Tradition is Hard to Break

Do relationships with converted gender roles survive? There will always be some type of challenge, but is it possible to restructure life in roles that is in opposite with the traditional practice? Women has much responsibilities compared to men when they are at home because normally, it is the wife who wakes up early in the morning, cooked breakfast for her family, wake the kids up to get ready for school while she is also getting ready for her work. These are some of the many responsibilities that working wives shoulders.

In the article The Survival of Relationships with the Gender Roles Reversed according to statistics professor Carol Nicely, sometimes a woman will let the man sit around the house, and have the benefit of a double income household while contributing no more themselves (Hart). She also said that Evolution and biology may explain why there is usually some type of non-equality in our roles which she finds as the reason why some women state that once in the breadwinner position, she is resentful. 

One probable cause of a "broken" family scenario is due to lack of communication between the couples. In my understanding of Professor Carol Nicely's view, problems arise when a woman becomes the breadwinner while the man sit around the house because sometimes men are lacking in taking up with the household duties, or the wife instinctively feels it is necessary for her to be responsible for the family and shelter aspects of life which gives extra burden on the part of the woman. Of course, it is the woman who knows more of the household duties which would require a lot of adjustment for the man. 

She also said that being in the more submissive role and out of the leadership position can cause an emotional conflict for the male gender to feel weaker especially if they are in a relationship with an alpha woman. 

Men are always been known to dominate when it comes to strength and performing feminine duties can have psychological effects on men because they are going to perform things which they are not usually fond of doing. They would have a new image in the society.

Making Adjustments

To make adjustments that go against every natural instinct can be difficult to attain for men. People tend to make assumptions about the stay-at-home dad, that they may be homosexual by taking on the original female role, or that they refuse to work. They also may receive judgment or resentment from other mothers, for they are the outsider in the group. 

Well I think if someone is adjusting for something, one cannot really escape from being looked at. Like for males wherein from being the breadwinner, some ended as a stay-at-home dads. For me there is really nothing wrong for a man to stay at home while women works for the family because at the end of the day, what is important is that a man still ends with his family. As long as the man is there standing up with and for the family no one has the right to defy them because that what makes a REAL man. Sometimes whenever I see my friends and their dads, I feel happy because they have their dads supporting them with everything. 

Some feel a sense of entitlement to superiority when they control the finances. This occurs in both male and female entities. In households where the gender roles have shifted, the woman being served all her meals and no requirements of work at home can view her spouse as a servant to her needs since she is no longer a part of them. 

Based from Ph. D. Karen Gail Lewis, "a wife may be initially drawn to a man because he is nurturing and willing to do this, but can later look weak and inadequate." With the new role, the woman can end up looking down upon her mate. Well, this scenario is already expected to happen to anyone. Of course if a person is gaining recognition in the environment where she/he belongs, it is also expected of them to be arrogant in some way which is also happens in a family set-up between the couple.

With the downturn of the economy for the US, many of these gender role reversals are being created. In the article, "Males are accounted for about 75% of the 2008 decline in employment among prime-working-age individuals (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2009). Many of the employment fields like construction or building houses are saturated with men, forcing them into the position on the other side of the relationship when there is no work for them.

Adjustment is really a factor to preserve a relationship. Although this might be uncomfortable, most are able to be successful in readjusting to their new schedule, activities, and duties.

Communication

Communication between partners is also a very important factor which enables couples to engage what is necessary to adapt to a new situation. An open communication will lead into a good understanding between the couples because they are being opened to each other and if this will be the case, then conflicts in the family will be avoided. 

In all reality, if we have the ability to make it so, we choose our own paths. Sometimes when women are in the leadership role, they may take a completely different path in life. No situation is exactly alike, however our predisposition to societal values of a gender show that when the roles are swapped, there is an exploration and extension of oneself. Most couples succeed with a reversal with understanding from communication between each other. This communication gives them more equality in terms of respect, understanding, and closeness in the relationship. When the roles are reversed and cast upon a couple, instinctual survival allows the counterparts of the relationship to adjust accordingly to their new lives.

