Yuri (term)

.] cite web|url=http://www.gomanga.com/news/press_027.php |title=Yuri on the Seven Seas! |publisher=Seven Seas Entertainment |accessdate=2007-11-20]

Thematic history

Among the first Japanese authors to produce works about love between women ranks Nobuko Yoshiya,cite news |first=Hiromi |last=Tsuchiya |title=Yoshiya Nobuko’s Yaneura no nishojo (Two Virgins in the Attic): Female-Female Desire and Feminism |url=http://www.aasianst.org/absts/2000abst/Japan/J-12.htm |work=Homosexual/Homosocial Subtexts in Early 20th-Century Japanese Culture |publisher=Abstracts of the 2000 AAS Annual Meeting |location=San Diego, CA |date=March 9–12 2000 |accessdate=2008-02-24] a novelist active in the Taishō and Shōwa periods of Japan,cite journal|last=Suzuki|first= Michiko|year=2006|month=August|title =Writing Same-Sex Love: Sexology and Literary Representation in Yoshiya Nobuko's Early Fiction|journal=The Journal of Asian Studies|volume=65|issue=3|url= http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract;jsessionid=419D6C9B25191554B1DBD61007F71527.tomcat1?fromPage=online&aid=857000| accessdate=2008-01-23] who pioneered in Japanese lesbian literature, including the early twentieth century Class S genre.citation|title=The Politics of Androgyny in Japan: Sexuality and Subversion in the Theater and Beyond|last=Robertson|first=Jennifer|volume=19|edition=3|date=August 1992|pages=427|url= http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0094-0496(199208)19%3A3%3C419%3ATPOAIJ%3E2.0.CO%3B2-A|accessdate=2008-01-22|month=Aug|year=1992|issue=3|doi=10.1525/ae.1992.19.3.02a00010|journal=American Ethnologist] This kind of stories depicts lesbian attachments as emotionally intense yet platonic relationships, destined to be curtailed by graduation from school, marriage, or death. The root of this is in part the contemporary understanding that same-sex love was a transitory and normal part of female development leading into heterosexuality and motherhood.cite journal|last=Dollase|first=Hiromi|title=Early Twentieth Century Japanese Girls' Magazine Stories: Examining Shōjo Voice in "Hanamonogatari" (Flower Tales)|journal=The Journal of Popular Culture|year=2003|volume=36|issue=4|pages=724–755|issn=00223840|oclc=1754751|doi=10.1111/1540-5931.00043] Class S stories in particular tell about strong emotional bonds between schoolgirls, a mutual crush between an upperclassman and an underclassman.Around the 1970s "yuri" began to appear in shōjo manga,cite web|url=http://www.afterellen.com/archive/ellen/Print/2005/8/yuri.html |title=An Introduction to Yuri Manga and Anime (page 1) |last=Brown |first=Rebecca |publisher=AfterEllen.com|accessdate=2008-01-18 |year=2005] presenting some of the characteristics found in the lesbian literature of the early twentieth century.cite book |title=Watashi no Ibasho wa Doko ni Aruno? (Where do I belong?)|last=Fujimoto |first=Yukari |year=1998 |publisher=Gakuyo Shobo |location=Tokyo |language=Japanese |isbn=4313870113] This early "yuri" generally features an older looking, more sophisticated woman, and a younger, more awkward admirer. The two deal with some sort of unfortunate schism between their families, and when rumors of their lesbian relationship spread, they are received as a scandal. The outcome is a tragedy, with the more sophisticated girl somehow dying at the end. In general, the "yuri" manga of this time could not avoid a tragic ending,cite book |title=Manga no Yomikata (How to read manga) |last=Natsume |first=Fusanosuke |year=1999 |publisher=Takarajimasha |location=Tokyo] cite book |title= |last=Schodt |first=Frederik |authorlink=Frederik L. Schodt |year=1996 |publisher=Stone Bridge Press |location=Berkeley, CA |isbn=978-1880656235] Ryoko Yamagishi's "Shiroi Heya no Futari", the first manga involving a lesbian relationship, being a prime example. It is also in this period that shōjo manga began to deal with transsexualism and transvestism,cite web | first= Matt |last=Thorn |authorlink=Matt Thorn | title=Unlikely Explorers: Alternative Narratives of Love, Sex, Gender, and Friendship in Japanese "Girls'" Comics | url=http://www.matt-thorn.com/shoujo_manga/sexual_ambiguity/index.html|accessdate=2007-12-05] sometimes depicting female characters as manly looking, which was inspired by the women playing male roles in the Takarazuka Revue.cite journal|last=Welker |first=James |year=2006 |journal=Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society |volume=31 |issue=3 |doi= 10.1086/498987|title=Beautiful, Borrowed, and Bent: "Boys' Love" as Girls' Love in Shōjo Manga|accessdate=2007-11-20|pages=841] These traits are most prominent in Riyoko Ikeda's works, including "The Rose of Versailles", "Oniisama e..." and "Claudine...!".cite web|url=http://www.afterellen.com/people/2007/5/friedman |title=Yuricon Celebrates Lesbian Anime and Manga |last=Corson |first=Suzanne |publisher=AfterEllen.com|accessdate=2007-05-01 |year=2007] Some shōnen works of this period feature lesbian characters too, but these are mostly depicted as fanservice and comic relief.cite journal|last=Ebiharai|first= Akiko|year=2002|title =Japan's Feminist Fabulation: Reading Marginal with Unisex Reproduction as a Key Concept|journal=Genders Journal|issue=36|url=http://www.genders.org/g36/g36_ebihara.html| accessdate=2008-02-17]

