Otakuology: A Dialogue

Author(s): PATRICK W. GALBRAITH and THOMAS LAMARRE

Source: Mechademia, Vol. 5, Fanthropologies (2010), pp. 360-374
Published by: University of Minnesota Press
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or usersof these
in a worldwherethespecial designating
theconsumers
ourindividuality
ButI believethatwe'vecometo an
character
ofindividuals
seemsincreasingly
un- products.
ofotaku,precisely
and impassein ourdiscussions
derthreat.
After
all,onereasonSuperman
and
Batmanhavebeenaroundso longis thatthey becausethetermhas becomeso familiar
havesuccessfully
theirsecretidenti- ubiquitous
thatweruntheriskofnaturalizing
protected
ties.InDeathNote
areallul- an otakuidentity
without
itssignifiidentities
, "secret"
exploring
cance
for
of
interactions
and
it
is
the
our
the
revealed,
timately
finally shinigami
understanding
ofculture,
andeconomy.
Withthis
whohavethelastlaugh.
technology,
I
in
would
like
to
goal mind,
beginbyasking
ingeneral.
aboutyouracademic
interests
Notes
1.Mishima
TheSailor
Who
Fellfrom
Yukio,
THOMASLAMARRE:
lie
Grace
with
theSea(NewYork:
1994).
Vintage,
Mygeneralinterests
in
the
So
basic
2.Battle
ale
is
a
novel
Koushun
Takami
of
by
quesRoy
history perception. my
theworld,
thatwaslater
madeintotwoliveaction
films
anda tionsareabouthowpeopleperceive
Seehttp://www.animenewsnetwork.com/
howtheyexperience
historical
it,at different
manga.
andhttp://
Thesekindsofquestions
encyclopedia/anime.php?id=2971
junctures.
growoutof
intellectual
Butthehistory
ofpercepwww.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/
history.
orexperience
is different
from
(bothaccessed
22,
tion,sensation,
September
manga.php?id=68
thehistory
ofideas.Thehistory
ofideascan
2008).
3.Natsuo
withan archive
oftextsor docuRealWorld
Vin- restcontent
Kirino,
(NewYork:
mentsthatareclearly
established
as philosophtage,2008).
4. Murakami
ontheShore
or intellectual
in nature.The
Haruki,
(New ical,theoretical,
Kafka
York:
ofperception
or experience,
2006).
however,
Vintage,
history
"Death
5.LisaKatayama,
NoteMangaSpawns turnsto a broadrangeofmaterials
thatwere
- thestuff
Crime
Wave."
Wired
of
Movie,
, May19,2008,http:// traditionally
ignored
byhistorians
life.
This
makes
for
a
www.wired.com/entertainment/hollywood/
everyday
expanded
vastly
Infact,
thearchive
threatens
tobenews/2008/05/death_note
(accessed
27,
empiricism.
August
come
Histories
of
or
2008).
unmanageable.
experience
6. Murakami
have
tended
Wind
Bird
Chronicle
to
turn
to
"aesthetic"
Haruki, Up
perception
materials
thatrangeacrossarthistory,
liter(NewYork:
1997).
Vintage,
and
media
studies art,visualcularystudies,
andall sorts
ture,design,
media,architecture,
of texts,fictional,
hU>K
philosophical,
pedagogical,
Torendo
anddiscursive.
Thebasicgoalis tounearth
the
contours
ofa historically
setofmateOtakuology: flDialogue
specific
rialorientations
thatguideor shapepatterns
PATRICK W. GALBRAITH AND
ofexperience,
orthematerial
orientations
that
THOMAS LAMARRE
setupa fieldofpossibilities.
inthe
Myinterest
PATRICK
w. GALBRAITH:
Thank
ofspecific
setsofmaterial
orientations
youforagree- history
whichI hopewillopen hasgradually
ledtoa focusonmedia,especially
ingto thisdialogue,
somenewperspectives
onthestudy
ofotaku,
or thoseassociated
withtechnologies
ofthemovWiththetransnational
successof ingimage.
"otakuology."
the
manga,anime,andJapanese
videogames,
term"otaku"
hasbecomecommon
acrossa va- PG:I alsoaminterested
inmaterial
conditions,
ofpopular
as a sortofidentity but I choseto conductextended
discourses,
riety
participant

EW& COMMENTARY
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in Akihabara,
observation
an area of Tokyo was to sensationalize,
or demonize
exoticize,
associatedwithotaku,becauseI wishedto whatwas happening
betweenfansand their
introduce
thevoicesofotakuintoourdiscus- "image
worlds."
Intheuniversity,
as younoted,
sions.Evenin Japan,thevoicesofotakuhave thegeneral
wastoreadanimeandmanga
trend
beenlargely
fromacademic
discourse. inthemanner
ofliterary
texts.Yet,evenwhen
missing
Theterm"otaku"
werereadinganimeas texts,
beganto appearin popular commentators
textsand"NewAcademism"
in thelate1990s theytendedto shyawayfromthetoughquesand early2000s,buttherewas,and stillare, tionsthatariseinliterary
which
would
analysis,
ofthoseidentified
as otaku haveopenedtheiranalysis
to questions
about
veryfewexamples
for
themselves.
Akihabara
material
subconditions,
speaking
presents materiality,
identity,
one narrow
windowontoone smallsegment ject formation,
or
formations,
power
powers
ofotakuculture,
insofar
as weimagine
ittoex- ofthebody.Animeespecially
wastreated
as a
is anything
butclear.Still, textual
that
does
not
or
cannot
ist,andthatwindow
object
poseany
itoffers
a placeto startto consider
howotaku difficult
textualorhistorical
questions.
Except
Howdidyoubecome fora veryfewworks,
tendedtobe relspeakaboutthemselves.
analysis
inotaku?
interested
animenarratives,
alegatedto re-presenting
mostin themanner
ofbookreports
ormovie
tl: WhenI firstwentto Japanin the late reviews.
Attheverymoment
whennewhistoria loveformangaandanime. cism,radicalhistoricism,
1980s,I developed
postpost-Marxism,
SowhenI started
atMcGill
intheearly structuralism,
and deconstruction
introduced
teaching
a courseon Japanese
andchallenging
into
1990s,I offered
popular veryimportant
questions
inwhich
I triedtointroduce
culture
students
to thestudy
ofliterature,
scholars
seemedto
many
as ifdemangaandanime.Therewerenotmanyanime jumpontothepop-culture
bandwagon
withsubtitles
andveryfewmangain transla- termined
toavoidthesortsofquestions
posed
to- bytheseapproaches,
tionat thattime,so it wastoughputting
as wellas thequestions
Whatsurprised
me thatyou're
observagethera decentsyllabus.
participant
asking
through
wasthata largenumber
ofthestudents
loathed tion,orthosethatI wishtoposeatthelevelof
thematerials,
thattheywerejuve- history
orientations.
ofexperience
andmaterial
complaining
or
worse.
we
shouldn't
nile,incomprehensible,
Nonetheless,
misogynistic,
supposethatlooking
a
of
the
late
1980s
and
1990s
were
time
at
otaku
in
and
of
itself
anintellectual
Also,
presents
in
in
discourses
on
otaku
are
a
number
ofotherfactransition
Jaadvance.
And
there
major
with
the
arrest
of
have
a
shift
tors
that
pan,particularly
Miyazaki
awayfrom
encouraged
in 1989,whichencouraged
a general textual
Tsutomu
toward
questions
analysis
ethnographic
ofotakuinthemedia.Asa re- aboutotakuactivities.
pathologization
led metoward
sult,eventhoughmyinterests
it PG:Absolutely.
Thetrendtoward
anime,manga,and so-calledotakuculture,
Japstudying
forme to anesepopularculture
tookyearsofteaching
and reading
demandscloserconsidin eration.
maketheconnection
betweenmyinterest
After
theendoftheColdWarandthe
inthe BubbleEconomy,
andmyinterest
theimperative
tostudy
thehistory
ofperception
Japan
diminished.
otakustuff.
Japancouldno longerbe
greatly
be it military
A greatdealconspired
such discussed
in termsofitsthreat,
againstmaking
ofJapanese
litinnature.
Scholars
notleastofwhichis thefactthat oreconomic
connections,
inthe1990s
therewasnot,untilthelate1990s,anysense erature
turned
topopularculture
aton inan attempt
to invigorate
thefield,
of a historical
or theoretical
partly
perspective
madebothfor
toitsmassappeal,which
otaku.In themassmedia,thegeneraltrend tracted

