Transformation of Japanese Female Characters in the European Live­Action Films (1945–2015)

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to define characteristic images of Japanese women in European live-action films of the second half of the 20th century — the early 21st century. Research methodology . The author applied the imalogical method which has to do with the analysis of one nation’s image in the perception of another one, at that the source of the research is the mass culture of a recipient. The basis of this method is the comprehensive approach. Results . A woman was perceived as Different in most cultures for extended periods. At the same time, a woman had a major impact on the development of the people in almost all spheres of its life. For a long time, Japanese women were perceived as a secondary member of a society. In the context of globalization, gender roles are changing even in traditional Japanese society. The identification of characteristic images and the study of the transformation of the female characters’ images will help to more accurately determine and characterize the image of Japan in European live-action films. Imagology is a young scientific field that explores the image of one nation in the minds of another. The subject of imagology is a cultural tradition in all its manifestations, including the position of women in the society. The study of female images and their evolution helps to determine the image of the country as a whole. Cinema, as one of the most popular types of popular art, is capable of simultaneously relaying the public opinion and creating new social myths. The characteristic images of Japanese characters are revealed: an object in a patriarchal society, an object of a foreigner’s love, a woman creator, a woman warrior, a keeper of cultural traditions, and a modern Japanese woman. It is specified that the artistic and dramatic principles of the images are changing, depending on the genre features of the film. It is determined that a woman acts as a metaphor for the whole country, for which the postcolonial discourse, the features of intercultural communication, the consequences of the events of the Second World War are reflected. Novelty . The novelty of the results is a cultural conceptualization of the image of a Japanese woman, formed under the influence of cultural and historical factors and reflected in cinematography. For the first time, the transformation of cinematic images of Japanese women under the influence of Japanese cultural policy and intercultural communication is traced. The practical significance. An analysis of the image of female characters in live-action films is an important step in the study of the cultural and artistic representation of Japan in Western cinema of the 2nd half of the 20th century — the early 21st century.