Episode 194 – Morality in Anime

Definition: principles concerning the distinction between right and wrong or good and bad behavior. Syn: ethics

Anime presents us with a multitude of moral dilemmas if we’re willing to look for them.  Themes of right and wrong, good and evil, the forces of society on the decisions man makes.  All of these things present moral dilemmas which are engaging and make us want to watch more.  We discuss some of these themes and the anime which exemplify them.

Defining morality by philosophical theory:

Immanuel Kant (1724 — 1804)

-considered to be central to modern philosophy, especially in the schools of reason and morality

-believed in the “Categorical Imperative,” a concept that suggests morality comes from duty

-posited that all morality comes from reason, which is to say common law or discovered law

David Hume (1711 — 1776)

-challenged Kant’s ideas of the “Categorical Imperative”

-believed that human reason and sense of duty were trumped by personal passions

-suggested that “true” morality was not in what one “should” do, but rather in what one actually does

BASIC DIFFERENCE: Kant says morality is a product of reason and is adhered to on a wide social scale. Hume says morality is personal, can differ within the individual, and may change based on fluctuating desires.

In Anime

Basically all anime deal with moral dilemma at some point or another. If a character must make a decision, however basic, it must be considered on a moral level. Here are some good examples of anime that focus on the moral dilemma:

(Putting recent anime examples in bold)

Ayakashi: Samurai Horror Tales

Code Geass

Dance in the Vampire Bund

Death Note

Eden of the East

Eve no Jikan

Ghost in the Shell

Gundam Age (half of mecha seemingly)

Kite

Neon Genesis Evangelion

Shinsekai Yori

Maoyu

Monster

Now and Then, Her and There

Rio – Rainbow Gate

Suisei no Gargantia

To Aru Kagaku no Railgun S

Train Man

Any Ghibli film with an environmentalist theme (Mononoke being the best example, probably)

(Side note: necessary themes of morality were notably missing in Miyazaki’s “The Wind Rises,” which became one of its core thematic problems.)

Really good science fiction is rife with moral quandary, and thankfully, anime has a long and rich history of sci-fi genre entries.

Some of the greatest examinations of human morality come from narratives in which the protagonist and antagonist cannot be clearly labeled as “good” or  “bad.” The more gray area you have in a moral question, the better the conversation will be.

Cultural differences color ethics very differently for different audiences. Consider how the Japanese portray these ideas versus those in Western media:

Individualism

Groupthink

Incest

Pedophilia/Ephebophilia

Feminism

Homosexuality/Transgenderism

Suicide

War

Nationalism

Race/Ethnicity

Tradition

Questions from Reiji:

1.when x does something moral not because he wants to but because the person he feels in dept too or wants to be liked by, would have done it

2. absence of morality due to ignorance or other factors (phantom requiem for the phantom ,etc)

3. use of amoral means for survival/betterment ( in mjp they use mind wiped kids to save the earth,bokurano,btooom ,etc )

4. morality of star driver

5. abandoning/endangering all life for a beloved

6. absence of lines in anime ,often in anime if a guy does 1 bad thing he will do anything (a thief will turn into a murderer at the drop of a hat)

7. when the good and bad guy just have opposite views on a subject with no clear answer and the author forces the bad guy to do something bad/atrocious to give the good guy the moral high ground

8. inability of the good guy to present an alternative course of action when asked “what would you have done “

9. morality of playing both sides of the war in the name of peace .

10 .was the ending of code geass morally correct ?

11. is keeping secrets in the name of protection moral ?

12. when 2 sets of equally alien morality fight, how does one pick who to side with if you have a set different from them both.

13.conformism

14. individual morality vs social morality and disenfranchisement born of it.

15. how good guys action /inaction due to his morality can bring about disaster .