Entertainment Values across Cultures
Strawberry Eggs- The Story
There was a young man names Hibiki, who recently graduated from college as a fully trained high school teacher, and was eager to inspire students by energetically teaching a gym class. However, the nearby private high school was run by an older woman whose- while having a nice school motto "Love is all" or such, had a certain belief. Women were the embodiment of love and gentleness, but men were violent, explosive, brutish and while she had to tolerate boys in the classes (she would eventually over time filter them out) she felt that the only people suitable to be teachers were women. Only women could nurture and love students properly- men would only be a disaster.
Hibiki was a typical, kind of crazy, but energetic guy- well, one who also liked to sleep until five minutes before he had to leave for somewhere.
Enter your typical anime zaniness to a rather strong plot- his landlady likes to shoot her tenants with rubber bullets to make sure they pay rent, and when he cannot pay his rent she holds his dog hostage until he will. However, when she finds out about the school situation, she offers to help.
He goes into the school, and demands a chance to show his stuff and inspire the students as a gym teacher- but the principal says that as long as she leads the school a man will NEVER teach her students again. Period.
He is upset, and determined to find a way to prove her wrong- and the landlady agrees, for the sake of her rent (and perhaps a private grudge) to help him. Apparently she tinkers in doo-dads and underground mechanical labs, because she pops him down into one and plops women's clothing into his arms which, obviously, freaks him out.
"Do you want to do what it takes to prove that men can be loving and gentlehearted to that old witch, or not?"
Well, apparently, he does- so she undergoes strict training- bashing him on the head when he tries to walk like a women but fails, bonking him if he puts on too much eyeliner, etc. This fun loving, energetic guy-
Goes to school and gets the job as a gym teacher! Except- a little different than above-
Note that he finds out very quickly, to his pain as the landlady 'whips him into shape' in a semi-literal fashion, that getting up five minutes before he has to leave somewhere no longer works. "For a woman, hours to get ready is still barely enough!" she says, or something like that. Basically, even if you spend an hour or two preparing, you will still end up wishing you had more time. So much for his sleeping in- he spends the next few episodes groggy and half asleep when he comes to school as the teacher.
The necklace piece is the trick of it all- his 'evil genious landlady' created a voice alteration piece (that upside down triangle on his/her neck) to make the voice typically feminine. Now, within this story, this is not a whacko guy who desires to cross dress- rather, he wants so passionately to teach students and to show what a man really is made of that he is willing to put his pride aside and no longer "walk like a man, talk like a maaan..." Instead of focusing on all the things an American live action movie might focus on for fun (there are quite a few movies out there that play on this theme- man goes 'female' and lots of comedy ensues), it actually focuses more on some relational/situational comedy (ie- Hibiki put into situations which a female teacher might normally be put into, such as staying in the dorms with female students to help keep watch/chaperone, etc... and having to deal with genuine embarassment, and making the choices to handle it right) and also character development. IE- there is a lot more merrit to the story than most similar versions done stateside. Also, one of his cute students has a crush on him right off. (No, not that way- in an American show it would be some saucy, cute girl and eventually he would find out she was really just a girl, and immature, and walk away... or perhaps she'd find some boy her age. I'm not that far yet, but here, she is actually a very caring, outgoing girl whose Father lives overseas and mother died at a young age- and she takes on all the service projects nobody else wants, also being naturally very clumsy and needing his best teaching abilities to learn to be coordinated in athletics. Somehow, they manage to pull off her having a crush on him- and him having a genuine affection for a student, yet at other awkward moments unable to forget she IS a girl- without it being 'creepy'. That really wouldn't be possible in an American movie).
Hibiki sees various wrongs in the way some students are treated, or actions the boys in his class do, or even noticing immaturity in the boys and having to ask himself- "Is this really the way all men are? Was I like this? Or is this just the way people are?" Regardless, he shows strong compassion for his students.