Anime with Gender Role Reversals

Are you tired of watching folk tales and fairy tales? Did you know that aside from these kinds of movie styles, there are still a lot more that a film maker can do to promote his work? In today's Digital Age, a film maker can take an animal as a human, talking and doing things like a real human and a human as an animal. But how about the Flip of one or more male roles to the women and female roles to the men, does it fit? Is it an issue?

According to an article Gender Flip, sometimes the remake of a work may involve Gender Flips, which may be due to societal changes on the Sliding Scale of Gender Inequality that would allow a formerly-male to be an Action Girl instead. Occasionally, the Gender Flip occurs with a work that's already in development wherein due to the actor's sudden unavailability, it is the women who is given the role of men. The results can be particularly interesting in these cases, as the written role may be almost completely unchanged. 

I think these kinds of scenario is a challenge for both men and women because they're going to face and do something which they are not fond of doing. For me there is no negative issues about it because it sometimes make a viewer laugh. As a viewer, we became open to what is happening around and we are given new ideas which are uncommon. 

Absolute Boyfriend (Riiko)

This anime features a female protagonist forced by the events of the series to choose between two or more equally appealing suitors, in a gender-reversed version of the Harem Anime scenario. In this anime, the protagonist named Riiko is very oblivious to love which is in opposite of the traditional women who are very careful and self-conscious.

Shakugan no Shana (Shana)

This is a story of a high school student named Sakai Yuuji who was saved by a sword-wielding girl in black attire with flaming red eyes and hair that burns like embers of which she calles herself a"Flame Haze" who hunts the "Guze no Tomogara", creatures from another world. This anime features the female protagonists named Shana as a warrior who protects the male protagonist Yuuji from all evils which is not the usual set-up. Normally, It is the guy who saves a girl. But in this anime, its reversed.

Mai-HiME (Tate Yuuichi)

The only masculine male protagonist in this anime, is constantly frustrated by the fact that he is completely helpless compared to all the girls despite his kendo skills. This anime features Tate Yuuichi as someone who is weak despite his abilities which somewhat pulling the traditional view on man in the society downward.

Cardcaptor Sakura (Yukito)

This anime featured Yukito as a man who acts too weak and quiet compared to Sakura's brother Touya and Sakura itself. 

Fate/stay night (Saber)

Saber is a strong young woman who doesn't care about her gender. She is also determined and courageous in achieving her objective as a warrior. She has a stubborn personality and appears to become very uncomfortable whenever she is treated as a girl. This anime featured Saber as someone who acts as a man and not as a woman who serves as the protector of the male protagonist named Shiro Emiya. This attribute of her is normally of men.

Ah! My Goddess (Urd)

Urd is very impulsive. Her impulsiveness often makes her act first without fully considering the consequences. She is quite short tempered for a goddess, and is rather easy to irritate and anger. As a Goddess, she doesn't care about her sexy suits. She is very open and proud of her sexuality, evidenced by her provocative dress. Her first appearance to Keiichi Morisato was through a semi-pornographic video.

For me, having a movie or anime with gender reversals is not much of an issue because at the end of the day, the satisfaction of the viewers is what matters. All of these anime depicts gender reversals which is the opposite of the traditional culture. Although these are in opposite of what are really the practices, it still does give us a view of what is currently happening in the Philippine society on women and men wherein there are working moms and stay-at-home dads.

Are Men Out Of Step?

During the Spanish Era, women were tied to the house and their roles were dedicated exclusively to housekeeping and caring for the children. On the other hand, there was an idea that men should be the provider of the family and protector of women. Women were also too obedient to elders and always submissive to males because it. Women were banned from doing any work because it was men's responsibility. Women were being discriminated. But now, many changes had happened which made me thought if men are really left behind by women in terms of career. 

