Is anime a genre (of genres) or a medium?

[Cy~]

I have seen this question asked in other places, but the answers that were posted didn't really seem satisfactory. So, I come to you all with a pretty semantic (but interesting) question. Is anime a genre (of genres) or is it a medium?

 

Personally, I think that there's (some) degree of merit to both sides of the argument. While anime contains genres, there are also a lot of traits that are similar across many different shows. Many anime share the same tropes, the same setting (Japan - past, present, and future), and cover similar topics within each genre.

 

You could also see anime as a medium. There is quite a bit of diversity among the shows out there, and if you look beyond the surface, the only thing that really unites them is the art/drawing style. I guess that the only real issue with the "anime as a medium" argument is that it is not yet common to see anime produced outside of Japan that incorporate a non-Japanese viewpoint. When these things exist, they tend to stand out.

 

My own perspective is that I see anime as something that started as a genre but is widening towards becoming a general purpose medium. What about you, what's your take on things?

[RepentantSky]

I see it as a medium, and have for a long time. The reason behind that is because anime does a lot that other genre's don't do, that's why we always treat anime like it's something to get into, as opposed to simply being a part of another genre. I mean really, how many cartoons do you know of that use gore with a point the way Claymore does, or how many drama's do you know of that use character development the way FMA does. Anime itself encompasses a lot of other genre types as a norm in a series, but is also has a lot of things that only it does. With that in mind, calling it anything but a medium feels like it's not giving it enough credit, and I think we should be well past the point where we stop giving any medium, credit where it's due.

Edited May 29, 2017 by Guest

[Orius]

I'm a stiff when it comes to definitions of words. I follow strictly what the root of the word means. In this case, the root is:

 

anime

animation

 

Thus, a medium.

 

I certainly understand your point, that there is merit to the other side of the argument. If I am more open-minded with definitions, I could accept that, since anime has its own style compared to other forms of animation, it can be considered its own genre. But then again, you have to consider that there are many styles of anime. There are anime with very cartoonish scribbles, those with watercolor palette, those with high quality CGI, and those that even incorporate live action into it! (Kuuchuu Buranko).

 

Some people consider that all mainstream anime define what anime represents as a genre, filled with either over-the-top shounen fantasies or fluffy moe little girls. Obviously, anime is more than that, as we have gritty and bleak anime as well devoid of moe or even fantasy. It's the same as movies. Movies range from the gritty and realistic to the hyperbolic and cheesy. Is movie a genre? Nope. It's a medium. I feel like you would be giving anime too little credit if you merely dismiss it as a genre. A genre means that it's restricted to a certain characteristic, a certain trait that describes what the genre look like. Much like any other form of animation, anime is a very malleable medium filled with all kinds of potentials and possibilities. I don't like to restrict it as just a certain genre that non-anime fans mock because they think all anime look like Dragon Ball Z.

 

That's how I see it anyway, in my own little rigid mentality.

Edited May 29, 2017 by Guest

[Cy~]

That's how I see it anyway, it my own little rigid mentality.

 

I actually agree with this perspective, tbh, but I didn't want to drown out the topic by slapping down the other perspective (and I KNEW that you would be here to make the point for me, only with more eloquence than I could have mustered up at that time). Also, for new topics, it's good to leave an open door, even if you're going to shut it as soon as someone walks in, opening it again for the next person.

 

Actually, my hopes and dreams rather depend on anime being a medium, to be honest. If it's a genre, then that implies a certain narrowness of scope, one that would exclude my writing, which will basically be "anime-ish" visual novels and stories (whenever I finish my first and publish). The stuff I write isn't particularly Japanese in nature and is only anime through art style and tropes (I think). If anime is a genre, then that means that I can't contribute. How sad is that?

 

Anime as a medium makes more sense to me, both logically and in my heart.

[Nectar]

When I started this most, I thought anime was both a genre and a medium. As I wrote it however, I noticed flaws in my answer, and I now believe that anime is not a medium. Oops xP

 

What about you, what's your take on things?

I believe anime is a genre only. That is the short answer.

 

The lengthier answer is a little lot more complicated than that.

 

I absolutely 100% believe that Anime is a genre. Anime is a genre of animation because it is a style or category of art, music, or literature. Animation is the category of art, and anime is the style of the animation. Animation therefore, I would class as a genre of entertainment, by the same logic. So that's resolved.