Some of these formulas began to weaken during the 1990s:cite web |url=http://d.hatena.ne.jp/kaien/20060828/p1 |title=Maria-sama ga Miteru to Yuri Sakuhin no Rekishi |language=Japanese |accessdate=2008-02-16 Sources: "Watashi no Ibasho wa Doko ni Aruno?" by Yukari Fujimoto (ISBN 4313870113), "Otoko Rashisa to Iu Byōki? Pop-Culture no Shin Danseigaku" by Kazuo Kumada (ISBN 4833110679), and "Yorinuki Dokusho Sōdanshitsu" (ISBN 978-4860110345).] manga stories such as "Jukkai me no Jukkai" by Wakuni Akisato, published in 1992, began to move away from the tragic outcomes and stereotyped dynamics.citeweb|url=http://www.yuricon.org/essays/symg.html|title=Shōjo Yuri Manga Guide Version 1.6|publisher=Yuricon|accessdate=2007-11-14] This stand side-by-side with dōjinshi works, which at the time were largely influenced by the immense popularity of "Sailor Moon",citeweb |url=http://www.akibaangels.com/doujin.php |title=What is Doujin? |last=Hayama |first=Torakichi |publisher=Akiba Angels |accessdate=2008-03-07] the first mainstream manga and anime series featuring a "positive" portrayal of an openly lesbian couple.cite web |url=http://manga.about.com/od/mangaartistswriters/a/EFriedman_2.htm |title=Interview: Erica Friedman (page 2) |accessdate=2008-03-06 |work=Manga |publisher=About.com] cite web|last=Subramian |first=Erin |url=http://www.yuricon.org/essays/women_loving_women.html|title=Women-loving Women in Modern Japan|publisher=Yuricon |accessdate=2008-01-23] Male-targeted works such as the "Devilman Lady" anime series, based on a homonym seinen manga by Go Nagai, began to deal with lesbian themes in a more "mature manner" too.cite web|url=http://www.animeboredom.co.uk/anime-reviews/the-devil-lady/67/ |title="The Devil Lady" Review |publisher=Anime Boredom |last=Huxley |first=John |accessdate=2008-02-21] The first magazines specifically targeted towards lesbians appeared around this period, containing sections featuring "yuri" manga. These stories range from high school crush to lesbian life and love, featuring different degrees of sexual content.cite web|url=http://www.activeanime.com/pn/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=3135 |title=ALC Publishing announces yuri manga "Works" by Eriko Tadeno |publisher=Active Anime |accessdate=2008-02-24"Works" by Eriko Tadeno is an anthology of four stories and three short gag comics that were originally published in "Phryné", "Anise" and "Mist" magazines.] It is at this point (the mid 1990s) that lesbian-themed works began to be acceptable.

