History Analysis / JapaneseSpirit

As always, there are gray areas on both sides. Some superheroes ''do'' fight stronger enemies--''Franchise/{{Spiderman}}'' is a chronic underdog. Some Japanese heroes do exploit a lame weakness rather than fight force with force (Manga/{{Naruto}} has used this tactic more than once). And some American stories do employ an EleventhHourSuperpower to defeat a superior threat (Superman is, after all, is the TropeCodifier of NewPowersAsThePlotDemands). However, in aggregate, there are clear formulas the two genres employ.

Japanese heroes tend to defeat villains who [[DefeatingTheUndefeatable are far above themselves]]. Every BigBad that showed up in ''Anime/DragonBallZ'' seemed undefeatable when they first appeared. Aizen was ''certainly'' portrayed as miles above every other character for the vast majority of ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'', and the same is true of other villainous characters across {{Manga}} like [[Manga/{{Claymore}} Priscilla]] and [[Manga/{{Naruto}} Itachi Uchiha]]. When the villain isn't portrayed as exceptionally more powerful than the hero, they will tend to take on the role of TheRival, and the rest of the story will be a mad rush for power until the hero and villain duke it out to prove who's tougher. The villain will usually be defeated at their most powerful incarnation--either in their OneWingedAngel form or with the MacGuffin that brings "ultimate power". TheHero thus usually defeats them by overcoming that might with either an EleventhHourSuperpower or ThePowerOfFriendship or some other power born from their resolve and will. This is in stark contrast to American superheroes, who will usually outsmart the more powerful villain (as Superman does to Mr. Mxyzptlk), remove their powers to bring them back down to a defeatable level (as is Batman's go-to strategy against Bane), exploit a WeaksauceWeakness (as Franchise/{{Spiderman}} does against Electro, Hydro-Man and Sandman), or [[AvengersAssemble get help]].

This pattern fits the overall Japanese social themes of hierachy, conformity and in-group versus out-group. In Japanese media, when a weaker character defeats a stronger one, it's usually because the weaker character has now ascended, or "conformed", to the standards of the higher group. At this point, that character typically ceases to represent the "lower" group. This is the difference between, say, Batman defeating a superpowered being by unlocking superpowers himself and Batman using some other method to defeat them that doesn't increases his tier of power. In Japanese stories, the way to overcome is by first conforming.

* AsskickingEqualsAuthority

! Common Tropes And Plot Structure

[[folder: Central Themes]]

[[folder: Hero Traits]]

!!! Good Karma

[[folder: Villain Traits]]

[[folder: Conflict Progression]]

First, it should be noted that in the page quote, [[Manga/{{Bleach}} Yoruichi]] is not entirely accurate. The term "Instinct" refers to behavior which is biological in nature and can be done at any time without any form of education or learning. Yoruichi is using the [[YouKeepUsingThatWord colloquial understanding of "instinct"]] to refer to any unconscious or automatic behavior, which is inaccurate. For example, humans ''very much need to learn to walk''. It takes several years for a human being to completely master walking, while a horse can do it within minutes. What is being referred to is actually [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heuristic "Heuristics"]], or the ability for the human brain to turn learned skills or experience into automatic habit and judgment.

However, this can be a problem if "talent" is [[MightMakesRight decided only by those with power]], and if those without it are outright discarded or shunned. Negatively, Yamato-Damashii has been compared to {{Social Darwinis|t}}m, and also to the western concepts of the "WhiteMansBurden" and "[[{{Eagleland}} American Exceptionalism]]" in that it assigns a specific ethnic group with an immeasurably valuable trait. Yamato-damashii is about all the things that makes Japan and her people good, and by proxy, what the rest of the world lacks. Furthermore, it is ''specifically'' a [[StrawVulcan condemnation of academia in favor of common sense, adaptive thinking, and individual merit]]--in other words, if scholarly wisdom indicates that there is a MillionToOneChance, yamato-damashii demands that those odds not only be challenged, but beaten. Furthermore, stemming from the code of bushido, [[NoTrueScotsman a true follower of yamato-damashii]] will have risked sure-death for their cause at least once. This led to the [[SuicideAttack glorification of kamikaze tactics]] in UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, which ([[RealityEnsues contrary to use of this trope in fiction]]) [[TropeBreaker did not work out so well]]. And finally, this trope is also partly responsible for the phenomenon of "karoshi", which translates to "death from overwork" in Japanese. In recent decades, Japanese culture has cultivated the existence of the {{Salaryman}} and the {{Otaku}}, who pursue their respective interests with obsessive tenacity.