De la réalité à la fiction : trois décennies de représentation de l'Étranger dans les anime : une analyse critique des conceptions identitaires japonaises
This master thesis attempts to highlight the relevance of Japanese animation series in the study of Japanese identity. Indeed, through an interactive process of creation between producers, sponsors and consumers, anime, and the culture surrounding the medium, makes it possible to explore the dynamics of identity construction between Japan, as painted by nationalistic discourses, and the Foreign, which appears as its counterpart. Anime thus becomes a tool for cultural negotiation. More specifically, this work considers the dynamics of production and creation established since the 1990s, when the international audience started to become significant in a field which, previously, considered almost exclusively its Japanese audience. The 1990s also are a time of expansion for the anime industry which then becomes, to a certain extent, a source of pride for Japan and a banner of its identity. In view of the nationalistic and political potential of anime, as promoters of Japanese culture, the issue of their representations starts to arise. It is particularly on the idea of a contrast between hegemonic and minority representations that this thesis focuses. It consequently sheds light on hierarchical conceptions of the Foreign. Simultaneously, it testifies to an evolution of Japan’s position regarding otherness over the last decades.
Anime Japanese animation Popular culture Identity Social change Multiculturalism Japan