In an article As gender roles change, are men out of step? by Susan Spencer, she interviewed a Dean at Kenyon College in Ohio named Jennifer Delahunty concerning the concept of " IT'S A MAN'S WORLD " saying. 

In the interview, she said that "Gender politics are alive and well in this country, let there be no doubt," who laid it all out in a 2006 opinion piece in The New York Times exposing the widening gap in achievement. She also observed that the number of college males enrolling has been lessening for more than four decades because of some beliefs of this college males that doing school home works and other stuffs are not cool the reason why they do not wanted to be engaged school stuffs. 

I think this kind of belief of males has to be corrected as early as possible because if males has this kind of mind-set, time might come wherein all managers, employees, President, and other leaders and subordinates will all be female. The traditional role of man in the Philippine society will be suppressed by women who now works for the family instead of the males. 

Professor Michael Scott Kimmel

Sociologist Michael Kimmel was also interviewed about the "boys crisis." In the interview, he said that "Boys think that academic disengagement is a sign of masculinity. "The less you can do in school, the less connected you are, the less interested you are, the more manly you are", which means that those men who most strongly subscribe to it are those men who are going to be left behind. 

In my point of view, men are full of pride. They hate cramming.They hate being pressured and they also hate being too much engage on things.They take everything easily because they do not wanted to be stressed. Based from what I have observed on men, even if they have a bunch of works and projects which is to be submitted the other day they would still prefer to play DOTA and other online games first than doing tasks which should be prioritized. Honestly, that kind of attitude of men impressed me in some way because they are being positive despite the fact that something more important has to be done first. As a woman, I have a different outlook when it comes to studies. Whenever there is something that I wanted to do like listening to music or watching a movie, I always see to it that my tasks as a student must be done first because I would not enjoy watching a good movie if there is something bothering me. Sometimes I also wanted to try their habits but I cannot because I fear of not finishing my tasks at the right time and be left behind. 

Mr. Kimmel also mentioned that there was a study which finds that young women today value high-paying careers more than young men do which I think is because of men's less interests in handling responsibilities. But according to Delahunty, "The reality is that because young men are rarer, they're more valued applicants," and she apologized to girls who'd been rejected because of "demographic realities." In Delahunty's perspective although men are rarer, they still encompassed females in terms of demographic realities. 

On the other hand in Kimmel's perspective, he emphasized that the idea of an affirmative action program for men is engaged in by a lot of colleges is because they are worried that the women are much better qualified. For me if that will be the case, chances are that men are really in transition of what it means to be a man. 

Another journalist named Liza Mundy said that, "our ideas of masculinity change". In her recent book called "The Richer Sex," Mundy predicts that women's economic rise above men will benefit everyone. which means that Women’s earnings will not only bring a new liberation for women but also for men. This book of her somewhat talks about the equality on men and women because when a man rises, the woman also rises. Mundy also said that, "women gives men within marriage more choices. They don't necessarily have to go into a career they're not interested in just to be the breadwinner, just to be the wage earner. They're not going to be judged simply on their ability to generate a salary." 

An example of a man who dropped his career some years ago to stay at home while his wife is at the office was New Yorker Matt Schneider in which according to another article CBS News Report: Role Reversal / Stay-At-Home Men, men’s roles at home and with family are at the epicenter of priorities. Over 90% of men believe that part of being a man is taking care of your family and those around you and would sacrifice their own needs to take care of their families. 

However in the article, pressure to follow traditional gender roles at home still exists; wherein nearly 3 of 4 men concur that society looks down on men who choose to stay at home. Further: 

• 55% of men say they would love to be a stay-at-home dad. 
• Over a quarter of men with children are solidified in the stay-at-home role, and among these men, nearly the same percentage (23%) admit it’s their responsibility to watch the kids alone, all the time. 
• Yet, that’s not to say men have gone soft, commented Richman. “They express their masculinity through ‘small adventures’ from recreational sports to eating contests, and everywhere in between.” For example, 84% of men surveyed agree that every so often, they need to challenge themselves, “even if it’s weird or stupid.”

