When reading Jane Austen you learn a fair bit about the English upper classes of that time period. What do you learn from Gundam?

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throw4847285 2 days ago | parent | next [-]

You learn a lot about post-War Japan and the New Left. Just because a writer dresses their story up in futuristic or fantastical trappings does not mean that they aren't writing about their own cultural milieu. Tomino is explicit about this in the interviews compiled for the supplementary material in the Gundam Origin manga. They are a fantastic read (and the manga is a masterpiece).

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ericmcer 2 days ago | parent | next [-]

Interesting. It is a shame that you can't really experience art correctly unless you have the context of living in that time & place. I will never experience Anime, Russian literature, early English literature, etc. fully because my lens is always gonna be an American in the 2000s.

I am curious how people 100 years from now will perceive art from the last 20 years, much of it feels like a thinly veiled commentary on whatever hot button social issue was prevalent at the time.

	▲	throw4847285 2 days ago \| parent [-]
		But that's exactly why you should read literature. Obviously the goal isn't to shake your own worldview entirely, which is impossible. But you can open it up enough to experience art from another culture on its own terms. Plus, many classic novels feature introduction to help ground the reader in the historical moment. Though those intros also often feature spoilers, which is annoying.

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skybrian 2 days ago | parent | prev [-]

Interesting. Do you know any good articles online that talk about this history?

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throw4847285 2 days ago | parent [-]

I can't find the specific interview online. It's included in one of the volumes of Gundam Origin, which I took out of the library. However, this interview touches on similar themes, and may in fact be the same one I read. I have a poor memory.

https://zeonic-republic.net/?page_id=12512

If you're looking to learn more about the political movement in general, read up on the Zenkyoto. I am far from an expert, so I don't have any specific books to recommend. But if you do a little digging, even just on Wikipedia, it will become clear how much Japanese culture owes to that political moment.

	▲	skybrian 2 days ago \| parent [-]
		Apparently there is office politics too? > Throughout Z, my attitude toward everyone involved was, “You’re fools for only wanting Gundam. You’ve recklessly asked me to do this; I’ll make the protagonist go insane.” Despite this warning, they pressed ahead anyway, those adults felt no responsibility toward the work. So, I decided to do exactly what I wanted. > Yasuhiko: Including the bit where you lifted the hero’s name from Camille Claudel? > Tomino: All of it was intentional. And even after I made Z that way, the same stupid adults came back saying, “Let’s do another one next year.” Honestly, I was aghast. All right then, let’s make ZZ. But I’ll show you: this is the kind of foolish thing you’ll get. Only then did they finally catch on, “Oh, Tomino’s calling us idiots.” It took them two full years to get that. Two years of time and money. There are a lot of adults like that.

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rsynnott 2 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Learning stuff is a weird primary motivator to read fiction.

(I’m not sure you learn as much as you think; I mean some context leaks through but Austin’s characters aren’t necessarily _that_ archetypical. If you want that you might be better with a social history.)

	▲	skybrian 2 days ago \| parent [-]
		Sometimes it’s the fiction itself along with other commentary that helps you understand the historical background. There’s plenty written about Jane Austen’s novels. Also, Austen was definitely commenting on society of that time, though sometimes you need other background knowledge to get the reference.

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_carbyau_ 3 days ago | parent | prev [-]

The many Gundam series are not a historical account obviously.

From what I gather - having never actually watched any - there are anti-war themes (IE armies are commanded by people who don't have to sacrifice, how that corrupts), sacrifice vs outcomes and more. It's a thematic experience rather than an education in robotics or history.

I like stompy robots. I have to yet to start on Gundam because I am hesitant as to where to start and which path to follow in watching it all and I know it would consume me once I start.

Maybe after Xmas, in my break, I'll "waste" some time with it.