Shōjomanga

"Shōjo" redirects here. For other uses, seeShojo (disambiguation).

Shōjomanga(Thiếu nữ mạn họa,lit."girls'comics",alsoromanizedasshojoorshoujo)is an editorial category ofJapanese comicstargeting an audience of adolescent females and young adult women. It is, along withshōnenmanga(targeting adolescent boys),seinenmanga(targeting young adult and adult men), andjoseimanga(targeting adult women), one of the primary editorial categories of manga.Shōjomanga is traditionally published in dedicatedmanga magazines,which often specialize in a particular readership age range or narrative genre.

Shelves ofcollected volumesofshōjomanga under theMargaret Comicsimprint at a bookstore in Tokyo in 2004

Shōjomanga originated from Japanese girls' culture at the turn of the twentieth century, primarilyshōjo shōsetsu(girls' prose novels) andjojōga(lyrical paintings). The earliestshōjomanga was published in general magazines aimed at teenagers in the early 1900s and began a period of creative development in the 1950s as it began to formalize as a distinct category of manga. While the category was initially dominated by malemanga artists,the emergence and eventual dominance of female artists beginning in the 1960s and 1970s led to significant creative innovation and the development of more graphically and thematically complex stories. Since the 1980s, the category has developed stylistically while simultaneously branching into different and overlapping subgenres.

Strictly speaking,shōjomanga does not refer to a specific style or a genre but rather indicates atarget demographic.While certain aesthetic, visual, and narrative conventions are associated withshōjomanga, these conventions have changed and evolved over time, and none are strictly exclusive toshōjomanga. Nonetheless, several concepts and themes have come to be typically associated withshōjomanga, both visual (non-rigidpanellayouts, highly detailed eyes) and narrative (a focus on human relations and emotions; characters that defy traditional roles and stereotypes surrounding gender and sexuality; depictions ofsupernaturalandparanormalsubjects).

Terminology

Shōjo

ActressHideko Takamine,portraying an archetypalshōjowearing asailorfukuin the 1939 filmHana Tsumi Nikki

The Japanese wordshōjo( thiếu nữ ) translates literally to "girl", but in common Japanese usage girls are generally referred to asonna no ko(Nữ の tử)and rarely asshōjo.Rather, the termshōjois used to designate a social category that emerged during theMeiji era(1868–1912) of girls and young women at the age between childhood and marriage. Generally this referred to school-aged adolescents, with whom an image of "innocence, purity and cuteness" was associated; this contrasted themoga( "modern girl", young unmarried working women), with whom a more self-determined and sexualized image was associated.Shōjocontinued to be associated with an image of youth and innocence after the end of the Meiji era, but took on a strongconsumeristconnotation beginning in the 1980s as it developed into a distinct marketing category for girls; thegyarualso replaced themogaas the archetypical independent woman during this period.

Shōjomanga

Strictly speaking,shōjomanga does not refer to a specific style or a genre, but rather indicates atarget demographic.The Japanesemangamarket is segmented by target readership, with the major categories divided by gender (shōjofor girls,shōnenfor boys) and by age (joseifor women,seinenfor men). Thus,shōjomanga is typically defined as manga marketed to an audience of adolescent girls and young adult women,thoughshōjomanga is also read by menand older women.

Shōjomanga is traditionally published in dedicatedmanga magazinesthat are directed at a readership ofshōjo,an audience that emerged in the early 20th century and which has grown and diversified over time.While the style and tone of the stories published in these magazines varies across publications and decades, an invariant characteristic ofshōjomanga has been a focus on human relations and the emotions that accompany them.Some critics, such asKyoto International Manga Museumcurator Kayoko Kuramochi and academicMasuko Honda,emphasize certain graphic elements when attempting to defineshōjomanga: the imaginative use of flowers, ribbons, fluttering dresses, girls with large sparkling eyes, and words that string across the page, which Honda describes using theonomatopoeiahirahira.This definition accounts for works that exist outside the boundaries of traditionalshōjomagazine publishing but which nonetheless are perceived asshōjo,such as works published on the Internet.

History

Before 1945: Context and origins

Origins ofshōjoculture

Cover of the first issue ofShōjo-kai,1902

As the Japanese publishing industry boomed during theMeiji era,new magazines aimed at a teenage audience began to emerge, referred to asshōnen.While these magazines were ostensibly unisex, in practice the editorial content of these magazines largely concerned topics that were of interest to boys.Faced with growing demand for magazines aimed at girls, the firstshōjomagazines were published, andshōnenmagazines came to target boys exclusively.The first exclusivelyshōjomagazine wasShōjo-kai,first published in 1902. This was followed byShōjo Sekaiin 1906,Shōjo no Tomoin 1908,Shōjo Gahōin 1912, andShōjo Clubin 1923.These magazines focused primarily onshōjo shōsetsu(lit."girls' novel", a term for illustrated novels and poems aimed at an audience of girls) and only incidentally on manga.