REVIEW
& COMMENTARY
361

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andincreased
student suchassumptions
because
opportunities
publishing
go unquestioned,
interest.
There
wasalsonewfunding
from
insti- Japanese
is thelastremaining
ratiouniqueness
tutions
forJapansshrink- naleforcontinued
eagertocompensate
Japan
studyofJapanitself.
Basic appearsas the quintessential
"non-Western"
ingpoliticaland economic
significance.
- whywestudy
howcan we
questions
Japanandwhystudy example.Givensuchdifficulties,
- weresweptaside,as Japan improve
itspopular
culture
onthestudy
ofotaku?
studiesovercame
its crisisbyturning
to new
As
to avoidthe impulseto
mentioned,
popular
topics. you
popularcul- tl: It is impossible
tureseemedtooffer
diffi- define
a waytoavoidfacing
and
otaku, anyaccountofotakuwillby
cultquestions
aboutthehistory
ofareastudies defaultimplysomekindof definition.
Yetit
andpostwar
seems
to
me
that
we
need
to
be
more
cautious
politics.
Keeping
Japanpopular
- allowed andcritical
thatis, appealing
ofotaku.I don't
aboutdefinitions
yetunchallenging
andstillallowsfortheUS-Japanrelationshipmeancritical
in
the
sense
ofshowing
how
only
to continue
unaltered.
StudiesofJapa- someone
I think
that
largely
getsthedefinition
wrong.
nesepopularculture
havebecomean academic wealsoneedtolookathowtheprocess
ofdefinObserved
from
a functionalist
and ingtosomeextent
creates
itsobject.So itisnot
commodity.
thefactofstudy- a matter
ofsayingto someone,
"Look,you're
perhapscynical
standpoint,
tobecomemoreimportant notdefining
otakuproperly,"
butofconsidering
ingJapanthreatens
thanthecontent
ofthestudies,
andpopularityhowthedefinition
setstheparameters
fordismoreimportant
thanacademicrigor.Indeed, cussion.
Thisis especially
inthecase
important
onJapanese
cul- ofotaku,
becausethemassmediahasplayed
an
manyofthosewriting
popular
turetodayareyoung;
theacad- important
role,andmaybethemostimportant
theyareoutside
in popularvenues.Many role,in setting
theparameters
fordiscussion.
emyandpublishing
ofthosewriting
on popularculture
workpart Andthemassmediatendsto construct
easily
timein universities,
wherethereis a demand recognizable
types.Weendupwitha typology
forthemtoteachspecialty
courses
butnoplace ofotaku,whichencourages
us to thinkabout
forthemin thepermanent
to
otaku
in
naive
orbehavioral
faculty.
Owing
very
psychological
thelackoflong-term
and
and
to
and
embrace
stereoexpectations profes- terms,
generate
sionalintegration,
fewdemands
areplacedon types.Thistendency
toward
has
typology also
Scholars
on
a
massive
ofanthropopular
scholarship.
working Japa- encouraged
simplification
nesepopularculture
areonlydistinguished
andsociological
intalking
by pological
approaches
thequantity
oftheirpublications
andthenov- aboutotakuculture.
Oftenthe definition
of
a prefer- otakuis presumed
in advanceandneverqueseltyoftheirtopics,whichconditions
encefornichesubjects,
whichareanalyzed
as ifweallimplicitly
understood
by tionedopenly,
Theresult whoandwhatotakuare.Oftencommentators
simplified
superstructures.
applying
is a tendency
towardexoticizing
and essen- present
themselves
as otakuinordertoautho- theypresent
Thistendency
oftenreflects
or even rizetheirknowledge
themselves
tializing.
Theproblem
is notthat
reproducessensationalist
journalismabout as nativeinformants.
ofotaku. commentators
wishto situatethemselves
as
Japan.Thisisveryclearinthecontext
Definitions
aresetuponthebasisof"otaku"
in otakuwriting
aboutotaku.Theproblem
is that
butoftenwithlittleorno contact
with sucha stancetendstomakedefinitions
ofotaku
Japan,
theseimagined
and thereis a critical appearself-evident,
whilereinforcing
received
others,
lackofengagement
withexperts
inJapan.Thus stereotypes.
Itis oftencalculated
toprevent
or
discussions
ofotakurepeatassumptions
about foreclose
abouthowwedefine
otaku,
questions
habitsandpractices.
And rather
thantoinvite
them.
unique,evenbizarre

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As thewidelydisseminated
theissueoflabeling.
PG:I'dliketohighlight
photosofMiyazaki's
filled
with
"otaku
in
the
word
otaku
was
the
5,763 videotapes,
room,"
media,
popularized
not
have
been
In
in
'"Otaku
from
outset.
the
1983,
stagedby policeand
might
pejorative
in
order
to
connect
thegruesome
that
for
Otona
Club
nokenkyu
an
article
,"
journalists
Tokyo
reabout
"virtual
to
the
issue
of
crimes
as
a
risinganxiety
appeared specialsupplementary
need
to
be
aware
media
effects.
We
and
Akio
exNakamori
Burikko
ality"
magazine,
Manga
tiedtometobe thatthewordotakuis inextricably
hisshockoverwhatheperceived
pressed
for
This
is
also
true
dia
discourse.
fansata convenofddjinshi
thebizarre
behavior
"positive"
that
tion.Theyspoketo oneanother
using"otaku," imagesof "otaku."It is no coincidence
members
archaic
a politeandslightly
pro- OkadaToshio,one ofthefounding
second-person
studioGainax,startedhis infaawkward ofanimation
noun,whichmadethemlooksocially
of
at theUniversity
lectures
tobelittle mousotakuology
thenproceeds
tohiseyes.Nakamori
thesefansusingcommon
imagesofsocialre- Tokyoin 1992.Attheheightof"otakubashfatkid,momma's
theythemboy, ing,"Okadaandotherfansclaimed
jects- thenerd,weirdo,
thewordotakua decade
andso on.AsNakamori
putsit,youknowthese selveshadabandoned
andyetotakubashingmadetheterm
peoplefrom
yourschooldays,you'veseenthem earlier,
allofthem, so popularthatOkadacoulduse it to garner
aroundtown.Andhenamesthem,
or the
labelforallthose attention,
a convenient,
otaku,
titlinghimself"Otakingu"
arbitrary
that
otaku
claimed
Otaku.
Okada
also
of
Burikko
tobe socialrejects.
heperceived
King
Manga
next
and
the
culture
the
heirs
of
were
one
was a subcultural
Japanese
including
magazine,
This
at
times
almost
of
human
evolution.
anime
and
and
fans
of
manga stage
parodymanga,
but
as inhisOtakunoVideo,
in smacksofparody,
a sharedidentity
toimagine
werebeginning
exwith
full
move
made
a
it
also
was
There
was
a
thisandotherspecialty
political
magazines.
no
definiof
media
Nakamori's
backlash
Indeed,
comments,pectation
response.
against
strong
andall
sec- tionofotakuis entirely
anda debateragedinthereader-response
unproblematic,
in
context.
considered
should
be
additional
three
tionofthemagazine,
spawning
aboutotaku,we
In producing
thedebatecontinon otaku.Although
articles
knowledge
tofastatic
can- runtheriskofimposing categories
ueduntil1984,editorOtsukaEijifinally
this
I findmyself
thathe cilitate
celedthecolumn.He laterexplained
confronting
analysis.
Kam
haddonesobecausehecametoseeNakamori's in thecontextof ethnographic
inquiry.
as partofa personal
useof"otaku"
imagecam- ThiamHuatpointsoutthatwhenwe go into
weselectthosewho
forotaku,
as partofthe thefieldlooking
paign,as wayto definehimself
Someoneis
or coolyouthculture. matchinternalized
"newbreed"(shinjinrui)
stereotypes.
to
as heorsheisimagined
thatthewordotakuwasbe- onlyanotakuinsofar
Otsukaconcludes
be
can
the
be.
The
ones
of
differenof
the
them,
imagining
doing
"game
part
ongoing
coming
identifies
orus,butinanycasesomeone
tiation"
others,
(saikanogemu).
as thepersonas an otaku.ForKam,fluctuations
to circulate,
Thewordotakucontinued
sur- inthewordotakuovertheyearsarebasednot
in a Recruit
evidenced
byitsappearance
in
butrather
inpeopleoractivities
but
it
was in changes
in
on
1985,
vey youthpersonality
and
of
not widelyused amonganimeand manga changing
perceptionsplay consumption.
inthe1980sand1990s
wasperceived
themassmediawidely "Otaku"
fans.Indeed,although
fromrolesandresponsibilidescribedserialkillerMiyazakiTsutomuas in termsofflight
withfamily,
an "otaku"in 1989, Osawa Masachipoints tiesassociated
school,andwork.
theintegrity
did notknowthe Thusotakuseemedto threaten
himself
out thatMiyazaki
nowseen
are
The
same
behaviors
social.
of
the
if
also
wonders
Otsuka
of
the
word.
meaning