 

The idea that Anime is a medium and it's validity as a statement depends on your perceived definition of 'anime'. Google defines it as a style of Japanese film and television animation. I think that's about right. Medium is described as an agency or means of doing something. That seems fine too.

 

So is anime a means of doing something? Doing what? Since anime is animation, and animation is entertainment, then the purpose of anime is to entertain. One would conclude quite happily from this that anime is a medium. But upon further inspection, one might find one's self conflicted.

 

This is why I believe anime is not a medium. Let's compare the phrase "Anime animation" to "Rock music".

Rock music is not a medium. It is only a genre, as it isn't a means or method of doing anything, at least not when compared to Music as a whole. Music is the medium, and Rock is the subcategory of Music.

 

Rock music alone does not do anything that music alone can't do, since rock music is music.

Anime alone does not do anything that animation alone can't do, since anime is animation.

 

When I say 'anime', I mean Japanese animation.

When I say 'cartoon', I mean Western animation, like what you'd find on Cartoon Network.

When I say 'animation', I mean... well I'll get to that.

 

Anime might do a lot more than cartoons, but that's not to say that animation or cartoons cannot. If rock music suddenly turned around and did something different to music as a whole, then it would just alter the definition of music, since rock music is music. Just because there aren't many examples of cartoons doing anything quite like anime doesn't make anime itself a medium.

 

A studio creates an anime. They didn't use the 'medium of anime', they used the medium of animation, which is the technique of photographing successive drawings or positions of puppets or models to create an illusion of movement when the film is shown as a sequence. Anime is simply a genre that one would put the finished product under. It's just a style of what has been created.

 

When people compare anime to animation, what they're really often doing is comparing anime to cartoons, which are clearly different things. Different genres to be exact. Anime is not different from animation since anime is just a branch of animation. It doesn't make sense to call anime a medium of its own that is exclusive to animation because anime is so perfectly described by animation that anime would become simply synonymous with animation.

 

I think I've covered everything with enough examples, and thank you for reading all that. If I've made you angry, I really won't stop you from correcting me. Your opinion is as equally valid as mine, and I'm open (and genuinely interested) to what your take is on this. That's why this is a discussion, and I respect that. Please also respect my opinions as I will with yours.

 

Thank you @Cy~ for this discussion, I learnt a lot about my view on anime and I actually changed my mind mid-way through and had to change my post

Edited May 29, 2017 by Guest

[Orius]

A studio creates an anime. They didn't use the 'medium of anime', they used the medium of animation, which is the technique of photographing successive drawings or positions of puppets or models to create an illusion of movement when the film is shown as a sequence.

See, this is the main statement that I have a problem with, because it's not an objective statement, I think. For me, the word "anime" is merely the Japanese slang for animation. It's like saying Royale with Cheese isn't a Quarter Pounder. Nope, it's a Quarter Pounder, but under a different name in another region. Or how a flat is called an apartment in America. Or how bread is called mien bao in Chinese.

 

To be clear, this is merely a conjecture of mine. I'm not an expert, so I might be wrong about the origin of the term for all I know. lol It does sound like just a slang version of the word, "animation" to me, however.

 

But it's like you said, your opinion is as valid as mine. Interesting enough, this isn't exactly the same as asking whether if anime are cartoons or not. In spite of people using "cartoons" as a derogatory term to mock childish animation, there are actually a lot of people who use "cartoons" as an off-hand description for animation without any negative undertone, so the whole "anime is cartoon" semantics isn't as big of an issue, and I feel it's more pointless discussing that. With "genre" and "medium", however, as I've described in my last post the significance of the difference, it has a bigger difference in meaning depending on which term you use, so it does raise bigger concerns beyond mere semantics.

 

But on the other hand, even if it's a problematic dilemma deciding what anime is between genre and medium, I still feel like it matters as little as the "is anime cartoon" issue, because at the end of the day, we're just going to stick with what we prefer most. I could understand the sentiment of wanting to call anime a genre so that it feels more like its own style (like rock music) rather than just a boring empty medium like every other animation, I really do. But I'd still call it a medium at the end of the day. lol For what it's worth, it at least provides us with perspectives, if nothing else.

[Nectar]

See, this is the main statement that I have a problem with, because it's not an objective statement, I think. For me, the word "anime" is merely the Japanese slang for animation.

