Post by Olivier Armstrong on Jun 14, 2013 16:20:13 GMT -5
This will be pretty nerdy post, but I'm proud of it so here it is. Little background first, for my English class I had to choose a work by a female author and analyze it as a Gothic work. After coming up with several semi-decent ideas I suddenly remembered that FullMetal Alchemist was written by a female author. I wasn't sure I could use it though so I went to my teacher will all my ideas which included The Outsiders, an episode of Criminal Minds, The Catcher and the Rye and Beauty and the Beast. She however quickly told me I should use FullMetal Alchemist, so naturally I did. The project was published online through wordpress and I wanted to share it because I think it turned out well. c:
The link is Here I wasn't sure if it would work on my class blog so I figured I'd post it on my own. But the original one is Here in all it's identical glory. Here's also the text but it's not prettily aligned with the pictures like it is on wordpress.
FullMetal Alchemist as a Gothic Work
What is FullMetal Alchemist about?
Set in a different world where alchemy exists as a science and has a basic law of Equivalent Exchange. The law states that “to obtain, something of equal value must be lost.” The show follows the lives of two young boys, Edward (Ed) and Alphonse (Al) Elric who committed the taboo of human transmutation when they try to bring their mother back from the dead. Their attempt at human transmutation ends in disaster, Ed loses his left leg while his brother, Al, loses his entire body. In order to give his brother a new body, Ed sacrifices his right arm in order to bind his brother’s soul to a suit of armor. The anime and manga focus on their journey to find a way to return their bodies back and the dark secrets they uncover on this journey.
Who is Hiromu Arakawa?
Hiromu Arakawa was born in Tokachi, in the northernmost part of Japan and lived on a dairy farm her parents owned. Her life on a dairy farm inspired the law of equivalent exchange in Fullmetal Alchemist because her parents had to give all their work in order to get food. She wrote and illustrated FullMetal Alchemist and many consider it her greatest work. The manga was inspired by the European industrial revolution and her fascination with the ancient concept of alchemy. She also wanted to have the center theme of family and friendship in her work for the main characters and explore human nature. She wrote other mangas such as Stray Dog, Hero Tales, and Silver Spoons, but none of them gained the popularity of FullMetal Alchemist. Unfortunately not much information exists about her. She keeps her private life a secret and only one photograph of her exists. Instead she depicts herself as a cow with glasses in her works, a connection with her childhood on a dairy farm. Still even with the mystery her work has become an international hit and inspired two different anime series. I decided to use the second anime series, FullMetal Alchemist: Brotherhood because it follows Arakawa’s manga more closely and I also used snippets from her manga work for my project. The storyline of FullMetal Alchemist has deep complexities including the way Arakawa portrays human condition and nature.
"You're envious of humans aren't you?"
Envy's monstrous form. (http://www.mangahere.com)
Envy's weakened leech form. (http://www.mangahere.com)
Arakawa uses artificial humans created through alchemy known as homunculi to portray the positive side of human nature. There are eight homunculi in this work. The original homunculus in an effort to become perfect removed all of his sins and created seven other homunculi (Envy, Greed, Lust, Gluttony, Wrath, Sloth, and Pride). Of these sins I selected the character of Envy to analysis the way he relates to humans. First off, Arakawa drew Envy in his original form as a giant monster made up on the various souls that were sacrificed to spawn his creation. When he first displays his true form, Arakawa illustrates the transformation with lightning, representing the power behind the change. She also draws out the heads of the people consumed within Envy, illustrating the lost souls that have forgotten who they are (Arakawa, FullMetal Alchemist). The shading around Envy shows the darkness behind him and illustrates his sinful nature and show an elaborate design, and villains in manga tend to have a more elaborate appearance (Brenner, 47). The glare in his eyes, and the way they are shifted helps to further show the villainous nature of Envy. The humans are shocked when they witness Envy's true form, and Envy wastes no time in attack them, another sign of a villain. Here the drawing of his arm changes from realistic to a deformed animated shadow. The change in drawing scheme illustrates the power behind Envy's attack, as this form of drawing represents a "hyper-emotional stage." Envy shows his anger, and the attack adds more force with the Japanese characters (sound effects) that accompany the attack. Envy shows anger towards humans and given the strength behind his attack it would be quite easy for him to destroy him. However, even though Envy demonstrates power in his weakened stage he poses no threat. In this form, Envy resembles a leech and now has become dependent on others. His eyes have also changed shaped and have become bigger, but his irises still do not dilate, which indicates his existing villainous nature because small or no irises mean villains and the fact his teeth are sharp represents his animalistic instincts (Brenner, 42). Envy has fallen from power and his humiliation does not end there. In the second scene, Ed realizes the envious nature behind Envy. Even though Envy prides himself on being "better than humans", and clearly can be more powerful than them, he still envies humans. In fact the form he typically uses resembles a human.
