Ecchi
This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these template messages)
|
Part of a series on |
Anime and manga |
---|
Anime and manga portal |
Ecchi (エッチ, etchi, pronounced [et.tɕi]) is a slang term in the Japanese language for playfully sexual actions. As an adjective, it is used with the meaning of "sexy", "dirty" or "naughty"; as a verb, ecchi suru (エッチする or Hする) means "to have sex", and as a noun, it is used to describe someone of lascivious behavior. It is softer than the Japanese word ero (エロ from Eros or "erotic"), and does not imply perversion in the way hentai does.
The word ecchi has been adopted by western fans of Japanese media to describe works with sexual overtones. In western culture, it has come to be used to refer to
Etymology and use in Japan
The correct transcription of the word エッチ in Hepburn notation is "etchi".[5] However, it is typically written as "ecchi" in the Western world.
Etchi in and of itself is merely an abbreviation of hentai. There is no distinction between "hardcore" hentai and "softcore" etchi in proper Japanese. See Hentai#Etymology for further etymology.
Hentai was introduced in the
After the Second World War, in the 1950s, interest in hentai was renewed, and people would sometimes refer to it just by the first English letter, H (pronounced as エッチ, [eꜜttɕi]). In 1952, the magazine Shukan Asahi reported that a woman who was groped by a stranger in a movie theater reacted with "ara etchi yo" ("hey, that's perverse"). In this context, etchi should be understood as sexually forward and is synonymous to iyarashii (嫌らしい, dirty or disgusting) or sukebe (すけべ, a person with sex on the brain). From this, the word etchi started to branch off, and assume new connotations. In the 1960s, etchi started to be used by youth to refer to sex in general. By the 1980s, it was used to mean sex, as in the phrase etchi suru (to have sex).[6][12][13]
Other neologisms such as sekkusu are often used to refer to sex, in addition to the term ecchi. Ecchi is now used as a qualifier for anything related to erotic or pornographic content. Its exact meaning varies with context, but in general, it is most similar to the English word "naughty" (when used as an adjective). The Japanese media tend to use other words, e.g. ero-manga (エロ), adult manga (アダルト), or anime / manga for persons over 18 years (18禁アニメ, 18禁). The prefix "H-" is also sometimes used to refer to pornographic genres, e.g. H-anime, H-manga, etc.
Western usage
In Japan, oiroke manga (お色気漫画) is used to describe manga with very light or playful erotic content, such as is found in
Works aimed at a female audience can contain scenes which are seen as ecchi. Examples are R-18 Love Report! from Emiko Sugi and
Common elements of ecchi include conversations with sexual references or misunderstandings (e.g.
The concept of ecchi is very closely related to fan service. While fan service describes every aspect to please the fans, ecchi relates to sexual themes. A special kind of fan service, that is usually bound or justified by the narrative.[15]
Typical examples
This section needs additional citations for verification. (May 2011) |
There are many elements that may classify a work as ecchi, but these elements have to occur quite often (for example, in all episodes of a show). Graphically speaking, different techniques are used to show sexy pictures, usually by revealing parts of the female body such as the back or breasts. Some of these patterns are recurrent, such as scenes in a shower, hot springs (onsen), or fighting scenes in which clothes are torn apart. The imagination of characters is also a common device for showing their sexual fantasies, as well as transformation scenes of magical girls. In the end, any excuse is valid to show a character partially or completely nude.[1]
Nudity
Levels of nudity vary strongly between works, depending on the intended audience and the preferences of the authors. For example, in some cases, though the breasts are shown on the screen, nipples and genitals are obscured by props, clothing, or effects. This kind of censorship was typical for
Panties
The use of panty shots (panchira), or visibility of the underwear (panties), is one common motif. Typically the male character will react in an exaggerated manner and be castigated. Furthermore the color and style of the panties are an indication of the character, personality, and range sexual experience (or lack of it) female character, e.g. white for the innocent, striped for the shy, and red for the experienced. Panties are the main theme in some ecchi (for instance, Chobits and Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt), but they can also appear in other anime simply for a bit of gratuitous sex appeal.[citation needed]
Sexual activity
Although revealing or sexualized clothing, nudity or groping may occur in ecchi works, there usually is no explicit sexual intercourse in such works (although in the West they may be erroneously classified as hentai). Furthermore in this genre may appear that whilst it appears that a couple are having sex. E.g. the two may be seen in silhouette from outside a tent, or making sounds during exertion.[1]
See also
- Adult animation
- Cartoon pornography
- Doujinshi
- Exhibitionism
- Fan service
- Hentai
- Not safe for work
- Nudity in film
- Rule 34
- Scopophilia
- Softcore porn
- Thirst trap
- Voyeurism
References
- ^ ISBN 978-0-8126-9670-7.
- ISBN 978-3-638-94029-0, p. 127
- ^ ISBN 978-1-59158-332-5, p. 89.
- ^ a b Ask John: Why Do Americans Hate Harem Anime?. animenation.net. May 20. 2005. Note: fan service and ecchi refer to similar concepts.
- ^ After the sources of the article Hepburn romanization. In Hepburn, the sokuon (っ, small tsu) is romanized t before ch.
- ^ a b Hikaru, Saitō (2004). Hentai—H. Sei no yōgoshū (Kansai seiyoku kenkyūkai ed.). Kōdansha gendaishinsho. pp. 45–58.
- ^ Robertson, Jennifer (1991). Gender and the State in Japan. Theatrical Resistance, Theatres of Restraint: The Takarazuka Revue and the "State Theatre" Movement in Japan. Vol. 64. The George Washington University Institute for Ethnographic Research. pp. 165–177.
- ^ Robertson, Jennifer (1999). Dying to Tell: Sexuality and Suicide in Imperial Japan. Vol. 25. The University of Chicago Press. p. 21.
- ^ Reichert, Jim. Deviance and Social Darwinism in Edogawa Ranpo's Erotic-Grotesque Thriller "Kotō no oni". Journal of Japanese Studies. Vol. 27. The Society for Japanese Studies. p. 128.
- ^ Goichi Matsuzawa (1997). Meiji, Taishō, Shōwa, kindai fūzoku shuppan no rekishi, Ero no hon. Tokyo. Wani no ana. p. 55
- ISBN 0-520-23548-7. p. 15
- ^ Mark McLelland (2006). "A Short History of 'Hentai'". In: Intersections: Gender, History and Culture in the Asian Context. Vol. 12.
- ^ Cunningham, Phillip J. (1995). Zakennayo!. Penguin Group. p. 30.
- ISBN 1-933330-10-4, p. 30
- ISBN 1-59158-332-2, p. 295