Magic in the East, Magic in the West
I was going through some Book of the Shadows information over the long weekend, and I rediscovered a topic I spent some time thinking on back early on in writing the original. Magic is treated very differently in the East and West when it comes to age.
Now, obviously when I refer to East and West I am referring to geographical understanding, as in eastern society (Asia) and western society (Europe and the U.S). What I am talking about when I speak of age is the age of those who use magic in stories.
At the moment magic is very much of two very different worlds depending on the place of origin of the works. If it is western based, anyone who can use magic is likely old, very old. If they're "good" or indifferent/neutral, they're usually male. If they're "evil" then they're almost always a witch, female.
To the extent to which western media uses the characters of magic users, the best, greatest, most powerful, are usually wizened old-timers who have reached their advanced age through the help of their magic and have dedicated long hours, days, years, to research and study. They usually did not realize their powers until they were in their teens, and did not gain true power until many years later. To the extent to which the individual story of the character deviates from this rubric, the chances of them being somehow evil increases. If they were a prodigy and had great power, or gained their power early on, they were likely corrupted by it and turned to a side of darkness.
Most often nowadays, however, magic in western media, save a rare example of a Harry Potter, is resigned to the more "traditional" roots in western society, which is the view of it as a power borrowed from demons, most often employed by women for reasons of greed or vanity, which usually leads to self-destruction.
In eastern society, and here I do mainly mean Japan, magic is almost the exact opposite. In fact, while western examples imply that a magician will attain greater power simply by growing older and experiencing the world, in eastern media magic users don't have that luxury. A magic user in eastern media is usually a child, almost always female, and is usually hamstrung by the fact that they'll lose their powers once they get too old, usually around 18 or relatively soon after. Forget being wizened and old, most examples of magicians in eastern media nowadays never make it out of puberty as magicians. as opposed to the western view of magic power coming with age, eastern media takes the tact that magic power goes hand-in-hand with youth and vitality. In other words, the teenage years are often when a person is at the peak of their vitality in both body and mind, having both youthful vigor and imaginations not overly limited by the cage of adulthood.
But there is nuance to this. For one, what defines a character as a "magician" can be a matter of interpretation and application. While just about any supernatural phenomenon is considered the work of magic in western media, in eastern media that isn't the case. For example, Superman, or any superhero for that matter, would not be considered a magic user in western media at all. Save the super sentai shows of Japan, in eastern media an original (new) Superman would likely either be a deity of some form, gaining assistance from a deity of some form, or using magic.
Therein lies the crux of the difference; in eastern theology there are many deities each capable, and sometimes willful, of lending divine assistance to a person, granting them power, but also that the person themselves can contain great power to accomplish feats of magic. In western society, god and his angels are not so willful in offering humanity power, leaving only demons to grant power. But as demons are all evil beings, those who seek power from demons must either too be evil, or easily controlled by demons. Rare is it the case that one simply has magical power in western media. Science is often added to the mix to offer some explanation as to why a person may have supernatural abilities. Or else the individual is blessed by god, and their "magic" is limited in scope and ability, considered a miracle expressed by god through them, not of their own power.
Why is this important enough for me to spend time talking about it here? It's simply a reality that an author has to take into account when writing their story; what background will my audience approach this from? When I started writing Book of the Shadows, I thought about this dichotomy between magic in eastern media and magic in western media. As a fan-fiction of eastern media it made sense that the most receptive audience would come from a background of eastern media, either having themselves grown up in Asian culture, or just being a fan of anime and manga. However, some of the tenets of western media do hold water with me as I am one who grew up in western society.
So I tried to implement some of the factors of western magic as well. I have the Rosencraft engage in their own debates within themselves as to where their powers come from and what that means. I forged, through the mechanism of their immortality, a way for them to be aged like the western sages while retaining the varnish of youth by having ceased to age. I uphold the idea that magic is like any skill one learns and must be polished and refined, something that can only occur with age and time. But I also maintain that it is something that one can simply "have" and therefore there is a floor through which minimal attention ensures a continued capability. That is the nature of magic in the Book of the Shadows, a blend not unlike the anime and manga stories that form the series itself.
