the works of Miyazaki. The worlds he builds are these incredibly unique and confusing in perfect way places. The art style is just the cherry on top that helps bring the stories truly to life. His way of not following the normal flow and roles of stories and characters are incredibly interesting and enjoyable. I also like how he doesn't always give the movie a full and proper ending. There are many times where it is left up to the viewers interpretation but, he does it in a way that you never feel unsatisfied. There are plenty of movies that end without wrapping everything up but, it is hard to do that properly, but Miyazaki has never failed to deliver when it comes to that type of conclusion to a story. The most important thing about his films are the messages. He has this child friendly animation style even though he is talking about climate change, death, war, and many monstrosities of the world. He is a visionary who has changed film forever.
I really respect the direction that Miyazaki takes with his work. Being self-proclaimed as a stories meant to be appreciated by the whole family, it can be very difficult to avoid taking the easy way out by substituting complex (and often darker) concepts for those that are more wholesome and welcoming to the common individual and the status quo. The most difficult task any artist can do is challenge the reader, especially in a medium like family entertainment as the concepts, morals, and tone all have to transcend age and innocence alike. Topics of innocence itself, loneliness, violence, and the ambiguity/maturity used to discuss these matters and more allows for these stories to bring a certain impact that can transcend age and experiences. I also appreciate how Miyazaki also tries to subvert expectations and break common trends seen in media, one of his most notable ways being in the way women are shown/perceived in his stories. Stories are important because they offer people an opportunity to see what can be, not just in the sense and scale of the world but also on the individual level, in terms of what a single person can amount to and what their worth is. What’s great about Miyazaki’s work is how it came around in a time in which women and girls were often written into a box -narratively speaking- and offered very little in the way of options or inspiration to people of the time. It’s nice to hear these stories of people being able to find inspiration and kinship in the characters from these stories where they may not have found it otherwise, as this is an ongoing issue being discussed and worked against in media. There’s truly nothing like being able to find a story or character in which you are able to feel seen or represented, one can only hope that more people will be able to appreciate the work of Miyazaki and other similar artists in the future as the world of fiction continues to grow wider and wider.
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