25 Manga: manga ^[$BL!2h^[(B
Description
This article is from the Manga Glossary, by Steve Pearl starbuck@cybercomm.net with numerous contributions by others.
25 Manga: manga ^[$BL!2h^[(B
Etymology
"Manga" is loosely translatable as "cartoon" or "caricature", or
literally, "involuntary pictures". The term was coined in 1814 by the
famous artist Katsushika Hokusai, and conveys a sense of free-flowing
composition and quirky style. In Chinese and Korean, it is pronounced
"manhwa", but is written with the same characters. First applied to
scrolls and illustrations, the word "manga" does not mean "comic" or
"comic books" any more than "karate" (lit. "empty hand") means "boxing".
And it does not mean "sequential art" (for which there are many other
words, such as "renga"), or "graphic novel" (a great deal of manga is
neither fictional nor in novel format).
The "man" character ^[$BL!^[(B in "manga" is composed of the radicals for
"water" and "expansive" ^[$BRX^[(B. It previously meant "flooding", and
later, "inexorably" or "indiscriminately". By association, it came to mean
"involuntary" and "random". Publicity material from Western companies with
"Manga" in their names (who distribute translated anime, not manga) states
that "manga" means "irresponsible pictures"; this is utter, misleading
nonsense.
History
A 12th-century drawing, the choujuu giga ^[$BD;=C5:2h^[(B ("birds & beasts
frolicking pictures"), is conventionally regarded as the first work in the
Japanese manga tradition. It was drawn by the Buddhist monk Toba, and
light-heartedly depicts animals behaving like humans. Nowadays, it is
regarded as a cliche and has been frequently satirised.
Related traditions include "zenga" ^[$BA52h^[(B, caricatures of Zen monks
used as aids to enlightenment; Shumboku Ouka created "Toba-e" (c.1702);
there were "Ootsu-e" ^[$BBgDE3(^[(B, popular comical drawings, named after
the place of their origin; "kyouga" ^[$B682h^[(B ("crazy pictures"),
single-panel scenes of strange events; and explicit, erotic woodblock
prints, called "shunga" ^[$B=U2h^[(B ("spring pictures"). (The latter are
well known to the West, but due to censorship laws, cannot be fully
reprinted in the country of their origin.)
The 19th century saw the re-emergence of ukiyo-e and the appearance of
satirical drawings such as "tanuki-e" and "namazu-e" ^[$BrP3(^[(B
("catfish pictures"); the catfish being associated with social upheaval.
The magazine Punch came to be particularly influential, with a Japanese
version appearing in 1862. The word "ponchi-e" subsequently came to
describe European-style caricatures. In the same style, but more local and
innovative, was the Marumaru Chinbun ^[$BT%T%DAJ9^[(B, released in 1877.
It used speech balloons and some Western drawing techniques. The first
4-panel strip, featuring typeset speech, was published in 1902. The
American comics explosion of the 1920s influenced many Japanese
cartoonists and had some impact at the popular level, although most titles
had to be re-drawn for Japanese audiences.
Manga did not enjoy widespread popularity until after WWII, when Tezuka
Osamu began his experiments in the early 50s. Tezuka drew on many artistic
traditions from Japan and elsewhere, searching for the most effective
techniques. He was particularly interested in cinema, and all his manga
have a highly developed cinematic quality. Tezuka was also interested in
animation, and eventually studied at Disney studios in the late 60s.
(Ironically, Disney's 1994 movie, The Lion King, is widely believed to
have copied Tezuka's 1960s manga Jungle Emperor.) But rather than
slavishly copying Disney's aesthetic, Tezuka strived to understand the
relationship between character drawing and economical storytelling. His
success led to a new, distinctly Japanese form of graphic narrative, and
paved the way for the rapid growth of the manga industry. Many prominent
artists in the 60s and 70s were former assistants of Tezuka.