& COMMENTARY
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363

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as inevitable
orevendesirable.
Themeaning
of definition
forotakubuttobringcritical
attenotakucontinues
tochange.
tiontobearonthespecificity
ofotakuactivities
orpractices.
Ifwe thinkin termsofactivities
Tl_:In response
to suchdifficulties
in defining and practices,
thenit is clearthattheotaku
conotaku,somecriticsin Japanhaveintroducedmodeofsocialbeingmaybecomehighly
termssuchas otaku-kei
bunka(otaku-type
cul- densedandveryvisible
incertain
locations
and
shdhi
con- socialrelations
andwithin
ture)andotaku-kankei
(otaku-related
specific
populations.
I amthinking
ofAzuma Butit toucheseveryone.
Ofcourse,we might
sumption).
especially
Hiroki,authorof Dobutsuka suruposutomo-also concludethat,becausevaluesassociated
dan (Annualizing
releasedin withotakuare constantly
thereis
Postmodernity,
changing,
translation
in 2009as Otaku:JapansDatabase noconsistency
tootakuatall,inwhichcasewe
I feelthatwe shouldfollow
beAnimals).
through shoulddropthestudyofotakualtogether,
theimplications
ofsuchan approach,
evenif causeeverything
is happening
elsewhere.
ButI
Azumahimself
doesnotnecessarily
do so. The do thinkthatthereis someconsistency
orcoideawouldbe toconsider
otakuas a newmode herence
towhatis calledotaku,andthatiswhy
of socialexistence,
as a kindof socialbeing. I refer
ittoas modeofsocialexistence.
Thismeansthatstudying
otakuis notonlya
Onthisbasis,I think
thatwecanrelatethe
matter
ofcollecting
information
aboutpeople otakuphenomenon
totransformations
incapiwhosebehavior
to stereo- talism,
inhowweinteract
to changes
withand
appearsto conform
in themassmedia,or about through
andto transformations
commodities,
typesgenerated
communications
and
peoplewho declarethemselvesintechnologies,
interviewing
especially
Evenwhile information
These
transformaotaku,whoadoptitas an identity.
technologies.
we acknowledge
theimportance
andnecessity tionsalsoposea challenge
tohowweenvision
ofsuchdatagathering,
wealsoneedtolookat theroleof intellectual
activities
and scholartheemergence
ofa newsetofsocialrelations ship.Givenmyinterest
in historically
specific
andtoconsider
howourknowledge
or perception
procedures sets of materialorientations,
interact
withthosesocialrelations.
in mediaand mediatechnologies,
I
grounded
EventhoughI am usingtheterms"exis- tendto stresstheseparameters
whenlooking
tence"or"being,"
itis notan ontology
ofotaku at otakuas a modeofsocialexistence.
Forme,
thatis at stake.It is a matterof lookingat then,"otaku"
at leastthreeproblematimplies
where
divisions
areemerging,
where
therearenewkindsofimagesandimsomething ics.First,
is contested.
Youimplied
thatthelabel"otaku" ageflows
associated
withtheemergence
ofa seis a discursive
construction.
Atthesametime, riesofnewmediatechnologies
from
theVCRto
thatthoselabeledotakueither theDVDplayer
andpersonal
yousuggested
Second,
computer.
didnotaccepttheappellation
to thoseimages
(actualfans)or thereis a newsetofrelations
useditina strategic
ortactical
manner
whichhasgradually
(Okada andimageflows,
shapeda
of formof knowledge
aroundthem.
Toshio).Thisimpliesthatthereareeffects
production
withmassmediadiscourses Thisknowledge
is as abstract,
powerassociated
production
encyon otaku,whichappearwhereotakudiscourse clopedic,
andrational
as theheyday
totalizing,
is beingcontested
or redirected.
A question ofEnlightenment
andpractices,
thought
yetis
thenarisesaboutthespecific
material
condi- novelin theintensity
ofitsengagement
with
tionsandlimits
forthisotakudiscourse.
Howis the"opensource."
otakuentailsa transThird,
itdifferent
from
otherdiscourses?
WhenI sug- formation
inourrelations
to commodities
and
Itis commonplace
indiscussions
gestthatweseeotakuas a modeofsocialexis- consumption.
anontological ofthepostmodern
to talkaboutconsumption
tence,mygoalis nottogenerate

