Princess Mononoke

Rayna Denison is Senior Lecturer in the School of Art, Media and American Studies at the University of East Anglia, UK, specializing in Japanese and Asian film and television cultures. Denison is the author of Anime: A Critical Introduction (2015), has co-edited the Eisner Award-nominated Superheroes on World Screens (2015) as well as publishing in a wide range of academic journals including Cinema Journal, the International Journal of Cultural Studies and Velvet Light Trap. Her research interests include anime, Japanese cinema, comic book movies and children’s film and television, especially animation.

The essays in this book, brought together by a leading expert on the work of Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli, are a wide range of critical approaches to one of the most acclaimed, memorable, and visually striking animated films ever made. Both first-time viewers and long-time fans will appreciate these clear, elegant, and well-argued explorations of Princess Mononoke's themes, production history, and reception around the world.

• Introducing Studio Ghibli’s Monster Princess: From Mononokehime to Princess Mononoke (Rayna Denison, University of East Anglia, UK)Section 1: Intellectualizing Miyazaki: Politics, Religion and the Environment in Princess Mononoke1. Princess Mononoke: A Game Changer for Hayao Miyazaki (Shiro Yoshioka, Newcastle University, UK)2. Deer Gods, Nativism and History: Mythical and archaeological layers in Princess Mononoke, (Eija Niskanen, Helsinki University, Finland)3. To “See with Eyes Unclouded by Hate”: Princess Mononoke and the Quest for Environmental Balance (Tracey-Lynn Daniels, University of Texas, Arlington, USA) and (Matthew Lerberg, University of Texas, Arlington, USA)Section 2: Princess Mononoke’s Female Characters: Animation Influences, Feminism and Cultural Liminality4. Spirit Princess and Snow Queen: The Soviet Roots of Princess Mononoke (Julia Alekseyeva, Harvard University, USA)5. Teenage Wildlife: Princess Mononoke and the danger of feminine power in the works of Hayao Miyazaki (Helen McCarthy, Independent Scholar and Anime Commentator) 6. Beyond Girlhood in Ghibli: Mapping heroine development against the adult woman anti-hero in Princess Mononoke (Alice Vernon, Aberystwyth University, UK)Section 3: A Transnational Princess: The Adaptation, Promotion and Reception of Princess Mononoke7. The Translation and Adaptation of Miyazaki’s Spirit Princess in the West (Jennifer E. Nicholson, University of Sydney, Australia)8. Marketing Mononoke: The “Daihitto” becoming “Disney”’ (Laz Carter, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, UK)9. Homer, Ovid, Disney and Star Wars: The critical reception and transcultural popularity of Princess Mononoke (Emma Pett, University of East Anglia, UK)BibliographyIndex