A Case for The Otaku

By Partho Protim Roy

The Origin of Otakus

Beneath the star-speckled night sky, the young man stood still, his hand raised towards it as if beckoning the gods themselves. A while later, with a haughty laugh, he withdrew his hand.

“Tomorrow then, Rei. Take care!!”

Otakus as a subculture hold a very interesting position in the cultural structure of Japanese anime and its enthusiasts. First used as a label in an essay by Akio Nakamori in June of 1983, the word typically refers to individuals with a deep-seated passion for specific content, such as manga, anime, or idol groups, well into their adult years (What Are Otaku?; Woodman, 2023).

The examination of the word itself can prove illuminating. Otaku (オタク) comes from the Japanese second-person pronoun “otaku” (お宅), which is a polite way of addressing others. Used to denote this subculture, it is hypothesised to have been used by fans to address each other in manga and anime conventions during 1970–80. This peculiar evolution of the word evoked negative reactions from the writers of that time (Woodman, 2023). Nakamori in his essay, “Can Otaku Love Like Normal People?” writes, “we got as far as naming the hordes of gloomy, obsessive boys you see everywhere these days as “otaku.” …”

But how does a second-person pronoun turn to this niche subculture that tends to flatten individual nuances to a generalised idea? Ronald Barthes, in his seminal book, Mythologies (2013), discusses myths and myth-making. For Barthes, mundane objects and practices carry with them deeper, hidden meanings that perpetuate dominant social ideologies. He argues that myths after being drenched in their specific socio-cultural contexts, find themselves with new layers of meaning. When we apply Barthes’ analysis to otakus, we gain an interesting insight. If one is asked to imagine an otaku, one might fall for this idea of an overweight teenager with glasses on his face and unending piles of manga and figurines lining his room. Mangas and anime have existed for a long time, but this new subculture seems to have created a schism between the group and wider society. Where does this “obvious” description of Otakus stem from and why does the split exist?

Nakamori in another essay wrote, “The boys were all either skin and bones as if borderline malnourished, or squealing piggies,” and “all of the girls sported bobbed hair and most were overweight” (“This City is Full of Otaku”). From its outset, the word carried a negative connotation. The negative sentiment is further intensified following the serial killing spree by Tsutomu Miyazaki in the late 1980s. When the media covered the case, they dubbed Miyazaki as the “Otaku Murderer.” What followed was a Japanese moral and cultural panic against otakus in Japan. They were to be seen as lonely, isolated creeps who must be shunned and ostracised — the ‘perverts’ that society looks away from.

The Big Bang Theory, a 2007 TV show, too started as a means of giving us a hilarious, lighthearted look at the world of an intelligent group of people who played D&D, read comic books, and cosplayed as their favourite characters. To many people, this acted as a gateway to various forms of media that they would not have explored otherwise, and to some, this show validated the hobbies they hid in fear of being bullied. But the show also played into cheap stereotypes to make up easy jokes. The characters often make misogynistic and sexist comments, but they’re played down as things that just happen in nerdy communities. It is no secret that women are treated with hostility in many such spaces; the show not only perpetuates the notion but has also influenced its reproduction in later media. Much more can be written about the problematic portrayal of neurodivergent people in Sheldon, but I digress.

Amidst them all, the popularity of Marvel and games like Baldur’s Gate 3, have made hobbies like reading comics or manga and playing D&D more popular than ever before.

So, why is the nerd or the otaku still an object of derision? Who is threatened by the Otaku?

Nerds and Otaku alike are often mocked for being overly attached to fiction and fictional characters than reality. When they are attracted to fictional characters and like them as opposed to finding real humans, it is seen as the obvious evidence of their perversity. But why is the real more important than the fictional?

Author and Lacanian psychoanalyst Tamaki Saito, who also coined the term Hikikomori in Beautiful Fighting Girl (2011), writes and discusses the sexuality of the otaku and the politics that they threaten. For those who would like to preserve rigid boundaries between reality and fiction, their anxiety over it also spills into the arena of sexuality and in maintaining the hierarchy of sexual norms and gender conformity. So, Tamaki argues that sexuality is crucial to understanding Otaku culture and the counter reactions it faces.

Even if the boundaries between reality and fiction are blurred, sexuality, to status-quoists, is the final frontier of protection. For Tamaki, the otaku is a person who can transcend these boundaries to revel in the domination of imagination; “the litmus test for a real otaku is whether they can be genuinely sexually excited by a drawn image.” They will passionately disavow the fictionality of their “beautiful fighting girl,” because to them, fiction and reality have no ontological difference. It is a view that Lacan would have approved. Yet, this is the scariest part about Otakus. The phantom elements of desire that society tries to repress, the otaku revels in.

Although, it is also important to mention that Tamaki does not mean to say that “a fictional object is the only object the otaku can love, nor does it mean that he or she cannot tell the difference between real and imaginary objects of desire.” He argues that they are capable of inhabiting “multiple orientations” where they juggle imaginary fantasy with their real lives.

Although not in the scope of this essay, Tamaki’s arguments and observations weave through Queer theory too. After all, queerness and its flexibility has been and is still mocked by many to lie purely in make-belief and mere fantasy whilst the critics continue to shape theirs by the latest brand of hyper-masculine body spray. The irony writes itself.

Conclusion

The emergence of the Internet and the proliferation of post-modern media has further blurred the lines between the real and the imaginary. The existential and moral panic continues to ironically further reproduce this new media even more. But, to the otaku, this is nothing new. Sometimes we do not want to hear this. And maybe that is a reason why the nerds and otakus are treated with contempt and derision. In all of this, a lot of difficult questions remain with no easy answer in sight. So, if we want to find some answers and tools to analyse this world beyond reality, maybe first we need to treat the messengers with a bit more respect and kindness.

P.S. Makise Kurisu best girl!!!

References

Barthes, R. (2013). Mythologies: The Complete Edition, in a New Translation. Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

Lacan, J. (1957). Seminars of Jacques Lacan.

Saitō, T. (2011). Beautiful Fighting Girl. U of Minnesota Press.

What are Otaku? (n.d.). Google Arts & Culture. Retrieved November 19, 2024, from https://artsandculture.google.com/story/what-are-otaku/nAXxQ8TOUBVuKQ

Woodman, K. (2023, October 17). The World of Anime Enthusiasts: How Otaku went from Stereotypes to Mainstream. JOBS IN JAPAN. https://jobsinjapan.com/living-in-japan-guide/the-world-of-anime-enthusiasts-how-otaku-went-from-stereotypes-to-mainstream/