It was also revealed by in the Acumen report that men now have an increasing responsibility for traditionally female tasks: 

• 89% participate in grocery shopping 
• 88% in pet care 
• 85% in house cleaning 
• 83% in doing laundry 
• 80% in cooking evening meals 

Schneider said that, "There's an expectation that we're going to fit into a certain mold," which is the mold of breadwinner. If one would think, having this kind of decision is too hard to other people. 

Many people looks at a man as someone who is bold, brave, and tough. There might be different perceptions but for me, the truth is no one can measure the true meaning of being a man just by looking at it physically because the essence of being a man can be found through his words and actions. A man who does not know how to sacrifice and to be responsible can never be a man. A true man values his family and other people. He does not use his strengths to harm or to be arrogant but to help and inspire people. Men in the Philippine Society are termed as " Haligi ng Tahanan" which means that they are not simply a provider of the family but also serves as the role model for the family aside from women.

Introduction-Draft

A. Background of Study

Anime and manga are the popular culture in Japan. Some anime fans prefer watching anime than reading manga because of its color and music or voice overs and fight scene which they find hard in manga to follow. One thing that makes an anime otaku wonder is the depiction of gender in those anime. When we speak of male and female, we talk about sex but when we talk about gender, we are talking about the characteristics of males and females on how each function in the society. In order for a man to be a real man, he must develop masculine traits while in order to be a real woman, she must develop feminine traits which are sometimes not depicted in Anime.

 Numerous anime shows changes in the traditional gender roles of men and women in the society. Most anime engages in the style of parody that complicates traditional gender roles by refiguring them. Anime provides ideals and artistic devices to its audience of all ages. It gives knowledge about another culture because of the stories which are often based on Japanese traditions and Asian mythology and symbolism. Anime deals with complex, thought-provoking themes with characters that change as the stories progress. These anime are supported through TV episodes and Original Video Animation (OVA). Gender role reversals have proven to be one of the most widespread practices in the evolution of Anime.

Based from an article Switching Gender Roles in Manga: Men as Women and Women as Men, the gender role reversal exposes the conventions of a story in terms of character, story genres, and the hero’s journey despite cultural and traditional differences to have knowledge from another culture. These anime includes Utena and Bakuretsu Tenshi and Gankutsuo (Viscount Albert de Morcerf). Utena have strong personalities that are unconquerable and has the duty to save a princess which is not the usual work of a woman. On the other hand, Gankutsuo who is a man has a softer emphatic personality. He doesn’t have powers and the only way to save a hero is by a kiss which is totally opposite of the characteristics of Utena who is a woman. 

Aside from these anime, other anime includes Witch Hunter Robin Shakugan No Shana (Shana), Fate Stay Night (Saber, Rin Tanaka, Emiya Shiro), Inu-Yasha (Sango), Oh! My Goddess (Urd, Keiichi Morisato), Evangelion ( Shinji Ikari), Absolute Boyfriend, Supergals, the Chinese epic Romance of the Three Kingdoms gets three series that feature most of its historically male characters as attractive females, Claymore which is basically a Gender Flip of the typical Fighting Shounen series, Mai-Hime with Tate Yuuichi, the only masculine male protagonist in the show is constantly frustrated by the fact that he is completely helpless compared to all the Magical Girls despite his "rusty" kendo skills, and others.

Some people perceive that watching anime with gender role reversals will add satisfaction to all anime “Otaku” and some views that the pursuit of such opposition to the traditional role will give a negative impact on the viewers. Therefore, having background knowledge on anime will give the viewers knowledge on what could be its effect on the society.

This paper will focus on the effects of gender role reversals in anime cartoons.

