Hi, this is Charline Jao from The Mary Sue
and today we are going to talk about female leads in Studio Ghibli films.
Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli's animated films, whether they were in the spirit world
or real life Japan, often share similar themes of nature preservation, the damages of imperialism,
and childhood often featuring a young girl in the lead.
Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli's female protagonists are complicated, flawed and independent figures.
Narratives that center around princesses can face a lot of scrutiny as they tend to revolve around marriage
and romance as the ultimate aspiration for girls.
In movies like Princess Mononoke, which I should note is not a fully child appropriate film,
the title character, San, has her own story separate from the male lead, Ashitaka.
San, a young woman raised by wolves, is aggressive, wild and just really cool as she tries to defend the forest
from destructive humans.
In her encounters with Ashitaka she's headstrong but later on, forced to confront her identity as a human.
However, it never comes across as him saving her or taming her but a relationship of mutual respect.
Also, while the two grow close there's never a compulsory need for them to end up together.
Princess Nausicaa is another such powerful leader princess in the post-apocalyptic
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind.
These are some of his more dramatic and epic works but you see the heroic girl in other films
like Kiki's Delivery Service when Kiki saves Tombo,
or even Laputa with it's male-female duo.
It's also notable that the female villains of these stories are just as complex and multidimensional
as the protagonists.
While it might've been easier to cast Lady Eboshi, in Princess Mononoke, as an evil symbol
of industry and environmental destruction, we'd be ignoring the fact that she saves women from trafficking,
takes in victims of leprosy, and is genuinely doing the best she can for her people.
The film's conflict isn't resolved by killing Eboshi as Ashitaka makes it a point to save her.
Here, we see Miyazaki's pacifism come out as peacekeeping, negotiation and repair are the answer.
Not just slaying a dragon or beating a single enemy.
These morally ambiguous female villains appear again in films like Spirited Away where Yubaba could have
been reduced to a greedy, evil, hag trapping people and eating their parents.
But she's also motherly and trying to run her business.
It's also clear that she operates under certain rules that she cannot break and it's the same with her sister, Zeniba.
I've only cited Miyazaki's more fantastical works
but his slice-of-life stories are equally compelling and the characters are just as interesting.
Whisper of the Heart features a young girl, Shizuku, who's trying to figure out youth and romance.
It's a love story but Shizuku has her own storyline and growth a part from her love interest.
While he inspires her, her personal growth isn't dependent on him.
It's her own initiative, writing talent and imagination that push her forward.
Only Yesterday is a similar story that shows a film doesn't need fighting moves
and completely avoiding love interest to be feminist by telling a heartwarming story about a woman
who decides to stop conforming to societal standards and chooses to make herself happy.
I've only scratched the surface as there are so many other fantastic characters in the world
Studio Ghibli has created. I'm glad I got to grow up with these films and I've always admired
how Miyazaki doesn't shy away from weakness in his characters.
But he never let's it define his characters either.
Who's your favorite character from Studio Ghibli?
This is Charline Jao from The Mary Sue.com