Shōjo shōsetsunevertheless played an important role in establishing ashōjoculture, and laid the foundations for what would become the major recurrent themes ofshōjomanga through their focus on stories of love and friendship.Among the most significant authors of this era wasNobuko Yoshiya,a major figure in theClass Sgenre whose novels such asHana Monogataricentered onromantic friendshipsbetween girls and women.The visual conventions ofshōjomanga were also heavily influenced by the illustrations published in these magazines, with works by illustratorsYumeji Takehisa,Jun'ichi Nakahara,andKashō Takabatakefeaturing female figures with slender bodies, fashionable clothing, and large eyes.Japanese artists who studied in France at the time were influenced by the methods of expression of Art Nouveau and early pin-up artists.

Earlyshōjomanga

Earlyshōjomanga took the form of short, humorous stories with ordinary settings (such as schools and neighborhoods)and which often featuredtomboyprotagonists.These works began to develop in the 1930s through the influence of artists such asSuihō TagawaandShosuke Kurakane;this period saw some femaleshōjoartists, such asMachiko HasegawaandToshiko Ueda,though they were significantly less common than male artists.

Among the most influential artists of this era wasKatsuji Matsumoto,a lyrical painter influenced inmogaculture and the artistic culture of the United States. Having grown tired of depicting typical innocentshōjosubjects in his illustrations,he pivoted to drawing manga in the 1920s, where he was able to depictmogaand tomboys more freely.His style, likely influenced by American comic book artists likeGeorge McManusandEthel Haysand American cinema of the era, introduced sophisticated and avant-garde innovations inshōjomanga, such as theart deco-inspiredPoku-chan(1930), the cinematicNazo no Kurōbā(1934), and his most famous workKurukuru Kurumi-chan(1938).

With the outbreak of theSecond Sino-Japanese Warin 1937, censorship and paper rationing hindered the development of magazines, which either folded or were forced to merge to survive. The magazines that continued to published were reduced to a few pages of black and white text, with few or no illustrations.41 total magazines remained in publication in 1945, two of which were shōjo magazines:Shōjo ClubandShōjo no Tomo.

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  A four-panel manga from the November 1910 issue ofShōjo(artist unknown). Note thehenohenomohejiin the final panel.
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  The third chapter ofMikeko Romance(ミケ tử ロマンス)by Jihei Ogawa, in the July 1920 issue ofShōjo Gahō

1945–1970: Post-war rise

1950s: Formalization as a category

An ambassador for the city ofTakarazukadressed as the titular character fromPrincess Knightin 2012

With the end of the war, Japan entered into a period of large-scale artistic production in cinema, radio, and publishing. Fiction novels enjoyed a surge of popularity, while the number of published magazines grew from 41 in 1945 to 400 by 1952; the number of publishing companies grew from 300 to roughly 2000 during the same period. While not all of theses magazines and companies published children's literature, publications for children constituted a significant percentage of publishing output.Contemporaneously,kashi-hon(book rentalstores) experienced a boom in popularity. These stores rented books for a modest fee of five to tenyen,roughly equivalent to half the cost of a subway ticket at the time.This had the effect of widening access to books among the general public and spurring additional manga publishing.

Shōjomanga artists who had been active prior to the war returned to the medium, includingShosuke KurakanewithAnmitsu Hime(1949–1955),Toshiko UedawithFuichin-san(1957–1962),and Katsuji Matsumoto resuming publication ofKurukuru Kurumi-chan.During this period, Matsumoto developed his art into a style that began to resemble thekawaiiaesthetic that would emerge several decades later.New manga artists, such asOsamu Tezukaand other artists associated withTokiwa-sō,created works that introduced intense drama and serious themes to children's manga using a new format that had become popular inshōnenmanga: the "story manga", which depicted multi-chapter narratives withcontinuityrather than a succession of essentially independent vignettes.Princess Knight(1953–1956) by Tezuka is credited with introducing this type of narrative, along with Tezuka's innovative and dynamic style, toshōjomagazines.

At the same time,shōjoon thekashi-honmarket developed its own distinct style through the influence ofjojōga(lyrical painting).Jojōgaartists Yukiko Tani andMacoto Takahashidrew cover illustrations forshōjomanga anthologies such asNijiandHanabefore transitioning into drawing manga themselves.Rather than following Matsumoto's trajectory of moving away from the visual conventions of lyrical painting, Tani and Takahashi imported them into their manga, with works defined by a strong sense ofatmosphereand a focus on the emotions rather than the actions of their protagonists.Takahashi's manga seriesArashi o Koete(1958) was a major success upon its release, and marked the beginnings of thisjojōga-influenced style eclipsing Tezuka's dynamic style as the dominant visual style ofshōjomanga.Not allkashi-honshōjoconformed to this lyrical style: one of the most popularshōjokashi-honanthologies wasKaidan(Quái đàm,lit."Ghost Stories" ),which launched in 1958 and ran for more than one hundred monthly issues. As its name implies, the anthology publishedsupernaturalstories focused onyūreiandyōkai.Its success with female readers resulted in other generalistshōjoanthologies beginning to publish horror manga, laying the groundwork for what would become a significant subgenre ofshōjomanga.