B. Statement of the Problem

1. What are the effects of gender role reversals featured in anime cartoons in the society?

C. Significance of Study

Anime Artists. 

Anime artists can benefit from this study because they would be able to make use of the information in this research on what kind of anime genre can they focus with that could help them make another remarkable masterpiece considering its effects on the society.

Anime Fans

With the information gathered in this paper, it would be able to inform young-adults to be more aware or alert and responsible whenever they watch anime because of its ever changing characteristics which might influence them.

Future Researchers

This research paper will be able to help future researchers having curiosity on anime effects on society to continue my research which could give them a little background that will add up in their research.

D. Scope and Delimitation

This study focuses on the effects on gender role reversals featured in anime cartoon in the society for these study is very broad and due to time constraints, I will no longer discuss all anime genres and will only focus on genres connected to my research.

E. Materials and Method

This paper uses a descriptive method because the researcher aims to describe the gender role reversals in anime and to discuss further its effects in the society by gathering information about the topic, analyzing past studies conducted related to the topic, interviews, surveys or comments from different people and then make appropriate conclusion about it.

F. Definition of Terms

Anime – Japanese movie and television animation, often having a science fiction theme and sometimes including violent or explicitly sexual material. It is the Japanese animation of manga

Otaku – These are people who are the obsessive fans of manga, anime, video and PC games and pop idols

Shonen Anime – Anime marketed toward males

Gender – A range of characteristics of feminity and masculinity

Gender Role – It is a set of social and behavioral norms that are generally considered appropriate for either a man or a woman in a social or interpersonal relationship.

RESEARCH OUTLINE

THE RESEARCH FOCUS

Gender Issues on Anime

1. The purpose of changing the roles of man and woman in an anime

2. The effect of changing gender roles on viewers

RESEARCH OUTLINE

I. Gender role reversal definition

II. Culture

           
            A. Definition

                      

                        a. What men should be

                        b. What women should be

III. Philippine Culture

           A. Traditional Women
                        a. Maria Clara
           
           B. Traditional Male
                        a. Dr. Jose Rizal

IV. Factors appraising role reversals
           
           A. Content
           B. Characters

V. Effects of Gender Role Reversals

              
           A. Empower Women
           B. Destroy "Machismo" image
           C.Change the Tradition

IV. Conclusion

Revised Introduction

THE EFFECTS OF GENDER ROLE REVERSALS FEATURED IN ANIME CARTOONS IN THE PHILIPPINE SOCIETY

A Research Paper Presented to

Sir Dustin Celestino

Asia Pacific College

Magallanes, Makati City

In Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the course

RESWRIT - Research Writing

Mikaela Gheline S. Jovellano  

October 2012 

Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION 

 A. Background of Study 

In the Philippine society, women are called the “ilaw ng tahanan” because they are the one who takes care of the children and  guides the family while men are called “haligi ng tahanan” because they are the one who provides the needs of the family and protects the family from all harm. But in the Philippine settings today, such practice are being hindered because of an exchange in gender roles of men and women. Women have a fairly well defined role in the society and so do men. The macho male tradition is very much in place and women are seen in terms of being a support for the male. Men are described as someone who is tough, fearless in the sense that they will not retreat from a fight and responsible in their families. They hate showing their emotions because they do not want to appear weak in the eyes of the society. They only cry when they are alone and aggressive when it comes to women while women are described as someone who are tied to the house and their roles were confined exclusively to housekeeping and child rearing. Men are seen higher than women but now, many social changes are occurring in terms of relationship between men and women and their roles in the society.

Gradually, role reversals are very common in the Philippine Society. Before only men works for the family but now even women are also making her way in the industry. Based from the article, Cultural Connections > The Roles of Men and Women, many senior bureaucrats today are women. In many offices there are a lot of women in senior positions as managers because they are observed as much organized than men. While women are working, it’s the husband who does the household chores which is a new practice in the society today.