The human form Envy typically chooses. (http://www.mangahere.com)
In this form he has an elaborate hairstyle, outfit that that as Brenner stated indicates a villain. His eyes are also narrow and cat-like and a shade of purple, different from a human but he still the majority of this image resembles a human. The fact Envy chooses this form helps to show he secretly wishes he were a human. Ed, after figuring this out points out why Envy may be jealous of humans.Ed explains that humans always help each other out when they need too. All the other people in the panel were former enemies and their eyes are all different shapes but you can still see two characters with larger irises, especially with the female. One of the human characters also has small eyes, and rather small irises which means he was a villain, but now he seems to have change sides. Basically Arakawa depicts in their eyes that they've all witness hardships that changed their pure nature but they still the banded together to help each other out. The concept of companionship is something Envy never can experience. After Ed describes the basis of human nature and their willingness to help each other, something that Envy can never experience, Envy snaps and kills himself. He feels humiliated his nature has been discovered and though this scene shows the desirable qualities of humans, Arakawa also demonstrates their darker side as well.
"If ever there was an example of the Devil's Work in this world, this case would be it."
Gothic works tend to expose the darker side of human existence and can be found in the scene where Ed and Al meet Shou Tucker and his little daughter Nina. One key method manga and anime authors employ to develop their characters is the art of drawing their eyes.
Nina's innocent eyes and Shou Tucker's hidden eyes. (http://www.mangahere.com)
The character of Nina has both wide eyes and pupils which indicate innocence, purity and youth (Brenner, 42). Her father’s eyes on the other hand are usually hidden behind a pair of glasses which could indicate that even though he appears to be a loving father, he has a hidden agenda and a dark secret. Tucker specializes in bio-alchemy, and in order to prevent himself from losing his state certification, creates a talking chimera (an animal hybrid) by fusing his daughter and her dog together. The results shocks Ed, who in the anime shows initial surprise at a talking chimera, almost praising the power of science then slowly constricts into horror when the chimera refers to him as “big brother,” a nickname Nina frequently used. I selected the anime clip to show this, but the panels in the manga focus more on the chimera talking, small little panels and then end with a larger panel is used to show the horror in Ed’s pupils. The shift in panel sizes indicate changes in the emotional development in mangas and because the biggest panel occurs when Ed realizes the dark side of science expresses the biggest emotional expression (Brenner,67). The next page consists of Edward talking to Tucker, getting information about what happened to his wife then when he asks where Nina and Alexandra are, the page only shows that question and Tucker’s answer. There are no other scenes which show the importance of this scene in the overall story. Ed’s iris has constricted to show anger and Tucker’s eyes, with small irises and narrow eyes to show his dark side express worry that his secret was discovered. This scene shows the critical development of Ed because he suddenly realizes the true horror of the science they swore their life to. Nina has been transformed into a creature and her eyes have transformed from wide-eyed innocence to a blank stare without any pupils. This shows how Nina has been corrupted by science and resembles an emotionless experiment. While Ed attacks Tucker for his work in human experimentation, Tucker laughs and argues that what he did was no different from what Ed did; claiming they both “toyed with human lives.” Ed panics, screaming that he’s nothing like Tucker, which shows his moral character. The result of this scene stay with Ed comes onto the horror impression that “we’re human, we’re only human,” and he feels guilt he was unable to rescue Nina from her father’s cruel experiment.
Memory of Nina and discussion with Truth. (http://www.mangahere.com)
This phrase appears at the end of the work when Ed gives up the door of truth he received when he attempted to human transmutation, in order to bring his brother back. Truth asks Ed are you “willing to cast it aside? To lower yourself to a simple human?” Ed responds by saying “What do you mean lower myself? That's the only thing I've ever been, just a simple human that couldn't save a little girl, not even alchemy.” The manga version has slightly different wording (as shown), but that only indicates differences in translation. The fact Nina appears at the end of the work shows how haunting the memory was to Ed.