As manga became generally more popular over the course of the decade, the proportion of manga published byshōjomagazines began to increase. For example, while manga represented only 20 percent of the editorial content ofShōjo Clubin the mid-1950s, by the end of the decade it composed more than half.Manyshōjomagazines had in effect became manga magazines, and several companies launched magazines dedicated exclusively toshōjomanga: firstKodanshain 1954 withNakayoshi,followed byShueishain 1955 withRibon.From this combination of light-hearted stories inherited from the pre-war era, dramatic narratives introduced by the Tokiwa-sō, and cerebral works developed on thekashi-honmarket,shōjomanga of this period was divided by publishers into three major categories:kanashiimanga(かなしい mạn họa,lit."sad manga" ),yukai namanga(ゆかいな mạn họa,lit."happy manga" ),andkowaimanga(こわい mạn họa,lit."scary manga" ).

1960s: Emergence of female artists

In the 1950s,shōjomanga was a genre that was created primarily by male authors, notablyLeiji Matsumoto,Shōtarō Ishinomori,Kazuo Umezu,andTetsuya Chiba.Though some creators (notably Tezuka, Ishinomori, and Umezu) created works focused on active heroines, mostshōjostories of this era were typically focused on tragic and passive heroines who bravely endured adversity.Beside Toshiko Ueda, several female manga artists started working during the 1950s, notablyHideko Mizuno,Miyako Maki,Masako WatanabeandEiko Hanamura,most of them debuted within thekashi-honanthologyIzumi(Tuyền).While they constituted a minority ofshōjomanga creators, the editorial departments of magazines noted that their works were more popular with female readers than works created by their male peers.

By the 1960s, the ubiquity of television in Japanese households and the rise of serialized television programs emerged as a significant competitor to magazines. Many monthly magazines folded and were replaced by weekly magazines, such asShōjo FriendandMargaret.To satisfy the need for weekly editorial content, magazines introduced contests in which readers could submit their manga for publication; female artists dominated these contests, and many amateur artists who emerged from these contests went on to have professional manga careers.The first artist to emerge from this system wasMachiko Satonaka,who at the age of 16 had debut mangaPia no Shōzō( "Portrait of Pia", 1964) published inShōjo Friend.

Shōjomanga of the 1960s was influenced by American romantic comedy films, such asSabrina(1954), which was adapted into a manga in 1963.

The emergence of female artists led to the development ofroma-kome(romantic comedy) manga, historically an unpopular genre among maleshōjoartists. Hideko Mizuno was the first to introduce romantic comedy elements toshōjomanga through her manga adaptions of American romantic comedy films:Sabrinain 1963 asSutekina Cora,andThe Quiet Manin 1966 asAkage no Scarlet.Other artists, such as Masako Watanabe,Chieko Hosokawa,andMichiko Hosonosimilarly created manga based on American romantic comedy films, or which were broadly inspired by western actresses and models and featured western settings.Contemporaneously, artists such asYoshiko Nishitanibecame popular forrabu-kome(literally "love comedy" ) manga, focused on protagonists who were ordinary Japanese teenaged girls, with a narrative focus on themes of friendship, family, school, and love.

While early romanceshōjomanga was almost invariably simple and conventional love stories, over time and through the works of manga artists such asMachiko SatonakaandYukari Ichijō,the genre adopted greater narrative and thematic complexity.This gradual maturity came to be reflected in other subgenres: horror manga artist Kazuo Umezu brokeshōjoartistic conventions by depicting female characters who were ugly, frightening, and grotesque in his 1965 seriesReptiliapublished inShōjo Friend,which led to moreshōjoartists depicting darker and taboo subject material in their work.Shōjosports manga,such asChikako Urano'sAttack No. 1(1968–1970), began to depict physically active rather than passive female protagonists.In 1969, the firstshōjomanga sex scene was published inHideko Mizuno'sFire!(1969–1971).

By the end of the decade, mostshōjomagazines now specialized in manga, and no longer published their previous prose literature and articles.As thekashi-hondeclined, so too did their manga anthologies; most folded, with their artists and writers typically migrating to manga magazines.Mostshōjomanga artists were women,and the category had developed a unique visual identity that distinguished it fromshōnenmanga.

