A Parent’s Love Blinds: An Analysis of “The Tale of Princess Kaguya”
A parent’s love for their children is often unconditional, selfless, and forgiving. They want the best for their children, and will do everything in their power to give them a happy life. Therefore, most parents believe that what they do for their children is not only for the best, but is also correct, because “parents know best.” But having such a set belief can be dangerous and, oftentimes, will prevent parents from truly listening to their children. This issue is explored in the critically acclaimed film “The Tale of Princess Kaguya,” in which a father’s ambitions for his daughter not only robs her of her happiness, but ends up driving her away.
Based on the 10th century Japanese folktale “The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter,” “The Tale of Princess Kaguya” was produced by Studio Ghibli and directed by Isao Takahata. The story starts with a bamboo cutter finding a magical little girl in a glowing bamboo grove, dressed as a princess. The bamboo cutter and his wife decide to take her in and raise her, and the couple believes that Heaven was telling them that the little girl was destined to live as a princess. Thus, they named the little girl Princess, and the bamboo cutter began making frequent trips into the capital to prepare for the day they made the young girl into a true princess.
But prior to moving into the capital, Princess makes many friends with the children in her rural village. Here, she is visibly happy. Therefore, when the bamboo cutter announces that they are to leave for the capital, Princess is reluctant to leave, foreshadowing her unhappy ending.
At the capital, she is taught “the ways of a noble princess,” such as how to care for her appearance, and that playing is forbidden. Unwillingly, she follows these rules, and thus, Princess begins to lose her childish, joyous personality. In her father’s eyes, she’s matured into a responsible young woman and is well on her way to becoming a true princess. But to the audience, it’s clear Princess would rather not abide by any of these rules, and she begins to grow a small garden behind her mother’s room to remind herself of home.
A banquet is held to celebrate her coming of age and her new title as Princess Kaguya. Following the customs for noble women, she is hidden behind a screen, and not permitted to meet the strangers who’ve come to feast and celebrate in her honor. But during the celebration, she overhears some men wanting to meet her, saying how such customs don’t apply to “commoners.” At this, Princess Kaguya realizes that she is an imposter, and shatters a plate, signifying her shattering the veil of perfection that she had fabricated to hide her true identity. The following scene is her running away from the capitol, intent on going back home where she feels like she belongs.
This scene was my favorite from the whole film, as Isao Takahata’s art style excellently portrays the emotions felt during that scene. “The Tale of Princess Kaguya” is visually beautiful.The use of black charcoal greatly contrasts against the pastel color scheme of the film, and this scene proves it even more effectively. In her frantic dash out of the house, the world is black and white. Conversely, the trail of colorful robes she leaves behind stands out against the background, and signifies her abandonment of the status and money that surrounded and trapped her in the capital. As she runs across the fields of grass with the moon illuminating her path, the charcoal lines become darker and thicker, the sketches becoming rougher, as if each frame was drawn in a hurry, truly portraying her feelings of panic, anger, and desperation. Later when she wakes up behind her screen at the banquet with her plate still intact, she realizes that her escape from the capital was only a dream. But she had just unconsciously called out to Heaven for help, expressing her desire to leave, which sealed her fate.
After this, Princess’s character changes. She allows others to pluck her eyebrows, paint her face, and blacken her teeth. She no longer tries to avoid her responsibilities, and is no longer playful or mischievous. As the story progresses, rumors of her beauty spread, and she is constantly approached with marriage proposals. Eventually, even the Emperor grows curious, and asks Princess to become one of his court ladies. The bamboo cutter is overcome with joy, not only because he truly believes that the princess will be happy this way, but because he will also become a courtier. In his time at the capital, he seems to have lost his original motive for everything, and has begun to subconsciously take advantage of his daughter’s beauty and popularity. Having lived his whole life in the rural areas of Japan, it’s clear that he disliked his lifestyle and believed that true happiness is a life of wealth, power, and status in the capital. Therefore, when her mother disapprovingly says to the father, “Yyou still don’t understand how she feels?” the father rather angrily repliesrebuts, “Iit’s you who doesn’t understand. This is what I’ve worked for! A court lady! There is no greater happiness for a girl in this land! At last, the Princess will be happy!” implying that Princess was never happy to begin with, that her life in the rural village were the worst years of her life when they were her happiest.
It wasn’t until it was too late that the bamboo cutter realized his grave mistake. He had travelled to the capital by foot everyday, hired teachers for the Princess, and worked around the clock to uphold Princess Kaguya’s image, all because he loved his daughter. But he had wrongly assumed that his notion of happiness was the same as hers; instead of stopping to truly observe and listen, his love for the Princess made him unwilling to accept any criticism, all so that she would not become a “country bumpkin” like him. He never thought it was possible that all the Princess wanted was to live a humble life away from customs, rules, and money. Therefore, while his intentions were anything but good, it was precisely his love for his daughter that blinded him from what her daughter truly wanted, which was to live “just like the birds and the beasts.” This film teaches parents to respect and listen to the wishes of their children, and that while most parents have good intentions, it is ultimately up to the children to determine what type of future or lifestyle will make them the happiest.