Hello Kitty as a Symbol of Empowerment: The exploration of the Japanese icon’s influence on feminine ideologies.
Description of the Study
The study explores the iconic Japanese character, Hello Kitty, as a global figure as well as the influences and social effects on womanhood in the Asian culture. The long-lasting popularity of Hello Kitty has gained widespread recognition, particularly in America, that extends to the domain of girlish culture in Japan in targeting the female audience. The company’s expanding range of commodity goods embellished with the iconic character demonstrates the connection between Hello Kitty in which the Asian girlish culture is inferred. The following will provide background knowledge of the creation behind the infamous Kitty and will delve deeper into the semiology of Hello Kitty’s visual form to develop a sophisticated understanding of the character’s impositions. Most importantly, a further examination of the diverse collection of Hello Kitty representations reveals and challenges Asia’s pre-conceived notion of female docility. Consequently, I will draw on Hello Kitty’s appearance as a mark of female empowerment in contemporary renderings through the method of semiology. Although critics argue that Kitty’s symbolic elements embodies the submissiveness and powerlessness of Asian femininity, Hello Kitty is a tangible image that embraces a symbol of female autonomy. Accordingly, the understanding of Hello Kitty’s semiotic representation in Asia is applied and contrasted to the Western values of feminine individualism that the character challenges. The collection of visual images include renditions of a modernized Hello Kitty which are analyzed to trace the conceptualization of the character into popular masculine, heroic renditions. Hence, the qualitative knowledge that is collected through the assessment proves to be useful in discerning and challenging the concept of femininity in the Asian culture.
Significance of the Study
Society has struggled with gender stereotypes for hundreds of years and over the past several decades the understanding of femininity has evolved drastically. There is no doubt that the Western culture has made leaps and bounds into the realm of femininity and equality between men and women in recognizing the importance of feminine values to create a solid foundation in society. Living in the twenty-first century, a growing number of young women are learning to embrace their femininity, exuding strength, power and compassion. However, the progress in gender equality and women’s empowerment in Asia “has been slow and uneven in advancing women’s economic empowerment” (Akhtar, 2017): confining to an immutable “girl culture” that deems the female who must submit to her male dominant and give up her rights of self-expression, stripping her of her own self identity. In addition, Asian women find themselves trapped into the stereotype of maintaining a sense of docility, sweetness and innocence through a life of domesticity: complying to every demand from the male counterpart. Consequently, Asian female voices are generally ignored, silent and passive. Gender discrimination is an issue that is continuously being addressed and developing a deeper understanding and examination of Hello Kitty exposes a dimension of empowerment for young women to embrace and acknowledge their feminine qualities. Thus, the significance and representation of the iconic figure, Hello Kitty, is analyzed to reveal its ramification on femininity in the Asian culture as a symbol of female empowerment.
Key Issues/Questions being Addressed
The study focuses on the interpretation of Hello Kitty as a widespread Japanese icon and addresses the issues and concerns of femininity in Asia. The first step is to understand the history of the character and the design aesthetics: What makes Hello Kitty so iconic and popularized? Who is Hello Kitty and what does she portray? What is the significance behind a mouthless cat? How is the meaning and interpretation of Kitty extended to the marketing of the branded goods? Do the semiotic meanings influence fans’ cognitive judgement of Hello Kitty? Next, to briefly address the notion of femininity in Asia referring to visual adaptations: How do Asian principles play a role in the portrayal of the character? How does understanding Hello Kitty’s significance hinder or aid in gender politics? How has the ideology of femininity shifted through the diverse representations of Hello Kitty?
Thesis
The diverse characterization of Hello Kitty challenges the pre-conceived notion of femininity in Asia by representing individualism and self-expression through female empowerment.
