Do you consider or call yourself an otaku? Why or why not?

[Yamamaya]

As the thread states, do you consider or call yourself on otaku?

First of all, let me say that I realize the meaning of otaku is much different in Japan than it is in America. Regardless, I consider myself an otaku because I am a big fan of anime/manga as a medium. I have no problem with taking the title upon myself anymore than I have a problem of taking the title liberal or random.

[Roy Mustang]

Nope, I never call myself an otaku and I never want to be called one. I'm an enthusiast of the hobby, but nothing more.

An otaku is like a foamer that other people called over obsessed fan of a hobby and make true fans look bad and the hobby.


So, I never have like foamers and otakus as they can mess things up for true fans of a hobby that have a safe and healthy outlook on a hobby.

[font="Book Antiqua"][color="Red"]Col. Roy Mustang[/color][/font]

[blkmage]

I have no problem with taking the title upon myself anymore than I have a problem of taking the title liberal or random.

The difference is that those words mean more or less the same thing globally (although likely to different degrees) and they're generally not vilified.

Anyhow, being an otaku isn't something that I strive towards or would be proud of. Rather, I'm fairly indifferent to the whole thing, since it at least doesn't have the negativity attached to it here.

But, thinking about it, I'm pretty sure I'd fall into the realm of the Japanese definition of otaku: I'm following VOCALOID song production and anime MADs on Nico Nico Douga, I look forward to seeing what each Comiket brings, I'm following each season of anime pretty closely, I read a bunch of manga, visual novels, and light novels, I'm pretty familiar with and have opinions on seiyuu, directors, writers, and studios, and I talk to a bunch of other people online (beyond this forum) and read lengthy discussions and analysis about these things.

Oh well. ┐( ´ー`)┌

A fairly good litmus test to see whether you might get called an otaku in Japan is reading Genshiken and seeing whether you get whatever they're talking about and whether you can see yourself with a bunch of those guys. After I read it, I was like, "Oh, those guys, they're so crazy... oh, wait, I understood every joke. （　´_ゝ`）"

[That Dude]

I would never call myself one, but I don't mind people who don't really have a clue to what it really means calling me one.

[Radical Dreamer]

No, for two reasons. Reason one is that I just don't keep up with anime anymore. I still enjoy it, but I don't seek it out 90% of the time; I let it find me. XDD

Reason two is stated above by several others. It's a fairly derogatory term, and I simply don't fit (nor do I want to fit XD) its definition. XD

[Tsukuyomi]

I guess I've been one of those people who thought that "otaku" merely meant I was a fan of anime/manga o.o

I don't think I'm as far as obsessed If people want to call me as such, then they're more then free to ^^

[rocklobster]

I'm an otaku and proud of it!

[Makachop^^128]

Makachop an otaku!

[Fish and Chips]

No, not really.

I am an enthusiast, to be sure, especially where Manga is concerned, but the Otaku lifestyle is one I'd hesitate to call worth living. When a hobby becomes more than a hobby, it's time to go cold turkey.

[Midori]

I don't have the funds to be an otaku. :|

[Makachop^^128]

seems to me that i'm the only obsessive person here. lol When I start a hobby its all I can talk about.

[Roy Mustang]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/worldtonight/2009/09/is_japan_a_dying_nation.html

TOKYO-LONDON -- Thanks to the miracles of modern technology, I'm writing this 31,000 feet above ground level, somewhere over Siberia, on the plane back from Tokyo in that limbo time zone where it seems to be neither day nor night.

And I'm pondering the meaning of Japan's population statistics, which make chilling reading for the newly-elected government after last Sunday's earthquake election.

Imagine a country that knows it is shrinking. A country that knows it is ageing more rapidly than any other major industrialised nation on earth. Which has the highest proportion in the world of people over the age of 65, and the lowest ratio of under 15s. That country is Japan.

As I reported on Wednesday, on current trends, the population of Japan will have halved by the end of the century.

It is, literally, a country that is slowly dying.

