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The first anime I had watched and perhaps one of the the most memorable for me
during my childhood is Spirited Away, produced by [Studio
Ghibli](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Studio_Ghibli) in 2001.

As I revise on my knowledge and interpretations of the movie once more, I
noticed during moments within the movie where underlying social commentary
appeared to be made relating to Japanese social issues; in particular, bathing
along side child prostitution.

I am also left to wonder about how the author
[Miyazaki](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hayao_Miyazaki) had intended and been
able to mirror 'old' Japanese society while animating the story through the
'new'.

EDIT: Question changed from "Allegorical condemnation of social issues in
Spirited Away" to "Themes, symbols or hidden meanings in Spirited Away".


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spirited-away
Themes, symbols or hidden meanings in Spirited Away


There's probably more, but the one symbol I'm aware of is the parents turning
into pigs.

One thing to understand about Spirited Away is that in Japanese media, the
world of kami, spirits, etc, is often depicted as a traditional Japanese city,
much like the look of the buildings Chihiro and her parents stumble upon in
the beginning of the movie. (Other examples I can think of are Kamisama Kiss
and The Morose Mononokean) Therefore, it's like they stumbled on the Japanese
equivalent of the gingerbread house. It comes off as similar to Hansel and
Gretel, if instead of being threatened to be cooked, they were turned into
pigs for eating the house.

But furthermore, as I recall, there might have been some dialog about it being
"an abandoned amusement park." This is a reference to the Japanese bubble
economy of the 1980's. It was a time of explosive growth in the Japanese
economy. People indulged in their wealth, and one of the things they built was
a ton of amusement parks. Eventually, the bubble popped, and those amusement
parks were abandoned left and right, sometimes still to be found in the
countryside, rotting away. <https://www.tofugu.com/japan/japanese-abandoned-
amusemnet-parks/>

This all ties in with Studio Ghibli's intent that the parents gorging on food
and turning into pigs is a symbol for greed and consumerism.
[https://www.boredpanda.com/spirited-away-chihiro-parents-become-pigs-meaning-
studio-ghibli-hayao-
miyazaki/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic](https://www.boredpanda.com/spirited-
away-chihiro-parents-become-pigs-meaning-studio-ghibli-hayao-
miyazaki/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic)

Also possibly related, is the fact that Miyazaki commonly uses the image of
the pig in his art. He often draws people, and even himself, as a pig. In
another of his movies, Porco Rosso, the eponymous protagonist is in fact a pig
for most of the movie. It is implied that the reason he is a pig is that he
prefers it to being human. Thus you might also read the pig as a lowly animal
that is still in some ways preferable to a human. That Miyazaki is also known
to be a staunch environmentalist only supports this interpretation.

The theme of greed pops up in other places in the movie as well. For example,
No Face offers Chihiro gold, which she rejects, as she rejected the food
earlier, and for that she survives, where the frog, who took the gold, ended
up getting eaten.


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