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Influences on Utena
I'm sorry these notes are a bit outdated, I plan to update them with a comparison to Brother Dear Brother (which Ikuhara
was probably more influenced by than Rose of Versailles) and his theater influences.
The first work themes were borrowed from was the shoujo
manga/anime Rose of Versailles. This story was set before and during
the French Revolution, and concerned a young woman named Oscar
who her father raised as a boy, and when grown entered the guard
service of Queen Marie Antoinette.
In Shoujo Kakumei Utena, the duelists' uniforms (especially Utena and
Akio's) look very much based on the 18th century French military
uniforms. The architecture of Ohtori Academy also has a European feel
to it. Thirdly, the revolution theme is present in both, though in Utena, the revolution is a
personal one (or several peronal ones) rather than political, while in RofV the revolutions are both personal and political. Another
borrowed motif includes the constant use of rose symbolism. In Utena, the rose is a symbol of the prince and the attainment of becoming a prince (and each color is tailored to the duelist who
wears it). In RofV the rose is a symbol of womanhood, and the colors become specific to an individual or theme: red to passion, the revolution, and Antoinette, white to purity of ideals and to
Oscar and what she stands for to those around her. Other commonalities include
swordplay, French phrases (the names of the duels in ep. 13 for
example), and the masculine heroine who represents the ideals at the heart of the series. Notice that the white rose is the rose of the prince in Utena (and the rose Utena duels by) and
the rose for Oscar, the heroine who transcends gender bounds.
A side note on the uniforms: They are a metaphor for a prince, or one
who has the ability to become princelike. Literally, Dios is a prince.
Utena is on a personal journey to become one, and takes on the role of
Anthy's protector. Each council member could become princelike,
once they are able to put selfish agendas aside. And for Nanami, it
symbolizes her own personal transformation. When her brother is
injured, she feels she must look after him, and takes over as head of the
student council, as his proxy. When she does so, she no longer wears a
girl's uniform, but the uniform of a council member, a would be prince.
Once her role is completed, and she no longer feels she must watch
over him, she changes back to her old girl's outfit.
The second influential source is the novel Demian by Hermann Hesse.
Both are very much coming of age stories, and share a Jungian
influence. The idea of Abraxas comes from this book, Dios and Akio's
model, as does the student council's speech: "The bird fights its way
out of the egg. The egg is the world. Who would be born must first
destroy a world. The bird flies to God. That God's name is Abraxas"
Hesse, 78).