This is actually... extremely interesting.

As I said in my post,

The idea that Anime is a medium and it's validity as a statement depends on your perceived definition of 'anime'. Google defines it as a style of Japanese film and television animation.

If that's the definition you're going with, I think it's safe to say that anime is not a medium. If you say that anime isn't Japanese animation, but instead a Japanese term for animation, then clearly, anime (animation) is absolutely a medium.

 

Specifically 'anime animation' can't be a medium as it is just an existing medium, animation, prefixed by the genre, which must be in the Japanese style. And since not all animation is in the Japanese anime style, then to be precisely 'anime' is to be part of the genre of 'anime'.

 

However, if you assume anime is equal to animation, then since animation is a medium, anime must also be a medium.

 

Now the issue of medium/not medium depends on the usage of the word 'anime' in the japanese language. The real question that will decide whether anime is a medium linguistically speaking is the following:

 

Would a japanese individual, using the word 'anime' as slang for 'animation', consider Tom and Jerry as anime?

If so, then I will agree that anime is a medium. But quite frankly, I don't think that they would. They could absolutely. They could call it 'western anime', or 'american anime'. That makes sense. I think that could happen. But I don't believe that it does.

 

Anyone japanese? Have you ever called an american cartoon a 'western anime'?

 

@Orius, that was a great suggestion. You really made me think.

Edited May 30, 2017 by Guest

[cybershocker455]

Anime is basically Japanese for animation, which is a medium because a medium is a way we communicate with someone.

[Orius]

Would a japanese individual, using the word 'anime' as slang for 'animation', consider Tom and Jerry as anime?

If so, then I will agree that anime is a medium. But quite frankly, I don't think that they would. They could absolutely. They could call it 'western anime', or 'american anime'. That makes sense. I think that could happen. But I don't believe that it does.

Actually, now that you mention it, I could've sworn I've seen characters in anime referring to American animation as "American anime" in Japanese. Could be wrong, but still, something to think about.

[Nectar]

Actually, now that you mention it, I could've sworn I've seen characters in anime referring to American animation as "American anime" in Japanese. Could be wrong, but still, something to think about.

If that's the case, then very well played indeed.

[Cy~]

@Nectar and @Orius, I just wanted to say something. You guys are awesomazing!

 

Being able to communicate in such a way that you can dig into a topic that deeply, being open to other viewpoints, and actually having an amazing discussion... I just went back and reread everyone's responses, and this is honestly so much more than I could have ever hoped for when I made this post. I really want to thank you both for contributing on that high level. This was an amazing treat to read. :angel:

 

[Orius]

There's something else I would like to add. Until recent years, animation (not just anime) was considered a genre. Go to any online movie shop and you'd see animated movies being listed under the "Animation" genre as opposed to action and sci-fi. It's another reason why I don't like to consider anime a genre. Today, American animation is respected for its ability to cater to a wide variety of audiences and demographics. I feel like it's important to treat anime the same way if we're going to tell people anime is more than just some exclusive cult show that only a specific kind of audience would watch.

Edited June 9, 2017 by Guest

[Cy~]

@Orius I agree with you.

 

Originally, American animation had a reputation as being lighthearted, goofy stuff that was basically only comedy. It took decades for American animation to escape from these roots and earn the respect that it currently has.

 

Anime feels like it sits on the edge of achieving this general respect. Acceptance as a medium will speed things along.

[Orius]

Originally, American animation had a reputation as being lighthearted, goofy stuff that was basically only comedy. It took decades for American animation to escape from these roots and earn the respect that it currently has.

 

Anime feels like it sits on the edge of achieving this general respect. Acceptance as a medium will speed things along.

Not to mention earning Best Movie for Oscars for the first time (rather than Best Animation). Let's hope anime can earn that same honor, even among American audiences. Like maybe, "Best Foreign Movie" or something.

[Cy~]

Not to mention earning Best Movie for Oscars for the first time (rather than Best Animation). Let's hope anime can earn that same honor, even among American audiences. Like maybe, "Best Foreign Movie" or something.

 

I feel like we're getting there. Your Lie, Your Name, and Your Your have all been fantastic movies. (Yes, that last one is a total joke. I'm just amused that we have two movies with the same naming convention and both were fantastic.)

 

Another round of stellar anime movie releases, and it's not out of the question that one of them will at least get a nomination.