Class S (culture)
Class S (クラスS, Kurasu Esu), or S kankei,
Although Class S can broadly be described as a form of love between girls,
History
Origins
The Western novels
Class S was also influenced by the Takarazuka Revue,[3] an all-women theater troupe established in 1914.[6] The revue featured women actors playing male roles referred to as otokoyaku (男役, lit. "male role") who would romance female characters.[7] Around this time, the term dōseiai (同性愛, "same sex/gender love") was coined to describe butch and femme relationships, as well as relationships between two femmes, with femmes referred to as ome.[8] It was suggested in popular media of the time that the Takarazuka otokoyaku caused women in Class S relationships to become ome and persist in homosexual relationships long after it was acceptable.[3] Jennifer Robertson argues that "many females are attracted to the Takarazuka otokoyaku because she represents an exemplary female who can negotiate successfully both genders and their attendant roles and domains."[9]
The rapid creation of all-girls' schools during this period is also regarded as having contributed to Class S: by 1913, there were 213 such schools.[6]
Decline and revival
In 1936, Class S literature was banned by the Japanese government.[10] The ban was lifted after World War II, along with restrictions on depictions of male-female romance in girls' magazines. This, combined with the closure of girls' schools in favor of co-educational schools and the mainstreaming of the free love movement, led Class S to decline as both a literary genre and a social phenomenon.[11][1]
Class S literature experienced a revival of popularity in the late 1990s. The 1998 yuri light novel series Maria-sama ga Miteru is credited with reviving the Class S genre, and is considered to be a modern equivalent to Nobuko Yoshiya's Hana Monogatari.[12]
Influence and legacy
As a social phenomenon
A 1911 article in Fujin Kōron claimed that between seven and eight women out of ten had experienced Class S relationships.[10]
Class S relationships were typically regarded as not a genuine expression of same-sex attraction.[6] So long as these relationships remained confined to adolescence they were regarded as normal, even spiritual.[2] This attitude would later inform contemporary perspectives on lesbianism in Japan: a tolerance towards non-sexual intimacy between girls, and the widespread belief that female homosexuality is a "phase".[13]
As literary genre
Class S had a significant impact on the Japanese literary tradition of depicting friendship between girls, the development of Japanese lesbian literature, and the creation of the anime and manga genre yuri.[13][5]
Notable figures
See also
- Homosexuality in Japan
- Lesbian teen fiction
- LGBT culture in Japan
- Situational sexual behavior
- Romantic friendship
Notes
- ^ a b Shamoon, Deborah (January 1, 2009). "The Second Coming of Shôjo". Heso Magazine. Archived from the original on September 24, 2014. Retrieved May 22, 2009.
- ^ a b c Robertson, Jennifer. Takarazuka. p. 68. Citing:
- Hattori, Kakō; Uehara, Michikō (1925). Atarashii Kotoba no Jibiki [Dictionary of New Words] (in Japanese). Tokyo: Jitsugyō no Nihonsha. pp. 83–84.
- Kabashima, Tadao; Hida, Yoshifumi; Yonekawa, Akihiko (1984). Meiji Taishō Shingo Zokugo Jiten [Dictionary of New Words and Colloquialisms in the Meiji and Taishō Periods] (in Japanese). Tokyo: Tōkyōdō Shuppan. p. 41. OCLC 14078498.
- ^ from the original on 2020-06-20. Retrieved 2019-09-01.
- ^ "Proto-Yuri Novel: Otome no Minato (乙女の港) – Part 1, Introduction and Synopsis". Okazu. 2 March 2014. Archived from the original on December 17, 2018. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
- ^ a b "Why Is It Always Catholic Schoolgirls in Yuri". Okazu. December 18, 2018. Archived from the original on January 15, 2019. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
- ^ OCLC 1754751.
- ^ Randall, Bill (May 15, 2003). "Three by Moto Hagio". The Comics Journal (252). Archived from the original on April 25, 2011. Retrieved 2008-01-23.
- S2CID 29956565.
- ^ Robertson, Jennifer. Takarazuka. p. 82.
- ^ a b McHarry, Mark (November 2003). "Yaoi: Redrawing Male Love". The Guide. Archived from the original on April 17, 2008.
- ISBN 978-4313870116。
- ^ "Esu toiu kankei". Bishōjo gaippai! Wakamono ga hamaru Marimite world no himitsu (in Japanese). Excite. Archived from the original on 2008-02-21. Retrieved 2008-03-05.
- ^ a b "Women-loving Women in Modern Japan". Okazu. September 22, 2014. Archived from the original on December 6, 2011. Retrieved January 15, 2019.
- S2CID 162524708.
References
- Robertson, Jennifer (1998). Takarazuka: Sexual Politics and Popular Culture in Modern Japan. ISBN 0-520-21150-2.
- Subramian, Erin (29 March 2011). "Women-loving Women in Modern Japan". Yuricon. Retrieved 2014-09-22.