Canaan – Symbolism in Style
Posted by 0rion on August 23rd, 2009 - 10:00 pm
I’m mildly surprised that CANAAN seems to have received a fairly mixed reception so far. It’s one of my favorite shows this season, not only for its gorgeous art and memorable characters, but also because of the strong emphasis on symbolism and metaphor used to portray the deeper elements of the story.
That said, CANAAN is not without its flaws, but I view as a similar kind of story to Darker than Black. It’s not necessarily about the world and the larger plot. It’s not about realism. It’s about creating an environment to develop interesting characters and to explore their personalities, motivations, and relationships.
I’ve often said that I hate being mollycoddled by a story. There are entirely too many writers that feel it necessary to beat you over the head with the script rather than allow you to engage with it at your own pace. I much prefer a story that leaves itself somewhat mysterious, that requires the viewer or reader to dig a little below the surface.
CANAAN certainly provides that in spades. While a lot of it may not have any particularly deep meaning, it’s pretty clear that the story is using several key metaphors to portray the relationships between the characters and to foreshadow elements of the overarching plot.
The name of show, as well its titular character, Canaan, is of course the first and most obvious piece of symbolism woven into the fabric of the storyline. In the Bible, Canaan is referred to as the “promised land” that the chosen people were led to. In an interesting twist, however, the promised land was not something they were simply given. It was something they had to earn by conquering. Although it’s been hinted at somewhat, ultimately we’ll have to wait and see how the writers develop the theme of the promised land deeper into the story.
It’s also interesting to note that, although the etymology of the word “Canaan” is unclear, according to some scholars it was derived from an ancient word meaning “purple”. Although a bit obscure, it’s possible there’s some intentional symbolism there which might tie back into the synesthesia theme.
Alphard’s name, on the other hand, is much easier to understand. From the corresponding Wikipedia article:
“Alphard is the brightest star in the constellation Hydra, marking the heart of the snake.
Alphard is an orange giant star. The name Alphard is from the Arabic الفرد (al-fard), ‘the solitary one’, there being no other bright stars near it.”
Having thrown away her previous name, she’s taken on a new moniker representative of her role – “the heart of the snake”. It’s also interesting that the name of the star comes from Arabic and is a “solitary” star, both of which are fitting to her background. Again, the symbolism might not have any deep significance in the story, but it is fun to note these connections.
The conversation between Maria and Mino on the airplane is what really sets the stage for a lot of the more significant philosophical ideas that come up throughout the series. Maria describes her passion for photography by saying:
“I believe that there are many things in this world that no one has seen yet.
“Actually, if you truly want to see something, really there isn’t anything you can’t see. We’re simply closing our eyes on purpose. If we really opened our eyes and looked, it would be too painful, to sorrowful. That’s why we keep our eyes closed.
“I believe photography is like borrowing someone else’s eyes. Even if your own eyes are closed, you can still borrow another’s.”
This concept of choosing to either see the ugly truth for what it is, or to pretend it isn’t there is a persistent theme throughout Canaan.
Beyond that, however, it’s a significant issue in many Eastern cultures as well, and one that probably resonates much more powerfully with a Japanese audience than a Western one. 2DT points out that, while the plot and setting of the show aim to have a strong international feel, they are still strongly rooted in Japanese culture and history.
In many Asian countries, and in Japan in particular, the concept of a shame based culture combines with a strong desire for outward harmony. This conditions people to overlook things that may be unpleasant, or to outwardly ignore them in order to preserve harmony and prevent shame. Those familiar with Japanese culture may be familiar with this through the dual concepts of honne and tatemae, or inner feelings vs. the outward “face”.
Many times in Japan I’ve seen someone trip and fall, and everyone around them doesn’t so much as glance their way. If you attempt to help them or ask if they are ok, in fact, they are likely to become even more embarrassed and might even refuse to acknowledge your help.
The reason is because by refusing to acknowledge what happened, they can avoid the shame and loss of face that accompanies a negative event. If no one acknowledges it, then it never happened, and thus there is no need to feel ashamed.
This kind of cultural concept, sometimes referred to as “nakatta koto ni suru” or “making it as though it never was”, is often seen even on very large scales, such as in the Japanese business world where it helps to preserve harmony between different groups or organizations when mistakes are made or conflicts arise.
That said, although these concepts are largely considered positive and necessary, it is recognized that they present certain other societal problems. The story of CANAAN, in many ways, is a story about that dichotomy of whether it is better to look at the truth and acknowledge it for what it is, or to pretend it doesn’t exist because recognizing its existence is too painful.
As Mino watches the gun battle in the first episode and the reaction of the crowd as he asks:
“Do they think that it’s part of the festival? No… the truth is placed right before their eyes, but they purposefully choose to ignore it.”
The camera then pans down to focus on Mino’s camera. He lifts the camera, his third eye, to see and capture the truth. He refuses to turn away or to hide from reality.
