かわいいでしょう！！！

Whenever I catch myself humming the tune of some anime J-pop theme song or wondering how much sheet metal it would take to make a replica of Nicholas D. Wolfwood’s cross/gun, I freeze in the horror that I have become an otaku!! It’s ironic that I should be so horrified because most American anime fans wear the label with pride as a kind of badge of honor. However, in Japan, it has a slightly negative connotation. I don’t want to go to Japan only to be perceived as another anime-starved American desperate to shop in Harajuku! Then, I smile, sigh, and relax. “Ah, that’s right,” I think, “I don’t have a kawaii complex.” And then I go back to being a productive member of society.

Forgive my venom; I really don’t understand the kawaii craze. Yes, I love the occasional puppy or kitten, but I just don’t understand why some people make it into a lifestyle. I personally think that when people make a conscientious decision to act clumsy, air-headed, and downright retarded sometimes, it stunts intellectual growth. However, knowing that my professor is a Hello Kitty fanatic, I must grit my teeth, put aside my personal feelings, and dive right in.
Anyhow, I need two “kawaii” pictures…
Here is my first one.



City Glow
Chiho Aoshima
2005
Courtesy Blum & Poe

Despite my aforementioned dislike for the “kawaii,” I find this painting to be a work of freaking genius. It depicts a nighttime city skyline with a forest/jungle/conglomeration of various floras beneath it. The usually threatening image of the city is softened by the skyscrapers which don’t have sharp edges (except the radio receivers on their roofs). The city skyscrapers all have faces, but that is the extent of their anthropomorphication (if that is even a word). Most of the skyscrapers have curious or confused faces, and for good reason! There appear to be yellow buildings popping up out of the ground. What do they represent? The expansion of the urban complex? Man’s unquenchable need to create? Well, judging by the phallic tower that appears to have testicles on the far right side of the painting, I’m going to guess that it’s the end of innocence. The pheasant flying by could also represent the mystique of nature which is being squelched by development. The buildings, innocent as they are, are amazed and create the typical kawaii “whoa” face that is so popular in anime and manga. Don’t let my cynicism fool you; I really do like this painting. It was a nice reprieve from the majority of KaiKai KiKi’s work involving repressed Jungian sexual desires (seriously, that Mr. guy has…issues…). Anyway, next picture.



Now, this is the kind of cute that I can get behind. I wish I could give the source information of this photo, but I honestly couldn’t. I got this photo in an email from my father who thought that I would like it. Well, I do. And why not? All the ascetic triggers are here for the activation of the cute glands. The baby ducks are small, misshapen, they obviously can’t take care of themselves so they must rely on their mommy (which simultaneously inspires maternal instincts), they have big heads, and they are all crowded on to their mom’s back in a way that makes it look like they could fall off at any minute. The viewer is seized with an impulse to grab the ducklings, cuddle them, and swear that they will protect them. Quintessential kawaii.

Japanese Jesus

Yes, you are looking at a kabuki actor being crucified as Jesus Christ. It is part of a kabuki production of “Jesus Christ Superstar” done by the famous theater troupe Gekidan Shiki. I have already shown this picture to a couple of people and their reactions were pretty predictable. One person showed fascination. Others reacted more negatively. The most memorable reaction was from Mizenko-sensei who took one look at this, murmured “Jesus f**king Christ” and walked away. After asking him what he didn’t like about it, he responded, “God, it’s just so tacky.”Is it tacky? I don't think so. “Jesus Christ Superstar” is a fine musical and Kabuki Theater is one of Japan’s most beloved cultural traditions. So why does the combination of the two make people react so violently? There are probably several reasons.

The first is the image itself. A Japanese man is being crucified!! Well, that isn’t unprecedented.

This is a replication of a drawing from 1853-1856. It depicts a Japanese crucifixion. In fact, crucifixion has been around in Japan since before the Tokugawa Shogunate. It was called haritsuke. It was different from Western style crucifixion. In Japan, the criminals were hoisted up on to a T-shaped cross where he was then killed by spear thrusts. He was then left to hang for a while before he was buried.

Warning! Graphic Photo Below!

So why is the image of a Japanese man so shocking? Is it because he is being nailed to a Western style cross? That probably has something to do with it. However, there is probably another issue here.

Many people probably take offense to the idea that a kabuki theater group is doing a Western story. The image of Jesus being crucified is contrary to what everyone visualizes when they think of Kabuki Theater. Well, consider this picture. It is from the same production with the same actors. It is just from another scene.

Is this picture more “sensitive?” If you showed it to somebody without telling them what story it is from, it could be mistaken as a scene from a traditional kabuki play. The first image is so much more shocking because the picture of Jesus on the cross is one of the most recognizable images in the world. If you see it, you don’t need any explanation. It is a scene from the Passion. But artists have been using the crucifixion of Jesus in paintings, plays, and poems for centuries. Nobody would think twice of a reenactment of the Passion done in an American film.

So, this gory picture is okay but a dignified Japanese Kabuki representation of the Passion isn’t? Why?

Why is the first picture so disconcerting? It probably has to do with the fact that most people believe that Christianity doesn’t belong in Japan because it isn’t “Japanese” like Buddhism and Shinto. But that’s a load of crap.

The Japanese have been practicing Christianity for hundreds of years. It was introduced by European missionaries and was later outlawed by the Tokugawa Shogunate. But there was an underground Christian community called the Kakure Kurishitan. They risked life and limb to practice their religion and many died for their faith. They survived until the West forced its way back into Japan in the nineteenth century. The Japanese have earned their right to practice their faith and to represent Christianity how they want. Just because Christianity wasn’t the mainstream doesn’t mean that it isn’t culturally relevant. The Ainu Minority were oppressed for centuries and yet nobody would deny their place in Japanese society (Well, at least in the West. They still face a lot of prosecution in Japan.) So the image of a crucified Japanese man shouldn’t be seen as inappropriate.

But there is still the idea that the story of Jesus shouldn’t be represented in Japanese traditional theater because it isn’t a Japanese story. That is a bunch of BS. One of the great signs of great stories and great story-tellers is the ability for them to transcend cultural boundaries. Take Akira Kurosawa’s “Seven Samurai.” It was one of the most influential films in cinema history.

It had many innovations, but let’s focus on one: The ragtag group of characters uniting to face a common threat. The sage, the outlaw, the comedic relief, and other character archetypes that have become staples in world cinema were first united in this movie. In fact, the story has been directly adapted into other cultures. An example is “The Magnificent Seven.”

Nobody would argue that it was better than the Japanese original, but it still is regarded as one of the great Westerns. It does the source material justice. So why are people still opposed to adapting stories from one culture into another? Perhaps people are scared of other cultures adapting the stories inappropriately and making the original seem like a joke. Case in point:

This does occasionally happen, but should that restrict others from trying to identify cultural parallels between two different countries? No!! The idea that certain stories should only be told one way so that it represents one culture is nationalistic and dangerous. But perhaps I’m missing the point. The explanation for the unease surrounding the first picture could have to do with Western guilt about “tainting” Japanese society. My response to that is that they didn’t have to practic

e Christianity when the Europeans left. They risked their lives to practice Christianity because they wanted to; because it meant enough to them to risk their lives for.

In short, if the Japanese want to do a Kabuki adaption of “Jesus Christ Superstar” they should be able to. If you feel offended by the picture on top, it probably has more to do with your own cultural insecurities than legitimate concerns about Japanese culture. The Japanese should be able to do what they want and do it the way they want. That’s what makes it JAPANESE CULTURE.