Research Methods
Hello Kitty being a widespread icon that is embellished on a myriad of merchandises is not only a prevalent figure in the Asia but has broadened its prominence in America over the last few decades. In order to understand the topic of Hello Kitty’s influence in females, an analyzation of the cat’s connotations and social meanings will aid in understanding how the figure is consumed and established within the female population. Thus, of the seven methodologies taught in the course, I will be focusing on semiotics through uncovering the visual elements of Hello Kitty as an icon that led to a construction of cultural interpretations. Seen through the lens of semiotics, Hello Kitty can be understood as a symbol of the feminine ideologies that are culturally learned. Standing as an indexical sign of cuteness through the tilted red bow on her ear, Hello Kitty is a symbolic sign that is presented as a signifier of a two-dimensional cartoon cat that can be signified as an embodiment of dull, docile femininity of submissiveness or on the other hand, can be decoded by the viewer as a tangible image that represents feminine qualities and self-expression. Specifically, Hello Kitty can also be seen as a metonymic sign: her bow stands for femininity and cuteness.
Through studying Gillan Rose’s four sites and modalities of interpreting visual materials (Rose, 2016), I will be focusing on the Site of Image Itself in dissecting the characteristics of Hello Kitty. Looking into the Site of Image, concerning the compositional and social modalities (composition and visual meanings), I will be exploring the cat’s facade (particularly her bow and a lack of a facial organ) and the colours that are commonly associated with the character to illustrate and dissect the cultural interpretations behind it. Respectively, I will review the connotation of Kitty’s associated colours in Japan as well as the implications of the absence of mouth within the Asian culture. Taking from my visual board, I will further analyze the diverse modifications of Hello Kitty in the digital domain using the compositional and social modalities. As a result, the evaluation of images is focused on comparing original Hello Kitty renderings with contemporary renditions that challenges the prevalent notion of femininity in Asia.
Who is Hello Kitty?
The Japanese cartoon kitty, known as Hello Kitty, is one of the most widely recognized character in Japan in the twenty-first century (Yano, 2013), becoming “one of the best-selling licensed entertainment characters ever, generating an estimated $8 billion annually for Sanrio” (Waxman, 2014, para. 1). Resembling the Asian cultural symbol (maneki-neko) known as the “Fortune Cat” (Figure 4a) that carries a positive connotation of good luck, Hello Kitty is a white cat with black eyes, a yellow button nose wearing a pink or red bow that Sanrio references as a little girl because of her soul and life akin to humans.
As a matter of fact, Hello Kitty is never shown on all fours and doesn’t eat cat food: she is often shown performing human tasks such as baking cookies presented in Figure 1a and 1b. The Japanese company certainly succeeded in their intention to create a product that is highly recognizable with a long-lasting popularity by emotionalizing and humanizing everyday human world through embodied charm. The birth of Hello Kitty in 1974 soon became a phenomenon for females all across the globe and has since grown in recognition that one only needs a synecdochic part — her red or pink bow (Figure 3a) — to conjure up the Japanese figure. The red bow serves as an example of the visual shorthand Sanrio uses to create a minimalistic design that makes the character’s referentiality ever more subtle, allowing the receiver to discover individual meaning and value in the character. For this reason, the simplistic visual forms of Hello Kitty carries a cognitive power to consumers that has contributed to the successful popularization of the character.
Moreover, the most notable feature of Hello Kitty’s minimalistic attribute is the lack of a facial organ: her mouth. Sanrio’s design of a mouthless character serves “as a sounding board to synchronize with the mood of the viewer” (Yano, 2013, p. 67). Drawing from Yano’s quote, the faceless expressions represent a symbolic level of empathy and serves as another major reason for Kitty’s appeal across age groups and markets. Supported by the cat’s blank state that reflects, supports and affirms with the user, the company emphasizes friendship as the core message of the character. By enabling the receiver to develop a personal connection with the Japanese figure, Hello Kitty exemplifies the notion of intimacy and companionship. Evidently, the creators crafted Hello Kitty as a cute commodity through a sense of ambiguity and creative flexibility as a by-product of her physical blankness, ultimately progressing to a widely recognized icon.
