Conformity Representation in Studio Ghibli Films

Sabrina Huang
Carnegie Mellon University – Japanese Studies

Abstract

This paper discusses how conformity is presented in four Studio Ghibli films, two directed by Hayao Miyazaki and two by Isao Takahata – Spirited Away, The Tale of Princess Kaguya, Only Yesterday and Castle in the Sky. These particular films were chosen to analyze conformity representation for Japan in the past, for Japan in the present and for other cultures. Three specific aspects of conformity were analyzed and compared – uchi versus soto, total commitment and enryo – along with what possible messages the directors are giving their audiences about conformity.

Introduction

Conformity has always had a great influence in society, affecting how people interact with each other and fulfill their roles. Japan is often considered an especially conforming and communal country, where choosing to conform or not can greatly impact people’s lives. Therefore, it seemed interesting to explore how Japanese people depict conformity in their own country and if there is a difference in the way conformity is presented across time periods or countries from a Japanese perspective.

Studio Ghibli films were chosen for analysis due to their popularity, loved by audiences of many cultures. The specific films chosen were Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away (2001) and Castle in the Sky (1986), along with Isao Takahata’s The Tale of Princess Kaguya (2013) and Only Yesterday (1991).

Overall, the purpose of the analysis was to discover how three aspects of conformity – uchi versus soto, total commitment and enryo – are depicted in the four films of interest to analyze how Japanese people view conforming to roles in society. The first research question was “How are uchi versus soto, total commitment and enryo represented in the four Studio Ghibli films, and do they differ from each other?” The second question was “Is conformity shown to vary across different time periods in Japan or between Japan and other countries from a Japanese perspective?”

It was hypothesized that each film would contain scenes related to all three aspects of conformity but that they would show different ways people can conform, along with consequences for their choices.

Conformity has played a large role in Japan for a very long time, so it was expected that the pressure to conform will exist in all films no matter the time period. However, the way that people are pressured to conform may be different between the past and present.

Concerning conformity representation for different countries, it was expected that there would not be an obvious difference. Japanese film makers may not want to change the way they present conformity, even if the setting is a foreign country, since their main audience is Japanese people. If they changed the cultural aspects of the film to fit the setting, Japanese audiences may not understand the cultural aspects and relate to the film as much. To deliver the full message, it may be more helpful to keep the characters in line with Japanese culture no matter the country presented. Additionally, if pressure to conform in each country is strong, then there may not be an obvious difference in conformity portrayal despite setting (Metzger, 1960, 357).

Background

One definition of conformity is that “[to] conform is to enact the social roles that reflect a vital social concern and that attach to one’s social positions, these being set in the main by age, sex, class and occupation” (Metzger, 1960, 357). The definition that Metzger provides is similar to the Japanese concept of fulfilling one’s bun, or one’s role in society, set based on the same factors mentioned by Metzger (Lebra, 1976, 68-69). This is the definition that will be used to analyze conformity in the four Studio Ghibli films.

Conformity has both positive and negative consequences. On one hand, conformity helps an individual feel belongingness to a group by providing a way to have greater connections to others and see oneself as part of a greater whole. This can also give people a desire to work better in their role to contribute well to the whole. On the other hand, the pressure to conform can negatively affect people’s lives; sometimes, if people choose not to conform, they risk bullying or ostracization, and in countries such as Japan, this can lead to people choosing to become hikikomori, or shut-ins, because they feel that they have failed to conform properly to society and fulfill their bun. It is also possible for people to lose their identity and personal desires trying to act like someone they are not just to conform to others (Lebra, 1976, 22-23; Toivonen, 2011).

In this analysis, the three specific aspects of conformity discussed are uchi versus soto, total commitment, and enryo. Uchi, meaning “inside”, and soto, meaning “outside”, are concepts taught to Japanese children from a young age, creating the idea that what is outside is dirty or different, while what is inside is clean and familiar. These terms often apply to groups of people; for example, one’s family and close friends are in one’s uchi, while strangers are soto. This enforces the idea that those who are outside one’s group are different and should not be interacted with as much (Hendry, 2019, 57-62).

Secondly, when people show total commitment, this implies that they have loyalty to their group and will protect its members. In Japan, those who show more motivation to join a group are often more likely to be given a position than someone who may be more qualified but less committed, emphasizing the importance of commitment over ability. To search for total commitment, screening processes become important, allowing a group to assess if someone is really willing to commit and conform to the group’s standards. In this way, people can also enter from soto into uchi (Lebra, 1976, 31-32).