1970s: "Golden age"

Moto Hagio,a major figure associated with theYear 24 Group,in 2008

By the early 1970s, mostshōjomanga artists were women, though editorial positions atshōjomanga magazines remained male-dominated.Over the course of the decade,shōjomanga became more graphically and thematically complex, as it came to reflect the prevailing attitudes of thesexual revolutionandwomen's liberation movement.This movement towards narratively complex stories is associated with the emergence of a new generation ofshōjoartists collectively referred to as theYear 24 Group,which includedMoto Hagio,Keiko Takemiya,Yumiko Ōshima,and numerous others.Works of the Year 24 Group focused on the internal psychology of their characters, and introduced new genres toshōjomanga such asadventure fiction,science fiction,fantasy,andhistorical drama.The art style of the Group, influenced by Machiko Satonaka and Yukari Ichijō, came to pioneer new visual standards forshōjomanga: finer and lighter lines, beautiful faces that bordered on exaggeration, andpanelsthat overlapped or were entirely borderless.

Numerous artists contributed to innovation inshōjomanga during the 1970s. Takemiya and Hagio originated a new genre,shōnen-ai(male-male romance), with Takemiya'sSunroom Nite(1970) and Hagio'sThe November Gymnasium(1971).The historical dramaThe Rose of Versailles(1972–1973) byRiyoko Ikedabecame the first major critical and commercial success inshōjomanga; the series was groundbreaking in its portrayal of gender and sexuality, and was influential in its depiction ofbishōnen(literally "beautiful boys" ), a term forandrogynousmale characters.Ako MutsuandMariko Iwadateled a new trend ofotomechikkumanga. While works of the Year 24 Group were defined by their narrative complexity,otomechikkumanga focused on the ordinary lives of teenaged Japanese protagonists. The genre waned in popularity by the end of the decade, but its narrative and visual style made a lasting impact onshōjomanga, particularly the emergent aesthetic ofkawaii.Veteranshōjoartists such asMiyako MakiandHideko Mizunobegan developing new manga for their formerly child-aged readers who were now adults. Although their attempts were commercially unsuccessful, with short-lived magazines such asPapillon(パピヨン) atFutabashain 1972, their works were the origins ofladies comicsbefore the category's formal emergence in the early 1980s.

By the end of the 1970s, the three largest publishing houses in Japan (Kodansha,Shogakukan,andShueisha) as well asHakusenshaestablished themselves as the largest publishers ofshōjomanga, and maintained this dominant position in the decades that followed.The innovation ofshōjomanga throughout the decade attracted the attention of manga critics, who had previously ignoredshōjomanga or regarded it as unserious, but who now declared thatshōjomanga had entered its "golden age".This critical attention attracted a male audience toshōjomanga who, although a minority of overallshōjoreaders, remained as an audience for the category.

1980s and 1990s: Subgenre development

Since the 1970s,shōjomanga has continued to develop stylistically while simultaneously branching out into different but overlapping subgenres.This development began with a shift in characters and settings: while foreign characters and settings were common in the immediate post-war period, stories began to be set in Japan more frequently as the country began to re-assert an independent national identity.Meiji UniversityprofessorYukari Fujimotowrites that beginning in the 1990s,shōjomanga became concerned with self-fulfillment. She intimates that theGulf Warinfluenced the development of female characters "who fight to protect the destiny of a community", such asRed River(1995–2002),Basara(1990–1998),Magic Knight Rayearth(1993–1996), andSailor Moon(1991–1997). Fujimoto opines that theshōjomanga of the 1990s depicted emotional bonds between women as stronger than the bonds between a man and a woman.

"Ladies comics" andshōjofor adults

Main article:Joseimanga

Cover illustration to thejoseimanga seriesKōrei Shussan Don to Koi!!by Motoko Fujita, an autobiography chronicling the author's pregnancy at the age of 43

In 1980, Kodansha publishedBe Loveas the first manga magazine aimed at an audience of adult women. It was quickly followed by a wave of similar magazines, includingFeel Youngat Kodansha,Judyat Shogakukan, andYou,Young YouandOffice Youat Shueisha. This category of manga, referred to as "ladies' comics" orjoseimanga, shares many common traits withshōjomanga, with the primary distinguishing exception of a focus on adult protagonists rather than teenaged or younger protagonists.Sexuality is also depicted more openly, though these depictions in turn came to influenceshōjomanga, which itself began to depict sexuality more openly in the 1990s.Several manga magazines blur distinctions betweenshōjoandjosei,and publish works that aesthetically resembleshōjomanga but which deal with the adult themes ofjoseimanga; examples includeKissat Kodansha,ChorusandCookieat Shueisha, andBetsucomiat Shogakukan.

Horror and erotica

Main article:Teens' love

Nicheshōjopublications that eschewed typicalshōjomanga conventions emerged in the 1980s, particularly in the horror and erotica genres. This occurred in the context of the decline ofkashi-honpublishing, where publishers survived market shifts away from book rental by offering collected volumes of manga that had not been previously serialized in magazines. Hibari Shōbo and Rippū Shōbo were among the publishing companies that began to publishshōjohorror manga in this format, typically as volumes that contained a mix ofkashi-honreissues and original creations.Horrorshōjomanga published bykashi-honpublishers was typically more gory and grotesque than the horror manga of mainstreamshōjomagazines, in some case prompting accusations of obscenity and lawsuits by citizens' associations.These publishing houses folded by the end of the 1980s as they became replaced with mainstreamshōjomanga magazines dedicated to the horror genre, beginning withMonthly Halloweenin 1986.