The Girlish Culture of Hello Kitty
Furthermore, the visual simplicity and global allure of Kitty fostered an icon that is etched and attached to an ever-expanding range of material products catered to females. Through the character’s embellishment on a spectrum of feminine merchandises such as cosmetics and purses, Hello Kitty products draws a connection to a girl culture stemming from Japan that depicts girls to have large, round eyes, inconspicuous nose and a small mouth. Driven from innocence, the Japanese girl culture provides a nostalgic figure for adults to see a girl for her immanent possibilities for adulthood, embracing the transition of a girl from innocence to her full sexuality as a woman (Yano, 2013, p. 49). It is important to acknowledge the presence of Kitty throughout a female’s growth, appearing in various age-appropriate forms that constantly reassures them of Kitty’s constancy. Strategically marketed to appeal to females of all ages, Sanrio responds to the girlish culture by developing products that follow the consumer life cycle of a female. Notably, the lifestyle products link into a well-coordinated ensemble such as pencils, pencil cases, backpacks, purses, makeup and jewellery (Figure 5a-5f).
In addition, Yano states that aestheticized Hello Kitty objects is “stereotyping girls’ desires [that] fulfills gendered notions of female domesticity” (Yano, 2013, pp 30). According to Yano, Hello Kitty products fall into an allegorical domain of gendered identity by imprinting the iconic symbol on conventionalized girl products (Figure 6a-6d). Altogether, Kitty’s lifestyle branding of commodity goods clearly caters to a global girlhood.
“Pink femininity”
Moreover, Hello Kitty flourishes in a world of pink that signifies female strength and power in America’s postfeminism era. Looking deeper, we can further delve into the meanings and associations that influence the cognitive judgement of iconic cat as a part of global girl culture encoded by female consumers who inhabit the world of pink. Through evaluating a collection of Hello Kitty renderings and products, an attribute of the character is its common association with the colours pink, red and lavender (Figure 2a-f).
Respectively, the colours line up with Japanese connotations that represents, cuteness, sweetness and friendship (Yano, 2013). In particular, pink as a concept has become a touchstone for Sanrio and its cat, embodying the Japanese colour of good health and life which correlates with the popular Japanese cherry blossom tree and symbolizes pure love, childish innocence and purity (“The Meaning of Pink”, 2013). In addition, some claim that the identification of Kitty with soft pink hues commonly stereotype females as fragile and weak (Ko, 2000, p. 8). Although Ko states that pink is connoted as a colour of female fragility, with the rise of the postfeminism era in America pink is increasingly being accepted as a power hue of a newer trend: embracing their feminine strength, compassion, resilience and power. To further the statement that pink is taking on a more malleable representation, Koller explains that there is “a tendency to reclaim pink and redefine it as the colour of women who regard themselves as having achieved equality…and are therefore able to embrace pink as a marker of their femininity” (Koller, 2008, p. 415). Surely, there is a growing number of women who are embracing their femininity with power and self-confidence. Despite the connections of pink as stereotypical values of femininity and weakness, the postfeminism contemporary era adopts the concept of pink as a mark of independence and boldness.
A mouthless Kitty
In a like manner, Hello Kitty’s unique, anthropomorphic demeanour is a females’ canvas for individualistic projection and self-expression. Not only is the colour a facet for an analysis of cultural significance, the minimalistic and abstracted design of Hello Kitty allows for various interpretations and makes the character a promising site for understanding how different meanings can get attached to the same figure. Particularly, Hello Kitty’s mouthless physicality exemplifies a symbol of blankness that opens possibilities of elusive controversies for consumers in Asia and America. As a result, Hello Kitty’s seemingly benign and adorable appearance is complexly intertwined with the power structures of gender within the Eastern and Western cultures. Yano describes Hello Kitty as a symbol for Asian women “who see her as this type of mouthless kitty, like a lot of stereotypes of Asian women…that they’re submissive, they have to be demure and they have to be polite” (Yano, 2013). According to Yano, the iconic character fails to speak to girls’ full womanhood and sexuality. The lack of mouth also renders Hello Kitty as a voiceless and expressionless figure who is unable to eat and in a sense — is incomplete and powerless. Clearly, critics may claim that Hello Kitty is a placid, docile character that encapsulates the stereotypes of Asian women through her mouthless nature that inhibits her expressions. However, although some argue that Hello Kitty embodies a negative connotation that inevitably traps female consumers into Asian stereotypes of silence and docility, Hello Kitty’s absence of mouth is a mark of empowerment that allows and encourages self-expression of female consumers. The simplicity of her rendering allows people to “project their own feelings on her face, because she has an expressionless face. Kitty looks happy with people are happy… [and] for this psychological reason, [Sanrio] thought she shouldn’t be tied to any emotion” (Yano, 2013, p. 91). Thus, Sanrio’s decision of stripping Hello Kitty of her mouth is to provide an interactive and empathetic relationship between the consumer and the character through a blank state that enables Kitty to take on multiple identities, drawing her and the viewing into an intimate sociality. Carrying a personality unique to each individual who internalizes Kitty into their own lives, Hello Kitty stands as a tangible image that allows and encourages self-expression.