Concept of a higher being in FullMetal Alchemist and "Schrodinger's Cat"
In FullMetal Alchemist strong concept of truth exists as being everything, both an individual person as well as similar to God. The exact words used are "one is all, all is one," where all represents the universe and one means the individual. The concept provides the basis of the scientific idea of alchemy in the series and Truth (a sort of God-like being) allows everything to happen through the idea of 'equivalent exchange', where in order to receive something, something of equal value must be lost. In "Schrodinger's Cat" by Ursula K. Le Guin a similar importance of science exists where global warming has destroyed the world in a way and science seems out of control. However the cat appears to understand everything and appears superior to the rest of the world. In a way you can compare Truth in FullMetal Alchemist to the cat because both create their own rules. Truth has the power to control people and he determines the price one must pay when they seek out the truth. He rests above the rest of the world but at the same time he also takes part in it with the way he interacts with people and the role he plays it their lives. The cat in this story displays a similar characteristic by being part of the world and being above it. His description, "a real cool cat" contradicts everyone else who burns up from the heat while he remains unaffected (Le Guin, 306). Also during the experiment, he overrides the expectation and neither dies nor lives, he simply ceases to exist in the box. In a similar way Truth does exist in this work, but can choose to disobey whatever laws he governs. In fact, even though he lives off equivalent exchange, a person can overcome his rules.
Edward was able to beat Truth and the entire concept of equivalent exchange. He instead gives up the knowledge and alchemic ability he obtained from Truth, which had become the center of his life in order to bring back his brother back, soul included.This reflects an answer to the last question in Le Guin's story, "I wonder if he found what it was we lost" Ed has found the answer to the real Truth of the world, that knowledge though powerful can be a curse and by sacrificing it he will obtain the only thing he really needs, his brother (Le Guin, 311). He discovered he has only become a puppet to "truth" and knowledge and chose to remove himself from it. Perhaps the cat also wanted to prove that knowledge was flawed because he refused to answer the experiment and because science had destroyed the world he wanted to prove that knowledge does not provide all the answers.
Chimeras in FullMetal Alchemist vs. Humanistic Animals in Angela Carter's works
“The Werewolf” and “The Company of Wolves”, by Angela Carter and FullMetal Alchemist show a vivid connection in the representation of humans and animals. For Carter werewolves display this concept while in FullMetal Alchemist chimeras are used to illustrate this. Chimeras are normally two animals fused together, but humans can also be used as well. The concept of humans transforming into wolves represents the traditional understanding of werewolves, and in FullMetal Alchemist humans can also transform to animals or display animal characteristics if they are fused with the animal’s DNA. There are multiple examples of chimeras that have a human appearance but display strong characteristics of the animals. For example one chimera has the undying devotion and loyalty of a dog, another has the stealth of a snake, and one has the strength of an Ox. These closely resemble the way Carter also displays humans showing animal characteristics in her work, where she writes about humans acting on their animal instincts to get rid of the werewolf. She writes that they "drove the old woman, in her shift as she was, out into the snow with sticks" (Carter, "The Werewolf,"). This shows they chose to submit to barbaric ways in order to remove the werewolf.
Arakawa also describes chimeras that look like humans but can transform into lions or gorillas, which Carter also discusses in her stories. Carter depicts this shift from human to animal in both "The Werewolf," and in "The Company of Wolves," where Carter writes about an "ointment the Devil gives you that turns you into a wolf the minute you rub it on" (Carter, "The Company of Wolves,"). In FullMetal Alchemist, alchemy displays a similar characteristic to this ointment. The process to create a human-chimera can be described as the devil's work, which correlates well with Carter's story. The concept of a human-turned animal can be considered monstrous, and both works address the damages caused by these types of creatures.
Abominations in FullMetal Alchemist and Frankenstein
A strong connection with Frankenstein by Mary Shelley also exists early on in this work. Both works show the use of science in order to create a human. Of course they are not identical; Victor creates a monster from other body parts while Ed and Al use elements found in humans and their own blood to create their mother. However the results of these experiments are both the same, they create abominations. The anime actually gave me some insight into why the results were monsters, the concept of a soul. In the beginning it described why human transmutation was a taboo with the simple question, for what could equal the value of a human soul? Even though both monsters were essentially perfect in theory, Victor used only the most beautiful parts he could find, and Ed and Al used the exact measure of every element in the human body, their creations were still a disaster.
