Weird question but
Does anyone know any other forum sites/online locations where I might be able to talk with Japanese women about their culture? I want to have a friendly chat with people who speak a little English I have no idea where to start ;_;
I’m really curious as to what you guys think..is anime/manga harmful? I watched Sword Art Online when I was really young, and I still remember those awful scenes in one of the finales when Asuna is captured (you either know what i’m talking about here or you don’t ;^^). I feel like Japanese women in anime are really sexualised and way too young. Like...it affected me a lot as a child (though I’m much older now and can distinguish between stereotypes and not be so influenced by them) but seeing a character that I really admired being in that position I think affected me more than I let on. So I cant really imagine how it affected anyone else/other consumers and especially Japanese females.
I know being part of a Western culture, we are very guilty of doing this but in a different way, and it is generally accepted nowadays (I believe) that this has a profound effect on young women. I don’t want to sound insensitive and if I do, I would love if someone could let me know but I’m just curious about people’s experiences.
Do you think the way that females are portrayed in anime/mangas is healthy??
Weird question but
Does anyone know any other forum sites/online locations where I might be able to talk with Japanese women about their culture? I want to have a friendly chat with people who speak a little English I have no idea where to start ;_;
I’m really curious as to what you guys think..is anime/manga harmful? I watched Sword Art Online when I was really young, and I still remember those awful scenes in one of the finales when Asuna is captured (you either know what i’m talking about here or you don’t ;^^). I feel like Japanese women in anime are really sexualised and way too young. Like...it affected me a lot as a child (though I’m much older now and can distinguish between stereotypes and not be so influenced by them) but seeing a character that I really admired being in that position I think affected me more than I let on. So I cant really imagine how it affected anyone else/other consumers and especially Japanese females.
I know being part of a Western culture, we are very guilty of doing this but in a different way, and it is generally accepted nowadays (I believe) that this has a profound effect on young women. I don’t want to sound insensitive and if I do, I would love if someone could let me know but I’m just curious about people’s experiences.
Do you think the way that females are portrayed in anime/mangas is healthy??
I answered before RW added more detail, when the query read thus:
[quote name="RainbowWolfy" date="2019-07-27 19:16:23" ]
Weird question but
Does anyone know any other forum sites/online locations where I might be able to talk with Japanese women about their culture? I want to have a friendly chat with people who speak a little English I have no idea where to start ;_;[/quote]
[rule]
@\RainbowWolfy, I don't, but I hope this info leads to those who do. raexenos [url=https://www.reddit.com/r/japanese/comments/c6tuiv/how_to_practice_speaking_japanese/esba507/]suggested looking up "language exchange."[/url] A similar thread suggest [url=https://www.reddit.com/r/japanese/comments/blx1n1/how_can_one_practice_japanese_when_you_live_in_an/ems1hi2/]HelloTalk (with caveats that probably make it not what you seek)[/url], as well as [url=https://www.reddit.com/r/japanese/comments/blx1n1/how_can_one_practice_japanese_when_you_live_in_an/emseoaq/]two websites and an app[/url]. You could try asking the folks over at [url=https://www.reddit.com/r/LearnJapanese/wiki/index/#wiki_come_and_chat_with_us.21]the /r/LearnJapanese Discord[/url].
I answered before RW added more detail, when the query read thus:
RainbowWolfy wrote on 2019-07-27 19:16:23:
Weird question but
Does anyone know any other forum sites/online locations where I might be able to talk with Japanese women about their culture? I want to have a friendly chat with people who speak a little English I have no idea where to start ;_;
@\RainbowWolfy, I don't, but I hope this info leads to those who do. raexenos
suggested looking up "language exchange." A similar thread suggest
HelloTalk (with caveats that probably make it not what you seek), as well as
two websites and an app. You could try asking the folks over at
the /r/LearnJapanese Discord.
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When people draw up a warm bath and put in flower petals,
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@
RainbowWolfy, yes/no questions only take us so far. What I wonder is: what benefits do anime/manga bring? What harm? What are some best practices as consumers, so that we maximize benefit and minimize harm?
@
RainbowWolfy, yes/no questions only take us so far. What I wonder is: what benefits do anime/manga bring? What harm? What are some best practices as consumers, so that we maximize benefit and minimize harm?
|
|
When people draw up a warm bath and put in flower petals,
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[quote name="gemhue" date="2019-07-27 20:11:47" ]
I don’t think it’s fair to single out Japanese media for the over-sexualization of women (especially of young women and underage girls) when its obviously a global problem. It doesn’t really address the core issue, which is that men (across all cultures) feel entitled to women’s bodies. All women across the globe experience misogyny and are affected by the dehumanizing depictions of women in media.