364

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in
orofa collapse drawon mainstream
characters
overproduction,
commercial
taking
priority
andcon- their"parody"
butwhattheycreateis
ofthedifference
between
works,
production
reforinstance, distinctive.
Thisis verymuchopen-source
Otakuconsumption,
sumption.
to mixculture.
I wasdiscussing
thiswitha friend
is so activeandproductive
thatitis difficult
in from
outthatonlya handRome,whopointed
bringit underthebannerof consumption
to theEuropean
Rethetraditional
senseofan acquisition
andus- fulofpeoplecontributed
times
that
number
Otaku
does
not
entail
while
a
thousand
of
discrete
naissance,
objects.
ingup
Festival
or contribute
to Comiket
andWonder
and thenabandoning,
(a
"wasting,"
acquiring
an
"otaku
commodiHe
thus
commodities.
event).
Rather,
proposed
ddjin
"destroying"
figure
whichentailscultural
tiesfunction
morelikeeventsandthusentail renaissance,"
production
scale.Forsomereason
worldsto be prolonged,
whichwouldat the on an unprecedented
toinvestgreatenofa set of manypeopleappearwilling
sametimeimplytheprolongation
in
hobbies
over
relations.
social
longperiodsoftime.They
ergy
are not alienatedfromtheirlabor,but their
andfias an eventis laborservesas a sourceofinnovation
PG:Theidea of consumption
Giventhescaleof
of their nancialprofit
forcompanies.
in keepingwithotakudescriptions
wecan
or "festival."theseeventsinJapan,orrather
in termsof matsuri,
activities
Tokyo,
to describe
thegroup safely
saythattheotakusocialmodeis highly
Manyotakuuse matsuri
dynamicthatformsaroundspecialevents, visible.Whydidotakuappearin Japanfirst,
and activities
thatdevelop andwhyaretheymostvisibleinJapan?
or thediscussions
or "newsy"
aroundneta,whicharefaits-divers
or
of a sortthata comedian tl: Some criticsstressthe Japaneseness
itemsof interest,
culture
of
otaku
or
her
also
draw
into
his
(Okada
Japanese
performance.
origins
might
OtsukaEiji).OthandspacesofinteractionToshio,Morikawa
Connections
Kaichiro,
emerge
- as in mat- ers(AzumaHiroki,
ariseas peoplesharethemoment
Noi) arguethat,
Sawaragi
of otaku
on
the
the
of
suri.Asyousay,thefestival-like
contrary, Japaneseness
emergence
andthat
thanauthentic
is "fake"
rather
is verymuchtiedto communi- culture
such"worlds"
inresponse
to theinsurgency
The matsuri-XUke
commu- ithasdeveloped
cationtechnology.
andNicoNicoDogawould of American
nitiesof2channel
pop culturein postwarJapan.
across
thesedebates,thenation
Interand
notbe possiblewithout
Nonetheless,
computers
for
ofreference
as
the
frame
of
areon thesurface typically
netaccess.Connections
appears
because
otaku.
mediation
is discussing
thescreen,
andthetechnological
JapanNaturally,
continue
relations
andeconomic
do notendat the U.S.military
Butthesedynamics
evident.
- theyalso occurin theso-calledreal to shapetheeveryday
ofJapan,it is
realities
screen
of Japanese
thatdiscussions
do not surprising
we probably
world.Withotakuactivities,
Buta
wouldturninthisdirection.
between fancultures
betternotto posita strict
boundary
arises.Wherethemodelofsubculture
thescreenandtherealworld.Peopleperform problem
of
allowsforthepossibility
of versushegemony
dancesfrom
animeseries,stagerecreations
withinthenation,disandresistance
popularonlinevideos,andmake"pilgrimages"conflict
otakuorfan
ofotakutendtodiscount
tobuy cussions
toplacesseeninanime.Theyalsogather
tothe
internal
as a sourceofdifference
characters.cultures
andsellgoodsinspired
byfavorite
fallsonabnormal
thebiannualsaleseventforddjinshi nation.Insteadtheemphasis
Comiket,
whichasofthenation,
tendencies
outsideofficial
channels), ordeviant
(material
published
thattherecanbe a normal
and overhalf sumesbydefault
"circles"
draws35,000creative
that
withthepresumption
a million
nation,
people.Yes,thesecirclesfrequentlyandhealthy

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andhealth- especially
in universities,
wherestudents
are
Japanmayhavebeenmorenormal
ierbefore
theadvent
ofotaku.
rewarded
fortheiryearsoflaborinhighschool
Theproblem
thenis notthatthenationand withgreater
leisuretime.Suchuniversity
cirnational
tend
to
a
horizon
cles
contribute
to
the
formation
of
sovereignty
provide
frequently
forunderstanding
otakubutthatthenational circles
at Comiket
andotherfanevents.
Itis no
formis naturalized,
ratherthaninterrogated.accident
thatGainaxgotitsstartthrough
the
As a result,
in Japanese
evenwhen OsakaScienceFictionconvention,
whichwas
discourses,
thetransnational
dimension
of otakuculture organized
club.Similar
bya collegesci-fi
orgais acknowledged,
differences
betweennations nizational
skillscontributed
to theformation
andnational
values(say,Japanese
otakuvalues ofComiket,
Wonder
andotherevents.
Festival,
versusAmerican
otakuvalues)receivea great
while
the
fortunes
ofitsculture
inThird,
dealmoreattention
thando differences
within dustries
havewaxedandwaned,
Japannotonly
nations
andacrossnations
ac- has well-established
film,animation,
(say,information
manga,
butalsoimports
encess,purchasing
class,orother andtelevision
industries,
power,
gender,
forms
ofsocialdifference).
Tocounter
sucha rei- tertainment
froma number
of locales.Japafication
ofJapan,
I wouldliketocallattention
to neseproducers
and consumers
havelonghad
somecontributing
factors
thatareinstitutionala highdegreeof literacy
in American,
Hong
andstructural,
andhistorically
and Europeanentertainment,
contingent.
Kong,Chinese,
Firstthereis theemergence
ofwhatmight alongside
inthehybrid
conventions
of
literacy
be calledmassintellectuality
in thepostwar film,
estabmanga,andanimation
expression
AsKotaniMaripointsoutinheraccount lishedin Japanfromthe1930s.Theresultis
years.
of shojoin Tekuno-goshikku
a heightened
awareness
ofgenreconventions
(Techno-Gothic),
a chapter
ofwhichappearedin translation
in acrossnational
as wellas ofmodes
boundaries,
Mechademia
2: Networks
theintellec- ofaddressthataredecidedly
international
or
ofDesire,
tualpursuits
and"cultivation"
thatwerelargely global,evenwhenthetarget
audience
is Japathepreserve
ofthemiddleand uppermiddle nese.Thiskindofglobaladdress
wasnotrecogclassinprewar
became
after
nized
in
as
such
some
of
the
worlduntil
Japan
widespread
parts
thewar,withtheexpansion
ofliteracy,
the
because
the
industries
wealth,
1990s,
Hollywood
and accessto mediasuchas newspapers
and had effectively
themselves
as the
promoted
television.Somethingsimilarhappenedin onlybearersof globaladdressby controlling
otherpartsoftheworldwithincreased
wealth international
distribution
networks.
Thereis
and literacy.
Autonomia
schooltheorists
fre- stillgreatreluctance
toacknowledge
theglobal
of the addressofJapanese
entertainment.
As Otsuka
quentlyreferus to Marxsdiscussion
intellect"
tounderstand
thishistorical Eijiastutely
"general
pointsout,Miyazaki
Hayao'saniandMaurizoLazarrato
describes
thismo- matedfilms,
forinstance,
aredecidedly
shift,
global
mentinterms
oftheemergence
of"massintel- entertainment,
andthedesireto recodethem
as distinctively
lectuality."
Japanese
simply
playsintothe
A secondfactor
a par- formation
ofa StudioGhibli
brand.
Weneedto
gavethisexpansion
- hobbyculture.
ticular
inflection
in Japan
howmodesofaddresscanbe at once
By consider
I meannotonlytheimportancelocalandglobalandtoaddress
actualprocesses
hobbyculture
butalso theinstitu- ofuniversalization.
givento havinga hobby,
tionalsupport
forclubsor circles
within
discourses
on information
Fourth,
high
society
- in the1960s.Evenif
schoolsanduniversities.
Whilethereisn'tnec- emerged
earlyinJapan
essarilya greatdeal of financial
supportfor information
society
mayhavebeenslowin its
in Japan,therewas an important
them,clubsare an integral
partof dailylife, realization