How Al explains their sacrifice to create something that couldn't have been called human. (http://www.mangahere.com)
Both creatures are referred to as an abomination and not a human. People condemn the science that created the monster, plus the creators suffer a grave price. Though the monster in FullMetal Alchemist dies, the two boys are physically and emotionally scarred about their creation. Ed loses his leg and Al his entire body and in order to gain the ability to bind his brother’s soul to a suit of armor, Ed sacrifices his arm. Victor faces a similar reaction when he sees the monster and he describes his state as “very ill; and surely nothing but the unbounded and unremitting attentions of my friend could have restored me to life” (Shelly, 25). Eventually his creation costs him the lives of everyone he knows including his lover who’s “deathly languor and coldness of the limbs told me that what I now held in my arms had ceased to be the Elizabeth” (Shelly,23). Victor suffers tremendous losses at the hands of the monster. The creation of monsters leads to huge sacrifices in both works, even though the science behind the creation and the process are different. Victor loses everything he loves to the hands of the monster because he refuses to create another monster. He sacrifices everything because he refuses to bring another demon into existence Ed and Al spend the rest of their time trying to find a way to return to their original bodies, which leads to great complications when the answer they find involves the sacrifice of human lives. They also face mental anguish and nightmares similar to what Victor also encounters. Though they never face their creation alive again, the mental pain resembles the same pain Victor suffered.
Relation to the Gothic Tradition
FullMetal Alchemist has features of a shōnen manga, which means it contains slapstick humor on occasion and the female characters all have an hourglass figure which does not fall well into the category of the gothic (Brenner, 31). The also hyper-emotional stages, called chibi, that are found throughout the anime and manga add a type of comedy that does not fit the traditional understanding of the gothic. Especially in scenes were Ed over-reacts to being called short. However despite this aspects, most of FullMetal Alchemist falls into the gothic tradition with the way it portrays humans and supernatural elements.
FullMetal alchemist has many “symptoms” of a gothic work. It portrays the “darker side” of life, through war, the science of alchemy, and the fact a group of artificial humans that depict sins intend to destroy the country to create immortality for a single creature. It also interrogates what it means to be a human, because the main villains in this work are artificial humans and yet they seem to envy humans. Humans, even though they are not as immortal as the homunculi are still are capable of fighting and helping each other out, something the homunculi lack. The concept of alchemy and the homunculi contain supernatural elements as well, because both are connect to the idea of immortality and responsible for the supernatural element of shadows coming to life. Also this work has many elements of both the female and male gothic.
In the female gothic it shows domestic and gender issues for example one character Winry Rockbell despite her tough exterior as an automail, a mechanic for prosthetic limbs, specialist still finds herself drawn to the role of a mother and nurturer. Also a moral narrative agenda exists as Ed and Al stick with their morals to never harm innocent civilians. When they discover the human lives are the main ingredient in philosopher’s stone, a legendary elixir that can bring their original bodies back, they vow to never create or use one and stay true to that vow. The concept of using human lives demonstrates a dark theme common in gothic novels as well. FullMetal Alchemist also displays features of the male gothic with the shifting of gender roles. Arakawa created a manly woman such as Olivier Armstrong, who strikes fear and displays a tougher exterior than the males she commands. Also Arakawa focus more on real supernatural elements with the concept of alchemy and a villain who controls deadly shadows. Therefore, the creepy shadow represents a physically danger not just psychological worry.
Importance of FullMetal Alchemist
Fullmetal Alchemist’s importance lies in the way it portrays the human condition. Even though there are many dark elements in the series, such as the dangers of science and how obtaining perfection leads to destruction, the work still ends on a happy note. Despite everything that has happened to the main characters, Ed and Al, they remain strong and stick with their morals. They are even able to return Al to his body, and not only that they gain many friends and create close bonds throughout their journey. I believe that Arakawa did a great job of exposing the darker side of humans, but also showing that despite everything humans are still able to get up and keep fighting. In fact, she even shows how monsters themselves express a desire to be human and have the companionship that humans have. At the same time she shows the horrors of what humans are capable of, such as their involvement in science and she also discusses the consequences of war and how revenge fuels more revenge. The greatest value of FullMetal Alchemist however lays in the fact it shows that gothic elements can be found in works all around in the world. Even Japanese manga and anime can fit into the gothic tradition and help us get a better understanding of the tradition through a different perspective.
Works Cited
Arakawa, Hiromu. FullMetal Alchemist. Trans. Mangahere. (2013) <http://www.mangahere.com/>
Brenner, Robin, Understanding Manga and Anime. Westport: Libraries Unlimited, 2007. Print.
Carter, Angela, "The Werewolf". Online. <http://www.agonia.net/index.php/prose/128111/The_Werewolf>
Carter, Angela, "The Company of Wolves". Online. <http://www.litgothic.com/PDFOther/carter_company_wolves.pdf>
FullMetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. By Hiroshi Ōnogi. Bones. FUNImation Entertainment, 2009.
