by Dr Cassandra Atherton

This book of essays analyses Studio Ghibli anime written and directed by Miyazaki.  While Miyazaki is reclusive, he is in constant filmic dialogue with his audience, and it is through his anime that his views as an intellectual are made public.  He emphasises the importance of Japanese community and environment in his anime and illustrates that although the Japanese mostly live in urban environments, they have a deep reverence for nature.  This isseen in the enduring appeal of Shinto.  Miyazaki recalls a time beforenature was threatened by technology and pollution and uses an appeal to memory, imagination and the younger generation to buffer the negative impact of innovation.  Cassandra had a Visiting Scholar’s Position at Sophia University, Tokyo, to research the Japanese view of the public intellectual.