Outside Japan
In Taiwan, translated Japanese manga and anime have been popular for many
years. This growth was in part made possible by the proliferation of
bootleg translated mangas, which were very cheap, widely available and
closely resembled the originals. Their crude translations and
correction-fluid censorship did nothing to dampen buyers' enthusiasm. The
1992 crackdown on manga piracy in Taiwan (and other Asian countries, where
the situation was similar) catalysed the pirates into quickly buying
translation rights and "legitimising" themselves. (The translation quality
of the official versions is said to be variable, but generally better.)
Today, manga in Taiwan is booming, with many dedicated bookstores and
libraries. Shoujo manga, doujinshi and Japanese cult artists (such as
CLAMP) have considerable followings. Seinen-manga is said to be less
popular because of compulsory military service. The local manga scene has
produced some accomplished manga-kas, such as Tsai Chih Chung and Chen
Wen, who have both had their work translated into Japanese; some Taiwanese
manga-kas now draw exclusively for Japanese magazines.
The weekly Hong Kong magazine Family Comics, which for years carried
informed manga news, reviews, and translations of several cult titles,
ceased publication in 1993; a mad scrabble for Japanese manga rights
ensued. Today, the price and quality of manga translations has increased
markedly, and manga translation has become big, legitimate business.
Shounen mangas such as Dragonball and Slam Dunk, which are well-known
throughout Asia, are especially popular in Hong Kong.
Japanese manga and magazines are becoming increasingly widespread in South
Korea. Korean manga pirates have also disappeared recently, with royalties
being paid for all translations of Japanese manga. The Korean market
currently has about twice as many shoujo-manga magazines than
shounen-manga magazines. Martial arts mangas are also popular. and Korean
manga-ka I Jie-Hak ^[$BM{:\U\^[(B was commissioned to draw the wuxia manga
Ryuugin Houmei ^[$BN66cK1LD^[(B for Kodansha.
In Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, many 60s-era mangas have been
translated for local audiences. Original Japanese and Chinese-translated
manga can be found in all major Malaysian cities. Several children's manga
(e.g. Doraemon) have been translated into Malay. However, in general, one
cannot obtain manga containing 'gratuitious sex and graphic violence' in
Malaysia. The situation in Singapore is similar, but pages are sometimes
torn out of imported Japanese magazines, in accordance with local
censorship laws.
Manga has been slowly gaining a readership in many Western countries. In
most cases, Westerners have been introduced to manga via anime, which is
now fairly accessible via mainstream outlets. At the moment, mangas are
particularly popular in Spain, Italy and France, where a wide range of
titles have sold well. In the United States, translated manga has been
trickling into comic shops for the best part of a decade, witht some
minimal impact. They have been largely released in 30-page comic-book
format, which most Japanese call "honyaku komikkusu"
^[$BK]Lu%3%_%C%/%9^[(B (translated comics) or "eigo-ban" ^[$B1Q8lHG^[(B
(English version), not "manga". Comic artists such as Adam Warren and Ben
Dunn have used anime as the main inspiration for their work, the former
releasing licensed adaptations of the Dirty Pair and Bubblegum Crisis
animes. (Usually, only titles with an accompanying anime are considered
for adaptation.) Some American fans have drawn anime doujinshis and sold
them at Comikets, and a few superficial, cosmetic aspects of manga art are
now being appropriated by "mainstream" American comics.
See also:
o fj.rec.comics Comic Lists - a hugely useful reference, listing all
manga titles, artists, publishers and prices since 1987. (in
Japanese).
<http://www.comm.eng.osaka-u.ac.jp/~tanaka/comic-page/comic_list.html>
o Database of Manga Bookstore in Japan - (in Japanese).
<http://yindy1.aist-nara.ac.jp/ncaa/comics_map.html>
o Tezuka's Jungle King and Disney's Lion King - some images and
several useful articles.
<http://bronze.ucs.indiana.edu:80/~tanaka/Tezuka_Disney/Tezuka_Disney.html>
o Index of Anime and Manga information - an index of vaguely
manga-related links.
<http://www.cec.co.jp/usr/hasegawa/VirtualLibrary/Comic_Anime/e-index.html>
o The AFS Manga Gallery - a couple of scans from various manga.
<http://www.cs.mun.ca/~anime/afs/manga.html>
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