To understand why a comic character was appointed the cultural ambassador of Japan for the promotion of the countrys images overseas (HIH, 2008), sociologically, the perspectives of functionalism and symbolic interactionism will be employed in the
For a long time the robotic cat Doraemon has been one of the most favorite comics for children, not only in Japan but also all over the world. Gradually, Doraemon has become a phenomenon and icon of Japanese society. To understand why a comic character was appointed the cultural ambassador of Japan for the promotion of the country’s images overseas (HIH, 2008), sociologically, the perspectives of functionalism and symbolic interactionism will be employed in the cultural analysis of this paper.
The functionalism perspective expresses culture as a tool for individuals in the society to meet their needs through the basis of shared norms and values. In this regard, the popularity of Doraemon comes from its simple but lively brush strokes, presenting a lovely and children-friendly robotic cat with his four-dimensional pocket for the purpose of meeting knowledge needs through transferring the underneath moral lessons of love, courage, resiliency and environment protection awareness for both children and elders. Over such a basis, it strongly binds the community through different benefits to various social orders. Children are satisfied with a source of entertainment, a platform for their creativity and a subtle way of learning, while adults have a chance recall their childhood and contemplate the once simple lessons. Doraemon, in a functionalist’s view, has excellently fulfilled its role in the enhancement of social solidarity and contribute to the uniqueness of Japanese society. As globalization incorporates many of Japanese subcultures into world regions, social interactions generated from this robotic cat escalate to an international scale where children, despite demographic and cultural differences, can understand the same language when it comes to the Doraemon topics.
