Manga

Many friends have been publishing posts about Japan and life in here. They, however, have concentrated on the positive points mainly. I believe that both faces of the scene should be reflected in order to help those who are unfamiliar with this culture.

"Manga" is a good choice to enter the topic. As you man know, Manga are Japanese comics magazines published in their very special format. They come in colors and are printed on recycled papers. Magazines are full of images which make them easy to read.

According to "The Japan Journal, Vol. 2, No. 4", Girl Manga gained high art status during the early 90s with works of Okazaki Kyoko speaking on violence, betrayal, ... in his frames which were a substitute for the fantastical, sugary world of Japanese girlie-hood.

OK. Today, you can see many people reading Manga almost everywhere. The pictures however, are not suitable for the kids at all. So, I was always thinking why the Japanese are fund of these and how they are going to be a part of Japanese culture. Here is the reply: Manga are designed based on real Japanese life with all its problems shown in the drawing. For example (according to the same source again), one of every three Japanese women over 30 is now single, childless, and financially independent with a well-read mind and wealth of overseas travel experiences. Most Girl Manga stories are about these women, and how the definition of "girl" has less to do with age than a state of mind...

In my opinion, another cause should also be added to the above. Actually, Japanese are searching for the life in the books as they are always busy with their job. No time to rest, or even to think about other joys of life. So they just satisfy their thirst with these magazines.