| Kasz216 said: E) Despite the name an avatar, this makes me think you don't watch/read much anime/manga. I mean, the sexualization of the kids in these situations is pretty apparent to anyone who has even casually watched enough anime on cartoon network. I mean you've had to come across at least one "Harem" manga/anime. They pretty much all have one token little girl. |
I haven't watched/read as much anime/manga as I want to for a variety of reasons, but I've been regularly following them for over a decade in one form or another, not to mention a few series I watched as a child when I didn't even know what "anime" was. While I'm hardly a relevant source of knowledge in comparison to others here, I am quite familiar with the kind of content available, and I have experienced different kinds of works within them.
Now, there's some things I have to clarify here...
I didn't deny the fact that anime/manga regularly include characters under 18 in sexually provocative situations... I clearly recognized that when I stated how they are more lenient with sexual content in general (pointless censorship aside), to the point of mentioning lolicon, the extreme side of this. I just pointed out how not every 8-year old in a swimsuit that appears in anime is meant to be sexual. And I did it because your comment of "8-year old in bathing suit" didn't include any context other than Japan...
However, I'll point out here that "ecchi" anime rarely includes characters as young as 8 years old being sexualized... As far as I know, the youngest characters tend to be 12 at least (the start of puberty), with most characters being 14 and above (male protagonists being generally in the upper end of the girls age range). We can ask one of the otaku experts here to confirm or deny all this, if you want. The likes of Kodomo no Jikan are more the exception than the rule, and these works are niche even in Japan. Furthermore, you have to go to eroge to find sexually-explicit content. "Ecchi" anime limits itself to nudity at most, and that even gets censored these days to air in Japanese TV (and later sell the expensive DVDs/Blu-Rays uncensored...).
Finally, I feel obligated to point out that what I stated before regarding tolerance and understanding of "questionable" cultural differences applies to fictional media works, not real-life events. The defense of actual human rights (when applicable) is a different discussion, of course. Again, the difference between reality and fiction. Though, either way, Western countries have enough of their own questionable attitudes to make any claim of a higher moral ground...
EDIT: Small changes to make the points clearer and avoid misunderstandings...