Anime and manga are the popular culture in Japan. Some anime fans prefer watching anime than reading manga because of its color and music or voice overs and fight scene which they find hard in manga to follow. One thing that makes an anime otaku wonder is the depiction of gender in those anime. When we speak of male and female, we talk about sex but when we talk about gender, we are talking about the characteristics of males and females on how each function in the society. In order for a man to be a real man, he must develop masculine traits while in order to be a real woman, she must develop feminine traits which are sometimes not depicted in Anime.

Numerous anime shows changes in the traditional gender roles of men and women in the society. Most anime engages in the style of parody that complicates traditional gender roles by refiguring them. Anime provides ideals and artistic devices to its audience of all ages. It gives knowledge about another culture because of the stories which are often based on Japanese traditions and Asian mythology and symbolism. Anime deals with complex, thought-provoking themes with characters that change as the stories progress. These anime are supported through TV episodes and Original Video Animation (OVA). Gender role reversals have proven to be one of the most widespread practices in the evolution of Anime.

Based from an article Switching Gender Roles in Manga: Men as Women and Women as Men, the gender role reversal exposes the conventions of a story in terms of character, story genres, and the hero’s journey despite cultural and traditional differences to have knowledge from another culture. These anime includes Utena and Bakuretsu Tenshi and Gankutsuo (Viscount Albert de Morcerf). Utena have strong personalities that are unconquerable and has the duty to save a princess which is not the usual work of a woman. On the other hand, Gankutsuo who is a man has a softer emphatic personality. He doesn’t have powers and the only way to save a hero is by a kiss which is totally opposite of the characteristics of Utena who is a woman.

Aside from these anime, other anime includes Witch Hunter Robin, Shakugan No Shana (Shana), Fate Stay Night (Saber, Rin Tanaka, Emiya Shiro), Inu-Yasha (Sango), Oh! My Goddess (Urd, Keiichi Morisato), Evangelion ( Shinji Ikari), Absolute Boyfriend, the Chinese epic Romance of the Three Kingdoms gets three series that feature most of its historically male characters as attractive females, Claymore which is basically a Gender Flip of the typical Fighting Shounen series, Mai-Hime with Tate Yuuichi, the only masculine male protagonist in the show is constantly frustrated by the fact that he is completely helpless compared to all the Magical Girls despite his "rusty" kendo skills, and others.

The occurrence of gender role reversals featured in anime cartoons in the society affects individuals in some way. It may affect relationships between man and women because each of them is portrayed differently from what have been the traditional practices. These changes may be good and may be bad. Good because women will be viewed equal to men in terms of rights and powers while it could also be bad because there might be conflicts in terms of decision on family settings.

Some people perceive that watching anime with gender role reversals will add satisfaction to all anime “Otaku” and some views that the pursuit of such opposition to the traditional role will give a negative impact on the viewers. Therefore, having background knowledge on anime will give the viewers knowledge on what could be its effect on the society.This paper will focus on the effects of gender role reversals featured in anime cartoons in the society.

B. Statement of the Problem

1. What are the effects of gender role reversals featured in anime cartoons in the society?

C. Significance of Study

Anime Artists. Anime artists can benefit from this study because they would be able to make use of the information in this research on what kind of anime genre can they focus with that could help them make another remarkable masterpiece considering its effects on the society

Anime Fans. With the information gathered in this paper, it would be able to inform young-adults to be more aware or alert and responsible whenever they watch anime because of its ever changing characteristics which might influence them

Men and Women. These people can benefit from this study because they would be able to make use of the information to know the true essence of being a man and the essence of being a woman

Homosexuals,transgendered & Queer. These people can benefit from this study because they would be able to make use of the information to gain more acceptance in the society and to accept themselves of who they are. 