Finally, enryo, or “self-restraint”, is often used in Japan to prevent upsetting a group by insisting on one’s own way. Giving up one’s true feelings for the whole is important to not stand out and affect the group dynamic (Lebra, 1976, 29).

However, conformity does not only exist in Japan but is prevalent in all countries. Metzger discusses how in the United States of American (USA), conformity still affects people’s lives greatly, despite the common belief that Japan is more conforming than the USA. The major difference most likely comes from the way people choose to conform. American youth tend to be freer in choosing the roles they wish to play in society, whereas in Japan, the roles people can choose may be fewer. However, the need and desire to fulfill one’s role, or bun, properly exists in both cultures. For example, even if an American person chooses a non-conventional role, an innate desire to conform may still exist, such as when a person chooses a unique role to receive praise from others (Metzger, 1960, 358-359).

Research design and methods

One research question focused on how uchi versus soto, total commitment and enryo were presented in the four Studio Ghibli films of interest, along with a comparison of them. The second research question focused on whether or not conformity representation differed based on time period or setting in the films. A majority of the data was personal analysis on the films. Some information about conformity and the films was obtained from articles and readings, but there was no quantitative data, since it did not fit well with the questions asked.

Spirited Away and The Tale of Princess Kaguya were used to analyze Japanese conformity in the past, while Only Yesterday was used to analyze Japanese conformity in the present to compare whether time period affects conformity representation. Meanwhile, Castle in the Sky was used to analyze conformity in a foreign setting to compare whether Japanese conformity and non-Japanese conformity are depicted similarly. Specific scenes in the films, along with the characters’ actions and reactions to situations, were analyzed. Since two directors’ films were chosen, a brief analysis of their ways of presenting conformity was also performed, specifically concerning uchi versus soto, total commitment and enryo.

Results

In Miyazaki’s Spirited Away, Chihiro is forced to work at a bathhouse in the spirit world after her parents are turned into pigs for eating food without paying. She gains a friend, Haku, whom she fights to rescue and who helps her return with her parents to the human world. Meanwhile, No Face, also known as Kaonashi, continuously tries to gain Chihiro’s attention through offering gold. Chihiro does not desire No Face’s gold like the bathhouse workers do; instead, all she wants is to save her parents and Haku (Miyazaki, 2001).

The film may show how Japanese people view conformity in Japan in the past. At the beginning of the film, Chihiro’s parents claim they will be fine eating the food when no one is around, because they have money, making their present time in the human world seem similar to the Japanese Bubble era in the 1980s. During this time, people felt secure because of how easy it was to obtain money, and her parents reflect this mentality.

However, the spirit world seems to show a time around the Edo period based on the way the bathhouse is run. Bathhouses became popular during the Edo period, and some became men-only, which is what the bathhouse in Spirited Away seems to be. During this time, there were also many female yuna and male sansuke, which may be the female workers and male workers at the bathhouse, respectively (April, 2020).

Under the assumption that the movie’s main setting was around the Edo period in Japan, the three aspects of conformity were analyzed. Uchi and soto plays a large role in the film, especially since Chihiro, as a human, has to deal with being treated as an outsider, a part of the soto, by the majority of workers at the bathhouse. They claim that her human scent smells horrible, that she cannot do work properly and that the trouble with No Face is all her fault. Because they view her as different, they purposefully make her life difficult and bully her. For example, they do not give her nice herbal bath tokens and force her to prepare a bath for an extremely muddy spirit.

Only a few characters treat Chihiro well, becoming a part of her uchi at the bathhouse, such as Haku, Kamaji, and Lin. They are shown to be kind characters with admirable traits, such as care for others. Meanwhile, those who shun Chihiro and treat her as soto have rude and greedy personalities, possibly implying how great it is to treat people as part of one’s inner circle.

Additionally, No Face may represent a lonely Japanese person, or possibly a hikikomori, who is unable to communicate and interact with people well, leading to him being shunned by the bathhouse workers. It is only after he acts in a way that the bathhouse workers like, specifically by giving them gold, do the bathhouse workers treat him like a part of their uchi (Reider, 2005, 19).

Despite the large amount of uchi versus soto aspects in the film, Chihiro does not show much total commitment to the bathhouse. Her main concerns are for her friends and family. She takes actions to help the bathhouse workers and fulfill her role as well as she can to keep her job, but her true commitment is not to the bathhouse itself. This may be another reason why the majority of bathhouse workers continue to see her as an outsider and a nuisance and bully her.