Having said that, there are plenty of anime and manga that depict perfectly fine female characters with no over-sexualization. So, it’s also not fair to ask if their portrayal in anime and manga is healthy, because anime and manga are both extremely diverse mediums, not genres.
[/quote]
Exactly. Couldn't have worded it better myself.
My suggestion is that you look for blog posts or essays written by Japanese women on the subjects of feminism, media, the male gaze, etc. You could start by googling some related queries, like "japanese feminism" and "japanese feminist scholars" and seeing where it takes you. If you have specific questions or topics you want to address, your best bet may be to use a site like reddit or twitter, where you can address a much wider number of people who will have a lot more resources and knowledge than the players of a relatively small browser game like FR. Of course you always have to be careful, as people on twitter/reddit can lie about their identity and level of education/experience without much consequence, as well as be rude to you, but you will get more varied answers. Twitter is more useful if you have a specific person or organization that you want to ask something or if there is already an active hashtag relating to your topic of interest, so reddit may be your best bet if you don't know where to start. I would try general "ask reddit" subs or subs dedicated [i]specifically [/i]to feminism or Japanese culture, and then go deeper from there, again keeping in mind that everyone has their own biases and unique experiences, and not every source is reliable.
(If this is a subject that you care deeply about, you may want to look into academic papers addressing feminism in Japan. These are not always free, unfortunately, but they are generally more reliable than blog and forum posts.)
Keep in mind that not everyone of a gender/nationality will want to talk about social issues, nor is it their job to educate you. That's why I suggest seeking a forum like reddit, where people are willingly offering their insight and opinions, rather than seeking out any person from a demographic (in this case, Japanese women), and asking them questions about their politics and lived experiences (which is a bit demanding and presumptuous imo).
TL;DR do some research on your own about feminism and social issues in Japan and seek out things that have already been written by Japanese feminists and scholars. If you have trouble finding reading material, ask a site like (a feminist or Japanese subforum of) reddit to direct you to some reliable sources or to answer your questions directly.
/end super long post
gemhue wrote on 2019-07-27 20:11:47:
I don’t think it’s fair to single out Japanese media for the over-sexualization of women (especially of young women and underage girls) when its obviously a global problem. It doesn’t really address the core issue, which is that men (across all cultures) feel entitled to women’s bodies. All women across the globe experience misogyny and are affected by the dehumanizing depictions of women in media.
Having said that, there are plenty of anime and manga that depict perfectly fine female characters with no over-sexualization. So, it’s also not fair to ask if their portrayal in anime and manga is healthy, because anime and manga are both extremely diverse mediums, not genres.
Exactly. Couldn't have worded it better myself.
My suggestion is that you look for blog posts or essays written by Japanese women on the subjects of feminism, media, the male gaze, etc. You could start by googling some related queries, like "japanese feminism" and "japanese feminist scholars" and seeing where it takes you. If you have specific questions or topics you want to address, your best bet may be to use a site like reddit or twitter, where you can address a much wider number of people who will have a lot more resources and knowledge than the players of a relatively small browser game like FR. Of course you always have to be careful, as people on twitter/reddit can lie about their identity and level of education/experience without much consequence, as well as be rude to you, but you will get more varied answers. Twitter is more useful if you have a specific person or organization that you want to ask something or if there is already an active hashtag relating to your topic of interest, so reddit may be your best bet if you don't know where to start. I would try general "ask reddit" subs or subs dedicated
specifically to feminism or Japanese culture, and then go deeper from there, again keeping in mind that everyone has their own biases and unique experiences, and not every source is reliable.
(If this is a subject that you care deeply about, you may want to look into academic papers addressing feminism in Japan. These are not always free, unfortunately, but they are generally more reliable than blog and forum posts.)
Keep in mind that not everyone of a gender/nationality will want to talk about social issues, nor is it their job to educate you. That's why I suggest seeking a forum like reddit, where people are willingly offering their insight and opinions, rather than seeking out any person from a demographic (in this case, Japanese women), and asking them questions about their politics and lived experiences (which is a bit demanding and presumptuous imo).
TL;DR do some research on your own about feminism and social issues in Japan and seek out things that have already been written by Japanese feminists and scholars. If you have trouble finding reading material, ask a site like (a feminist or Japanese subforum of) reddit to direct you to some reliable sources or to answer your questions directly.
/end super long post
