Magic,Shōjo, and Metamorphosis

Magical Girl Anime and the Challenges of Changing Gender Identities in Japanese Society

Bibliographic Data

ID3640334
AuthorsKumiko Saito (0000-0001-7043-2333, corresponding author)
Year2014
Volume73
Issue1
Pages143-164
Publication date2014-02-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe Journal of Asian Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0021-9118 • E-ISSN: 1752-0401
PublisherDuke University Press (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1017/s0021911813001708
OpenAlexW2063773506
LanguageEN
Citations received24
References cited16

The magical girl, a popular genre of Japanese television animation, has provided female ideals for young girls since the 1960s. Three waves in the genre history are outlined, with a focus on how female hero figures reflect the shifting ideas of gender roles in society. It is argued that the genre developed in close connection to the culture ofshōjo(female adolescence) as an antithesis to adulthood, in which women are expected to undertake domestic duties. The paper then incorporates contexts for male-oriented fan culture ofshōjoand anime aesthetics that emerged in the 1980s. The recent tendencies for gender bending and genre crossing raise critical questions about the spread of the magical girl trope as cute power. It is concluded that the magical girl genre encompasses contesting values of gender, and thus the genre's empowerment fantasy has developed symbiotically with traditional gender norms in society

Aesthetics · Anime · Antithesis · Art · Beauty · Developmental psychology · Fantasy · Girl · Literature · MAGIC (telescope) · Popular culture · Sociology · Asian Culture and Media Studies · Gender Studies · Japanese History and Culture · Media, Gender, and Advertising · Philosophy · Psychology

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