Le Guin, Ursula. "Schrodinger's Cat." American Gothic Tales. Ed. Oates, Joyce Carol. New York:Penguin Group, 1996. Print.
Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. 1818. Online. <http://www.literature.org/authors/shelley-mary/frankenstein/>
The link is Here I wasn't sure if it would work on my class blog so I figured I'd post it on my own. But the original one is Here in all it's identical glory. Here's also the text but it's not prettily aligned with the pictures like it is on wordpress.
FullMetal Alchemist as a Gothic Work
What is FullMetal Alchemist about?
Set in a different world where alchemy exists as a science and has a basic law of Equivalent Exchange. The law states that “to obtain, something of equal value must be lost.” The show follows the lives of two young boys, Edward (Ed) and Alphonse (Al) Elric who committed the taboo of human transmutation when they try to bring their mother back from the dead. Their attempt at human transmutation ends in disaster, Ed loses his left leg while his brother, Al, loses his entire body. In order to give his brother a new body, Ed sacrifices his right arm in order to bind his brother’s soul to a suit of armor. The anime and manga focus on their journey to find a way to return their bodies back and the dark secrets they uncover on this journey.
Who is Hiromu Arakawa?
Hiromu Arakawa was born in Tokachi, in the northernmost part of Japan and lived on a dairy farm her parents owned. Her life on a dairy farm inspired the law of equivalent exchange in Fullmetal Alchemist because her parents had to give all their work in order to get food. She wrote and illustrated FullMetal Alchemist and many consider it her greatest work. The manga was inspired by the European industrial revolution and her fascination with the ancient concept of alchemy. She also wanted to have the center theme of family and friendship in her work for the main characters and explore human nature. She wrote other mangas such as Stray Dog, Hero Tales, and Silver Spoons, but none of them gained the popularity of FullMetal Alchemist. Unfortunately not much information exists about her. She keeps her private life a secret and only one photograph of her exists. Instead she depicts herself as a cow with glasses in her works, a connection with her childhood on a dairy farm. Still even with the mystery her work has become an international hit and inspired two different anime series. I decided to use the second anime series, FullMetal Alchemist: Brotherhood because it follows Arakawa’s manga more closely and I also used snippets from her manga work for my project. The storyline of FullMetal Alchemist has deep complexities including the way Arakawa portrays human condition and nature.
"You're envious of humans aren't you?"
Envy's monstrous form. (http://www.mangahere.com)
Envy's weakened leech form. (http://www.mangahere.com)
Arakawa uses artificial humans created through alchemy known as homunculi to portray the positive side of human nature. There are eight homunculi in this work. The original homunculus in an effort to become perfect removed all of his sins and created seven other homunculi (Envy, Greed, Lust, Gluttony, Wrath, Sloth, and Pride). Of these sins I selected the character of Envy to analysis the way he relates to humans. First off, Arakawa drew Envy in his original form as a giant monster made up on the various souls that were sacrificed to spawn his creation. When he first displays his true form, Arakawa illustrates the transformation with lightning, representing the power behind the change. She also draws out the heads of the people consumed within Envy, illustrating the lost souls that have forgotten who they are (Arakawa, FullMetal Alchemist). The shading around Envy shows the darkness behind him and illustrates his sinful nature and show an elaborate design, and villains in manga tend to have a more elaborate appearance (Brenner, 47). The glare in his eyes, and the way they are shifted helps to further show the villainous nature of Envy. The humans are shocked when they witness Envy's true form, and Envy wastes no time in attack them, another sign of a villain. Here the drawing of his arm changes from realistic to a deformed animated shadow. The change in drawing scheme illustrates the power behind Envy's attack, as this form of drawing represents a "hyper-emotional stage." Envy shows his anger, and the attack adds more force with the Japanese characters (sound effects) that accompany the attack. Envy shows anger towards humans and given the strength behind his attack it would be quite easy for him to destroy him. However, even though Envy demonstrates power in his weakened stage he poses no threat. In this form, Envy resembles a leech and now has become dependent on others. His eyes have also changed shaped and have become bigger, but his irises still do not dilate, which indicates his existing villainous nature because small or no irises mean villains and the fact his teeth are sharp represents his animalistic instincts (Brenner, 42). Envy has fallen from power and his humiliation does not end there. In the second scene, Ed realizes the envious nature behind Envy. Even though Envy prides himself on being "better than humans", and clearly can be more powerful than them, he still envies humans. In fact the form he typically uses resembles a human.
