Iluminace 2023, 35(3):5-38 | DOI: 10.58193/ilu.1770

„The Victims Were Apparently Eaten“ Reflexe japonské estetiky a společnosti 90. let v trilogii Resident Evil (1996–1999)

Josef Tichý
Akademie múzických umění

The Japanese video game series Resident Evil is often cited as a prime example of the mukokuseki (“without nationality”) aesthetics due to its setting in the fictional world of the United States. Thus, the principal aim of this article is to explore within the broader context of Japanese culture and society, how the above-mentioned saga reflects a whole range of elements specific to the Japanese environment and even the personal experiences of its creators. The opening quote appropriated from the introductory video sequence of the first title, speaks somewhat pathetically about victims who “were apparently eaten,” thus reacting to the rhetoric of newspaper articles and the tradition of exploitation films. And yet, in a naturalistic manner, unburdened with the strict rating systems of the West. Divided into four sections (including a summary of previous research and theory), the article provides an analysis of the first three volumes of the series published between 1996 and 1999, illustrating not only manifestations of several concepts from Japanese aesthetics but also Japanese social conventions as defined by the renowned Japanese psychiatrist Takeo Doi. Within the broader framework of Japanese literary tradition and topicality, particularly from the point of view of narratology and with the help of “diaries” and other written records found in the game environment, it further demonstrates how these games either metaphorically or through transposition reflect some anxieties and fundamental social dilemmas of the Japanese society of its time. At the end of the last part of the trilogy, echoes of the dropping of nuclear bombs on Japan at the end of World War II resonate almost explicitly. They also offer a starting point for new contemplations of this still-controversial topic.

Klíčová slova: fikční svět USA, japonská společnost, Resident Evil, kritika reprezentace, videohry

„The Victims Were Apparently Eaten“. Reflections of the Japanese Aesthetics and Society of the 1990s in the Resident Evil Trilogy (1996–1999)

The Japanese video game series Resident Evil is often cited as a prime example of the mukokuseki (“without nationality”) aesthetics due to its setting in the fictional world of the United States. Thus, the principal aim of this article is to explore within the broader context of Japanese culture and society, how the above-mentioned saga reflects a whole range of elements specific to the Japanese environment and even the personal experiences of its creators. The opening quote appropriated from the introductory video sequence of the first title, speaks somewhat pathetically about victims who “were apparently eaten,” thus reacting to the rhetoric of newspaper articles and the tradition of exploitation films. And yet, in a naturalistic manner, unburdened with the strict rating systems of the West. Divided into four sections (including a summary of previous research and theory), the article provides an analysis of the first three volumes of the series published between 1996 and 1999, illustrating not only manifestations of several concepts from Japanese aesthetics but also Japanese social conventions as defined by the renowned Japanese psychiatrist Takeo Doi. Within the broader framework of Japanese literary tradition and topicality, particularly from the point of view of narratology and with the help of “diaries” and other written records found in the game environment, it further demonstrates how these games either metaphorically or through transposition reflect some anxieties and fundamental social dilemmas of the Japanese society of its time. At the end of the last part of the trilogy, echoes of the dropping of nuclear bombs on Japan at the end of World War II resonate almost explicitly. They also offer a starting point for new contemplations of this still-controversial topic.

Keywords: US fictional world, Japanese society, Resident Evil, critique of representation, videogames

Vloženo: 15. březen 2023; Revidováno: 27. říjen 2023; Přijato: 15. prosinec 2023; Zveřejněno: 16. leden 2024  Zobrazit citaci

