How Miyazaki Writes WOMEN

#gender #anime

Miyazaki women are ICONIC, but I’ve never been satisfied with the way they’re talked about. Chihiro, San,, Sophie, Kiki, Fio, Satsuki, and Nausicaa are so much more than your typical “girl power” heroines -- their stories are about connecting femininity to deep meaning.

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0:00 - The question
3:04 - COURAGE
7:04 - EMPOWERMENT
10:59 - INDEPENDENCE
15:06 - lofi girl
20:03 - miyazaki men
26:14 - spiritual heroes
30:19 - feminism
32:44 - LOVE
40:37 - extended video preview

[kierstenwilliams]

I've always loved the scene in Howls Moving Castle where Sophie cries into the wind, loud and ugly, and when she's done, she's done. No withholding, no shame about whos watching, no apologies after. She acknowledges how hard and stressful the journey has been, and cries about it. When she's done crying, the journey continues. It makes me want to be that in tune with my needs, no matter what they are, and express them shamelessly.

[PolishNomad]

Important note about the theme of aloneness for the sex workers in Mononoke is that in feudal Japan most prostitutes were sold into sex work by their families, which adds extra meaning to Eboshi buying their contracts and giving them a home with husbands and valued work as the smiths of Iron Town. Just as with the lepers, Eboshi lifted them out of ostracism and gave them family, value, and community

[v.v]

- Kiki taught me about proper work-life balance, about rest and recovery from burnout
- Sophie taught me about courage and not caring what others might think of me, so as to not be a passive observer in my own life
- Sheeta and Pazu taught me about selfless love, kindness, and how understanding can bring together the most unlikely friends
- Ashitaka and San taught me that it’s never too late to start over, to make peace. People say “well, that’s the way it’s always been, that’s the way it’ll always be, there’s no use trying to change things” but that’s not true, there’s always a way to reach a peaceful resolution. The forest may burn but there will be growth there someday.

[beatricetellier]

I think the main difference here is that Hollywood is trying to write women while Miyazaki is writing people.

[provider-of-guardians]

There's a quote from Miyazaki about love that I'm surprised wasn't in this video lol. It sums up the relationship between the male and female protagonists, and his views on love between them, so perfectly.

“I’ve become skeptical of the unwritten rule that just because a boy and girl appear in the same feature, a romance must ensue. Rather, I want to portray a slightly different relationship, one where the two mutually inspire each other to live - if I’m able to, then perhaps I’ll be closer to portraying a true expression of love.”

In looking for this quote (because I wanted to copy/paste it so I wouldn't get it wrong lmbo) I also found this one from him, which seems very apt, and relates to what you were saying in the Lofi Girl segment.

“I would like to make a film to tell children "it's good to be alive".”

[michaelamohr]

I think what else really sets Ghibli women apart is the fact that they have so many qualities about them that make them feel like they're real people. Western storytelling plays up the drama and the fantastical, and by no means are Ghibli films lacking in either of those traits, but the characters always feel so grounded in their worlds. They're a part of that world. Myiazaki is such a master at building these worlds into believability that the story genuinely begins and ends as if it truly was just another day in the world and what sells it is the way the characters interact with each other and the world around them. I really liked your point about how the women have a duty and a purpose to fulfill and they're just DOING it. Just another day, just another task, and yet that lofi vibe permeates the whole thing. I love these films and I have so much respect for Miyazaki.
Well done on this video!! Super cool and fascinating!!

[aperturius]

I work in the cosplay community as a photographer. Nearly every single female anime character has been turned into a purely sexual being by cosplayers with scantily clad versions of them. But you hardly ever, ever see that with Ghibli's female characters. They're just not seen in that way and i think your essay gets to the heart of why.

[wiiink]

19:42 They are tho. Haru is full of self doubt. Sophie is very insecure about her looks. Shizuku is insecure about her writing. Anna has low self-esteem and social anxiety. Chihiro is cowardly. All of these female protagonists have these human flaws they have to come to terms with and overcome and show growth and that's what makes them good characters. Flaws like this are important and are a big reason why many western female protagonists fall flat; because they weren't given any to overcome.

