Exploring Extraordinary Identities: Analyzing Hosoda Mamoru's Films Through the Theory of Magical Realism

This thesis explores how the recurring theme of identity in director Hosoda Mamoru’s animated films can be analyzed through the theory of magical realism. Magical realism, in short, can be defined as a style of fiction that primarily depicts a realistic world view, but organically introduces elements of magic and the supernatural into this world that blur the lines between the ordinary and the extraordinary. These extraordinary elements are accepted as being natural to the otherwise realistic setting and its characters. The innately human issues and themes addressed in Hosoda’s films makes for incredibly engaging stories. However, Hosoda seems to always utilize elements of magic or otherworldliness that are lingering in the background. It is argued that these elements are being employed to urge his young characters to see the world from a new perspective, helping them grow into themselves and further define their identity. In order to analyze magical realist elements in Hosoda’s...Show moreThis thesis explores how the recurring theme of identity in director Hosoda Mamoru’s animated films can be analyzed through the theory of magical realism. Magical realism, in short, can be defined as a style of fiction that primarily depicts a realistic world view, but organically introduces elements of magic and the supernatural into this world that blur the lines between the ordinary and the extraordinary. These extraordinary elements are accepted as being natural to the otherwise realistic setting and its characters. The innately human issues and themes addressed in Hosoda’s films makes for incredibly engaging stories. However, Hosoda seems to always utilize elements of magic or otherworldliness that are lingering in the background. It is argued that these elements are being employed to urge his young characters to see the world from a new perspective, helping them grow into themselves and further define their identity. In order to analyze magical realist elements in Hosoda’s work, it is first argued that magical realism is applicable to film and anime. After discussing the literary origins of the magical realism, a set of attributes by which magical realism can be defined is assembled on accord of various scholarly interpretations of the term. Apart from globally acknowledged definitions of the term, it is also explored how the notion of identity manifests itself in specifically Japanese magical realist literature, since Japanese animation is being discussed. Having done this, a model of magical realist attributes applicable to film and anime is formed, through which finally, two films of Hosoda Mamoru’s are analyzed.Show less

Leiden University Student Repository

In Collections

Exploring Extraordinary Identities: Analyzing Hosoda Mamoru's Films Through the Theory of Magical Realism