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ETD Abstract Container

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Beauty and the feast: nostalgia, consumption, and the Shojo in the works of Yoshimoto Banana

Leader-Hastorun, Francesca
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1413381286

Abstract Details

2006, Master of Arts, Ohio State University, East Asian Languages and Literatures.
Yoshimoto Banana (b. 1964), is one of the most prolific Japanese writers of her generation. This thesis examines a representative selection of Banana’s fictional works, from the earliest to the most recent. Many examples are drawn from works that have been discussed by other critics, such as her debut novel Kitchin(Kitchen, 1988), Tsugumi (Goodbye Tsugumi, 1989), N.P (N.P., 1990), and Amurita (Amrita, 1994). I have also made an effort to incorporate less familiar but important works, such as Hachiko no saigo no koibito (Hachi’s Last Lover, 1996), Umi no futa (There is No Lid on the Sea, 2003), and Hagoromo (The Angel’s Robe, 2004). In my analyses of Banana’s oeuvres, I focus on three essential elements: nostalgia, consumption, and the shojo (young girl, maiden). Moreover, I attempt to demonstrate that all three elements are inextricably linked in the context of Banana’s work. I have designed this thesis to consist of three overlapping parts. The first part, Chapter One, focuses on the functions of nostalgia. The primary task of this part is to demonstrate that nostalgic desire is a substitute for other forms of desire, as well as the dominant motivating force behind acts of material, gastronomical, emotional, and carnal consumption in Banana's work. The second part of this thesis, Chapter Two, delineates the characteristics of the quintessential shojo character that resides at the heart of all Banana’s fiction and functions as the ultimate object of nostalgic desire—the cardinal shojo. The third part of this thesis, or Chapters Three and Four, links my theory about the role of nostalgia, consumption, and nostalgic consumption with the role of the shojo in Banana’s fiction. I find that a tendency to nostalgia-motivated consumption is an essential part of any shojo character. In fact, many of those who do not embody all the traits of the shojo ideal may be classified as a type of shojo by virtue of their nostalgic desire. To classify the various types of shojo, I employ my own taxonomy, which includes designations such as the ancillary shojo, shojo consort, meta-shojo, and post-shojo.
William J. Tyler (Advisor)
Richard Torrance (Committee Member)
146 p.
Asian Literature

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Leader-Hastorun, F. (2006). Beauty and the feast: nostalgia, consumption, and the Shojo in the works of Yoshimoto Banana [Master's thesis, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1413381286

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Leader-Hastorun, Francesca. Beauty and the feast: nostalgia, consumption, and the Shojo in the works of Yoshimoto Banana. 2006. Ohio State University, Master's thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1413381286.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Leader-Hastorun, Francesca. "Beauty and the feast: nostalgia, consumption, and the Shojo in the works of Yoshimoto Banana." Master's thesis, Ohio State University, 2006. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1413381286

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

osu1413381286
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© 2006, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.