Public Lecture and Reception

Dr. Laura Miller
Ei’ichi Shibusawa-Seigo Arai Endowed Professor of Japanese Studies & Professor of History
Japan’s cute aesthetic spread beyond the expected domains of girl culture into politics, conduct literature, history textbooks, and elsewhere. Kawaii goes beyond the saccharine, encompassing the weird or disturbing. Cute serves legitimate and important social and cultural functions--It is a clever way to do the work of informing us, admonishing us, and convincing us. Dr. Miller will survey the history of kawaii and a spectrum of cute imagery found in diverse cultural domains, emphasizing the critical role of this aesthetic in contemporary society.