Urban Imagery and Care for Survival in Japanese Animation

Abstract

Since the 1980s, several narrative cartoons that use cities as a major narrative background has appeared in Japan.These cartoons illustrate the changes in social life and psychological state brought about by rapid industrialization andurbanization, as well as the conflicts between people, people and society, and people and nature. This type of animationpresents various urban problems and expresses the mental dilemmas of urban people and the culture of Japanese urban life.Castle in the Sky, Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, Spirited Away, Summer of the Kappa, Letter to Momoko, and The Garden of Words are typical representatives of Japanese “urban animation.” These cartoons will be analyzed in this articlestarting from the interrelationship and coexistence between people, people and society, and people and nature, and theurban images and urban problems presented by Japanese animations will be interpreted.