A special famous unfortunate girl story arises from several graphic narratives i within the username (menhera girl). As 2013 Momose provides tweeted one illustration 24 hours, offering a great mouthless girl when you look at the a good sailor fit (college consistent). Instead of Kotoha (2012) manga that is consumed a cartoon structure, Momose’s job is just one panel comic you to depicts a girl suffering loneliness, depression, and you will depression. Very photo are accompanied with a few verbal outlines of the menhera girl’s monolog otherwise a primary dialogue anywhere between her and you will anonymous other people who apparently hardly understand precisely what the girl was troubled which have. Though it isn’t described perhaps the menhera girl enjoys good diagnosable intellectual disease otherwise the causes of their unique angst, self-burns off (wrist cutting) was depicted to allow the fresh menhera girl to cope which have interior pain or even to perform a good dissociative perception and make yes she’s nonetheless alive (Contour 1). By , Momose’s Facebook membership has actually more 85,000 followers while the distinct their unique illustrations is actually composed in a book named “The fresh new Sound out of a gray Girl” (Momose, 2016).

Shape step 1. “Will not wrist-reducing damage?” “It will not hurt (doing my personal center).” An image narrative i (). Picture recreated having permission on the copywriter.

These types of unfortunate girl narratives indicate that brand new slang provided new founders having a relatively basic and all of-nearby title in order to depict latest Japanese girls enduring the pain away from life. They is definitely worth focus the unfortunate girl menhera symbolizes stereotypical Japanese femininity, particularly submissiveness, self-manage, and you can free of selfishness. Momose (2016) mouthless profile eloquently implies that the new menhera girl suffers in silence; whatever you find and you will discover their is with their unique internal monolog filled up with anxiety and you will asian single solution dato stress, however, this lady has no voice to improve. Self-injury are illustrated as a means to help you externalize and you will cope with her interior problems, as opposed to communicating their unique angst so you’re able to other people. Momose’s depiction of your menhera girl just like the a great “gray girl” is particularly advising in connection with this. In her own study from media portrayals of dinner disorders and you will worry about-damage certainly Japanese feminine, Hansen (2011) asserts that ladies in modern Japan will face “the fresh new paradox out-of navigating contradictive femininity when you look at the a grey region between the standard therefore the disordered” (p. 57). As “the great and you can brush girl” need Japanese female to exercise strict thinking-command over their bodies in order to “inhibits the new evil” on their own (Hansen, 2011, p. 61). On the sad girl narratives, self-damaging measures such as mind-caused regurgitation, deprivation, and thinking-reducing is actually portrayed just like the an effective borderline disordered act did by more youthful women wanting to browse the latest contradictive femininity.

Intriguingly, in lot of manga, cartoon, and you will games, menhera girls was basic introduced just like the precious, loveable, and you can caring on their like interests

Paradoxically, the hyperlink anywhere between menhera and stereotypical womanliness possess led to menhera’s abrupt upsurge in prominence, like in this manga/cartoon targeting male audience. Such as, Past Menhera (Amano and you can Ise, 2016) was an excellent seinen manga (younger men comical) one to comes after a high-school boy falling in love with a good stunning classmate which self-slices (Profile dos). Throughout the tale, the brand new heroine engages in continual hand slashing to help you “endure the pain sensation regarding way of life” and you may “delay the brand new , p. 56) leading almost every other letters to identity her menhera. The male protagonist pretends he, too, self-injures to draw their appeal and affection. From protagonist’s men look, the brand new heroine’s scarred human body gets the thing out of affective application wherein self-injury symbolizes their unique susceptability, helplessness, and deformity, and this completely constitutes a twisted sexual focus (Seko and Kikuchi, 2020).

The newest Furious Lady

Whereas, the latest sad girl narrative domesticates feminine madness while the vulnerable and you will potentially erotic, the new upset woman exaggerates their particular problem and derangement, particularly in this new framework out of close relationship. Contained in this narrative, the newest menhera try obsessed with their unique like notice and you can tends to make devastating work to-be with this specific people. However, whenever a third people goes in new formula, the low self-esteem manifests as the possessive thoughts and you may measures, overprotectiveness, and you may tall jealousy that looks eccentric and you will terrifying so you can anybody else (Kato, 2018). In the place of brand new unfortunate girls whom walk good tightrope amongst the normal as well as the disordered, the new aggravated woman firmly inhabits the field of madness.