Feminist Anime
Feminist anime is no oxymoron--though you'd be forgiven for thinking so. Although most anime viewers, at least in America, are women, anime shows too often reflects a distorted and demeaning picture. You might at first despair of finding strong female characters. Don't!There are plenty of intellectually rewarding anime series where the protagonist is neither a wilting flower nor an underdressed nymphet. I've compiled a short list of my favorites, with some additional recommendations at the bottom.
Otogi Zoshi
お伽草子
Used by
women's history teachers
to explain the role of women in Japanese culture, Otogi Zoshi follows the adventure of Hikaru, younger sister of a samurai, who must rescue her land from famine in her brother's place. The first arc, set in the Heian period, is part martial arts thriller, part historical costume drama, and part mythical fantasy. If you don't like pink or the traditional shoujo color palette, but still want to see strong female characters and protagonists, Otogi Zoshi might be what you're looking for.The series is not entirely feminist, in part because of the time period it's set in, but the main character is strong, loyal and determined, despite not being as talented as her samurai brother, and it become clear, through the series, that her role is just as important as her brother's.
Revolutionary Girl Utena
少女革命ウテナ
Utena is perhaps my favorite tv show, animated or otherwise. The series
is truly a feminist anime
(and a manga, and a movie) which I found very enjoyable when I first found it, at age fourteen...and which I still enjoy watching, for completely different reasons, almost ten years later.The premise of Utena is this: a young orphan is rescued from her despair by a mysterious prince. This prince gives her a ring with a rose signet, promising that one day they will meet again. However, instead of becoming a princess, the girl grows up wanting to be a prince, dressing in a boy's uniform, participating in sports, and cultivating a noble, heroic personality, all the while hoping to find her prince. The hero, Utena Tenjou, is a strong female protagonist with a realistic personality. Although she acts with undeniable nobility, she's naïve and somewhat gullible--as you would expect for a junior high student. In an era where so many "strong" female characters are played up as brittle and bitter, it's nice to see one who is unbroken, and who makes no apology--and suffers no punishment--for it. The show quickly transcends the traditional shoujo style, and becomes a psychologically complex, dream-story full of epic, symbolic struggles between greatness and mediocrity, growth and need, or just between two people. I've already written
something of a love letter
to the series. And trust me, I do not write many love letters. If you like anime with deep psychological and philosophical issues, I recommend Utena. However, the show deals with mature themes, and I therefore don't recommend it for kids 12 or under.
Rose of Versailles
ベルサイユのばら
Augustin Regnier de Jarjayes wants a son. Badly. Unfortunately for him, his wife's fifth child is also a daughter. In frustration and despair, de Jarjayes decides to raise his last daughter as a boy, calling her "Lady Oscar" and teaching her fencing, horseback riding, and giving her a career in the military. Lady Oscar is a very strong heroine, in both senses of the word: she is brave and loyal to a fault, although, through the series, her growing class consciousness changes her loyalty from the nobility to the French people.Is Rose of Versailles a feminist anime? Lady Oscar is androgynous, and the other female characters are generally weak, evil or unintelligent. Lesbian subtext isn't the same thing as feminism. However, the viewer is clearly meant to identify with, and look up to Lady Oscar, rather than the sillier aristocratic females. There is also no princess narrative, where the female submits and submerges her identity to the male; though Oscar falls in love, she does not lose herself in the process.
Rose of Versailles is an impressive work of historical fiction. Many characters in the story, such as Oscar's father, were real historical personages, and the events recounted actually happened. It was originally made in 1979, and marked one of the first "adult" anime series, with complex psychological themes and an intellectual background.
The Story of Saiunkoku
彩雲国物語
Set in a fictional Chinese empire called Saiunkoku, the story focuses on Shurei Hong, a princess who is left destitute as a result of a recent war. She is very intelligent, industrious and kind. In spite of this, she constantly runs into obstacles to exercising her skill, merely because she is a woman. She has to invest much more effort than her male counterparts, has to be much stronger and more tenacious, and yet she does not cave in to bitterness or resentment.The Story of Saiunkoku is beautifully made. The color palette is almost all light pastels, and the tone is light--the perfect tv show for winding down and de-stressing from a long day.
Other Feminist Anime
Boys Over Flowers (花より男子) is about a working-class girl who gains admittance to a prestigious school full of students from rich, high-society families. When a young man from a wealthy family falls in love with her, she rejects him outright, because he is a bully and quick to anger; this surprises and outrages him, since he is used to getting his way.Movies by Hayao Miyazaki, often have strong female characters, a feminist message, and a nice blending of shoujo and shounen elements.
Lady Oscar scan courtesy acesquad.com. Utena drawings courtesy ohtori.nu.
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