The human form Envy typically chooses. (http://www.mangahere.com)
In this form he has an elaborate hairstyle, outfit that that as Brenner stated indicates a villain. His eyes are also narrow and cat-like and a shade of purple, different from a human but he still the majority of this image resembles a human. The fact Envy chooses this form helps to show he secretly wishes he were a human. Ed, after figuring this out points out why Envy may be jealous of humans.Ed explains that humans always help each other out when they need too. All the other people in the panel were former enemies and their eyes are all different shapes but you can still see two characters with larger irises, especially with the female. One of the human characters also has small eyes, and rather small irises which means he was a villain, but now he seems to have change sides. Basically Arakawa depicts in their eyes that they've all witness hardships that changed their pure nature but they still the banded together to help each other out. The concept of companionship is something Envy never can experience. After Ed describes the basis of human nature and their willingness to help each other, something that Envy can never experience, Envy snaps and kills himself. He feels humiliated his nature has been discovered and though this scene shows the desirable qualities of humans, Arakawa also demonstrates their darker side as well.
"If ever there was an example of the Devil's Work in this world, this case would be it."
Gothic works tend to expose the darker side of human existence and can be found in the scene where Ed and Al meet Shou Tucker and his little daughter Nina. One key method manga and anime authors employ to develop their characters is the art of drawing their eyes.
Nina's innocent eyes and Shou Tucker's hidden eyes. (http://www.mangahere.com)
The character of Nina has both wide eyes and pupils which indicate innocence, purity and youth (Brenner, 42). Her father’s eyes on the other hand are usually hidden behind a pair of glasses which could indicate that even though he appears to be a loving father, he has a hidden agenda and a dark secret. Tucker specializes in bio-alchemy, and in order to prevent himself from losing his state certification, creates a talking chimera (an animal hybrid) by fusing his daughter and her dog together. The results shocks Ed, who in the anime shows initial surprise at a talking chimera, almost praising the power of science then slowly constricts into horror when the chimera refers to him as “big brother,” a nickname Nina frequently used. I selected the anime clip to show this, but the panels in the manga focus more on the chimera talking, small little panels and then end with a larger panel is used to show the horror in Ed’s pupils. The shift in panel sizes indicate changes in the emotional development in mangas and because the biggest panel occurs when Ed realizes the dark side of science expresses the biggest emotional expression (Brenner,67). The next page consists of Edward talking to Tucker, getting information about what happened to his wife then when he asks where Nina and Alexandra are, the page only shows that question and Tucker’s answer. There are no other scenes which show the importance of this scene in the overall story. Ed’s iris has constricted to show anger and Tucker’s eyes, with small irises and narrow eyes to show his dark side express worry that his secret was discovered. This scene shows the critical development of Ed because he suddenly realizes the true horror of the science they swore their life to. Nina has been transformed into a creature and her eyes have transformed from wide-eyed innocence to a blank stare without any pupils. This shows how Nina has been corrupted by science and resembles an emotionless experiment. While Ed attacks Tucker for his work in human experimentation, Tucker laughs and argues that what he did was no different from what Ed did; claiming they both “toyed with human lives.” Ed panics, screaming that he’s nothing like Tucker, which shows his moral character. The result of this scene stay with Ed comes onto the horror impression that “we’re human, we’re only human,” and he feels guilt he was unable to rescue Nina from her father’s cruel experiment.
Memory of Nina and discussion with Truth. (http://www.mangahere.com)
This phrase appears at the end of the work when Ed gives up the door of truth he received when he attempted to human transmutation, in order to bring his brother back. Truth asks Ed are you “willing to cast it aside? To lower yourself to a simple human?” Ed responds by saying “What do you mean lower myself? That's the only thing I've ever been, just a simple human that couldn't save a little girl, not even alchemy.” The manga version has slightly different wording (as shown), but that only indicates differences in translation. The fact Nina appears at the end of the work shows how haunting the memory was to Ed.
