Ask John: Why are so many Strong-Willed Women in Anime Alcoholics?

Question:
Why are so many strong-willed and/or stubborn women in anime alcoholics? Off the top of my head, Shikijo from Mahoromatic, Misato from Evangelion, Yukari from Azumanga Daioh, Kisaragi from Phantom Quest Corp., Weda from Jungle Wa Itsumo, Mao from Full Metal Panic!, and to a lesser extent Ryoko from Tenchi Muyo! come to mind.

Answer:
I don’t know enough about Japanese culture to provide an authoritative explanation for why outspoken and independent women in anime often drink heavily, but I do have a theory. Drinking is a common Japanese social activity, especially for businessmen. The stereotypical family model is the wife remaining home and taking care of the house and children, and the husband working, then going to a bar with co-workers after work before coming home late. So in a sense, a woman out drinking would be “just one of the guys.” In Kisaragi of Yugen Kaisha, Mao from Full Metal Panic, and Misato from Evangelion we see women who defy the conventional Japanese woman’s role. These are women who are decisive and physical. These are women taking on masculine roles. With examples including Ryoko, Weda and Yukari we see independent women that intentionally refute the positions Japanese society creates for them. Ryoko is a space pirate. Weda has a child out of wedlock and moves away from the comfort and protection of her home. Yukari is virtually a spinster, remaining unmarried as a young adult woman. Shikijo-sensei of Mahoromatic seems to be the most conventional example among those you’ve mentioned, but even she objects to the traditional Japanese role of woman as home-maker by espousing a hedonistic lifestyle of personal fulfillment over self-sacrifice.

So in all of these cases, liberated women who drink heavily do so to represent their autonomy. Unlike particularly American culture, which would view heavy drinking in a negative light, within the context of Japanese culture, these women’s love of alcohol is neither a virtue nor a vice. Their drinking is a extension of their personalities and an expression of their desire to express and satiate their atypical female personalities. These women aren’t exactly role models, but they’re not reprehensible scoundrels either. They are women who disregard society’s expectations of them and live the way they want to live.

On a side note, the difference in the way these female characters are viewed in Japanese and American cultures is representative of one of the subtle elements of Japanese culture present in anime that Western viewers frequently overlook or don’t recognize. In one sense, from a Japanese perspective the fact that these women drink heavily is empowering and characteristic of their individual spirit. On the other hand, from an American perspective these women are pitiable because they seem to have a drinking problem.