 Future Researchers. This research paper will be able to help future researchers having curiosity on anime effects on society to continue my research which could give them a little background that will add up in their research

D. Scope and Delimitation

This study focuses on the effects on gender role reversals featured in anime cartoon in the society for these study is very broad and due to time constraints, I will no longer discuss all anime genres and will only focus on genres connected to my research.

E. Materials and Method

This paper uses a descriptive method because the researcher aims to describe the gender role reversals in anime and to discuss further its effects in the society by gathering information about the topic, analyzing past studies conducted related to the topic, interviews, surveys or comments from different people and then make appropriate conclusion about it.

F. Definition of Terms

Anime – Japanese movie and television animation, often having a science fiction theme and sometimes including violent or explicitly sexual material. It is the Japanese animation of manga

Otaku – These are people who are the obsessive fans of manga, anime, video and PC games and pop idols

Shonen Anime – Anime marketed toward males

Harem Genre - Harem is a genre/plot frame that is mostly present in the Japanese media of Anime, Manga, Light Novels, Visual Novels, and Video Games.

Gender – A range of characteristics of feminity and masculinity

Gender Role – It is a set of social and behavioral norms that are generally considered appropriate for either a man or a woman in a social or interpersonal relationship.

The "Boys' Love" Tradition

Anime and manga are the popular culture in Japan. As a fan, I’m not into reading manga because it’s a pain in my eyes to read, read, and read.. I only tried it once. But the thing that makes me wonder is about the depiction of gender in those anime. When we speak of male and female, we talk about sex but when we talk about gender, we are talking about the characteristics of males and females on how each function in the society. In order for a man to be a real man, he must develop masculine traits while in order to be a real woman, then she must develop feminine traits which is sometimes not depicted in Anime.

According to an article Manga, Anime and the "Boys' Love" Tradition by Tanya Darlington, anime and manga has been the ground for experimentation for cultural taboos. She said that it started with the boys' love, or shônen ai, genre wherein there is a feature of male cross dressing. 

One example of a cross dresser is Nuriko of Fushigi Yugi. He is a man but he dress like a woman and acts as a woman.

It does not revolve around beautiful girls but on beautiful boys or what is termed as “bishonen”. He is visually and physically neither male nor female and his interests are directed at other beautiful boys, but his tastes are not exclusively homosexual. The use of boys’ school settings was used to emphasized the Bishonen. While shonen-ai was still gaining popularity, the “Shoujo-ai” or female-to-male cross-dressing genre is coming into the scene.

It was also stated in the article that after more than thirty years, critics (particularly those in the West) still struggle to understand the popularity of shônen-ai manga and the bishônen with young girls. Because of that, 3 theories emerged as widely accepted:

Largely Feminist Reading

This theory indicates that young women beginning to struggle with the circumscribed gender roles laid out for them by the highly patriarchal structure of Japanese society displace their fantasies of power and liberation onto feminized male characters who display female personality traits yet enjoy the freedoms of the traditional male. 

In my understanding, this case has something to do with the role of women in the society. Traditionally, women are described as a person who is conservative and somewhat submissive to men in some cases. Women do not act like they are stronger than men which I think is the reason which contributes to young women’s interest on shonen-ai manga. Young women think that by acting like a man, they will no longer be degraded in the society.

More Practical Concern

This theory states that Shônen-ai began to gain popularity during a period when sexualization of the adolescent female was considered highly taboo, that made it impossible to depict relationships between heterosexual teenagers and forcing the mangaka(anime artist) to utilize (specifically male) homosexual pairings if she wished to deal with physical relationships.

In my understanding of this theory, shonen-ai gain popularity on young women because even before, there was already a taboo which appears now to young women like there is nothing wrong to have homosexual relationship.

Coming-of-Age

This theory suggests that shonen-ai manga becomes much more attractive to the young female reader because adolescent girls are afraid to face their own sexuality.

I think this has something to do with whatever they see on T.Vs’ or in the society. They are being influenced by what they see in the society which is the reason why they become afraid of their own personality wherein instead of having a heterosexual relationship, they will much prefer to have a homosexual relationship. They are scared to get hurt by men so they prefer same sex.

