This is my entry for the Halloween Jam. :] <3
"Kagome!" Inuyasha whined. "What the hell am I doing here?"
He plodded moodily along with Kagome and Sota, his Halloween bucket thudded against his leg. His usually hidden...
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I think many of us are already associated or aware of the whole Darfur Mass Genocide situation going on right now. If you're going "Is Darfur an animal?" I'll give a quick little mini lesson. Right now, in Darfur [a region in Southern Africa] a mass genocide is occuring. Genocide is pretty much when people kill you for what you are [ethnicity wise, religon wise etc..] So basically, it's like a gang war, except it's lasted for a few years already, and more than 500,000 people are already dead.
Okay, so I'm a student activist against this issue & I'm just constantly keeping in touch with the Save Darfur Coalition and stuff like that. Well the other day, I was watching an Inuyasha episode. It was the one where Inuyasha cut off Sesshomaru's arm (
) and a jolt just hit through me. Inuyasha & Sesshomaru are pretty much practicing genocide; or attempting to at least, since neither one of them had died by the hand of the other one.
THINK ABOUT IT.
They're constantly trying to kill each other. They're brothers, are they not? (Yes they are!) But Sesshomaru is just nauseated by the fact that Inuyasha is a half breed. Well in Darfur, the Sunni Muslims are disgusted that some people are like Shiite Muslim. So bam bam kill each other. They're no longer a nuisance. This sounds ALOT like Inuyasha + Sesshomaru's loving brotherly relationship with each other.
I know a few friends who find it amusing that Inuyasha and Sesshomaru are always fighting. Does that mean we find real life genocide amusing? Believe it or not, I know a few guys who do. They think its 'darn freaking hilarious' that people over in Africa are killing each other and that they're at war with their own people. How is it funny? How is it funny that everyday, an innocent life is being ruthlessley ripped from their grasps? I think it's NOT funny. Entertainment like Inuyasha is one thing. But killing is not a funny thing. And I'm sorry, but if you think killing is 'darn freaking hilarious' learn to grow up. Seperate Inuyasha from the real world. Killing in an anime is different. Those people aren't really DYING. They kinda die in your heart. But the people over in Darfur (and all over the world) are being killed--for real. And let me tell you one thing; the deaths are not quick and painless.
So learn how to seperate fantasy from reality. Some things are just not worth having a great laugh over.
Good: "Hey did you see Naraku whupping Inuyasha's ass last night? It was hilarious!"
Bad: "Hey did you hear how a bunch of school girls in Darfur got burned alive in a church? IT was AWESOME." [this is a true story.]
I'm sorry if this essay seems graphic, but it's real. You learn so much more from it than fairytales. (Even though I like fairytales.)
Inuyasha is an anime I'm sure many of you members are associated with. I'm sure we've laughed, cried, and cursed at the television during at least one point in the series. I would be lying if I said I didn't. But as I further delved into the series, a question started to form into my mind, and now, I'm taking the time to share my thoughts with all you cool people.
So you see Kagome in the feudal times in 99.9% of the episodes. As she further distanced herself from her family, I started to wonder why she'd want to leave them in the first place. I mean sure, it's fun and all to be out and about with Inuyasha and the gang, but did Kagome realize that while she was becoming closer with her Feudal Family, her family back in modern times was going on in their lives without her? Was she sad or upset that she had left her family & friends behind?
Now this begs the question: Was something missing in Kagome's life? (I'm not talking about her love interest with Inuyasha!!) She has a warm and loving family. She's a good student. She's POPULAR. (what we all want) Everybody wants this type of life (almost everybody at least.) So why does she feel the need to leave this perfect life of hers, to go into the Fedual times and pretty much, almost die in every single episode? I mean, c'mon, if she got a dollar for every time she almost died in that series, she'd be filthy rich. Do you agree with me or not?
It's called the need to be needed. At the beginning of the Inuyasha, I thought of Kagome as the strong heroine, courageous and the perfect role model for all females out there. As the series continued, I started seeing her as a vulnerable and sad human being. (Don't flame me! I'm a fan of Kagome, don't flame me!!) You see her get in these deadly battles everyday, and only THEN is she genuinely happy. She may yell, "Inuyasha, I'm sick and tired of you, I'm going home!" But she always comes back. But why? Did you ever notice that the producers/writers never go into deep detail of Kagome's life? I mean, sure, we know she's popular yada yada. . . But how strong is she emotionally? How do we know that Kagome doesn't harbor some dark feelings inside her heart and the only way she can feel happy is by feeling needed? With Inuyasha & Co. she can feel special and needed. And I don't disagree--Kagome is a very special individual.
And you're probably wondering what the point is of this seemingly random essay. . . (cause that's what I'M wondering. JK, please don't take that seriously. I know what I'm talking about. . . I do!)
Never assume from one glance that a person's life is perfect. There is always more to somebody than meets the eye. So when you want to diss somebody just because of their social status or whatever, always remember that what they are on the surface and what they are underneath are two totally different things.
Wow. I managed to combine an anime and a moral lesson into an essay. Yay. (Yeahh. I'm with the 'nerds') 