According to one United Nations estimate, it'll need to import 17 million foreign workers over the next 40 years, just to keep its economy afloat and provide enough carers to look after the elderly. (By 2050, there will be more than a million Japanese over the age of 100.)

I'm no social psychologist, so I wouldn't dare to come up with an explanation for why Japanese couples aren't having enough babies. But one theory is that Japanese women are increasingly reluctant to marry, because they think Japanese men have shown themselves unable to adapt to the needs of a new, more flexible society - and have retreated into a fantasy world of comics, video games and animated pornography where they feel less threatened.

The Japanese internet search engine Goo Japan reckons 70 per cent of Japanese men are still unmarried when they reach their 30th birthday. (Mind you, marriage rates in Italy, Norway, France and Ireland are even lower.)

So I found myself thinking at one point of the film "Children of Men", about what would happen in a world where all women are infertile and the human race is dying out. Not that Japan is descending into anarchy - quite the opposite, in fact. It is still the most orderly place I know, where no one is impatient at traffic lights, and even the hungry and homeless wait in long neat lines for their food hand-outs.

On the one hand, it is the nation of Toyota, Hitachi, Panasonic and Mitsubishi, global leaders and still very much a force to be reckoned with. On the other, it is the nation of manga comics and young women who dress up as French maids to pander to the fantasies of lonely men.

In the current economic climate, the newly-elected government will have no shortage of competing priorities. But it's already committed to increasing the children's allowance to £170 per child per month, in the hope that a cash incentive will encourage more Japanese couples to have more babies.

After all, what could be more important for the country's future?

[font="Book Antiqua"][color="Red"]Col. Roy Mustang[/color][/font]

[ShiroiHikari]

I do not call myself an otaku and would consider it an insult if someone called me one. Am I a fan? Yes. Am I an obsessive, basement-dwelling socially impaired loser? No.












Okay, so maybe I'm a little socially inept, but still.

[MasterDias]

Nah.
I'm a big anime/manga fan, but I don't think I'd really consider myself under that term. I do keep up with industry news and follow each anime season, but my tastes don't really line up with what Japanese "otaku" seem to like anyway.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/worldtoni...ng_nation.html

That's interesting and all, but I was always under the impression that Japanese otaku were really too small a minority to affect population statistics. I don't think it's very wise to blame them for declining birth rates like the article basically seems to, particularly when other nations have had similar problems.

[Nate]

Depending on whether or not you consider declining birth rates a problem. :p

No I'm not an otaku. I rarely watch anime, and read manga only occasionally. I don't see a problem with calling yourself one, although the word does have a slight negative connotation in Japan. But that's just due to differences in how countries use words.

It's kind of like, in Mexico, the word "sombrero" means any kind of hat, baseball hats, fedoras, derbies, whatever. However in America the word "sombrero" means that one specific type of Mexican hat.

[ShiroiHikari]

About the low birth rates-- it could be a good thing for Japan. It's mighty crowded over there, you know. Also the world in general could probably do with less people, but that is COMPLETELY off-topic.

[CrimsonRyu17]

Also the world in general could probably do with less people, but that is COMPLETELY off-topic.

Here comes Char.

But to stay on-topic, no, I am not and do not want to be considered an otaku evar. It's just plain creepy, man.

[ChristianKitsune]

Nope, lol.

Used to be... but then I realized.. I need money for things like food and stuff .

Sure I really like anime, but I guess I don't watch it as much as I used to.

[goldenspines]

I read a lot of manga and anime, but any otaku-ism I may have comes in spasms when I find an anime I really love (aka: a fangirl moment).

But when it comes to being a full-fledge otaku, I'd rather have a life instead and keep manga/anime just a hobby. XD;

[Cloud500]

I really just consider anime another interest. I don't watch it obsessively or on a regular basis(that depends some if there is a show out that I'm interested in). But I do pick up new volumes of a few manga series each month or so, but that's about it. I bought a DVD last week and that's the first one I've gotten in a while. Otaku generally don't seem to enjoy any entertainment genres other than anime, so I don't consider myself one.