ACS AIP APA ASA Harvard Chicago IEEE ISO690 MLA NLM Turabian Vancouver
Tichý, J. (2023). „The Victims Were Apparently Eaten“ Reflexe japonské estetiky a společnosti 90. let v trilogii Resident Evil (1996–1999). Iluminace, 35(3), 5-38. doi: 10.58193/ilu.1770
Sdílet...
Stáhnout citaci
  • BibTeX (.bib)
  • Bookends (.ris)
  • EasyBib (.ris)
  • EndNote (.enw)
  • EndNote 8 (.xml)
  • ISI WoS (.isi)
  • Medlars (.medlars)
  • Mendeley (.ris)
  • MODS (.xml)
  • Papers (.ris)
  • RefWorks (.txt)
  • RefManager (.ris)
  • RIS (.ris)
  • MS Word (.xml)
  • Zotero (.ris)
    • Zobrazit celý článek

    Reference

    1. Anders, Kelly. "Marketing and Policy Considerations for Violent Video Games", in Journal of Public Policy & Marketing 18, č. 2 (1999), 270-273. Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    2. Blumenthal, Tuvia. "The Practice of Amakudari within the Japanese Employment System", Asian Survey 25, č. 3 (1985), 310-321. Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    3. Bordwell, David - Kristin Thompson. "Space and Narrative in the Films of Ozu", Screen 17, č. 2 (1976), 41-73. Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    4. Burch, Noël. To the Distant Observer: Form and Meaning in the Japanese Cinema (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1979).
    5. Burnham, Van. Supercade, a Visual History of the Videogame Age 1971-1984 (Cambridge: The MIT Press, 2003).
    6. Consalvo, Mia. Atari to Zelda: Japan's Videogames in Global Contexts (Cambridge: The MIT Press, 2016). Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    7. Dansky, Richard. "Writing for Horror Games", in Writing for Video Game Genres: From FPS to RPG, ed. Wendy Despain (Wellesley: A K Peters, 2009), 113-126. Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    8. Dickinson, Frederick R. "Biohazard: Unit 731 in Postwar Japanese Politics of National 'Forgetfulness'", in Dark Medicine: Rationalizing Unethical Medical Research, eds. William R. LaFleur - Gernot Böhme - Susumu Shimazono (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2007), 85-104.
    9. Doi, Takeo. The Anatomy of Dependence: The Key Analysis of Japanese Behavior, trans. John Bester (Tokyo: Kodansha International, 1986).
    10. Doi, Takeo. The Anatomy of Self, trans. Mark A. Harbison (Tokyo: Kodansha International, 1986).
    11. Fernández-Vara, Clara. Introduction to Game Analysis (New York: Routledge, 2015). Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    12. Geist, Kathe. "Buddhism in Tokyo Story", in Ozu's Tokyo Story, ed. David Desser (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997), 101-117. Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    13. Gledhill, Christine - Linda Williams, eds. Melodrama Unbound: Across History, Media, and National Cultures (New York: Columbia University Press, 2018). Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    14. Gluck, Carol. "The Past in the Present", in Postwar Japan as History, ed. Andrew Gordon (Berkeley - Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1993), 64-95.
    15. Hasumi, Shigehiko. "Sunny Skies", trans. Kathy Shigeta, in Ozu's Tokyo Story, ed. David Desser (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997), 118-129. Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    16. Hoskins, Colin - Rolf Mirus. "Reasons for the U.S. Dominance of the International Trade in Television Programs", Media, Culture, and Society 10, č. 4 (1988), 499-504. Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    17. Hutchinson, Rachael. Japanese Culture Through Videogames (New York: Routledge, 2019). Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    18. Chien, Irene. "Playing Undead", Film Quarterly 61, č. 2 (2007), 64-65. Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    19. Iwabuchi, Koichi. Recentering Globalization: Popular Culture and Japanese Transnationalism (Durham - London: Duke University Press, 2002). Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    20. Jenkins, Henry. "Game Design as Narrative Architecture", in First Person: New Media as Story, Performance, and Game, eds. Noah Wardrip-Fruin - Pat Harrigan (Cambridge: The MIT Press, 2004), 118-130.