In the 1990s, a genre ofsoftcore pornographicshōjomanga emerged under the genre nameteens' love.The genre shares many common traits with pornographicjoseimanga, with the distinguishing exception of the age of the protagonists, who are typically in their late teens and early twenties.Teens' love magazines proliferated at smaller publishers, such asOhzora Publishing,which published a wide range of bothjoseiand teens' love manga.The genre gradually migrated from small publishers to larger ones, such asDessertand Shogakukan's mainstreamshōjomagazines.

By the 2000s, this nicheshōjomanga, particularly the teens' love genre, had largely abandoned printed formats in favor of the Internet, in response to the rise ofmobile phones in Japan.

2000s–present: Restructuring and influence of anime

Cross-mediashōjomanga

In the 2000s, publishers who produced manga aimed at a female audience faced a changing market:joseimanga had declined in popularity, girls increasingly preferredtelevision dramasover printed of entertainment, and the manga market generally had slowed. Many major publishers restructured theirshōjomanga magazine operations in response, folding certain magazines and launching new publications.The majority of the newly launched magazines during this period were commercial failures.

In 2008, the publishing houseFusosha,which had previously not published manga, entered the manga market with theshōjomanga magazineMalika.The magazine was unconventional compared to othershōjomanga magazines of the era: in addition to publishing manga by renowned female authors, it featured contributions from celebrities in media, illustration, and design; the magazine also operated a website that published music and additional stories. The magazine was a commercial failure and folded after six issues, but came to be emblematic of a new trend inshōjomanga:cross-media marketing,where works are published across multiple mediums simultaneously.

Earlyshōjomanga successes in this cross-media approach includeNana(2000–2009) byAi Yazawa,Lovely Complex(2001–2006) byAya Nakahara,andNodame Cantabile(2001–2010) byTomoko Ninomiya,all of which were alternately adapted into films, television dramas, anime series, video games, and series-branded music CDs.Older manga series, such asAttack No. 1andBoys Over Flowers,found renewed success after being relaunched with cross-media adaptations.

Moeinshōjomanga

TheshōjomagazinesAsukaandPrincess,which distinguished themselves by publishing a diversity of narrative genres such as fantasy and science fiction, saw new competitors emerge in the 2000s:Monthly Comic Zero Sumin 2002,Sylphin 2006,Comic Blade Avarusin 2007, andAriain 2010.These new magazines explicitly targeted an audience ofanimeandboys' love(male-male romance) fans by publishing manga that closely resembled the visual style of anime, featuredbishōnenprotagonists in fantastical environments, and which deliberately played with the visual and narrative conventions ofshōjomanga. In sum, the magazines represented the integration ofmoeinshōjomanga: a term describing an expression of cuteness focused on feelings of affection and excitement that is distinct fromkawaii,the more child-like and innocent expression of cuteness typically associated withshōjomanga.

Moewas additionally expressed inshōjomanga through the emergence of so-called "boysshōjo manga",beginning with the magazinesComic High!in 2004 andComic Yell!in 2007. Magazines in this category publish manga aimed at a male readership, but which use a visual style that draws significantly from the aesthetics ofmoeandshōjomanga.

In the English-speaking world

English-language translations ofshōjomanga were first published in North America in the late 1990s. As theAmerican comic bookmarket was largely oriented towards male readers at the time,shōjomanga found early success by targeting a then-unreached audience of female comic book readers; English translations of titles such asSailor Moon,Boys Over Flowers,andFruits Basketbecame best-selling books. The English manga market crashed in the late 2000s as a result of thefinancial crisis of 2007–2008,and when the medium regained popularity in the 2010s,shōnenmanga emerged as the most popular category of manga among English-language readers. Nevertheless, every major English-language manga publisher maintains a robust line ofshōjomanga;Viz Mediain particular publishesshōjomanga under its Shojo Beat imprint, which it also published asa serialized manga magazinein the mid- to late-2000s.

Style

Context and general elements

Cover of the September 1926 issue ofShōjo Gahō,with art by the lyrical painterKashō Takabatake

The visual style ofshōjomanga was largely similar to that ofshōnenmangauntil the late 1950s, a function of the fact that bothshōjoandshōnenmanga were created by the same, mostly male, artists.During the pre-war period, these artists were especially influenced by themoderniststyle ofGeorge McManus,while in the post-war period the dynamic style ofOsamu Tezukabecame the primary reference point for manga. Whileshōjomanga inherited some of these influences, the unique style that emerged at the end of the 1950s which came to distinguishshōjomanga fromshōnenmanga was primarily derived from pre-warshōjo shōsetsu.