[SailorDove]

J/k, But can one call herself an "otaku" if one can't pronounce the word?

I do have times when I get absorbed into Manga/Anime series. But my knowledge is far short from those who call themselves educated fans, let alone an otaku.

I may appear consumed by the genre to those unfamiliar with Anime/Manga, but I'd doubt they'd know enough to call me one, (an otaku).

[Yamamaya]

[quote="blkmage (post: 1348338)"]The difference is that those words mean more or less the same thing globally (although likely to different degrees) and they're generally not vilified.

Anyhow, being an otaku isn't something that I strive towards or would be proud of. Rather, I'm fairly indifferent to the whole thing, since it at least doesn't have the negativity attached to it here.

But, thinking about it, I'm pretty sure I'd fall into the realm of the Japanese definition of otaku: I'm following VOCALOID song production and anime MADs on Nico Nico Douga, I look forward to seeing what each Comiket brings, I'm following each season of anime pretty closely, I read a bunch of manga, visual novels, and light novels, I'm pretty familiar with and have opinions on seiyuu, directors, writers, and studios, and I talk to a bunch of other people online (beyond this forum) and read lengthy discussions and analysis about these things.

Oh well. ┐]

That's not entirely accurate about liberalism. The term liberal means something vastly different in other countries. For example, the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan is a relatively right wing political party.

Anyway, by those standards you would be far more of an otaku than I am. . I just find the term otaku much easier to use than anime fan. Anyone who knows me also knows I'm not some incredibly obsessed otaku who bathes himself with bootleg anime DVDs. In fact, I whine about high prices of anime and usually don't buy DVDs which is something an obsessed otaku would never do .

I simply use it as a term to declare that I love anime/manga. Take the magazine OtakuUSA for example. They dedicated an article to bashing moe fans and calling them unsocial dweebs.

Terms are used differently and possess a different meaning from place to place.

Also, to RadicalDreamer, I also don't really seek out new anime. Pretty much all of the animes I have watched have either been recommended to me or I happened to hear about them beforehand.

[chibiphonebooth]

No, for two reasons. Reason one is that I just don't keep up with anime anymore. I still enjoy it, but I don't seek it out 90% of the time; I let it find me. XDD

Reason two is stated above by several others. It's a fairly derogatory term, and I simply don't fit (nor do I want to fit XD) its definition. XD

this.

I rarely watch anime. I only really watch it if someone recommends something really good and it has rave reviews. XD or if it's by hayao miyazaki.
and i also don't really read manga that much anymore. except for Lovely complex. XD

[Yamamaya]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/worldtonight/2009/09/is_japan_a_dying_nation.html



[font="Book Antiqua"][color="Red"]Col. Roy Mustang[/color][/font]

Personally I think Japan's declining birth rate has more to do with Japanese men's immature views regarding sexuality(I've heard this is quite a problem).

Blaming a declining birthrate primarily on otakus is like blaming a declining birthrate in America on Star Wars geeks.

[airichan623]

I proudly call myself an American otaku- essentially, I am an obsessive anime fan. I am no recluse, but I don't exercise much. about 75% of what i say has a connotation in manga. I realize what otaku means in Japan, but to me it just means 'manga/anime loving uber-geek'. Heck, even my Japanese teacher (who is from Japan and told us otaku's there are more like American emos lol) said that I was a true otaku (i knew who Osamu Tezuka was). So yeah. Its easier to become an American otaku when you have to search to find other people who enjoy this stuff.

[Maokun]

I am a big fan, but I wouldn't stand to be called an otaku. In the latest years, thanks to the Internet, mindless and slobbering anime fans have managed to truly import all the meaning of the word to the point where we now have two additional derogatory words in the english language (weeaboo and japanophile.) I really want to set myself apart from such indivuals not to carry their stigma.