    21. Johnston, Eric. "Ryuichi Sakamoto, An Outspoken Peace and Environment Activist", The Japan Times, 3. 4. 2023, cit. 7. 4. 2023, https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2023/04/03/national/ryuichi-sakamoto-activism/.
    22. Jumoto, Kóči. Kokin jókai rui rui (Tókjó: Pai intánašonaru, 2017).
    23. Kapsis, Robert E. Hitchcock: The Making of a Reputation (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1992). Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    24. Kawano, Yoh. "Jaderné dějiny Japonska: od Hirošimy k Fukušimě", Nový Orient 74, č. 1 (2019), 46-64.
    25. Keene, Donald. Modern Japanese Literature, An Anthology (Rutland - Tokyo: Charles E. Tuttle Company, 1960).
    26. King, Geoff - Tanya Krzywinska. Tomb Raiders and Space Invaders: Videogame Forms & Contexts (London: I.B. Tauris, 2006). Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    27. Kirkland, Ewan. "Storytelling in Survival Horror Video Games", in Horror Video Games: Essays on the Fusion of Fear and Play, ed. Bernard Perron (Jefferson: McFarland, 2009), 62-78.
    28. Kirkland, Ewan. Videogames and the Gothic (New York: Routledge, 2021). Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    29. Kořínek, Pavel - Lucie Kořínková. "Mládež je pohromadě, večer hrůzy může započít (doslov)", in Joe Hloucha, Pavilon hrůzy (Praha: K-A-V-K-A knižní a výtvarná kultura, 2022), 180-191.
    30. Kubal, Michal. "Předmluva", in Martin Řezníček, Rozpojené státy: Amerika nejen televizní kamerou, aktualizované vydání (Praha: Argo, 2021), 9-12.
    31. Lakoff, George - Mark Johnson. Metafory, kterými žijeme, přel. Mirek Čejka (Brno: Host, 2002).
    32. Law, Hoi Lun. Ambiguity and Film Criticism: Reasonable Doubt (Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan, 2021). Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    33. Masuzoe, Yōichi. "The Long and Painful Aftermath of the Bubble", in Years of Trial: Japan In The 1990s, ed. Yōichi Masuzoe (Tokyo: Japan Echo Inc., 2000), 105-106.
    34. Mejia, Robert - Ryuta Komaki. "The Historical Conception of Biohazard in Biohazard/Resident Evil", in Playing with the Past: Digital Games and the Simulation of History, eds. Matthew Wilhelm Kapell - Andrew B. R. Elliott (New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 2013), 327-341.
    35. Miner, Earl. Japanese Poetic Diaries (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1976).
    36. Niedenthal, Simon. "Patterns of Obscurity: Gothic Setting and Light in Resident Evil 4 and Silent Hill 2", in Horror Video Games: Essays on the Fusion of Fear and Play, ed. Bernard Perron (Jefferson: McFarland, 2009), 168-180.
    37. Noda, Nobuo. "The Great Hanshin Earthquake and Dysfunctional Japan", in Years of Trial: Japan In The 1990s, ed. Yōichi Masuzoe (Tokyo: Japan Echo Inc., 2000), 218-225.
    38. Noma, Sawako. Baiohazádo 3: rasuto esuképu, kanzen kórjaku manjuaru (Tókjó: Kódanša, 1999).
    39. Óe, Kenzaburó. Aimai na Nihon no wataši (Tókjó: Iwanami šinšo, 1995).
    40. Parkin, Simon. "Meeting Mikami", Eurogamer, 19. 10. 2014, cit. 16. 3. 2022, https://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-07-19-meeting-mikami.
    41. Paul, Christopher A. "Words, Design, and Play", in Wordplay and the Discourse of Video Games: Analyzing Words, Design, and Play, ed. Christopher A. Paul (New York: Routledge, 2012), 161-171. Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    42. Perron, Bernard, ed. Horror Video Games: Essays on the Fusion of Fear and Play (Jefferson: McFarland, 2009).