Finally, enryo is shown through Chihiro’s reserved actions. Even though she is not committed to the bathhouse, she must maintain her job there so she can save her parents and Haku. Because of this, she constantly acts polite, listens to what people tell her to do and does not complain in the bathhouse even though the workers treat her poorly. The workers tolerate her presence, because she does her work without complaining and does not speak her mind after being mistreated.

The other film set in an older era of Japan is The Tale of Princess Kaguya by Takahata, probably set in the Heian period, earlier than the predicted Edo period of the spirit world in Spirited Away (Smith, 2021). In the film, a couple from the country takes care of a girl brought to Earth from the moon, and the girl grows up loving the country and its nature. Her father, under the impression that the Heavens want her to be a successful princess in the Capital, forces her to live a life away from nature and tries to have her marry a man of high status. After a traumatic event, her heart cries out to return to the moon, and the people from the moon take her away even after she claims she wishes to stay with her parents on Earth (Takahata, 2013).

The girl, later named Kaguya at the Capital, is forced to switch who she considers her uchi and soto, causing her to hate her life. Kaguya’s heart belongs to the country and to nature, but her father forces her to live as a stationary and obedient princess in the Capital. Kaguya’s original uchi consists of her friends from the country, and throughout the film, she continues wanting these people to stay her uchi. However, at the Capital, her father forces her to make her country friends soto, treating them as lowly country commoners. Meanwhile, he forces her to make the Capital people and suitors she despises her new uchi. Her two nicknames also show the split between her two ways of life – take no ko (bamboo shoot) and hime (princess). She responds to both names, representative of how her final uchi is a mix of people from both the country and the Capital. Her mother and romantic interest, Sutemaru, represent the country more, while her father and servant represent the Capital more.

Because Kaguya does not care for the Capital, she has difficulty showing total commitment to her role as princess. She often did as she wanted when younger, but after growing up, she remains lifeless and depressed in the palace. She hates all the things a princess is supposed to have – big robes, makeup, manners and suitors, among other things. Instead, she is committed to nature and her friends there, so when she is taken away from the place and people she loves, she is not able to switch her commitment to the Capital and princess life.

However, for her father’s sake, she acts like she is totally committed. Enryo shows in many places in the film, and in the end, it is shown to be a poor decision. Kaguya shows enryo at first, listening to her father when he forces her to go to the Capital and take lessons from Lady Sagami. Even though she hates royalty life, she fulfills her duty and restrains her true personality and desires for her father. However, eventually, she cannot follow her fathers’ desires to push her into higher status anymore, and she shows no more self-restraint, even claiming she will kill herself. Because of her enryo – not telling her father her true feelings earlier – her life on Earth ends sadly as she is forced to return to the moon.

Meanwhile, Takahata’s other film, Only Yesterday, is about Taeko’s trip in the 1980s to the countryside to learn how to pick safflowers. As she goes on the trip, she remembers memories of her elementary school years in the 1960s – moments with her family or with friends at school (Andlor, 2020). Although the time period is not extremely recent, it was expected that some elements of Japanese conformity would be the same, since a lot of people continue to relate to the film, even now (Yuen, 2013). Therefore, the film was used to analyze Japanese conformity in the present time (Takahata, 1991).

Again, the distinction between uchi and soto is very prevalent in the film, since through her memories, Taeko is shown to never fit in properly, even amongst her family members who claim she is not a normal child. The most important distinction is that Taeko’s life and memories show how much of a city girl she is, but since she was young, she had always wanted to be a country girl instead, believing it to be her calling. During her time in the countryside, picking safflowers, she learns how country people and city people differ. For example, city people see trees and rivers and believe it is all natural, but farmers know that people planted the trees and river paths were dug out by people. Also, to Taeko, safflower picking is a fun and rare experience, but for those in the countryside, it is their normal work.

Taeko realizes how much of an outsider she is at the end of the film, a part of the soto for those who grew up in the country. She feels like a fraud for claiming that her heart belongs to the country when, in reality, she has not experienced the same type of life that country people have. She becomes embarrassed about the way she had been acting, declaring her love for the country, acting like a part of the farmers’ uchi, when in fact, she is still part of their soto.

However, through her total commitment, she slowly becomes a part of their uchi. Because Taeko worked hard to pick safflowers – becoming an early riser, wearing the right clothes and showing enthusiasm to learn – the eldest woman at the farm believes she is fit to be a part of their uchi, asking if she will marry Toshio, a farmer Taeko befriends.

