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It's been a while since I had seen Princess Mononoke and seeing it now allows more connections and actually makes more sense than before. I didn't know before that the title was actually a derogatory one that means Princess of the evil spirits; I always interpreted Mononoke to hold some sort of mythic, grander meaning that was in fact honorable.
I'm conflicted about how I feel about San, actually. There's something so compelling about her history and the fact that she was raised by wolves is a category of myth in its own. Miyazaki animated her beautifully and there are many moments where her role as the main shojo character is unclear. She is nice to look at, sure, but especially when she sucks the blood from her mother's wound at the stream, there is a sense of something being offbeat about that image. She's posing, being admired from afar by Ashitaka, but also at her most guarded. With blood smeared on her face, she stares without faltering. It was an uncomfortable and confusing moment for me and in general, I see this snapshot a general summary of her overall character.
San is also appealing because she bridges the gap between human and nature in terms of communication and habit. It's a mystery exactly how she speaks with her wolf siblings and Yakul, or at least how she listens to them. While Ashitaka and the audience can hear the gods and certain animals speaking, it is different when the animals remain quiet on screen. Are they actually speaking, but we aren't privileged to listen in? At certain points, we can hear San's wolf siblings talk, but all we see is growls and teeth. Miyazaki seems to only create snippets of their thoughts, but I wonder about the other moments.
You're absolutely right about the kind of disturbing qualities that are in tension in San! I've always wondered about her jewelry. None of the other wolves wear any. Then I began to look at her entire costume. It's very much what a girl might wear (what kind of wolf-girl would care about modesty, really? Just look at Victor, The Wild Child Avignon).
ReplyDeleteIt's almost as if she is trying to hide her human features behind some sort of savageness while at the same time still using things that enhance her human, and especially girlish, qualities.
This alone makes her one of the most compelling characters in Miyazaki's films. I agree with you, San belongs in a category of her own.
I'm glad you mentioned the fact that San was able to speak with Yakul, because until that moment I didn't realize just how different she was from the other humans. The tension between her outward human appearance and inner animalistic qualities mirrors the peaceful Ashitaka's struggle with the hatred of the demon in his arm, and ultimately ties the two characters together in their struggles.
ReplyDeleteYou and Andrew definitely have it right about San--to call her compelling is almost an understatement.