[annafife]

Japanese culture has great esteem for a children's book published in 1908 by Canadian author, Lucy Maud Montgomery. That book is called Anne of Green Gables, and Anne Shirley inhabits all the characteristics you defined. She is shunned as an orphan, she lives in a rigid world, she doesn't dwell on past injustices but instead tries to see it through compassionate eyes. She is archetypically feminine yet breaks gender barriers by striving for academic success. She is filled with drive, duty, low fi bliss, strong opinions about right and wrong, and a desire to love and be loved. She changes as she matures, but the greatest change happens to those around her when they experience her joy.

[kagekun]

I do believe that the term for the "non-neurotic" state of mind you described is "ikigai". As stated, the Miyazaki women are remarkably free of inner conflict. This is because most of them have found an inner state of mind, a purpose, a flow that allows them to work toward their goals free of doubt. That is ikigai. It's more than just a venn diagram. It's a step toward enlightenment.

[dunce-music]

duuude, im loving all this miyazaki-talk recently, these movies were like 80% of my childhood. what a nostalgia trip!

[Nothing_Else]

I love that Miyazaki doesn't just write a female character - he writes a character who happens to be female.

[catabat]

This is one of the reasons Princess Mononoke is my favorite Ghibli film. Both female characters representing each side of the fight (San and Eboshi) have very valid reasons to fight the war they’re fighting, and you can feel the weight of the consequences if either side “loses.” Sure, we can all empathize with the environmental side with San, but Lady Eboshi took in the outcasts of society and gave their lives purpose, in a time in history when the people she took in (sex workers and leppers) would have suffered even more so and had no opportunities for agency in their lives. It’s not like a lot of films with an environmental message that’s just “man bad, we must save the earth, ” it asks the serious question, “what happens to the people who are just trying to get by when we destroy their livelihood in order to save the earth?” And it doesn’t shirk that question, it tackles it with the full weight it deserves.

[maplepainttube]

I remember someone explaining love and relationships in ghibli films as like, soulmates in the purest sense. It's not necessarily romantic, instead it's that 2 people connect on a spiritual level, either with a shared purpose, or their individual purposes coming together. Like when some people say "soulmate" they do mean it in a romantic/sexual sense and have the attitude that true soul mates would burn the world just for each other, but ghibli soulmates would never do that. Ghibli soulmates instead would save the world together, even if that meant being apart.

[rubenduenas]

The funny thing is that Miyazaki women achieve everything that modern hollywood tries to achieve with their female characters. The big difference is that Miyazaki women never try to put others down to make themselves look greater.

Edit: Thx so much for the thousand likes!

[jjadac]

I love how Studio Ghibli characters, regardless of sex, gender, age and even species, all feel so human.

They have human traits, not defined by their stereotypes and that feel so refreshing to see, like Miyazaki writes the soul of the character first then writes their gender and other stuff..they feel somewhat mytical and nearly other-worldly in that sense.

Like his characters, both villians and heros, feel like angels and other fantasy leaning living things than like people.

[austrociking]

A possible substitute for “not neurotic” I think would be “contented”. It usually means happy and at ease, but also means willing to accept something and satisfied.

[grassina]

Have you watched The Cat Returns? It's not strictly a Miyazaki, but it's sorta like a spin off of Whisper of the Heart. Haru is interesting because she does have a lot of inner conflict and suffers with self-doubt. But when someone else needs help she will leap into action without hesitation. Her growth is all about her becoming that aspirational, chill, "lofi girl" type of person. The last scene of the film she just exudes that kind of aura, and it's such a huge contrast to how she was at the beginning of the story. Maybe that's why CR was always my favorite Ghibli? I wanted to experience that growth myself and become that kind of person. It also definitely helps that the English voice cast has Cary Elwes, Anne Hathaway, and Tim Curry lol

[LabraDoodleDraws]

Miazaki women are so much more accurate to REAL women; they are unquie individuals, who cannot be summarized in a couple of adjectives and descriptors. And I love them for it!!! They follow their morals and values; and that is what they make the decisions they do, not because they value a personality trait such as determination, but because the actions they do are based on things they love/value. San doesn’t WANT to fight, but she does want nature to thrive and that is based on her love of her family, and because she cares about them she is willing to sacrifice things. They aren’t written based on personality traits but off of their values and code of ethics.

[ginger_L]

miyazaki's movies have such an aroaspec view on romance and love and i am so obsessed with it. like yes please that's exactly what i want.