Dialectics of the Goddess in Japanese Audiovisual Culture

(Hardback)

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

Through provocative essays by specialists in different aspects of Japanese culture, this book provides an historical and analytical survey of the presence of Goddesses in Japanese audiovisual culture from its origins to the present day. It shows how these feminine myths are represented in Japan; not only as beneficial or creative deities, but also the archetypal strong or dominant woman that sometimes overshadows masculine figures and heroes, or as influential figures. Therefore, it analyzes this rich dialectic of the feminine and how the audiovisual culture has represented it thus far in film, TV series, and video games made in Japan. While many theories have been proposed to explain the presence of Goddesses in Japan, this books focus on audiovisual culture explores how this corpus challenges the traditional conceptions of the feminine as related to Goddesses.

Reviews

This book takes us on a fascinating journey, which is at once secular and mythical, fictional and real, across the many faces that Japanese goddesses acquire in cinema: from the saint to the prostitute, from the benevolent to the wicked, from the super-powerful to the simply and movingly human. A joy to read! -- Lcia Nagib, University of Reading
Since its inception, cinema has given us fascinating characters projected on screen in larger-than-life form. Because of this, film may be an ideal medium for depictions of deities, whose presence can cause overwhelming desire, dread, or devotion. The essays here show how, through decidedly audio-visual means, goddesses have been brought back to life for spectators in the modern world, whether on the large screen, or in video-games. Torres Hortelano and colleagues offer critical takes on goddesses in a history of Japanese cinema, from black-and-white through anime, and on into todays new media incarnations. -- S. Brent Plate, Hamilton College
An exciting collection of essays about Japanese goddesses in audiovisual culture that looks both forward and back, returning studies of Japanese popular culture to fundamental questions about myth and divinity through close textual analysis, while also rigorously debating the ways of answering those questions as we think of Japans modernity and future. -- Aaron Gerow, Yale University

Author Bio

Lorenzo J. Torres Hortelano is senior lecturer at Universidad Rey Juan Carlos.