Shōjo shōsetsuis characterized by a "flowery and emotional" prose style focused on theinner monologueof the protagonist.Narration is often punctuated with non-verbal elements that express the feelings of the protagonists; writerNobuko Yoshiyain particular made extensive use of multipleellipsis( "..." ), exclamation points, anddashesin the middle of sentences, the lattermost of which were scattered across pages in a manner resembling verses of poetry.Prose is accompanied by illustrations by lyrical painters, which are characterized by a sentimental style influenced byArt NouveauandNihonga.Particular attention is paid to representations ofshōjo,who are depicted as well-dressed and possessing large, very detailed eyes that have star-shaped highlights.

This narrative and visual style began to influenceshōjomanga towards the end of the 1950s;Macoto Takahashi,a lyrical painter and manga artist, is regarded as the first artist to use this style in manga.The style was quickly adopted by his contemporaries and later byshōjoartists who emerged in the 1960s, while in the 1970s artists associated with theYear 24 Groupdeveloped the style significantly.According to manga artist, academic, and Year 24 Group memberKeiko Takemiya,shōjomanga was able to develop this distinct style because the category was seen as marginal by editors, who consequently allowed artists to draw stories in whatever manner they wished so long as reader response remained positive.Stylistic elements that were developed by the Year 24 Group became established as visual hallmarks ofshōjomanga; many of these elements later spread toshōnenmanga, such as the use of non-rigid panel layouts and highly detailed eyes that express the emotions of characters.

Layout

Beginning in the 1970s,panellayouts inshōjomanga developed a new and distinct style. In his 1997 bookWhy Is Manga So Interesting? Its Grammar and Expression,manga artist and criticFusanosuke Natsumeidentifies and names the three major aspects of panel construction that came to distinguishshōjomanga fromshōnenmanga. The first,naiho( "panel encapsulations" ), refers to the use of layouts that break from the traditional comic approach of a series of sequential boxes.In this style, elements extend beyond the borders of panels, or the panel border is removed entirely.Intervals between panels are also were modified, with sequential panels that depicted the same event from different angles or perspectives.Second iskaiho( "release" ), referring to the use ofdecompressionto create more languid and relaxed sequences. Oftentimes in compositions without panel borders, text is removed fromspeech balloonsand spread across the page, especially in instances where the dialogue communicates the thoughts, feelings, andinternal monologueof the speaker.Third ismahaku( "break" ), referring to the symbolic use ofwhite space.

Large eyes

A defining stylistic element ofshōjomanga is its depiction of characters with very large, detailed eyes that have star-shaped highlights,sometimes referred to asdekame(デカ mục).This technique did not originate inshōjomanga; large eyes have been drawn in manga since the early 20th century, notably by Osamu Tezuka, who drew inspiration from thetheatrical makeupof actresses in theTakarazuka Revuewhen drawing eyes.A large central star that replaces thepupildot began to appear at key moments inshōjomanga by Tezuka andShotaro Ishinomoriin the mid-1950s,though these details generally trended towards arealiststyle rather than the emotive style of latershōjomanga.

Contemporaneously, the art of Jun'ichi Nakahara was significantly influencingkashi-honmanga artists, especially Macoto Takahashi.Takahashi incorporated Nakahara's style of drawing eyes into his own manga – large, doll-like eyes with highlights and long lashes – while gradually introducing his own stylistic elements, such as the use of dots, stars, and multiple colors to represent the iris.At the end of the 1950s, Takahashi's style was adopted byMiyako Maki– one of the most popular manga artists at the time – which led to its widespread adoption by mainstreamshōjomanga magazines.

From this point on, experimental eye design flourished inshōjomanga, with features such as elongated eyelashes, the use of concentric circles of different shades, and the deformation of the iris to create a glittering effect.This focus on hyper-detailed eyes led manga artists to frame panels on close-ups of faces, to draw attention to the emotions being expressed by the eyes of the characters.Eyes also came to serve as a marker of gender, with female characters typically having larger eyes than male characters.

Themes

Interpersonal relationships

Among the most common concepts inshōjomanga is that ofningen kankei(Nhân gian quan hệ,"human relationships" ),which refers to interpersonal relationships between characters and the interaction of their emotions.Relationships between characters are central to mostshōjomanga, particularly those of friendship, affection, and love.Narratives often focus on the interiority of their protagonists, wherein their emotions, feelings, memories, andinner monologueare expressed visually through techniques such as panel arrangement and the rendering of eye details.Whenconflictoccurs, the most common medium of exchange is dialogue and conversation, as opposed to physical combat typical inshōnenmanga.

Manga scholarYukari Fujimotoconsiders that the content ofshōjomanga has evolved in tandem with the evolution of Japanese society, especially in terms of the place of women, the role of the family, and romantic relationships. She notes how family dramas with a focus on mother-daughter relationships were popular in the 1960s, while stories about romantic relationships became more popular in the 1970s, and stories about father figures became popular in the 1990s.Asshōjomanga began to focus on adolescents over children beginning in the 1970s, romantic relationships generally become more important than family relationships;these romantic relationships are most often heterosexual, though they are occasionally homosexual.