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After
enthu- thisalso perhapsbe calledsubculture?
andcritical
discursive
with,
engagement
classicworkin 1979,
siasmfor,information
societyin conjunctionall,sinceDickHebdige's
has often
difference
ofstylistic
on Japansnaturaldisposi- theexpression
withan insistence
tohegemonic
withalternatives
of beenassociated
tiontowardrobotsand theroboticization
ofJapanas a ro- norms.
Theconceptualization
society.
hada profound
botkingdom
impacton mecha
citedas a primeininarmored
vehi- tl: Otakuarefrequently
otaku,thatis,fansinterested
butthequestionforme
robots. stanceofsubculture,
andpiloted
clesandsuits,tactical
armor,
InAnglodecision is:Whatdowemeanby"subculture"?
inkeeping
withtheAmerican
Fifth,
subculture
cultural
American
communism"
tomakeJapana "bulwark
studies,
usually
against
or the
of the marginal
theJapanese carriesconnotations
growth,
through
highcapitalist
- non-normative,
to massor
and of resistance
intoa globalcity,
miracle
madeTokyo
economic
has different
Subculture
culture.
urbanareasin mainstream
oneofthemostcapital-saturated
in
in
connotations
set
out
to
make
Industrial
theworld.
speaking,
Japan.Generally
planners
falls
often
the
discussions
due
to
and,
emphasis
Japanese
export
economy
Japana distinctive
bothin termsofthe
as "small,"
of on subculture
tendedto directpatterns
spacelimitations,
and in
and consumers
andelectronics.numberof producers
toward
appliances
consumption
and
amount termsof its concerns(intimate petty).
At thesametime,an unprecedented
to advertising,
ofcapitalwasallocated
packag- Whichis to say,becauseits numberswere
the
wasnotseentoaddress
As a result, small,a subculture
andimageproduction.
ing,design,
of Japanesesocietyand the
still largerconcerns
theworldofJapanese
promotion
although
as a retreat
was construed
onthebasisoflargecategories nation.Subculture
tendstooperate
andsoverworld
about
from
shorten
masses
toward
,
(
history
shojo,
questions
specific
targeted
couldbe seen
subculture
andso on)ornational
masses,
seinen,
Consequently,
consump- eignty.
andof
oftheendofthehistory
intowhat as a harbinger
tionin Japanrapidlyfragmented
rather
These thenation,
call"micromasses."
somecommentators
than,say,as a setofpractices
modesofunto dominant
resistance
attaina degreeof social,discur- entailing
micromasses
social
and
the
world
institutional
and
even
organizing
sive,
soliditythrough derstanding
the
relations.
ofclubsandcircles,
theformation
through
of subculan understanding
thewealth
andthrough
ofintellectuality,
Nonetheless,
spread
has
debates
on
ture
Add
informaconventions.
ofcompeting
drawing Anglo-American
genre
In
her
debates.
the
entered
a
and
andstirwell you'llget
tiontechnologies
essayin
Japanese
conthe
Anne
this
thepromodeofsocialbeingthatencourages
volume,
maps
McKnight
subculture
debates
on
these
of
micromass
liferation
ofotaku-related
lifestyles.toursofsome
to a tensionthat
but in Japan,callingattention
is notmassculture
Otakuin thisrespect
at
thesetwowaysoflooking
between
ButI emerges
orlifestylization.
a personalization
rather
On theonehand,thereis theview
here.I don'twishtoimply subculture.
forwords
amgroping
evidentin OtsukaEiji'sstudies
ora of subculture
aremerely
thatthesemicromasses
lifestyles
in
hispieceinthisvolume,
in JeanBaudrillard'sofotaku,including
matter
ofpersonalization
is a signof
ofsubculture
sense.Theyentaila degreeof performativewhichthesmallness
ofdeofthepublicsphere,
called thedisappearance
orwhatMichelFoucault
self-cultivation
ofa
and
and
on
bates
the
without
the
of
modernity,
self,"
sovereignty
implying
"technologies
forJapan'spositionin theworldand
oridentity. concern
offixed
formation
position
subject
On theotherhand,thereis the
worldhistory.
evidentin UenoToshiya's
is onewayto putit.Could viewof subculture
PG:Lifestylization

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inwhich
theemphasis
fallsonthedif- hiscultures.
ButHillsnonetheless
allowsforfan
writings,
ferential
ofidentities
thatdefycommercial
ormainstream
production
bycreativelypractices
and defiantly
a newset of logic.Lawrence
thatotakuin
patching
together
Enghassuggested
tribal
socialrelations.
theUnitedStatesarealso somehow
resistant,
Formypart,I likethechallenge
thatJapa- as these"reluctant
insiders"
ofthemiddle
class
nese debateson subculture
to
the
now
are
in
and
pose
engaged unanticipated
consumption
rather
entrenched
of
subculture
as
of
media
and
assumption
appropriation
technology.
They
resistance
thatreigns
inAnglo-American
stud- transgress
in a waythatis notenboundaries
ies. Generally
withJapanese
otaku.Thisis
speaking,
Japanesestanceson tirely
incongruent
subculture
showlessromanticism
aboutescap- a topicthatdeserves
further
attention.
Howdo
and
fewer
about
in
otaku
the
discussion
offans?
ingcapitalism
presumptions
youposition
outsideit. Nonetheless,
I thinkthat
getting
theremustbe a middle
waythatacknowledgestl: Fora longtime,fanswereseenas mere
bothtendencies
within
theJapanese
subcultureconsumers
ofwhatwasproduced,
the
including
whichwouldtakeseriously
theques- dominant
in products.
Culdebates,
meanings
implicit
tionofwhether
there
canbezonesofautonomy turalstudies
transformed
thisparadigm,
showwithincapitalistsocieties,and whatimpact inghowfanswereinfactactivereceivers,
inthe
thesemighthave.Whatsortofopportunitiessensethatfanscontributed
totheproactively
doestheinternal
differentiation
ofglobalcapi- duction
ofmeaning.
Otakumight
thusbe seen
talismvisiblein theformation
offancultures as an intensification
oftheseactivemodesof
fortheemergence
ofdifferent
becausethehallmark
ofotakuis not
present
political reception,
orsocialpossibilities?
onlyheightened
consumptionconnoisseur- butalsoa sort
discrimination,
ship,
collecting
PG:In a conference
heldinTokyo
in2009,Mi- ofproduction.
Thisotakuproductivity
entails
and
Azuma
Hiroki
that
both
classiyadaiShinji
suggested
productioncollating,
knowledge
in theJapanesesensemeansany- fying,
subculture
disseminating,
commenting,
annotating,
- and "unofficial"
thatis notrecognized
as highculture.
material
So, translating
thing
producineffect,
culture tion,forexample
thedojinscene.What'smore,
mass,andcommercial
popular,
all might
be subculture.
the so-called
amateur
make
Theyalsoresisted
productions
frequently
to
subculture
in
form.
Their money
andsometimes
creators
urge politicize
any
goprofessional.
definition
seemsto be ignoring
theconcerns In sum,ratherthana strictdividebetween
thatyouraised,conflating
microandmasscul- ordinary
fansand otaku,or betweenotaku
turalphenomena,
which
renders
otaku"subcul- consumers
andcorporate
thereis a
producers,
ture"quiteambiguous.
If otakusubculture
is spectrum
ofproductivity.
In Japanese
discusaboutinteraction
withmass/commercial/popusionsofotaku,thereis a tendency
toinsiston
lar culture,
thenit mightbe betterdescribed consumption
andtousetheterm"otaku"
inoras fanculture.
I amspecifically
about dertodelineate
"fans"
or"cultfans"from
ordithinking
MattHills'sdiscussion
of cultfans.Likeyou, narypeopleormainstream
culture.
"Otaku"
is
Hillshasquestioned
whether
thesesortsofcul- a termcommonly
toconstruct
andto
deployed
turesareaboutresistance.
between
normal
orordinary
up thecon- patrola boundary
Taking
ofvalue,"he proposes
fans consumption
ontheonehand,andexcessive
or
ceptofa "dialectic
tendtoward"anti-commercial
on
the
other
hand.
As
ideologiesand abnormal
consumption
I have the such,invariouscontexts,
theterm"otaku"
can
commodity-completist
practices."
thatotakucultures
lessam- be evokedeitherto demonize
or to celebrate
impression
display
bivalence
toward
massculture
thanHillsseesin a certainset of consumer
activities
thatare