Now, obviously when I refer to East and West I am referring to geographical understanding, as in eastern society (Asia) and western society (Europe and the U.S). What I am talking about when I speak of age is the age of those who use magic in stories.
At the moment magic is very much of two very different worlds depending on the place of origin of the works. If it is western based, anyone who can use magic is likely old, very old. If they're "good" or indifferent/neutral, they're usually male. If they're "evil" then they're almost always a witch, female.
To the extent to which western media uses the characters of magic users, the best, greatest, most powerful, are usually wizened old-timers who have reached their advanced age through the help of their magic and have dedicated long hours, days, years, to research and study. They usually did not realize their powers until they were in their teens, and did not gain true power until many years later. To the extent to which the individual story of the character deviates from this rubric, the chances of them being somehow evil increases. If they were a prodigy and had great power, or gained their power early on, they were likely corrupted by it and turned to a side of darkness.
Most often nowadays, however, magic in western media, save a rare example of a Harry Potter, is resigned to the more "traditional" roots in western society, which is the view of it as a power borrowed from demons, most often employed by women for reasons of greed or vanity, which usually leads to self-destruction.
In eastern society, and here I do mainly mean Japan, magic is almost the exact opposite. In fact, while western examples imply that a magician will attain greater power simply by growing older and experiencing the world, in eastern media magic users don't have that luxury. A magic user in eastern media is usually a child, almost always female, and is usually hamstrung by the fact that they'll lose their powers once they get too old, usually around 18 or relatively soon after. Forget being wizened and old, most examples of magicians in eastern media nowadays never make it out of puberty as magicians. as opposed to the western view of magic power coming with age, eastern media takes the tact that magic power goes hand-in-hand with youth and vitality. In other words, the teenage years are often when a person is at the peak of their vitality in both body and mind, having both youthful vigor and imaginations not overly limited by the cage of adulthood.
But there is nuance to this. For one, what defines a character as a "magician" can be a matter of interpretation and application. While just about any supernatural phenomenon is considered the work of magic in western media, in eastern media that isn't the case. For example, Superman, or any superhero for that matter, would not be considered a magic user in western media at all. Save the super sentai shows of Japan, in eastern media an original (new) Superman would likely either be a deity of some form, gaining assistance from a deity of some form, or using magic.
Therein lies the crux of the difference; in eastern theology there are many deities each capable, and sometimes willful, of lending divine assistance to a person, granting them power, but also that the person themselves can contain great power to accomplish feats of magic. In western society, god and his angels are not so willful in offering humanity power, leaving only demons to grant power. But as demons are all evil beings, those who seek power from demons must either too be evil, or easily controlled by demons. Rare is it the case that one simply has magical power in western media. Science is often added to the mix to offer some explanation as to why a person may have supernatural abilities. Or else the individual is blessed by god, and their "magic" is limited in scope and ability, considered a miracle expressed by god through them, not of their own power.
Why is this important enough for me to spend time talking about it here? It's simply a reality that an author has to take into account when writing their story; what background will my audience approach this from? When I started writing Book of the Shadows, I thought about this dichotomy between magic in eastern media and magic in western media. As a fan-fiction of eastern media it made sense that the most receptive audience would come from a background of eastern media, either having themselves grown up in Asian culture, or just being a fan of anime and manga. However, some of the tenets of western media do hold water with me as I am one who grew up in western society.
So I tried to implement some of the factors of western magic as well. I have the Rosencraft engage in their own debates within themselves as to where their powers come from and what that means. I forged, through the mechanism of their immortality, a way for them to be aged like the western sages while retaining the varnish of youth by having ceased to age. I uphold the idea that magic is like any skill one learns and must be polished and refined, something that can only occur with age and time. But I also maintain that it is something that one can simply "have" and therefore there is a floor through which minimal attention ensures a continued capability. That is the nature of magic in the Book of the Shadows, a blend not unlike the anime and manga stories that form the series itself.
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