Editing Spirited Away (section)

==Themes==

=== Supernaturalism ===
The major [[Theme (arts)|themes]] of ''Spirited Away'', heavily influenced by Japanese [[Shinto]]-[[Buddhism in Japan|Buddhist]] folklore, centre on the protagonist, Chihiro, and her [[Liminality|liminal]] journey through the realm of spirits. The central location of the film is a Japanese bathhouse where a great variety of Japanese folklore creatures, including [[kami]], come to bathe. Miyazaki cites the solstice rituals when villagers call forth their local kami and invite them into their baths.<ref name="ReferenceA" /> Chihiro also encounters kami of animals and plants. Miyazaki says of this:{{blockquote|In my grandparents' time, it was believed that kami existed everywhere&nbsp;– in trees, rivers, insects, wells, anything. My generation does not believe this, but I like the idea that we should all treasure everything because spirits might exist there, and we should treasure everything because there is a kind of life to everything.<ref name="ReferenceA" />}}Chihiro's [[archetype|archetypal]] entrance into another world changes her status as one somewhere between child and adult. Chihiro also stands outside societal boundaries in the supernatural setting. The use of the word ''[[kamikakushi]]'' (literally 'hidden by gods') within the Japanese title, and its associated folklore, reinforces this liminal passage: "Kamikakushi is a verdict of 'social death' in this world, and coming back to this world from Kamikakushi meant 'social resurrection.'"<ref name="reider">Reider, Noriko T. 11 February 2009. "Spirited Away: Film of the Fantastic and Evolving Japanese Folk Symbols." ''[[Film Criticism (journal)|Film Criticism]]'' 29(3):4–27.</ref>

Additional themes are expressed through No-Face, who reflects the characters who surround him, learning by example and taking the traits of whomever he consumes. This nature results in No-Face's monstrous rampage through the bathhouse. After Chihiro saves No-Face with the emetic dumpling, he becomes timid once more. At the end of the film, Zeniba decides to take care of No-Face so he can develop without the negative influence of the bathhouse.<ref>{{cite web|author=Gomes, Paul|title=Lesson Plan&nbsp;– Spirited Away|url=http://web41.its.hawaii.edu/manoa.hawaii.edu/eastasia/wp/wp-content/uploads/2004/10/spiritedaway.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105170315/http://web41.its.hawaii.edu/manoa.hawaii.edu/eastasia/wp/wp-content/uploads/2004/10/spiritedaway.pdf|archive-date=5 November 2013|access-date=12 August 2013|publisher=UHM}}</ref>

==== Fantasy ====
The film has been compared to [[Lewis Carroll]]'s ''[[Alice's Adventures in Wonderland]]'' and ''[[Through the Looking-Glass|Through the Looking Glass]]'', as the stories are set in [[fantasy world]]s, involve disturbances in logic and stability, and there are motifs such as food having metamorphic qualities; though other developments and themes are not shared.<ref>{{cite web|author=Sunny Bay|date=22 June 2016|title=Beyond Wonderland: 'Spirited Away' Explores The Significance of Dreams in the Real World|url=http://moviepilot.com/posts/3975727|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160814000655/http://moviepilot.com/posts/3975727|archive-date=14 August 2016|work=moviepilot.com}}</ref><ref name="Spark">{{cite web|date=2004|title=Influences on the Film {{!}} Spirited Away|url=http://www.sparknotes.com/film/spiritedaway/section5.rhtml|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160814185733/http://www.sparknotes.com/film/spiritedaway/section5.rhtml|archive-date=14 August 2016|work=SparkNotes}}</ref>{{rs?|sure=yes|date=February 2025}}<ref name="NYT review" />

Yubaba has many similarities to [[the Coachman]] from the 1940 film ''[[Pinocchio (1940 film)|Pinocchio]]'', in the sense that she mutates humans into pigs in a similar way that the boys of [[Pleasure Island (Pinocchio)|Pleasure Island]] were mutated into donkeys. Upon gaining employment at the bathhouse, Yubaba's seizure of Chihiro's [[true name]] symbolically kills the child,<ref name="satoshi3">Satoshi, Ando. 11 February 2009. "Regaining Continuity with the Past: Spirited Away and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland." ''[[Bookbird]]'' 46(1):23–29. {{doi|10.1353/bkb.0.0016}}.</ref> who must then assume adulthood. She then undergoes a [[rite of passage]] according to the [[monomyth]] format; to recover continuity with her past, Chihiro must create a new identity.<ref name="satoshi3" />