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withcertain
associated
kindsofpeople. exchanges
andproliferating
acrossmassmedia
loosely
- tosepa- withgreatcommercial
Sucha wayofusingtheterm"otaku"
success.
- tendstogravitate Buttelling
ratenormal
from
abnormal
thestoryofotakuas exclusion
toward
an identity
based
on
followed
andredemption
is not
politics
affirming
byacceptance
one'sordinariness
orextraordinariness.
Formy entirely
in
it
a sucthat
satisfactory
presumes
such
are
in
excludistinctions
cession
of
reference
almost
purposes,
interesting
stages,by
termsoftheirsocialeffects
butnotveryhelp- sively
tomassmediaandthenation.Thereare,
fulin thecontext
ofthinking
theproductivityinfact,
channels
ofcommunicamanydifferent
offans,becausetheirprimary
is toinvite tionandwaysofcommunicating.
effect
So, evenas
about
bethe
Everything thegovernment
moralizing consumption.
acknowledges importance
Arewe ofmaleotakuandstrives
topinitdowninits
ginsand endswitha moralquestion:
toomuchortoolittle?
Sucha mor- publicpolicies,
consuming
manyotaku-related
groupsretheexcesses
of fuseto acceptthenewdiscourses
and definializingstanceservestodisavow
of otaku,then,is not one
thatitis indeedpossible
to tions.Thehistory
capital
byassuming
and rejection,
moral of an initialmisunderstanding
successfully
managecapitalbypracticing
andsuccess.Thereis a
restraint.
followed
byrecognition
between
different
paths
continuing
negotiation
of of communication,
someof whichare massPG:Do yousee anychangein themeaning
otaku?
someofwhicharelocalizedandintitargeted,
ofotakuhas
themeaning
mate.Inotherwords,
in
of
the
tl: There
is a straightforward
policies
way telling
changedsignificantlygovernment
ofignored
or and massmedia,yetpriormeanings
persist,
storyofotakuas theexplosion
into andnewarticulations
areemerging.
and activities
dismissed
products
largely
Thearrest
andglobalmainstream.
thenational
as men,
in a wave pg: Otakuare todayoftenimagined
resulted
oftheserialkillerMiyazaki
beThis
is
ofotaku- especially
otaku.
ofdemonization
andpathologization
Japanese
strange,
thestarting
Akio'sdefinition,
in themassmediainthelate causeNakamori
related
activities
on otaku,intheas- pointformuchofthediscourse
1980sand early1990s.Subsequently,
fans
Female wereand
toundingfinancialsuccessof otaku-relatedcludedmenandwomen.
after
in ddjinshi
culture,
goodsassociatedwithGainax'sNeonGenesis area majorpresence
fromcolin the mid-1990s,
in conjunctionall.However,
wenowseemto suffer
Evangelion
ofan- lectiveamnesia.Theimageof otakuas male
international
withtheincreased
visibility
onMiandvideogamesmeantthatsuch spreadrapidly
ime,manga,
alongwithmediareports
alsowhere
Thisis incidentally
forcommercialyazakiTsutomu.
couldnotbe ignored,
activities
ofotakubeinglostinvirtual
anddiplomatic
reasons,evenifthemassme- theconnotations
aboutwhat realityand sexuallysuspect,evenpredatory,
diaremained
somewhat
suspicious
offemale
otakuand
otakuwerereally
profile
doing.ThesuccessofDensha comein.Therising
whoproduce
"rotten
theso-called
Otoko(TrainMan) as a filmand TV seriesin fujoshi,
girls"
between
re- and consumestoriesaboutromance
ofa complete
thepossibility
2005signaled
reconsiderus
to
of
the
otaku
beautiful
and
mass
boys,compels begin
demption
appropriation
inJapan.
offandom
Ontheonehand,ittoldthestory inggendered
stereotypes
phenomenon.
how
loosethe
theantiIt is a littleunnerving
toovercome
ofanotakuwhomanaged
just
time
same
while
at
the
and useof"otaku"
with"otakudom"
associated
socialqualities
is,
really
there
itis.Whenwesay"otaku,"
winthegirl,while,on theotherhand,it had howcontested
Otakustartsas
Internet aremyriad
from
informal
thecachetofemerging
possiblemeanings.

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ofnationalvalues,I
andcomparison
kanji morality
justa wayto say"you"withtheoriginal
and think
thattheotakumodeis notonlyordinary
"o"
"taku"and honorific
character
at heart.Theactualconwhen butalsotransnational
ofsubculture
thentakesonthemeaning
andflows
ofexpression,
inhiragana
rendered
(&/c<).Thisismostoften ventions
technologies,
and
this
are
it
is
tied
to
Nakaof
since
usedina negative
transnational,
particular
capital
way,
tendsto
ofcapitalandtechnology
Otakucan intersection
Tsutomu.
moriAkioand Miyazaki
Asa
as
address
and
define
fansofJapanese
also refer
to foreign
people populations.
popular
in
terms
of
multithe
otaku
mode
acts
in romanletters
whenwritten
culture
(otaku). result,
themintoitsoperative
At first,it was positive.FredSchodtpoints plicities,
logic.
building
cannotbe
onthecover Thismeansthatthephenomenon
outthatthewordotakuappeared
Evenifwecanidento oneterritory.
of Wiredmagazinein 1993,and the United confined
the
a
documenterritorial
Stateshas a convention,
variations, otakumodeisnot
Otacon,
tify
andthusentailsa constant
OtakuUSA, entirely
OtakuUnite!
anda magazine,
localizable,
tary,
thatevoketheimagined
Finally, deterritorialization.
community.
odor"whenwritten
Putanotherway,otakuformsare opened
"otaku"
losesits"cultural
to thinking
was in translation.
We'reaccustomed
in katakana
Thislast iteration
noNyumon in termsof something
beinglostin translapopularized
byOkada'sOtakugaku
in 1996andwas tion,somesortof ineffable
essence.Thisis
to otakuology)
(Introduction
associations
with becausewe'restillundertheswayofnational
tojettison
partofhisattempt
Tstuomu.
At languageparadigms
in thinking
theheinouscrimesof Miyazaki
translation,
anachronistic
in theconthesametime,katakana
tendsto be usedfor whichis thoroughly
new
or
This
of
and
circulation.
text
otaku
loanwords,
Certainly,
foreign
language, slang.
global
ofotakuforms
ofexpression
from
is howthewordotakuappearsin mediaand translations
makthe
and
on
"cool
thus
the
involve
Japan,"
reports
Japanese
changing original,
government
The
otaku
otaku
international.
word
there
are
also
about
the
localization
appear
questions
ing
discourses
and ofJapanese
debates
evokesmultiple
Yet,as Japanese
contradictory
products.
is
and
all
in
about
the
No
one
definition
about
otaku
their
concerns
sufficient,
images.
suggest
arebasedinstereotypes
thatessentialize
some loss ofa nationalandworldhistorical
frame"otaku"and excludeothers.Some Japanese work,
otakucultures
arenotprimarily
a matter
scholars
areverycritical
oftheinternational-ofnationscommunicating
withnationsbutof
izationof"otaku."
Inyourexperience,
whatare localescommunicating
viatheglobal.
thedifferences
andsimilarities
between
otaku
Needlessto say,nationsand theinternainJapanandabroad?
tionalmechanisms
of sovereignty
have not
from
thescene,andthereis thusa
disappeared
TL: If we lookat theotakuphenomenon
in continual
between
themandtransnainterplay
termsoftheemergence
ofa newmodeofso- tionalmechanisms.
put,itboilsdown
Crudely
cial existence
thatis relatedto transforma-to interplay
between
nationallanguage
transtionsin capitalism
and in technologies,
then lationandtransnational
mediacirculation,
in
theenthusiastic
of Japaneseotaku which
circulation
otherregisters
ofmareception
implies
- fileconversion,
inothersitesaroundtheglobeis not terialtranslation
activities
forinstance.
so surprising.
withdiscus- Thisinterplay
has to be takenintoaccount
Again,in contrast
sionsofotakuthatseeinthemnonordinary
or when considering
the differences
between
excessive
thatat thesametime otakuinJapanandoutsideJapan.Weneedto
consumption
adheresto nationalboundaries,
whichtends think
translation
thelinguistic
beyond
register,
to pushdiscussion
in thedirection
ofnational eventhough
in
senseof
language, thenarrow