Total commitment is also shown in the farmers’ dedication to their work, which is something Taeko claims she has but does not fully. For example, Toshio puts in extra effort to grow his plants organically even though it takes more energy, but this shows his commitment to being a great farmer. Also, even though farming is difficult, the farmers cheer each other on to keep going.

Lastly, enryo is shown through Taeko’s transformation from child to adult. When she is younger, she is shown to be an eccentric child who speaks her mind around family members, but she becomes more reserved as an adult to fit in better with other people. Her transition is not shown, but this can be seen by the stark contrast in the way she acts. Otherwise, enryo is not shown as much in this film, especially since Taeko tends to speak her mind often, sharing her memories with whoever will listen.

However, one of Taeko’s memories shows a negative consequence of lack of enryo. When her class is having a meeting to discuss classroom rules, one of her friends continues speaking her mind about what rules should be put in place. She does not show enryo in this situation, even reprimanding other students for bad behavior, which makes her a target of bullying because of lack of conformity. Because she stands out, she is called a “goody-two-shoes”, and other students do not want to listen to her.

Instead of a Japanese setting, Miyazaki’s Castle in the Sky is set in a foreign country of unknown origin. Sheeta, the heir of the flying castle, Laputa, works with her new friend, Pazu, to stop Muska from taking over Laputa and its technology for himself to conquer other nations. The two join Dola’s pirate gang and, together, they search for the castle (Miyazaki, 1986). The time period of this film was not important for the analysis; instead, this film was chosen as a film with a non-Japanese setting for conformity comparison.

Uchi and soto are shown in two major ways. One way is through Muska claiming that all are inferior to Laputa, its people and its technology, giving himself an excuse to use Laputa to gain power. Sheeta, the only other Laputan, becomes whom he considers his uchi, while everyone else is soto; he shows no care for them at all, even killing people when they have finished serving their purpose.

Another example of uchi and soto is through Dola’s pirate gang. She and her pirate family are considered very different from others in the way they act, dress and live. From their perspective, their gang is their uchi, while everyone else is soto. However, when they invade the village to look for Sheeta, they are seen as outsiders from the villagers, who fight them to allow Sheeta and Pazu to flee.

To become a part of the pirate gang and look for Laputa, Pazu and Sheeta must show their total commitment. Dola puts Pazu under a short screening process to assess if she should bring him along to save Sheeta by testing his motivation for joining her group. When she realizes Pazu’s intentions are only to save Sheeta and not to look for treasure like her family, she allows him to enter, which seems contrary to the way normal screening is. Dola does not want Pazu to have the same desires for treasure as her, because his interests would then conflict with hers.

After saving Sheeta, Sheeta also shows her commitment to the pirates’ way of life by wearing the new clothes Dola gives her and performing her duty well as cook on the pirate aircraft. Because of her obedience and commitment to her job, she is deemed a favorable addition to the group. Pazu and Sheeta are considered so reliable by Dola and her gang that when Laputa is destroyed, the pirates are just happy to know that the two are alive.

There are not many instances of enryo in this film, however, which may indicate what Miyazaki thinks about conformity in foreign cultures. The characters all strive for what they want and do so without reservation – Muska fights for Laputan technology, Pazu fights to save Sheeta, Sheeta fights to stop Muska and the pirates fight for treasure. However, one instance of enryo is when Muska convinces Sheeta to tell Pazu to leave her and go home, even though the reality is that she does not want to be stuck with Muska. Her enryo is shown to be a poor decision, because her self-restraint helps Muska find a way to Laputa and gives Pazu heart-break.

Overall, the idea of uchi versus soto is strong in all films; because of the distinction between those considered uchi and those considered soto, there are disagreements amongst individuals, which can lead to sadness, bullying or a feeling that one does not belong. Total commitment is shown to be a way for individuals to gain respect from a specific group of people and become a part of their uchi, while a lack of total commitment is shown to cause problems for those who refuse to commit. However, the films’ portrayal of enryo seem to contradict. Spirited Away and Only Yesterday show how enryo can benefit an individual and how a lack of enryo can be a reason for bullying. However, The Tale of Princess Kaguya and Castle in the Sky show the negative consequences that enryo can cause.

