Editing Hentai (section)

== Societal effects of hentai ==
{{See also|Feminist views on pornography|3=Stereotypes of East Asians in the United States}}
There is existing research on the social implications of pornography, in general, as it pertains to the sexualized and objectified image of women. In regards to how hentai particularly contributes to the conversation of the image of women, recent research identifies evidence in which hentai promotes rape myth acceptance, sexual violence, and racialization of women.

=== Rape myths ===
Recent studies have illustrated a correlation between the consumption of hentai and the promotion of [[rape myth]]s. In particular, studies have shown how viewing hentai can lead to an increase in prejudiced and stereotypical perspectives on rape and sexual assault.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Azevedo Almeida |first=Beatriz |date=2023 |title=The Mediating Role of Rape Myths in the Relationship Between the Use of Hentai Pornography and Sexually Aggressive Strategies: A Study With College Students |url=https://repositorio-aberto.up.pt/bitstream/10216/150710/2/632838.pdf |journal=UPorto}}</ref> Increased consumption can also lead to an increase in the normalization of sexual violence, rape, victim blaming, and further stereotypes associated with sexual violence and sexually aggressive behaviors.<ref name=":02">{{Cite journal |last=Marujo Costa |first=Vera Alzira |date=2023 |title=Evidence on the Predicting Role of Rape Myth Endorsement on Hentai Pornography Consumption Frequency |url=https://repositorio-aberto.up.pt/bitstream/10216/155237/2/650094.pdf |journal=UPorto}}</ref> The origin and culture of hentai as "abnormal" pornography, as highlighted through research studies, is also described to perpetuate a desensitized view of sexual violence and rape play.<ref name=":03">{{Cite journal |last=Marujo Costa |first=Vera Alzira |date=2023 |title=Evidence on the Predicting Role of Rape Myth Endorsement on Hentai Pornography Consumption Frequency |url=https://repositorio-aberto.up.pt/bitstream/10216/155237/2/650094.pdf |journal=UPorto}}</ref> The distinction between rape myth acceptance and sexually violent or aggressive behaviors has also been outlined in various research studies.<ref name="O'Connor 2021 321–330">{{Cite journal |last=O'Connor |first=Julia |date=2021 |title=The Longitudinal Effects of Rape Myth Beliefs and Rape Proclivity |journal=Psychology of Men & Masculinity |volume=22 |issue=2 |pages=321–330 |doi=10.1037/men0000324 |issn=1524-9220 |pmc=9380434 |pmid=35979223}}</ref> Recent studies highlight how a rise in the acceptance of rape myths is causally linked to rape proclivity and sexually violent behaviors.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Bohner |first1=Gerd |last2=Jarvis |first2=Christopher I. |last3=Eyssel |first3=Friederike |last4=Siebler |first4=Frank |date=November 2005 |title=The causal impact of rape myth acceptance on men's rape proclivity: comparing sexually coercive and noncoercive men |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ejsp.284 |journal=European Journal of Social Psychology |language=en |volume=35 |issue=6 |pages=819–828 |doi=10.1002/ejsp.284 |issn=0046-2772}}</ref>

=== Racial fetishization of Asian women in hentai ===
==== History ====
The racial fetishization of Asian women can be traced back to Western colonialism and imperialism where Asian women were portrayed as "exotic" or submissive and such traits were in turn romanticized.<ref name=":14">{{Cite web |last=Ishikawa |first=Hinako |date=May 2024 |title="Negotiating Hentai: Racial Fetishization of Japanese Women and Reclamation of Sexual Agency" |url=https://scholarworks.calstate.edu/downloads/5x21tp90t |access-date=8 October 2024}}</ref>

Classic media such as ''Madame Butterfly'' and ''Miss Saigon'' also portray Asian women having intimate relations with white men, ultimately to their demise. Critics say this perpetuates the notion that value of Asian women is tied to their white lovers.<ref name=":22">{{Cite journal |last=Pires |first=Isabel |date=2 February 2024 |title=A Lotus or a Dragon? – The orientalization and fetishization of Asian women's bodies |url=https://www.scielosp.org/article/csc/2024.v29n2/e03592023/en/ |journal=Ciência & Saúde Coletiva |language=en |volume=29 |issue=2 |pages=e03592023 |doi=10.1590/1413-81232024292.03592023 |pmid=38324824 |issn=1413-8123|hdl=10451/63741 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

A popular trope in hentai places the woman in a more submissive role, playing into the "lotus blossom" stereotype where Asian women are thought to be more docile.<ref name=":22" /> The increasing Western audience of hentai exacerbates this portrayal of Asian women.

==== Portrayals of Japanese women ====
Since hentai is a broad genre of erotic media the portrayal of women varies greatly, however, almost always is the girl slim and with large breasts. A paper by Hinako Ishikawa on the racialization of Japanese women in hentai concluded that this portrayal directly plays into the sexual objectification and stereotyping of Japanese women.<ref name=":14"/>

==== Racial fetishization of Japanese women ====
Although the race of the female protagonists in hentai is not always clear, the film will often highlight the character's "Japanese-ness".<ref name=":33">{{Cite journal |last=Barancovaitė-Skindaravičienė |first=Kristina |date=2013 |title=Construction of Gender Images in Japanese Pornographic Anime |url=https://www.ceeol.com/search/article-detail?id=224617 |journal=Regioninės studijos |language=English |issue=7 |pages=9–29 |issn=2029-2074}}</ref> This is done either through her clothes (wearing traditional dress like [[Kimono|kimonos]]), the setting of the film, or her mannerisms (eating with chopsticks) that imply the character's race.<ref name=":33"/>

According to Ishikawa, this portrayal of Japanese women plays into the increasingly popularized Asian fetish in the Western world, specifically citing 2022's Pornhub statistics world wide trendy terms put "hentai" and "Japanese" as top two most searched words.<ref name=":14"/>