=== Traditional Japanese culture ===
''Spirited Away'' contains critical commentary on modern Japanese society concerning generational conflicts and environmental issues.<ref name="napier" /> Chihiro has been seen as a representation of the ''[[shōjo]]'', whose roles and ideology had changed dramatically since post-war Japan.<ref name="napier" /> Just as Chihiro seeks her past identity, Japan, in its anxiety over the economic downturn occurring during the release of the film in 2001, sought to reconnect to past values.<ref name="satoshi3" /> In an interview, Miyazaki has commented on this nostalgic element for an old Japan.<ref name="midnight-eye">{{cite web|last=Mes|first=Tom|date=7 January 2002|title=Hayao Miyazaki Interview|url=http://www.midnighteye.com/interviews/hayao_miyazaki.shtml|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090802193550/http://www.midnighteye.com/interviews/hayao_miyazaki.shtml|archive-date=2 August 2009|access-date=1 August 2009|work=Midnight Eye}}</ref>

Japanese philosophy plays a huge role in ''Spirited Away'', specifically through concepts like ''[[Kami]]'' and principles like ''[[Mottainai]]'' and ''On''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://filmcolossus.com/spirited-away-2001-explained/ |title=Spirited Away: The Definitive Explanation |last1=Bean |first1=Travis |date=20 July 2023 |publisher=Film Colossus |access-date=28 July 2023 |archive-date=28 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230728205315/https://filmcolossus.com/spirited-away-2001-explained |url-status=live }}</ref>{{sps|sure=yes|date=February 2025}} The concept of Kami, for instance, involves various spirits that each represent different elements and aspects of nature. The principle of Mottainai, which is deeply ingrained in Japanese culture, embodies a sense of regret towards waste, valuing the complete utilization of an object or resource. While the principle of On, a key tenet of Japanese ethics that signifies a sense of moral indebtedness, plays a significant role in Chihiro's character development.{{cn|date=February 2025}}

=== Western consumerism ===
Similar to the Japanese concept of ''On'', the film can be partly understood as an exploration of the effect of greediness and Western [[consumerism]] on traditional Japanese culture.<ref name=":1">{{cite news|last=Gold|first=Corey|date=14 July 2016|title=Studio Ghibli letter sheds new light on Spirited Away mysteries|publisher=SoraNews24|url=http://en.rocketnews24.com/2016/07/14/studio-ghibli-letter-sheds-new-light-on-spirited-away-mysteries/|url-status=live|access-date=24 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170307000504/http://en.rocketnews24.com/2016/07/14/studio-ghibli-letter-sheds-new-light-on-spirited-away-mysteries/|archive-date=7 March 2017}}</ref>{{rs?|date=February 2025}} For instance, Yubaba is stylistically unique within the bathhouse, wearing a Western dress and living among European décor and furnishings, in contrast with the [[Minimalism|minimalist]] Japanese style of her employees' quarters, representing the Western [[capitalism|capitalist]] influence over Japan in its [[Meiji (era)|Meiji period]] and beyond. Along with its function within the ostensible [[coming of age]] theme, Yubaba's act of taking Chihiro's name and replacing it with Sen (an alternate reading of ''chi'', the first character in Chihiro's name, {{lit|one thousand}}) can be thought of as symbolic of [[capitalism]]'s single-minded concern with value.<ref name="napier">[[Susan J. Napier|Napier, Susan J.]] 11 February 2009. "Matter Out of Place: Carnival, Containment and Cultural Recovery in Miyazaki's Spirited Away." ''[[Journal of Japanese Studies]]'' 32(2):287–310. {{doi|10.1353/jjs.2006.0057}}.</ref>