[Etoh*the*Greato]

[quote="blkmage (post: 1348338)"]A fairly good litmus test to see whether you might get called an otaku in Japan is reading Genshiken and seeing whether you get whatever they're talking about and whether you can see yourself with a bunch of those guys. After I read it, I was like, "Oh, those guys, they're so crazy... oh, wait, I understood every joke. （]

I actually had a small moment of horror while watching that show. "Wait... I know these guys. I've hung out with these guys! Towards Anime at least, though, I wouldn't call myself an otaku. The connotation thing's not a big deal. Yeah... It has had a bad connotation in Japan in the past, but I'm hearing that's cleared up. My reasoning is different, though. I simply don't follow Anime like I used to. If we're talking videogames, then yeah, I'd qualify. I follow industry news addictively, and can talk designers and studios comfortably in most instances.

[uc pseudonym]

I find out whether the people asking the question call themselves otaku or not, then I launch an outraged diatribe against their position.

Truthfully, I'm here to comment on the birth rate discussion. In an official capacity, let me point out that it is tangentially on topic in terms of whether or not otaku tendencies are a cause of it. Discussing that is perfectly fine, but let's not go too far off along those lines and I could also see how that could become political.

I disagree with Robin Lustig, but I'm sure he was just offering a simple observation, not trying to make a statistical point. However, I do think it's a bit short-sighted to discuss the problem as if it's mostly about men. It strikes me as far more likely that declining birth rates are more influenced by women's attitudes. I would think that modernization and other large societal shifts have a greater impact on cultures than the influence of anime and manga. Japan wouldn't be the first country to have increasing numbers of women decide not to marry because for the first time they have other social options that many find more appealing than a traditional role.

[blkmage]

And since there's so much knee-jerk reaction to the term, here is where I turn around and play devil's advocate.

It doesn't seem like many of you want to be considered otaku. That's alright, since the question is whether you consider yourself one. But, are you sure that you wouldn't get called one if you were in Japan?

I read a fairly interesting blog post a few weeks ago about a guy who was in Japan for some length of time. In it, he mentions how manga and anime aren't exactly considered to be a pair like we do. Over there, manga is far more ubiquitous and mainstream than anime is. His empirical evidence was that while a lot of the people he talked with were familiar with various manga series, they were surprised at his knowledge of what shows were airing at the time.

Yes, otaku has negative connotations, but those don't define what that word means. It's kind of like saying someone plays WoW. The definition of a WoW player is someone who plays WoW, not how they play it. But, playing WoW has negative connotations. I played WoW and was even into hardcore raiding (three nights a week for four hours + time for grinding and farming for mats for consumables), but I still managed to do school, go to work, hang out with friends, and quit without feeling like I went off a drug.

If you're reading Bleach, One Piece, and Naruto, you might not quite fall into the proper definition of an otaku. If you play doujin games or build model kits, you might be closer to being an otaku than you might have thought. If you just watch FMA each week, you might not fall into the definition either. If you're watching shows because of the director, studio, or cast, you might qualify. If you can hold your own in Gundam shiritori, well...

See, I talk with a bunch of anime bloggers who are fairly articulate in their analysis of anime and manga. We're talking lengthy essays about tragedy in Key works, episodic analysis for Darker than BLACK, or comparisons of dialogue between a mecha show and a supernatural comedy. These people would likely be called otaku (because of their depth of knowledge about these things), but they've got jobs or go to school and spend time with family and friends.

One last thing: otaku isn't a monolithic group. Some people really like mecha. Some people really like moe. Some people really like Touhou.

One final analogy: gamer.

[Etoh*the*Greato]

Gamer I'll accept. Even with the frumpy connotations that I attempt to combat when I encounter them. But if we're talking strictly the american useage of the term I don't consider myself an otaku. I watch anime on occasion these days, but I don't follow it nearly as hard as I did when I was younger. Gamer yes, Otaku (hardcore fan of anime) no.

Now, let's resume discussion on the japanese term. Yes, by their standards I would easily fall in to the stereotype of the gaming otaku. I know much about the subject, follow the news every opportunity I get, talk about it frequently and, yes, I'm slightly overweight . On those terms I'll take the name. I can't do anything but accept it. The shoe fits well.