Identity in Animation ─ A Journey into Self, Difference, Culture and the Body

Identity in Animation: A Journey into Self, Difference, Culture and the Body uncovers the meaning behind some of the most influential characters in the history of animation and questions their unique sense of who they are and how they are formed.

Jane Batkin explores how identity politics shape the inner psychology of the character and their exterior motivation, often buoyed along by their questioning of ‘place’ and ‘belonging’ and driven by issues of self, difference, gender and the body. Through this, Identity in Animation illustrates and questions the construction of stereotypes as well as unconventional representations within American, European and Eastern animation. It does so with examples such as the strong gender tropes of Japan’s Hayao Miyazaki, the strange relationships created by Australian director Adam Elliot and Nick Park’s depiction of Britishness. In addition, this book discusses Betty Boop’s sexuality and ultimate repression, Warner Bros. anarchic, self-aware characters, and Disney’s fascinating representation of self and society.

Identity in Animation is an ideal book for students and researchers of animation studies, as well as any media and film studies students taking modules on animation as part of their course.

Jane Batkin is a Senior Lecturer in Animation Theory and Media at the University of Lincoln, UK. She is a member of the Society of Animation Studies and Society of Film and Media Studies and has presented at the SAS Conference in Toronto, in Canterbury and at the Toy Story at 20 Symposium. Her article 'Rethinking the Rabbit', exploring the history and culture of Looney Tunes, was published by the Society of Animation Studies Journal and her chapter Mirrors and Shadows: Duality, Illusion and the Divided Self in Toy Story is being published in an anthology celebrating the film.