The film's setting encapsulates Miyazaki's commentary on modern Japanese values and the erosion of cultural heritage. The bathhouse, situated within an abandoned theme park, symbolizes Japan's distorted cultural identity. This once-traditional locale is marred by neon signs and Westernization, exemplifying cultural degradation. Early scenes highlight economic concerns and consumerism. The film's visuals underscore the commercialization of Japanese culture. The failed theme park serves as a metaphor for the unsuccessful fusion of ideologies. The Meiji design of the park is the setting for Chihiro's parents' metamorphosis&nbsp;– the family arrives in an imported [[Audi]] car and the father wears a European-styled [[polo shirt]], reassuring Chihiro that he has "credit cards and cash", before morphing into literal consumerist pigs because of their bad habits.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.quia.com/files/quia/users/bakersensei/ext_japanese1.pdf|title=HSC Extension course|publisher=[[Department of Education (New South Wales)|New South Wales Department of Education and Training]]|access-date=7 July 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170130074502/https://www.quia.com/files/quia/users/bakersensei/ext_japanese1.pdf|archive-date=30 January 2017}}</ref> Miyazaki has stated:{{blockquote|Chihiro's parents turning into pigs symbolizes how some humans become greedy. At the very moment Chihiro says there is something odd about this town, her parents turn into pigs. There were people that "turned into pigs" during Japan's [[bubble economy]] ([[Consumerism#Consumerism as cultural ideology|consumer society]]) of the 1980s, and these people still haven't realized they've become pigs. Once someone becomes a pig, they don't return to being human but instead gradually start to have the "body and soul of a pig". These people are the ones saying, "We are in a recession and don't have enough to eat." This doesn't just apply to the fantasy world. Perhaps this isn't a coincidence and the food is actually (an analogy for) "a trap to catch lost humans".<ref name=":1" />}}
The bathhouse of the spirits cannot be seen as a place free of ambiguity and darkness.<ref name="thrupkaew">Thrupkaew, Noy. "Animation Sensation: Why Japan's Magical Spirited Away Plays Well Anywhere." [[American Prospect]] 13.19: 32–33. Academic OneFile. Gale. 11 February 2009.</ref> Many of the employees are rude to Chihiro because she is human, and corruption is ever-present;<ref name="napier" /> it is a place of excess and greed, as depicted in the initial appearance of No-Face.<ref name="harris">Harris, Timothy. "Seized by the Gods". ''[[Quadrant (magazine)|Quadrant]]'' 47.9: 64–67. Academic OneFile. Gale. 11 February 2009.</ref> In stark contrast to the simplicity of Chihiro's journey and transformation is the constantly chaotic carnival in the background.<ref name="napier" />

=== Environmentalism ===
Commentators have often referred to environmental themes in the films of Miyazaki. In ''Spirited Away'', two major instances of allusions to environmental issues have been noted. [[Pam Coats]], for example, a Vice President of Walt Disney Feature Animation, describes Chihiro dealing with the "stink spirit", who, it turns out, is actually a river spirit but is so corrupted with filth that one cannot tell what it is at first glance. It only becomes clean again when Chihiro pulls out a huge amount of trash, including car tires, garbage, and a bicycle. This alludes to human pollution of the environment, and how people can carelessly toss away things without thinking of the consequences and of where the trash will go.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Coats |first1=Pam |title=Making of Spirited Away |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJ7ymWBf7XE |website=YouTube |date=27 January 2011 |access-date=30 April 2022 |archive-date=30 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220430163206/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJ7ymWBf7XE |url-status=live }}</ref>

The second allusion is seen in Haku himself. Haku does not remember his name and lost his past, which is why he is stuck at the bathhouse. Eventually, Chihiro remembers that he used to be the spirit of the Kohaku River, which was destroyed and replaced with apartments. Because of humans' need for development, they destroyed a part of nature, causing Haku to lose his home and identity. This can be compared to deforestation and destruction of natural habitats; humans tear down nature, cause imbalance in the ecosystem, and demolish animals' homes to satisfy their want for more space (housing, malls, stores, etc.) but do not think about how it can affect other living things.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Saporito|first1=Jeff|title=What does "Spirited Away" say about Environmentalism?|url=http://screenprism.com/insights/article/what-does-spirited-away-say-about-environmentalism|website=ScreenPrism|access-date=1 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170303201035/http://screenprism.com/insights/article/what-does-spirited-away-say-about-environmentalism|archive-date=3 March 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=What does "Spirited Away" say about Environmentalism? |url=https://the-take.com/watch/what-does-spirited-away-say-about-environmentalism |website=The Take |date=19 November 2015 |access-date=30 April 2022 |archive-date=19 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220819105243/https://the-take.com/watch/what-does-spirited-away-say-about-environmentalism |url-status=live }}</ref>