The later 1990s brought Oyuki Konno's "Maria-sama ga Miteru", which by 2004 was a bestseller among "yuri" novels.cite book |last=Azuma |first=Erika |title=Yorinuki Dokusho Sōdanshitsu |month=June | year=2004 |publisher=Hon no Zasshisha |language=Japanese |isbn=978-4860110345] This story revisits what was being written at the time of Nobuko Yoshiya:cite web |url=http://media.excite.co.jp/book/news/topics/012/p02.html |title=Esu toiu kankei |accessdate=2008-03-05 |work=Bishōjo gaippai! Wakamono ga hamaru Marimite world no himitsu |publisher=Excite |language=Japanese] strong emotional bonds between females, mostly revolving around the school upperclassman-underclassman dynamic, like those portrayed in Class S. Another prominent author of this period is Kaho Nakayama, active since the early 1990s, with works involving love stories among lesbians. It is around this point (the early 2000s) that the first magazines speciffically dedicated to "yuri" manga were launched, containing stories dealing with a wide range of themes: from intense emotional connections such as that depicted in "Voiceful", to more explicit school-girl romances like those portrayed in "First Love Sisters", passing by realistic tales about love between adult women such as those seen in "Rakuen no Jōken".citeweb|url=http://www.shop.ichijinsha.co.jp/goods/goods_detail.php?gc=YCK0023&page=0&sc=3&sb=&sg=&sp=&sw= |title=Rakuen no Jōken |publisher=Ichijinsha |accessdate=2008-02-28 |language=Japanese] Some of these subjects are seen in male-targeted works of this period as well,cite web|url=http://animeboredom.co.uk/manga-reviews/kashimashi/322/ |title="Kashimashi" Review |publisher=Anime Boredom |last=Rasmussen |first=David |accessdate=2008-02-28] cite web|url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/right-turn-only/2008-02-05 |title=Right Turn Only!! |publisher=Anime News Network |last=Santos |first=Carlo |accessdate=2008-02-28] sometimes in combination with other themes, including mecha and science fiction.cite web|url=http://www.animeondvd.com/reviews/seriespage.php?series=10227 |title="Kannazuki No Miko" Review |last=Beveridge |first=Chris |publisher=AnimeOnDVD.com |accessdate=2007-11-20] cite journal |year=2007 |month=September |title=Yuri anime & gemu daitokushū |journal=Comic Yuri Hime S |issue=2 |id=ASIN B000VWRJGU |language=Japanese] Examples include series such as "Kannazuki no Miko", "Blue Drop", and "". In addition, male-targeted stories tend to make extensive use of moe and bishōjo characterizations.

Publications

Sun Magazine published the "yuri" manga anthology magazine "Yuri Shimai" between June 2003 and November 2004 in quarterly installments, ending with only five issues.citeweb|url=http://comipedia.com/magazine/yuri-shimai |title="Yuri Shimai" |publisher=ComiPedia |accessdate=2008-01-19] After the magazine's discontinuation, "Comic Yuri Hime" was launched by Ichijinsha in July 2005 as a revival of the magazine, containing manga by many of the authors who had had work serialized in "Yuri Shimai".citeweb|url=http://comipedia.com/magazine/comic-yurihime |title="Comic Yuri Hime" |publisher=ComiPedia |accessdate=2008-01-19] Like its predecessor, "Comic Yuri Hime" is also published quarterly. A sister magazine to "Comic Yuri Hime" named "Comic Yuri Hime S" was launched as a quarterly publication by Ichijinsha in June 2007.citeweb|url=http://comipedia.com/magazine/comic-yurihime-s |title="Comic Yuri Hime S" |publisher=ComiPedia |accessdate=2008-01-19] Unlike either "Yuri Shimai" or "Comic Yuri Hime", "Comic Yuri Hime S" is targeted towards a male audience.citeweb|url=http://www.ichijinsha.co.jp/ad/ |title=Ichijinsha's info about "Comic Yuri Hime S" |publisher=Ichijinsha |accessdate=2008-01-03 |language=Japanese] Ichijinsha will start to publish light novel adaptations from "Comic Yuri Hime" works and original "yuri" novels under their shōjo light novel line "Ichijinsha Bunko Iris", scheduled to begin on July 19 2008.citeweb|url=http://www.ichijinsha.co.jp/iris/ |title="Ichijinsha Bunko Iris" |publisher=Ichijinsha |accessdate=2008-02-26 |language=Japanese] Some Japanese lesbian lifestyle magazines contain manga sections, including the now-defunct magazines "Anise" (1996-97, 2001-03) and "Phryné" (1995). "Carmilla", an erotic lesbian publication, released an anthology of "yuri" manga called "Girl's Only". [citeweb|url= http://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/switch-language/product/4780801079/ref=dp_change_lang/250-5804878-2152241?ie=UTF8&language=en%5FJP |title=Girl's Only listing at Amazon.co.jp|publisher=Amazon.co.jp|accessdate=2008-01-30|language=Japanese] Additionally, "Mist" (1996-99), a ladies' comic manga magazine, contained sexually explicit "yuri" manga as part of a section dedicated to lesbian-interest topics.cite journal|last=Welker |first=James |coauthors=Suganuma, Katsuhiko |year=2006 |month=January |url=http://wwwsshe.murdoch.edu.au/intersections/issue12/welker2.html|title=Celebrating Lesbian Sexuality: An Interview with Inoue Meimy, Editor of Japanese Lesbian Erotic Lifestyle Magazine Carmilla |journal=Intersections: Gender, History and Culture in the Asian Context |issue=12 |accessdate= 2008-01-30]