In my understanding of the article, Anime and manga were being used for experimentation of different genres portraying different gender relationships and it is clear that cross-dressing and shônen-ai manga are capable of profoundly affecting readers' sense of sexual identity, which destabilize Japan's strict sexual and gender roles. An anime which portrays a different relationship between females and males like female-to-male cross dressing and male-to-female cross dressing has an impact to a viewer and contributes to the continuous emergence of people of third sex.

Moreover, the anime influence on sexual identity will still depend on the person if he/she will be influenced or not.

History of Anime

Anime is the Japanese animation of Manga. The history of Anime begun when Japanese filmmakers started to experiment with the animation techniques which was being explored in the West. The animation started in Europe until it appeared in Japan and produced 40% animated films which is based on manga. Manga caught the attention of the all age groups and the more manga was published, the more animated film were created. The first huge animated series in terms of popularity was Osamu Tezuka’s “Tetsuwan Atom” or what is known today as “Astroboy”. As time passes, the Anime also develops which gave rise to other anime genres. The anime became widely accepted not only in Japan but also in other countries.

What to get from Anime

According to the article Brief Overview of Anime, Anime is the Japanese animation of manga and is now widely accepted even in other countries. Anime also lets us learn about another culture because the stories are based on Japanese symbolisms, Asian mythology and Japanese traditions of Shinto which is the martial arts and the Zen. It also stated that it may help one to become artistic and get ideas which may help one’s life. 

In my point of view, turning manga into an animated film is really a good idea because as a fan, reading a very long manga will make me bored unlike when it is animated. Also in manga, the characters are not moving so there is less thrill unlike when it is animated wherein you could still imagine every scene even on your sleep.“Japanimation” or anime was really a big boom because it does not only spanned and stopped in Japan but also made its name and popularity all over the world. Anime really let us know about their culture like their language, clothes, and foods which are now in fact becoming a culture of another country. As an individual and a fan who does not live in Japan also felt it because sometimes I find myself saying some Japanese words such as “arigatou” which means “thank you” whenever I want to thank someone and “senpai” which is a term used to call a person older than you which I sometimes used when I’m calling my brother instead of just calling him by his name(LOL). Another thing that makes me feel of their culture is their food which is very usual nowadays here in the Philippines. People tend to eat Japanese foods in order to experience the feeling of being a Japanese which makes one almost forget to eat Filipino cuisines. It seems to like Japan uses Anime as a medium to influence and not just to give a background of their culture.

Anime helps one to be artistic in the sense that it serves as a model to those people who loves to create characters and all forms of arts because anime were made by great artisans. It may inspire one to become a better artist. Anime may also inspire one because of the good ideals being depicted by the characters. A big applause to all the anime artists! Keep it up! 

Other reference(s):
http://www.animemetro.com/control.cfm?ID=232

Exercise 1- FORMAL LANGUAGE

INFORMAL LANGUAGE:

In his article, he said that the characters,plot, and animation are the factors that leaves a trademark on the minds of the viewers. He said that the way each of the characters were created, the plots were made, and how it was drawn is not far realistic which enables him as an anime fan to easily relate with the story and each of the characters. It gives a twists in its story and sometimes requires a deeper understanding which will make a viewer to use their minds and test their intellects . He also said that although they are in 2D format, sometimes they are drawn even better than the ones that are created in 3D. Even the way each of the characters were dressed makes a person to watch for more.

CONVERSION:

According to an article, Anime contains three special features which entrap the attention of the viewers. It has characters which are drawn perfectly and portrays different personalities that may make one to reflect with and a story that has many twists which may sometimes require a critical thinking to exercise the minds of the viewers. The graphics is realistic which adds spice into an anime and has almost encompassed the qualities of a 3D that can make one to watch for more.