Horrific “Cults” and Comic Religion Manga after Aum
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 14680599 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jolyon Baraka Thomas (0009-0005-7395-6390, Princeton University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2012 |
| Publication date | 2012-05-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Japanese Journal of Religious Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0304-1042 |
| Publisher | Nanzan University (PUBLISHER • JP) |
| DOI | 10.18874/jjrs.39.1.2012.127-151 |
| OpenAlex | W2329733748 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 7 |
| References cited | 2 |
After the 1995 Aum Shinriky sarin gas attacks, influential commentators suggested that enthralling apocalyptic narratives characteristic of manga (illustrated serial novels) made Aum members prone to extremism and violence. This article inverts this interpretation, showing that popular manga published after 1995 have exhibited-and reflected-morbid fascination with the sensational fodder provided by the Aum incident itself. Early manga responses advanced variations on a horrific "evil cult" trope in which marginal religions modeled on Aum were graphically depicted as hotbeds of sexual depravity, fraud, and violence. Over time, equally chilling-if less sensational-psychological thrillers appeared that interrogated the aspects of human nature that allow for "cult-like" behavior. Finally, one very recent manga has sublimated the formerly popular "evil cult" trope by divorcing "religion" from "cults" and rehabilitating the former through mildly irreverent comedy
Art · Comics · Literature · Asian Culture and Media Studies · Comics and Graphic Narratives · Japanese History and Culture · Philosophy · Religious studies
Aum Shinrikyo and religious terrorism in Japanese collective memory
Manga, Wuxia and (New) Religious Syncretisms
Reconstructing the Grand Narrative
Discursive opportunities and the transnational diffusion of ideas
What Have Religious Groups Done After 3.11? Part 2
Trauma and Historical Referentiality in Post-Aum Manga
Cultural trauma, counter-narratives, and dialogical intellectuals
| Citations per year | 0.54 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2013 - 2022 (10) |
| Highly cited | No |