The first company to release lesbian-themed manga in North America was Yuricon's publishing arm ALC Publishing. Their works include Rica Takashima's "Rica 'tte Kanji!?", which in 2006 was course material for Professor Kerridwen Luis' Anthropology 166B course at Brandeis University,cite web|url=http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2006-02-14/yuri-manga-in-anthropology-course |title=Yuri Manga in Anthropology Course |publisher=Anime News Network |accessdate=2008-02-23] cite news |first=Kerridwen |last=Luis |title=Syllabus Draft |url=http://www.brandeis.edu/wgs/pdfs/Spring%202006%20Syllabi%20and%20Booklists/Syllabus.%20ANTH%20166b.pdf |work=Unbounded Desires: A Cross-Cultural Look at Non-Heteronormative Sexualities Anth 166B |publisher=Brandeis University |date=December 20 2005 |accessdate=2008-04-05|format=PDF] and their annual "yuri" manga anthology "Yuri Monogatari"; both first released in 2003.cite web|url=http://www.animefringe.com/magazine/2003/07/feature/07/ |title=Pro Amateur Comics - Yuri Doujinshi "Rica 'tte Kanji!?" |publisher=Animefringe |last=Font |first=Dillon |accessdate=2008-01-24] The latter collects stories by American, European and Japanese creators, including Akiko Morishima, Althea Keaton, Kristina Kolhi, Tomomi Nakasora and Eriko Tadeno.citeweb|url=http://comipress.com/press-release/2006/11/13/1008 |title=ALC Publishing Presents Yuri Manga Anthology "Yuri Monogatari 4" |publisher=ComiPress |accessdate=2008-02-21] These works range from fantasy stories to more realistic tales dealing with themes such as coming out and sexual orientation.cite web|url=http://www.otakuusamagazine.com/O_manga.html |last=Thompson |first=Jason |title=Falling for Manga! Part 1: A Quick-hit Guide to Autumn 2007's Hottest Manga |publisher=OtakuUSA |accessdate=2008-02-20] Besides ALC Publishing, the Los Angeles-based Seven Seas Entertainment has also incurred in the genre, with the English version of well known titles such as the ' manga and the "Strawberry Panic!" light novels. On October 24 2006, Seven Seas announced the launch of their specialized "yuri" manga line, which includes works such as the "Strawberry Panic!" manga, "The Last Uniform", and "Comic Yuri Himes compilations such as "Voiceful" and "First Love Sisters".cite web|url=http://www.gomanga.com/news/reviews_018.php |title=Newtype USA Reviews "Voiceful" and "First Love Sisters" Vol. 1 |publisher=Seven Seas Entertainment |accessdate=2008-01-27]

Yuri series

These lists display stories according to the role "yuri" plays in them. The first list shows series in which attraction between females and/or lesbian themes play a central role in their storylines. The second list contains stories in which the same subjects are used mostly for comic relief, as fanservice, or for character development in a larger, sometimes unrelated context.

Yuri as a central element

Yuri as an additional element

ee also

* Class S
* Femslash
* Hentai
* Homosexuality in Japan
* Lesbianism in erotica
* Pornography in Japan
* Yaoi

Notes and references

External links

* [http://www.shoujoai.com/ Shōjo-ai Archive]
* [http://www.yuricon.org/ Yuricon]
* [http://smallcall.net/yuri/ Small Call] List of all the yuri-related dōjinshi circles present in Comiket since 2001. ja icon
* [http://yuribu.net/ Yuribu] Group of one-hundred yuri dōjinshi circles that will be present in Comitia 84. ja icon