Gender and sexuality

Shōjowar fictionemerged in tandem with the militarization of Japan in the 1930s, while an emphasis oncross-dressingcame from the popularity of the cross-dressing actresses of theTakarazuka Revue(actress Sueko Takigawa pictured).

Characters that defy traditional roles and stereotypes surrounding gender and sexuality have been a central motif ofshōjomanga since its origins.Tomboyprotagonists, referred to asotenba(お転 bà),appear regularly in pre-warshōjomanga.This archetype has two primary variants: the "fighting girl" (as in Katsuji Matsumoto'sNazo no Kurōbaa,where a girl takes up arms to defend the peasants of her village), and the "crossdressinggirl "(as in Eisuke Ishida'sKanaria Ōjisama,where a princess is raised as a prince). Osamu Tezuka'sPrincess Knightrepresents the synthesis of these two archetypes, wherein a princess who is raised as a prince comes to face her enemies in combat.These archetypes were generally popular inshōjowar fiction,which emerged in tandem with the militarization of Japan in the 1930s,while an emphasis oncross-dressingarose from the popularity of the cross-dressing actresses of theTakarazuka Revue.Otenbagrew in popularity in the post-war period, which criticYoshihiro Yonezawaattributes to advancements in gender equality marked by the enshrinement of the equality of the sexes in theConstitution of Japanin 1947.

By the end of the 1960s, sexuality – both heterosexual and homosexual – began to be freely depicted inshōjomanga. This shift was brought about in part by literalist interpretations of manga censorship codes: for example, the first sex scenes inshōjomanga were including by covering characters having sex with bed sheets to circumvent codes that specifically only forbade depictions of genitals andpubic hair.The evolution of these representations of gender in sexuality occurred in tandem with the feminization ofshōjomanga's authorship and readership, as the category shifted from being created primarily by men for an audience of young girls, to being created by women for an audience of teenaged and young adult women; since the 1970s,shōjomanga has been written almost exclusively by women.

Homosexuality

Main articles:YaoiandYuri(genre)

Male-male romance manga, referred to asyaoior "boys' love" (BL), is a significant subgenre ofshōjomanga.

Though they compose a minority ofshōjostories overall, male-male romance manga – referred to asyaoior "boys' love" (BL) – is a significant subgenre ofshōjomanga. Works in the genre typically focus onandrogynousmen referred to asbishōnen(literally "beautiful boys" ), with a focus on romantic fantasy rather than a strictly realist depiction of gay relationships.Yaoiemerged as a formal subgenre ofshōjomanga in the 1970s, but its portrayals of gay male relationships used and further developed bisexual themes already extant inshōjomanga.Japanese critics have viewedyaoias a genre that permits its audience to avoid adult female sexuality by distancing sex from their own bodies,as well as creating fluidity in perceptions of gender and sexuality by rejecting socially mandated gender roles.Parallels have also been drawn betweenyaoiand the popularity oflesbianism in pornography,with the genre having been called a form of "femalefetishism".

Female-female romance manga, also known asyuri,has been historically and thematically linked toshōjomanga since its emergence in the 1970s, thoughyuriis not strictly exclusive toshōjoand has been published across manga demographic groups.A relationship betweenshōjoculture and female-female romance dates to the pre-war period with stories in theClass Sgenre, which focused on intenseromantic friendshipsbetween girls. By the post-war period, these works had largely declined in popularity in favor of works focused on male-female romances.Yukari Fujimoto posits that as the readership ofshōjomanga is primarily female and heterosexual, female homosexuality is rarely addressed.Fujimoto sees the largelytragicbent of mostyuristories, with a focus on doomed relationships that end in separation or death, as representing a fear of female sexuality on the part of female readers, which she sees as also explaining the interest ofshōjoreaders onyaoimanga.

Paranormality

Shōjomanga often featuressupernaturalandhorrorelements, such as stories focused onyūrei(ghosts),oni(demons), andyōkai(spirits), or which are otherwise structured aroundJapanese urban legendsorJapanese folklore.These works are female-focused, where both the human characters and supernatural beings are typically women orbishōnen.Paranormalshōjomanga gained and maintained popularity by depicting scenarios that allow female readers to freely explore feelings of jealousy, anger, and frustration, which are typically not depicted in mainstreamshōjomanga focused on cute characters and melodramatic scenarios.

Mother-daughter conflict, as well as the fear or rejection of motherhood, appear as major motif in paranormalshōjomanga; for example, stories where mothers take on the appearance of demons or ghosts, daughters of demons who are themselves transformed into demons, impious pregnancies resulting from incestuous rape, and mothers who commitfilicideout of jealousy or insanity.The social pressure and oppression borne from apatriarchalJapanese society also recurs as a motif, such as a curse or vengeful ghost that originates from a murdered woman or a victim of harassment. In these stories, the curse is typically resolved by showing compassion for the ghost, rather than trying to destroy it.Stories about Japanese urban legends were particularly popular in the 1970s,and typically focus on stories that were popular among Japanese teenaged girls,such asKuchisake-onna,Hanako-san,andTeke Teke.