    43. Perron, Bernard. Silent Hill: The Terror Engine (Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press, 2012). Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    44. Perron, Bernard. The World of Scary Video Games: A Study in Videoludic Horror (New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 2018).
    45. Perry, Douglas C. "E3 2001: Interview with Shinji Mikami", IGN, 17. 5. 2001, cit. 22. 11. 2022, https://www.ign.com/articles/2001/05/17/e3-2001-interview-with-shinji-mikami.
    46. Reischauer, Edwin O. - Albert M. Craig. Dějiny Japonska, přel. David Labus - Jan Sýkora (Praha: Nakladatelství Lidové noviny 2001).
    47. Richie, Donald. Japanese Cinema: An Introduction (Oxford - New York: Oxford University Press, 1990).
    48. Řezníček, Martin. Rozpojené státy: Amerika nejen televizní kamerou, aktualizované vydání (Praha: Argo, 2021).
    49. Santos, Marc C. - Sarah E. White. "Playing with Ourselves: A Psychoanalytic Investigation of Resident Evil and Silent Hill", in Digital Gameplay: Essays on the Nexus of Game and Gamer, ed. Nate Garrelts (Jefferson: McFarland, 2005), 69-79.
    50. Schrader, Paul. Transcendental Style in Film: Ozu, Bresson, Dreyer; With a New Introduction: Rethinking Transcendental Style (Oakland: University of California Press, 2018). Přejít k původnímu zdroji...
    51. Stuart, Keith. "Shinji Mikami: The Godfather of Horror Games", The Guardian, 30. 9. 2014, cit. 16. 12. 2022, https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/sep/30/shinji-mikami-evil-within-residentevil.
    52. Sýkora, Jan. "Japonsko 90. let", in Dějiny Japonska, ed. Edwin O. Reischauer - Albert M. Craig, přel. David Labus - Jan Sýkora (Praha: Nakladatelství Lidové noviny, 2001), 322-327.
    53. Švarcová, Zdenka. Japonská literatura 712-1868 (Praha: Karolinum, 2005).
    54. Tanizaki, Džuničiró. Chvála stínů, přel. Vlasta Winkelhöferová (Košice: Knižná dielňa Timotej, 1998).
    55. "Trams (Streetcars) in Japan", Japan Experience, 9. 10. 2014, cit. 22. 11. 2022, https://www.japan-experience.com/plan-your-trip/to-know/traveling-japan/japan-trams.
    56. Tsunoda, Ryusaku - Theodore De Bary - Donald Keene. Sources of Japanese Tradition, Volume I (New York: Columbia University Press, 1964).
    57. Watanabe, Minoru. O podstatě japonského jazyka, přel. Zdenka Švarcová (Praha: Karolinum, 2008).
    58. Weise, Matthew. "The Rules of Horror: Procedural Adaptation in Clock Tower, Resident Evil, and Dead Rising", in Horror Video Games: Essays on the Fusion of Fear and Play, ed. Bernard Perron (Jefferson: McFarland, 2009), 238-266.
    59. Wilpers, Michael. "From Court to Concert Hall: The Origins of Classical Music in Japan", National Museum of Asian Art, The Smithsonian Institution, 1. 9. 2021, cit. 9. 5. 2023, https://asia-archive. si.edu/from-court-to-concert-hall-the-origins-of-classical-music-in-japan/.
    60. Winkelhöferová, Vlasta. Slovník japonské literatury (Praha: Libri, 2008).
    61. Yamakage, Motohisa. The Essence of Shinto: Japan's Spiritual Heart, trans. Mineko S. Gillespie - Gerald L. Gillespie - Yoshitsugu Komuro (Tokyo - New York: Kodansha International, 2006).
    62. Yamazaki, Masakazu. "Signs of a New Individualism", in Years of Trial: Japan In The 1990s, ed. Yōichi Masuzoe (Tokyo: Japan Echo Inc., 2000), 297-314.

    Tento článek je publikován v režimu tzv. otevřeného přístupu k vědeckým informacím (Open Access), který je distribuován pod licencí Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), která umožňuje distribuci, reprodukci a změny, pokud je původní dílo řádně ocitováno. Není povolena distribuce, reprodukce nebo změna, která není v souladu s podmínkami této licence.


    Zpět na obsah