We see him impliment new ideas to try to make the class fun for the students, to try to right some long-standing wrongs, and to kind of 'rock the boat' in a positive direction that frustrates the principal but tends to have good effects on the students, the parents who visit in one episode, and the male director of the school. We see the girls begin to take on some "un-ladylike" chores the boys are forced to do like scrubbing the pool they all swim in- and the boys and girls both become a little more compassionate, the guys acting less like the 'apes' they were labelled as and, when held to Hibiki's standard, actually beginning to show some real maturity.
A real man?
It is a funny contrast, but the idea is very interesting- that by changing into the getup of a woman, Hibiki actually tries to show what a real man is. He doesn't 'become a woman' in spirit- but rather helps to ask the question "are guys just jerks? Or can they be compassionate and strong, too? Can they show some of the traits that we typically think of as feminine?" At one point, he asks the question "Are all boys just selfish and immature like those in my class?" To which his landlady sagely answers, "No. It is human nature to be selfish, regardless of gender."
That is a pretty heavy concept, I think. I was quite impressed, because I went into this expecting a rather silly comedy with some drama bits- and instead, so far at least (just the first DVD that is), amidst some zany jokes, a pretty good message.
The Anatomy of an Anime
Something I have learned in Intercultural Studies is that each culture has its own unique morals- particularly as we look at Christians around the world, we notice some cultures have strengths and weaknesses. Some are very morally strict in some ways, but far too lax in others. What a Christian in Japan might consider acceptable might be the opposite of a Christian in America, and the other way around as well.
Let's compare here some core things I have noticed after years of watching anime and thinking it through.
Sexual Morals
We see a great deal of 'reality', increasingly so, in anine ranging from middle school all the way through high school age Japanese cartoons- by reality, I mean, the jokes kids of that age might make, the fact guys tend to look at pornography and hide the fact, the fact the boys are often gawking at girls or get peeks, and a lot of comedy plays around that. There is often fan service- that is, things you might see in baywatch (or, in some, a PG-13 movie even), often where the anime doesn't focus on the exposure, sometimes where it does. This would compare better to live-action shows/movies over American cartoons- which we have absolutely nothing close to, since we just don't see cartoons covering this huge array of ground. It goes pretty far at times with some sexual humour, more in jokes and awkward situations.
Meanwhile, while that is a weakness, there is a surprising strength. Even on public television there are series where the main character guy, or 'hero', will fall in love and sleep with the heroine/leading lady. It might just be a fade out, or might show some scenes, or even some 'unobstrusive love' without too much skin. On the other hand, the anime shows some skin (and in the ones I am talking about, they never cross into even PG-13 nudity in a sexual context, they are usually very strict on that)- but the hero has some very strong morals. While he might be goaded by friends or the villains push towards certain ends, in the end, the hero and "example" of the show always tries to turn his head from inappropriate viewing, to act with respect and proper attitude towards ladies, and NEVER has sexual interaction with the girl he pursues, perhaps at most falling into a romantic kiss as the 'height' of the passion they share. Even in the rather risque sort of pg-13'ish ones, they never cross that line.
A very strange difference in morality. American- show some skin, but not too much, but it's okay to have sex so long as it isn't shown (and sometimes IS shown in the more adult ones even on TV). Japanese- More realistic portrayal of kids (both middle and high school) and what they talk about, some careful scenes with some comedy or embarassment, but the hero always reacts in a moral way and does not cross sexual lines with girls. The result is we see that the plot itself of the anime shows says this- the kind of boy/man you should look to become is one who respects women, treats them gently, turns away to preserve their modesty when necessary, and when he finds the right woman pursues her in a way that puts her purity above his desires.
The message that could be seen from many live-action American shows is, perhaps, "Find the woman you love, and if she's right, then treat her right and after a few days you can have sex- so long as you both want it, of course, it's just fine." Oh, and maybe add "And don't let anyone find out if they don't like it."
Deep or Shallow?
Do you know that much of the anime I have watched- not the 'fighter' anime's necessarily (ie- Dragonballs)- have a depth to them that most live-action shows these days... movies and television... tend to lack. They really make you think- about your morals, about beliefs, about what is said and is not said, about what you are seeing and what really happened. About what a happy ending really is, and what goes on after the story? About what we want from life, and what friendship and love is really about- what are our priorities, and what does loyalty mean? Should we put our comfort and safety first, or that of others we care for? Are we willing to die for what we believe in, or the people we believe in? Are we willing to sacrifice and serve for others?
