The Moral Narratives of Hayao Miyazaki

by Eric Reinders

Overview

Widely regarded as Japan's greatest animated director, Hayao Miyazaki creates films lauded for vibrant characters and meaningful narrative themes. Examining the messages of his 10 full-length films--from Nausicaa (1984) to The Wind Rises (2013)--this study analyzes each for its religious, philosophical and ethical implications. Miyazaki's work addresses a coherent set of human concerns, including adolescence, good and evil, our relationship to the past, our place in the natural order, and the problems of living in a complex and ambiguous world. Exhibiting religious influences without religious endorsement, his films urge nonjudgment and perseverance in everyday life.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781476626796
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	10/24/2016
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	228
File size:	5 MB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Eric Reinders is an associate professor of East Asian religions at Emory University, Atlanta.
Eric Reinders is an associate professor of East Asian religions at Emory University, Atlanta.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
Introduction: What Does a Story Mean?
1. If You Think There’s a Solution, You’re Part of the Problem: Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
 2. Learning to Live with the Monster: Laputa, Castle in the Sky
 3. The Difference Between Wandering and Being Lost: My Neighbor Totoro
 4. The Difference Between Work and Play: Kiki’s Delivery Service
 5. “All humanity’s not a waste”: Porco Rosso
 6. It’s Not About Winning—It’s About Not Giving Up: Princess Mononoke
 7. There Is Nothing New Except What Has Been Forgotten: Spirited Away
 8. A Face Without Sadness Is Less Beautiful: Howl’s Moving Castle
 9. Being Human Is Trying: Ponyo
10. Eyes Clouded by Beauty: The Wind Rises
11. What Does to Live Mean?
Appendix 1. Continuing the Stories
Appendix 2. Plot Summaries
Chapter Notes
Bibliography
Index

Editorial Reviews

Intriguing...I enjoyed it enormously.... An attempt to define or codify Miyazaki’s cosmology is fascinating in itself, and tells us as much about what we need Miyazaki to be as what he is. Eric Reinders’ book brings us a wide ranging, multifaceted, highly personal and often playful reading of this universe, as though it were viewed through the Hubble Kaleidoscope. In the process it raises as many interesting questions as it answers.”—Helen McCarthy, The Anime Encyclopedia.

From the Publisher