Hello Kitty and modern-day renditions
In the final analysis, Hello Kitty’s personification of super heroines provides a different representation of femininity that models female empowerment and individualism. In addition to the mouthless physicality that is constantly made into an elusive sign, Kitty’s minimal characteristics allows for personalization of the cartoon: she acts as a canvas for consumers to decorate with their own embellishments. Reviewing a collection of digitized forms of Hello Kitty, the figure is modified to personify a range of popular heroine figures such as Wonder Woman, Super Girl and Bat Girl (Figure 7a, Figure 7b) and focuses on bold reds, yellows and blues. The colours are commonly associated with superheroes because they create a high-impact and vibrant design, carrying connotative meanings of power, integrity, leadership and courage (Rikard, 2016). As well, the portrayal of a raised fist symbolizes the gesture of strength and unity, often used as a political statement of defiance as a human rights salute (Chadbourn, 2016). Such heroine characters “operate independently as their own title characters and whose femininity operates as central to who they are as a character as well as a hero” (Beerman, 2012, p. 203).
In emphasis, Beerman explains that the distinction of super heroines is their integration of femaleness into the character as opposed to female superheroes who serve as the sidekicks of a male counterpart. Consequently, by stripping her of soft colour hues, the characterization of Hello Kitty is no longer bound to the fragility and weakness of the stereotypical femininity: Hello Kitty doesn’t have to be portrayed as pink, feminine and girly. Instead, these contemporary renditions of Kitty challenges females to discover their power to free their femininities from the constrictions of patriarchy and thus challenges to reshape the conventionalized notion femininity particularly in Asia — where women are to submit to the male. Thus, the contemporary renditions of Hello Kitty challenges the conventionalized feminine ideologies of docility and submissiveness through embodying heroic personifications that provides a model for female empowerment and individualism.
Conclusion
All in all, the diverse characterization of Hello Kitty challenges the pre-conceived notion of femininity in Asia by representing individualism and self-expression through female empowerment. Hello Kitty as a form of female empowerment is concluded through the analyzation of the cat’s connotations and social meanings that aids in understanding its establishment within the female population. Through exploration of the character, Hello Kitty has become a widespread icon that is embellished on a myriad of merchandises, stemming from Japan’s girl culture that has broadened the character’s prominence on a global scale. Correspondingly, Hello Kitty’s common association with pink is recognized as a vehicle for females to embrace the colour as a mark of female independence and boldness of gender equality. In addition to understanding pink through a semiotic lens, Kitty’s lack of mouth allows for consumers to project their personal emotions onto the character, encouraging individualism and expression rather than a space to demoralize females. By evaluating renditions of Kitty personified as super heroines who integrate their femininity into their character, females in their formative years can look up to stronger female characters who model their freedom from gender discrimination. The simplistic rendering of Hello Kitty then, acts as a malleable mechanism for females to experience mastery of their individualism despite the common stereotypes of female submissiveness. Therefore, through the lens of semiology, renditions of Hello Kitty presents an outlet for self-expression to reinforce female individualism and challenges the pre-conceived notion of femininity in Asia.
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