And, unlike American stories that seem to believe we should answer every question we ask in a show, many of these are left for the viewer to answer. The plot is not always wrapped up- the end is often open ended. The 'main characters'- which in an American show either always come out on top in the end, or if they die you just know they will 'come back'- don't always make it out on top in the way we'd expect, and some even die on the way. Yes, even in non-violent ones. They deal with injury, death of loved ones, death of friends and moving on with life- what happens when the person you think of as an 'enemy' actually ends up being a good person, but perhaps misunderstands the situation? Or, what happens if you find out the 'side' you are on is actually not what you thought- and there really is not a 'right side' to be on?
Disney Stories
Anime is unique- it started with Disney, and now is the opposite of Disney. It all began with the "Walt Disney of Japan"- Miyazaki- who recently made movies such as Spirited Away, and Princess Mononoke, as well as Howl's Moving Castle. His animation, and some older anime from the eighties, resembles Disney style a bit. It was all inspired by Mickey Mouse and, in post world-war Japan, taken up after the American style. Only, gradually, the Japanese style diverted and went the way of their own storytelling methods and mindsets.
In Disney, there is always the good guys that often include the hero, the heroine, who meet and fall in love. Then, they are divided by the 'bad guys' who meet their evil end, and love conquers all. There is a clear good, a clear bad, and the story is straightforwards.
People look at this now, and ask- should we teach our children this? Girls grow up with a "Cindrella complex"- expecting to meet prince charming who looks like a prince, find true love (which, as in a Disney movie, could happen on first sight and take only a few days), and live happily ever after... as that is always how it ends. Is this a little harmful? People would gasp in horror if Cinderalla 3 came out and her prince charming was killed by a stepsister, and then she had to realise that the stepsisters were not really as evil as she thought and had their own reasons for acting as they did. "No, that's just beyond kids- that's a grown up movie." Not in Japan.
That's exactly the way things end up in Japanese anime, actually. The girl sees Prince charming, and he genuinely cares for her- but he isn't quite everything he turned out to be, and she finds out the leader of the enemy kingdom who seems dark and is 'drawn evil' actually has some reasons for what he is doing. Maybe Prince charming wasn't always so charming? Maybe it was all based on a misunderstanding that went out of control? Then the girl realises her heart actually falls for the 'evil enemy'- and the evil enemy falls for her, and wants to end the war, but some of his supporters WANT the war, and they find ways to force him into attacking the 'good kingdom'. So the girl, as the two forces are about to clash, throws herself between the prince charming and the 'evil prince' as they are about to kill eachother in a fight, and she gets mortally wounded instead.
Now, in a Disney, this would never really quite happen- and if it did, we'd safely know that the heroine lives. Not in an anime- oh, she might, but then again, she might not. She just might die, and then the 'good ending' part might be the two princes, in grief, make piece and kill those who were after the war. But they grieve over the loss of the woman they both, in their own ways, loved. And we are left to imagine what happens next- do the princes find happiness? Was the sacrifice worth it? Who really was in the wrong? Who was 'good', or was anyone good?
These are questions we have to ask in real life. Look at the wars going on. Who really is good or not? Is America the good guy all the way, or is there good mixed in with bad? We're beginning to realise that in fights, there are not always "good guys" and "Bad guys" evenly divided into sides. I think the Japanese show this a lot, because World War II gave them a lot of perspective on this. Even now, people involved in war learn that there are good men on both sides- often times it is not their choice to be on their side, their only choice is to fight well, with honour, to defend what they know and feel is right.
No need to go out and rent anime if you're not into it- just thought I'd offer up some thoughts to people who might dismiss it as "Oh, just some strange foreign kids cartoons". Not so at all. Watch one someday- a good one, of course- with subtitles on and Japanese voices (American voices really never do it justice) and give it a chance, and you might be surprised. Or don't- and maybe just knowing more about it will give you a better appreciation of the depth out there.
-Patrick
I think that is legitimate.
