Spirited Away: Universal Themes

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1. Spirited Away Spirited Away was a global hit and the first anime to win the Best Animated Feature Award at the Academy Awards. As a result, it must have universal themes that people from around the world can relate to. One of the major universal themes within Spirited Away is that it is a coming-of-age story focusing on a young girl becoming her own brave and independent person. Chihiro starts the film as a nervous and slightly annoying young girl who is told what to do by everyone and lacks confidence in her actions. However, after her parents are turned into pigs and she is employed at the bathhouse, she must take the initiative to save herself and the people that she cares about. Throughout the movie, she grows into a person who takes risks and saves her family and Haku, something that would have been unimaginable at the beginning of the film. The coming-of-age theme is popular across all cultures, such as the British Harry Potter series and the recent Disney hit, Moana, and is something all can relate to because everyone must grow up. …show more content…

In Shinto, it is believed that all things have a spirit, or kami. Everything in nature, such as rivers, trees, and rocks, all have spirits that should be respected and can be worshipped at shrines. In the film, Chihiro meets Haku, a river spirit, and a radish spirit in the bathhouse, which demonstrates the variety of spirits that exist in Shinto. Bathhouses also have a long history unique to Japan, where they have been known as staples in communities because people can come to interact and relax together. Public bathhouses are not popular in the United States, but can still be found in Japan

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