Fashion

The relationship betweenshōjoculture and fashion dates to pre-warshōjomagazines, where artists such as Jun'ichi Nakahara illustrated fashion catalogs that included written instructions on how readers could make the depicted garments themselves. As manga grew in popularity in the post-war period,shōjomagazines continued their focus on fashion by publishing works featuring characters in elaborate outfits, or through promotional campaigns that offered clothes worn by manga characters as prizes.Notable manga artists associated with this trend includeMacoto Takahashi,Masako Watanabe,andMiyako Maki,the lattermost of whom had their designs serve as the foundation for the popularLicca-chandoll in 1967.

By the 1970s, consumer trends shifted from making clothes toshoppingfor them;shōjo mangafollowed this trend with the appearance of stories centered on the careers of clothing designers. Manga in theotomechikkusubgenre ofshōjomanga emphasizedkawaiifashion inspired byIvy Leaguestyle; theotomechikkuaesthetic was later adopted by women's fashion magazines such asAn AnandOlive.Some women's fashion magazines began to publish their ownshōjomanga in the 1980s, such asCUTiE(which publishedTokyo Girls BravobyKyōko OkazakiandJelly BeansbyMoyoco Anno) andZipper(which publishedParadise KissbyAi YazawaandTeke Teke RendezvousbyGeorge Asakura).Cosplaybegan to influenceshōjomanga in the 1990s, leading to the development of titles likeSailor Moonthat directly appealed to anotakureadership. This led to a split inshōjorepresentations of fashion between works that depicted realistic everyday fashions, and those that depicted fantastical outfits that could be cosplayed. The fashion world itself began to take an interest inshōjomanga in the 2000s, with fashion shows showcasing pieces influenced byshōjomanga or which were drawn from costumes in popularshōjofranchises such asSailor Moon.

Generally, the clothing worn by characters inshōjomanga reflect the fashion trends of the era in which the series was produced.Nevertheless, some common traits recur across eras: clothing adorned with ribbons or frills, and outfits that are especially feminine and child-like. Cute and ostentatious outfits are generally more common than outfits which are sexualized or modest.Major inspirations includeVictorian fashionfor girls – as embodied byAlicefromAlice's Adventures in Wonderland,who is often invoked by Japanese manga, magazines and brands – andballetcostumes, especiallytutus.

Culture

Marketing and reader feedback

Manga in Japan is serialized inmanga magazinesbefore being published as books andcollected volumes.To encourage repeat readership, magazines seek to foster a sense of community with their readership; this is especially true of magazines aimed at an audience of younger reader aged ten or younger, sometimes referred to asimōto(Muội,"little sister" ).Magazines seek to appeal to this young readership by publishing content related toanime,video games,and toys in addition to manga.Supplemental materials, typically low-costnovelty itemssuch as stickers, posters, and pens decorated with manga characters, are also used to attract readers, with the items placed in plastic bags that are attached to the magazines themselves.Larger novelty items are occasionally offered bymail orderin exchange for coupons that readers can clip out of the magazine.

In the case of bothimōtoand magazines aimed at older readers, referred to asonēsan(お tỷ さん,"big sister" ),readers are invited to submit their opinions on current manga serials through letters and polls.Often, a random survey respondent will receive a prize. Publishers use insights collected from these polls to change plotlines, highlight a secondary character, or end a series that is unpopular. These polls are also used when determining which manga to adapt into derivative works, such as anime and video games.

In addition to survey responses, letters from readers are used as a means to gauge audience opinion and develop a sense of community. These letters are sent to publishers, but addressed directly at the authors themselves.The content of these letters ranges from questions for the author, anecdotes from their daily lives, and drawings; some letters are published in the magazines themselves.Meetings between readers and authors also occur regularly. These may be organized by the publisher, who select a group of readers to bring to their offices on a prize trip, or as afield triporganized by schools. In both cases, these visits strengthen the bond between reader and publisher, while also providing the publisher with insights into their readership.

Talent development

Manga publishers often discover new authors through their readership, who are actively encouraged to submit stories and receive feedback from the magazine's editors.This system of talent discovery and development is not unique toshōjomanga, though the practice originates in pre-war girls' magazines, where female readers were invited to submit novels and short stories.Imōtomagazines develop this system from a young age with the aim of having adult artists one day publish manga in the magazines they read when they were children, whileonēsanmagazines typically have readers and artists who are of a similar age.By developing a system the authors of manga in a magazine were formerly readers, the distance between the two is reduced and a sense of community is fostered.

See also

• Romance comics
• British girls' comics

References

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External links

• Media related toShōjoat Wikimedia Commons
• The dictionary definition ofThiếu nữat Wiktionary