Concept of a higher being in FullMetal Alchemist and "Schrodinger's Cat"
In FullMetal Alchemist strong concept of truth exists as being everything, both an individual person as well as similar to God. The exact words used are "one is all, all is one," where all represents the universe and one means the individual. The concept provides the basis of the scientific idea of alchemy in the series and Truth (a sort of God-like being) allows everything to happen through the idea of 'equivalent exchange', where in order to receive something, something of equal value must be lost. In "Schrodinger's Cat" by Ursula K. Le Guin a similar importance of science exists where global warming has destroyed the world in a way and science seems out of control. However the cat appears to understand everything and appears superior to the rest of the world. In a way you can compare Truth in FullMetal Alchemist to the cat because both create their own rules. Truth has the power to control people and he determines the price one must pay when they seek out the truth. He rests above the rest of the world but at the same time he also takes part in it with the way he interacts with people and the role he plays it their lives. The cat in this story displays a similar characteristic by being part of the world and being above it. His description, "a real cool cat" contradicts everyone else who burns up from the heat while he remains unaffected (Le Guin, 306). Also during the experiment, he overrides the expectation and neither dies nor lives, he simply ceases to exist in the box. In a similar way Truth does exist in this work, but can choose to disobey whatever laws he governs. In fact, even though he lives off equivalent exchange, a person can overcome his rules.
Edward was able to beat Truth and the entire concept of equivalent exchange. He instead gives up the knowledge and alchemic ability he obtained from Truth, which had become the center of his life in order to bring back his brother back, soul included.This reflects an answer to the last question in Le Guin's story, "I wonder if he found what it was we lost" Ed has found the answer to the real Truth of the world, that knowledge though powerful can be a curse and by sacrificing it he will obtain the only thing he really needs, his brother (Le Guin, 311). He discovered he has only become a puppet to "truth" and knowledge and chose to remove himself from it. Perhaps the cat also wanted to prove that knowledge was flawed because he refused to answer the experiment and because science had destroyed the world he wanted to prove that knowledge does not provide all the answers.
Chimeras in FullMetal Alchemist vs. Humanistic Animals in Angela Carter's works
“The Werewolf” and “The Company of Wolves”, by Angela Carter and FullMetal Alchemist show a vivid connection in the representation of humans and animals. For Carter werewolves display this concept while in FullMetal Alchemist chimeras are used to illustrate this. Chimeras are normally two animals fused together, but humans can also be used as well. The concept of humans transforming into wolves represents the traditional understanding of werewolves, and in FullMetal Alchemist humans can also transform to animals or display animal characteristics if they are fused with the animal’s DNA. There are multiple examples of chimeras that have a human appearance but display strong characteristics of the animals. For example one chimera has the undying devotion and loyalty of a dog, another has the stealth of a snake, and one has the strength of an Ox. These closely resemble the way Carter also displays humans showing animal characteristics in her work, where she writes about humans acting on their animal instincts to get rid of the werewolf. She writes that they "drove the old woman, in her shift as she was, out into the snow with sticks" (Carter, "The Werewolf,"). This shows they chose to submit to barbaric ways in order to remove the werewolf.
Arakawa also describes chimeras that look like humans but can transform into lions or gorillas, which Carter also discusses in her stories. Carter depicts this shift from human to animal in both "The Werewolf," and in "The Company of Wolves," where Carter writes about an "ointment the Devil gives you that turns you into a wolf the minute you rub it on" (Carter, "The Company of Wolves,"). In FullMetal Alchemist, alchemy displays a similar characteristic to this ointment. The process to create a human-chimera can be described as the devil's work, which correlates well with Carter's story. The concept of a human-turned animal can be considered monstrous, and both works address the damages caused by these types of creatures.
Abominations in FullMetal Alchemist and Frankenstein
A strong connection with Frankenstein by Mary Shelley also exists early on in this work. Both works show the use of science in order to create a human. Of course they are not identical; Victor creates a monster from other body parts while Ed and Al use elements found in humans and their own blood to create their mother. However the results of these experiments are both the same, they create abominations. The anime actually gave me some insight into why the results were monsters, the concept of a soul. In the beginning it described why human transmutation was a taboo with the simple question, for what could equal the value of a human soul? Even though both monsters were essentially perfect in theory, Victor used only the most beautiful parts he could find, and Ed and Al used the exact measure of every element in the human body, their creations were still a disaster.
How Al explains their sacrifice to create something that couldn't have been called human. (http://www.mangahere.com)
Both creatures are referred to as an abomination and not a human. People condemn the science that created the monster, plus the creators suffer a grave price. Though the monster in FullMetal Alchemist dies, the two boys are physically and emotionally scarred about their creation. Ed loses his leg and Al his entire body and in order to gain the ability to bind his brother’s soul to a suit of armor, Ed sacrifices his arm. Victor faces a similar reaction when he sees the monster and he describes his state as “very ill; and surely nothing but the unbounded and unremitting attentions of my friend could have restored me to life” (Shelly, 25). Eventually his creation costs him the lives of everyone he knows including his lover who’s “deathly languor and coldness of the limbs told me that what I now held in my arms had ceased to be the Elizabeth” (Shelly,23). Victor suffers tremendous losses at the hands of the monster. The creation of monsters leads to huge sacrifices in both works, even though the science behind the creation and the process are different. Victor loses everything he loves to the hands of the monster because he refuses to create another monster. He sacrifices everything because he refuses to bring another demon into existence Ed and Al spend the rest of their time trying to find a way to return to their original bodies, which leads to great complications when the answer they find involves the sacrifice of human lives. They also face mental anguish and nightmares similar to what Victor also encounters. Though they never face their creation alive again, the mental pain resembles the same pain Victor suffered.