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tofictional
charnationalspeech,has a tendency
to "overcode" of"moe
,"a euphoric
response
thisgroupso reprehensible
othermaterial
forhistorical
as well acters.Okadafinds
registers,
as psychological
reasons.Yourexampleofthe thathe wrotea bookto themin 2008 titled
to
shindeiru
katakanatransformation
of theterm"otaku" Otakuwa sudeni
, whichtranslates
to the
dead."Inside,he refers
intoa foreign
loanword
within
national
policy "youarealready
deathof otaku,or whathe perceives
ofotakuactivities
by cultural
speakstothisovercoding
and
otakuofhisgeneration
reference
to a distinction
betweennativeand as a breakbetween
fans
of
Okada's
otaku
Given
that
sci-fi
The
toward
tendency
today.
linguisforeign. persistent
makesthe generation
ofmaterial
activities
ticovercoding
likelyweren'tcallingthemselves
this
or
haveusedit as an insult,
of
fansub
and
scanlation
very otaku, might
groups
dynamics
Ironiconclusion.
in
the
interseems
an
almost
and
predictable
interesting importantgauging
and
In cally,
andtransnational.
Okadabecamea public"otaku"
figure,
playoftheinternational
mein
tied
to
the
he
was
the
national
form
has
not
been
sum,
growing
surpassed,
manyways
sense
on otakuandthegrowing
In fact,itoftenstepsin to dia discourse
noris itirrelevant.
fans
an al- ofcommunity
flows,
amonganimeandmanga in
policesuchtransnational
building
andpopulation
control the1990s.What'syouropiniononhisstance?
liancebetween
security
andnational
sovereignty.
tl: Itseemstomethat,atonelevel,discourses
thewordotakuhasbe- onotakuinJapanhaveplacedso muchemphaPG:MattHillssuggests
thattheideaof
differences
or "a mobilesignofselfand sison generational
comea "shifter,"
tohowotaku
is alwayscentral
other."Stereotypical
imagessuchas "Japan," radicalruptures
So it is notsurprising
areimagined.
"otaku"
and "non-otaku
"theWest,"
,"areacti- cultures
thanimagine
as partof theongoing that,rather
vatedand deactivated
yetanother
generaa
radical
would
of
Okada
Even
as
we
talk
tion
of
otaku,
propose
process makingmeaning.
can rein- breakwithotakuitself,the deathof otaku.
abouttransnational
flows,receivers
breaksis built
them. Theideaofradicalgenerational
evenas theytransgress
scribe
boundaries
in
and
media
commentators
into
the
be
of
the
Thissortofboundary
discourse,
playmight part
new
breaks
and
at
are
want
to
read
StuAs
we
Japan adept proclaiming
appeal. youmentioned,
of
theeffect
newtypes.Recently,
on generating
andtheycapitalize
dioGhiblias Japanese,
tocastinewtypeshasbeenlargely
values generating
thatdesire,butwe also readuniversal
stainJapan's
decline
fora perceived
ofpeoplein gateyouth
intoit.Andthereis no shortage
a
loss
of
detects
Okada
tus.
engageSimilarly,
Japanwhowanttoassertthatthisglobalpopuandprideamongwould-be
Hillsis talking ment,commitment
inorigin.
is Japanese
larculture
demise.
cultural
and otakuthatforhimsignals
with"Japan"
abouthowanimefansinteract
At anotherlevel,Okada is also reacting
use theotakulabeloutsideJapan,butI think
the againstthemassmediaand government
forconsidering
hispointsarealsorelevant
apwhichbrings
of otakuactivities,
insideJapan.
situation
propriation
At thesametime,someotakutodayde- themintothepublicsphereandrecodesthem
values.Okadawenttogreat
ofnational
as "wotaku"
scribethemselves
(3 00) ina con- interms
buthe
otakuactivities,
with lengthsto legitimate
tobreakfreeofassociations
sciouseffort
doesnotwantotakutobecometoo
to castoffthedo- apparently
andpopculture,
subculture
Oneoftheunderlying
to bigortoomainstream.
mesticand international
baggageattached
ofotakuis
discussion
of
Okada's
information
and
are
media
"otaku."
assumptions
savvy
They
smallnumerical
on
and
that
a
flair
for
fan
with
depends
apcommunity
productions,
hungry,
it
to
exist
when
ceases
and
in
their
or
chaotic
almost
random
ness,
community
pursuit
pear

