2017/10/17: Kacsuk Zoltán
Re-examining the “what is manga” problematic
The tension and interrelationship between the style versus made in Japan positions
Manga, not unlike other similar concepts, cannot really be defined in a satisfying manner. The meaning of the expression manga has undergone important shifts even within Japan since it first started to be used in relation to various forms of illustration and later sequential art. Although, it is commonly understood to have come to refer to comics in general in Japan, the narrower meaning of Japanese comics only has also been around for some time. This more restrictive meaning of manga has also gained ground probably in part due to the way the term has come to be used outside the country to refer to comics made in Japan. As a result of the rise in interest in Japanese comics abroad and the growing number of works inspired by them, manga is also understood by many as a purely stylistic category. But other less commonly known uses of the expression have been well documented as well. In this presentation I will examine one of the most fundamental dichotomies in relation to the meaning of manga, the tension and interrelationship between the style versus 'made in Japan' positions.