Relation to the Gothic Tradition
FullMetal Alchemist has features of a shōnen manga, which means it contains slapstick humor on occasion and the female characters all have an hourglass figure which does not fall well into the category of the gothic (Brenner, 31). The also hyper-emotional stages, called chibi, that are found throughout the anime and manga add a type of comedy that does not fit the traditional understanding of the gothic. Especially in scenes were Ed over-reacts to being called short. However despite this aspects, most of FullMetal Alchemist falls into the gothic tradition with the way it portrays humans and supernatural elements.
FullMetal alchemist has many “symptoms” of a gothic work. It portrays the “darker side” of life, through war, the science of alchemy, and the fact a group of artificial humans that depict sins intend to destroy the country to create immortality for a single creature. It also interrogates what it means to be a human, because the main villains in this work are artificial humans and yet they seem to envy humans. Humans, even though they are not as immortal as the homunculi are still are capable of fighting and helping each other out, something the homunculi lack. The concept of alchemy and the homunculi contain supernatural elements as well, because both are connect to the idea of immortality and responsible for the supernatural element of shadows coming to life. Also this work has many elements of both the female and male gothic.
In the female gothic it shows domestic and gender issues for example one character Winry Rockbell despite her tough exterior as an automail, a mechanic for prosthetic limbs, specialist still finds herself drawn to the role of a mother and nurturer. Also a moral narrative agenda exists as Ed and Al stick with their morals to never harm innocent civilians. When they discover the human lives are the main ingredient in philosopher’s stone, a legendary elixir that can bring their original bodies back, they vow to never create or use one and stay true to that vow. The concept of using human lives demonstrates a dark theme common in gothic novels as well. FullMetal Alchemist also displays features of the male gothic with the shifting of gender roles. Arakawa created a manly woman such as Olivier Armstrong, who strikes fear and displays a tougher exterior than the males she commands. Also Arakawa focus more on real supernatural elements with the concept of alchemy and a villain who controls deadly shadows. Therefore, the creepy shadow represents a physically danger not just psychological worry.
Importance of FullMetal Alchemist
Fullmetal Alchemist’s importance lies in the way it portrays the human condition. Even though there are many dark elements in the series, such as the dangers of science and how obtaining perfection leads to destruction, the work still ends on a happy note. Despite everything that has happened to the main characters, Ed and Al, they remain strong and stick with their morals. They are even able to return Al to his body, and not only that they gain many friends and create close bonds throughout their journey. I believe that Arakawa did a great job of exposing the darker side of humans, but also showing that despite everything humans are still able to get up and keep fighting. In fact, she even shows how monsters themselves express a desire to be human and have the companionship that humans have. At the same time she shows the horrors of what humans are capable of, such as their involvement in science and she also discusses the consequences of war and how revenge fuels more revenge. The greatest value of FullMetal Alchemist however lays in the fact it shows that gothic elements can be found in works all around in the world. Even Japanese manga and anime can fit into the gothic tradition and help us get a better understanding of the tradition through a different perspective.
Works Cited
Arakawa, Hiromu. FullMetal Alchemist. Trans. Mangahere. (2013) <http://www.mangahere.com/>
Brenner, Robin, Understanding Manga and Anime. Westport: Libraries Unlimited, 2007. Print.
Carter, Angela, "The Werewolf". Online. <http://www.agonia.net/index.php/prose/128111/The_Werewolf>
Carter, Angela, "The Company of Wolves". Online. <http://www.litgothic.com/PDFOther/carter_company_wolves.pdf>
FullMetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. By Hiroshi Ōnogi. Bones. FUNImation Entertainment, 2009.
Le Guin, Ursula. "Schrodinger's Cat." American Gothic Tales. Ed. Oates, Joyce Carol. New York:Penguin Group, 1996. Print.
Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. 1818. Online. <http://www.literature.org/authors/shelley-mary/frankenstein/>