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is no longerquantitatively
small.Atthesame at a timewhenotakuareincreasingly
entering
forOkadabecomestoo small thepublicdebateeffectively
reduces
theminto
time,smallness
whenit doesnotappearcohesive
or coherent an invisible
or
whichcanbe obscured
presence,
andthuscreative.
Ifotakuareforhimalready revealed
selectively.
into
dead,itisbecausetheyhavebecomeatoncetoo
Also,to makeones personalhistory
and
too
without
and
crethe
otaku
tends
to
limit
what
small,
big
community
history
expeandthuschaotic
andincomprehensible
riencesare included.Okada tendsto omit
ativity,
as a population.
As a result,
he overlooks
, forinstance.
ddjinshi
us
to
the
limits
of
Okada'sremarks
an
site
of
and
bring
important
creativity community.
otakuin termsofgenerations,
to the Patterns
ofconsumption
and
thinking
maybe broader
where
we
shift
from
less
focused
because
of
the
vast
amounts
of
point
productively
might
thequantitative
to thequalitative,
andlookat mediaandmaterial
available
to otaku,butthe
intermsof younger
theotakumodeofsocialexistence
doesnotdiffer
generation
dramatically
theintimacy
ofitsmediaconnection
andsocial in theintensity
andduration
ofitsactivities.
relations.
Genuine
andsociality
would Theyare savvyat mixing
mediaand making
intimacy
demandthatsomething
be at risk.In effect, cultural
citations.
Theirs
maybea different
pathowever
Okadais posinga question ternofconsumption
andproduction,
butit is
indirectly,
aboutwhatis atrisk,orwhatis atstake,incer- increasingly
Howdoyouthink
otaku
prevalent.
tainmodesofmediaconsumption
Thisis willfarefrom
nowon?
today.
nota trivial
Butitcannot
beanswered
question.
tothedeathofotaku,orby tl: Theotakumodetodayispoisedbetween
fusimply
byreferring
as othercommentators
do,thatthe tures.On theonehand,as thesiteofarticulainsisting,
of youthis responsible
fora tionofrelations
between
irresponsibility
capitalandtechnolodecline
of
the
nation.
the
otaku
mode
perceived
Japanese
gies,
pointsto an expansion
andintensification
of"human
Human
capital."
PG:A perceived
lossofcreativity
andcommu- capitalrefers
to theknowledge
and skillsacto Okada'sargument.
His ideas quiredthrough
educationand experience.
It
nityis central
comeoutofpersonal
with
in
"otaku"
was
common
dominant
experiences
postwaranalyses
culture.
As Japaneseacademics
haveuntilre- of humancapital,whichculminate
in Gary
been
reluctant
to
take
the
Becker's
of
Human
to
cite
the
of
,
cently
up
topic
Capital
example
these
sorts
of
A
narrative
accounts
are
all
nation
without
resources
other
than
otaku,
Japan.
mostpeoplehavetogoon,anda shared
cultural theskillsandknowledge
ofitspopulace
neveris extrapolated,
or imagined,
from thelesssucceeded
duetoitshumancapital.
The
experience
them.Theproblem
is notthatthisis presented emphasis
on humancapitalis central
to ecoas otakuhistory
butthatitisaccepted
tobethe nomicliberalism
andneoliberalism.
Ata time
- a history
thatpositions whenneoliberalism
onlyotakuhistory
enjoysa certain
degreeof
oldergenerations
as "aristocrats"
it isn'tsurprising
thattheskillsac(kizoku
) and privilege,
"elites"(erito
theotakumodeofreception/
) and dismisses
younger
genera- quiredthrough
tions.Theproblem
I havewithOkadadeclaring production
oftechnologized
commodities
are
otakuofficially
deadis thatheineffect
silences often
seenas assetsfortheworkplace
andeven
them.Theyounger
doesnothave as thegroundfora newbusinessmodel.The
generation
theauthority
towriteitsownnarrative.
Ifthe dangeris thattheotakumodeofsocialexisoldergeneration
abandons
withtheforthem,
theyareatthe tencewillcometomeshsmoothly
ofthemassmedia.Thiscontributes
to mation
ofnewregimes
offlexible
labor,andthe
mercy
therearenootaku otaku's"productive
modesof consumption"
misunderstanding.
Claiming

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willcontribute
totheformation
ofa laborpool thisdemonstration
in thespiritofmatsuri,
to
thatlendsitselfto retraining
fornewtasksas havefun,tocosplay.
Whatismore,
thenumbers
businesses
without
secu- swelled
as themarch
continued
andbystanders
change,
anyeconomic
suchas Morikawa
rityorsocialclout.
joined.Somecommentators,
On theotherhand,awareness
is emerging Kaichiro,
tookthisto be justanother
example
incertain
of
the
otaku
that
of
the
street
thatwerepopular
regions
experience
performances
istheconnection
there
between
theotakumode inAkihabara
atthetime.Forcritics,
Akihabara
- crudely
andlaborpolitics
between
otaku
had
become
a
media
and
these
put,
stage,
people
andfreeter
to thecameras.Theywereper(thosewhomakea livingstringingwereplaying
otaku-ness.
ButI thinkthatthereis
work)or NEET(thoseNot forming
together
part-time
in Education,
or
Your
a
to
Whatever
EmploymentTraining).
politics spontaneous
pleasures.
ownessayin thisvolumeexplores
theemer- themotivations
ofparticipants,
theysucceeded
Liberation
Demonstra-in making
visible.Theyachieved
a
genceofthe"Akihabara
something
wherein
otakucontest
common
tion,"
policiesthatlimit certain
degreeofsolidarity,
purpose,
otakuactivities.
Moregenerally,
theprecariat andaction.
Whiletheactualmarch,
inthespirit
movement
inAmamiya
described
Karin's
didnotlast,itdefinitely
hadan efessay ofmatsuri,
someimportant
ofthecauses.Theradical,
presents
pointsofintersectionfect.Thisisregardless
withotakumodes.In otherwords,thereare political
ofotakumovement
be
potential
might
is frequentlyan avenueforfurther
research.
Whatdirection
signsthat,ifotakuconsumption
seizedatthelevelofitsproductivity,
as human willyourresearch
take?
can arise
capital,thennewsocialmovements
within
theotakumodeofsocialexistence
that TL: In keepingwithyourcomments
about
takequestions
aboutflexible
workandforms
of otakupolitics,
I feelitis important
toavoidan
immaterial
laboras their
cause-and-effect
definition
of poground.
exclusively
liticalactioninthecontext
ofotaku,as wellas
PG:Itiscommon
todismiss
conclusions
of thesort"weotaku
playactivity
among imperative
as
rather
than
but
must
do
this
or
that."
Often
we don'texactly
youth escape
engagement,
I thinkthatthepossibilities
forotakupolitics knowwhywe'rein thestreets
and,
marching,
deserveattention.
Forexample,HondaToru evenwhenwedo,wefindthatour"cause"may
calledforotakuto quit"lovecapitalism"
and change
theencounter,
the
dramatically
through
find"purelove"witha two-dimensional
char- event,
anditseffects.
Inmyresearch
onotaku,
acter.He was a vocalcriticof DenshaOtoko, I wantto finda wayto tracethefieldofposwhich
heclaimed
wasmessage
tootakutogrow sibilities
thatarisearound
setsofmatespecific
forothers,
inorder
togenerate
discussion
upandlearnhowtobuygifts
groom rialorientations
themselves
andgo on expensive
In
dates,to suc- aboutthewaysinwhichpoweris exercised.
ceedwithin
lovecapitalism.
Hondasubmitted thisrespect,
I tendto agreewithMichelFouthatthecapitalist
wastheproblem,
not cault'semphasison thepoliticsof truth,on
system
theguyswhocouldn't
finddates.Whether
en- mechanisms
of "verisdiction,"
because,even
seriousornot,Hondais drawing
ourat- though
wearetosomeextent
tirely
upinimcaught
tention
toa perceived
andencouragingperatives
and totalities
as teachers,
students,
problem
debate.
andresearchers,
anongoing
nonetheless
exploIna different
thatoftheAkihabara rationofwhatcountsas truthhas thevirtue
context,
Liberation
itis truethatmany ofleadingus intofieldsofanalysis
withsome
Demonstration,
werenot explicitly
awareof the senseofwhatmatters
forus.
participants
motivations
of the organizers.
Thequestionofotakuformeis aboutthe
Manyjoined

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adventofa relation
to commodities
basedon themarch
didnotlast,itmayrepeatandrenew
ustotakeriskstoprotheprolongation
ofmediaeventsandthusthe itself.
Whatwouldinvite
ofmatsuri
fits longsuchaneventorworld?
ofworlds.
Theconcept
production
well.Festival
haslongprovided
sucha politics
an alternative
inMarxist
totheempha- PG:Wemight
alsowanttoconsider
thepotentheory
sis on revolution,
a
different
sense
of
tial
of
the
matsuri
event
to
new
openup
spaces
offering
inimag- andnewnotions
ofselfandsociality.
Butthatis
theroleofthebodyandperformance
sociohistorical
thatwillhavetowaituntilournext
iningand enacting
change.In a discussion
Dem- encounter.
Thank
theinstance
oftheAkihabara
Liberation
youverymuchfora stimulatif
we
such
discussion.
onstration, might
marches, ing
saythat,
likeotherotakuactivities,
areconceived
onthe
modelofthematsuri
even
event,then,
you.
though tl: Thank

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