Contemporary Light Novels: Subculture, Literature, and Morality

Abstract

The light novel is a new literary genre heavily influenced by the Japanese character-oriented subculture in the postmodern era. This genre does not belong to a traditional literary lineage but has emerged as the literary equivalent to contemporary visual subcultures. The main purpose of this genre is not to depict reality as does naturalistic literature but to imitate the fictional worlds represented in manga, anime, and video games. However, light novels arc not fictional u/dystopias completely removed from reality and social ethics. To the contrary, they inevitably relate to distinctive ethical problems. This paper focuses on light novels and its ethical issues during the 2000s and 2010s, when the light novel matured as a genre. First, we examine Tsukasa Fushimi's Ore no imoto ga konna ni kawaii wake ga nai [My Little Sister Can't Be This Cute], one of the most important works in this era, relating to the Moe culture and its unethical consumption of characters' physicality. Second, we analyze the otherworldly fantasy genre, the most widely consumed genre in the 2010s, and consider its dual attitude to reality: escape from real-life society and sympathy for social minorities. This analysis clarifies the moral ambiguities and conflicts embedded in contemporary light novels.