The films seem to agree on the effects of uchi versus soto and total commitment on an individual’s ability to conform and perform one’s role well to be accepted in society. However, the disagreements that exist about enryo do not seem related to time period or country setting. The two films set in the past, Spirited Away and Princess Kaguya disagree on the consequences of enryo, while Princess Kaguya, set in Japan, and Castle in the Sky, set in a foreign country, agree that enryo can have negative consequences.

There is a huge possibility that the use of films from two different directors have made the results confusing. Comparing only Miyazaki’s films, Spirited Away and Castle in the Sky, could imply that Miyazaki believes that those in foreign countries show less enryo. Comparing only Takahata’s films, The Tale of Princess Kaguya and Only Yesterday, could imply that Takahata believes that enryo is not necessary. It is true that in Only Yesterday, enryo is shown to have some benefits, while lack of enryo has some negative consequences, but this is not greatly emphasized. The harsh admonition of enryo in The Tale of Princess Kaguya and the small enryo representation in Only Yesterday could show that Takahata does not find this aspect of conformity helpful or necessary.

Overall, the hypothesis that each film would show all three aspects of conformity chosen was found to be correct; even though in some films, some are not as prevalent, the consequences of the characters’ choices are still shown. The way that conformity is shown in each film also differs as predicted, since the plots and characters are widely different.

However, the hypotheses concerning differences based on time period or country have been refuted due to the disagreements on enryo mentioned previously. Choosing films from only one director probably would have made the analysis easier, but it was helpful to know that directors from the same time and country may view conformity and its consequences differently.

However, one possible difference between conformity in Japan and in other countries is the consequences of lack of conformity. In the three films set in Japan, a lack of conformity would have result in a lower quality of life, embarrassment or bullying, which can really impact an individual’s life. Meanwhile, for the one film set in a foreign country, if the characters chose not to conform, this would mainly result in the protagonists’ inability to achieve their goals.

Discussion

These films show that the desire or necessity to conform to fulfill one’s role properly has existed for many eras, perhaps even from the Heian period. The value of respecting and obeying others exists strongly, allowing people to perform their jobs better or prevent shame or rejection. Since Japan is such a communal country, those who do not conform to societal norms often stand out and are considered less favorable to interact with, and this has created some consequences that last to the present age.

Chihiro’s need to cooperate with the bathhouse workers and follow their rules shows how people try not to complain about their work situation, so they can keep their jobs for security purposes. No Face also resembles the rise in hikikomori during the 1990s in Japan – a phenomenon which continues to this day and often involves people who feel they have failed to conform in society (Kiyoshi, 2017). Kaguya’s extreme self-restraint shows the lengths some people go to for obtaining peace and for pleasing those whose opinions they care about. Taeko’s attempt at total commitment to farming and the response the countryside people give reflect how Japanese companies often look at how dedicated one is rather than at past credentials when offering a position. Pazu and Sheeta also show the importance of showing total commitment to receive respect from a group. These are only some of the social phenomena in Japan that are reflected in the films.

The films also show aspects of post-war Japan, specifically the 1980s Bubble era, which are mostly seen in Spirited Away and Only Yesterday. During this time, people believed that their abundance of money was enough to be secure in life, and from this, people were more willing to buy what they wanted and pursue their interests. Most people’s interest at the time was money, and conformity was probably not as important; this can be seen in the lack of restraint that Chihiro’s parents have when they eat food without paying and when Taeko unreservedly discusses her past as she takes a vacation for herself.

Overall, there were many moments of conformity in the films, specifically concerning uchi versus soto, total commitment and enryo. The characters’ decisions were often based on a desire or need to conform, and some important plot points only occurred because of the characters’ decision to conform and fulfill their roles. Because of the abundance of conformity in the films, even films by different directors, conformity appears to be an integral and consistent part of Japanese culture. Some of these films also feature child protagonists, emphasizing how engrained conformity is from a young age. However, in reality, conformity exists in places other than Japan, and Miyazaki’s Castle in the Sky somewhat addresses this.

Final reflections

In Japan, conformity is necessary to fulfill one’s bun properly, and the choice to conform or not can seriously impact an individual’s quality of life. Overall, the four films gave slightly different messages concerning aspects of conformity like enryo, showing that the consequences of conformity are situation-dependent. Often, it is better to conform to society if one wants to prevent bullying, ostracization or embarrassment, but there are still times when conforming can give negative results, and it seems that the two Japanese directors are alluding to some of these possibilities. Perhaps, the directors are giving a warning to the mostly conforming Japanese population, reminding them of both the positive and negative consequences of this engrained cultural characteristic.

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