The idea of the camera as a sort of “third eye” that allows you to see a different perspective is a great analogy because it really is true. As an avid photographer myself, I’ve often thought of the camera in exactly this manner.
In the direct sense, a camera lens and sensor (or film) functions quite differently than the human eye. A camera literally can capture a view of reality that is impossible for the human eye to see. With careful thought as to lens, shutter speed, aperture, ISO, framing of the shot, color, light, subject, and a host of other variables – the camera has myriad ways to capture in time a unique moment and perspective on the world. In the indirect sense, through mass reproduction the view seen by the camera can be transmitted around the globe and can confront people across the world with images of a reality they may not want to see.
Maria’s passion for photography is really the same as the passion all artists share. It’s the desire to capture a unique perspective of the world we live in, and to tell a story or present an idea through that medium.
OK, camera geek rant over.
In any case, it’s pretty clear that Maria has some kind of hidden past that ties into all of the larger plot. The fact that Alphard knows her and calls her a “deceiver” makes that apparent, as does the imagery from episode 2 depicting her “getting freaky with a huge snake”, as Kabitzin so delicately put it.
Whether her almost child-like naïveté is a result of the memory loss she appears to be suffering from, or whether she is willfully hiding from the truth of her past remains to be seen.
The other significant allegories that the series presents are the cat’s cradle string, or shiritori, and the stuffed cat given to Maria by Canaan. The cat’s cradle represents their relationship in the past, a pure, carefree friendship as “normal girls”. The white stuffed cat I believe represents their current relationship, and all of the complications it endures. Both symbols are used liberally throughout the progression of the story to help clarify the relationship between the two.
We first see the white cat during the opening scenes of the first episode, when Yun Yun pulls it out only to discover that it has what looks like a bullet hole in it. Presumably it was shot through by Canaan, since she comes by later and claims that she “won” it.
Although damaged, the white cat has a certain purity, as it is without color to both Canaan and Maria. Maria is able to use the cat’s cradle string to mend the hole in the heart of the white cat, a hint that it was probably her relationship with Canaan that helped to serve as a healing influence to mend the wounds of the past, and to prevent the both from succumbing to hatred or fear.
Later, as Maria gets more and more caught up in Canaan’s world and the dangers it entails, her hotel room is attacked as a warning and the cat becomes covered in red, as though bloodstained.
In episode 3 this foreshadowing is realized when Maria is held hostage by the Borner. When Canaan shoots him right before her eyes, she is forced to face the reality of who Canaan is, as well as who she is. Previously Maria had tried to close her eyes to that truth, but ultimately the reality placed before her was so obvious that she could no longer hide from it.
Although she struggles with it, in the end she is able to see and accept reality for what it is, and at the end of episode 5 we see her holding the red cat in her arms as she falls asleep with a smile on her face.
Another interesting bit of symbolism is the difference between the shiritori Maria uses and the one we see Canaan use in episode 3. Maria’s cat’s cradle is yarn, gentle but easily broken. To even maintain its shape requires someone to hold it up, to constantly support its form. As soon as it is let go, it returns to being merely a string.
Canaan’s, on the other hand, is made of metal. It is much stronger, a tower capable of standing on it own – but not without leaving some scars in the process.
It also shows up that Canaan is freaking badass. And that she will probably need a good dentist down the road, assuming she lives long enough.
Also, although I don’t know that there’s necessarily any great symbolism related to Yun Yun and her hairstyle, I should note that they do look like they’d make for great handlebars.
Synesthesia itself is a pretty fascinating topic, and as a sort of superpower it becomes even more interesting. As a mild synesthete myself, not only does it give me hopes for latent supernatural skills, it also makes me want to post about it. I didn’t really cover synesthesia at all in this article primarily for that reason. I’m hoping to do a separate post in the near future exploring some of those concepts more in depth.
Sorry, I know this is a pretty long and rambling post. I wish I could consolidate my thoughts on this series better, but when the show itself is still all over the place it’s hard to really draw all the different threads together. Hopefully it will at least serve as some good food for thought, and give a better appreciation for some of the more subtle aspects of CANAAN.
Meh, this was probably one of the most difficult to write posts I’ve ever done. I usually prefer to stick with talking about things like Lucky Star or Saki and leave all the heavy literary lifting to Guff.
With him off in Japan, though, it’s fallen on me to try to write the serious stuff. I apologize that this is rather unpolished, as this kind of thing really isn’t my forte.
orz
I like the hints about Maria’s past and deception (according to Alphard). In spite of Maria’s bravado and her camera talk, she is ignoring recent history in choosing to “forget” a small chunk of her past. So Maria herself is quite the sugoi contradiction, which makes everyone want to tie her up and kick her like a pinata.
Also, Maria didn’t fix the cat’s heart. If I recall correctly, Canaan placed a boomheadshot on that cat, so technically Maria did a little brain surgery.
Last link returns a 404 btw =(.
Interesting thoughts. Particularly the camera stuff, which I know nothing about. You ought not worry about rambling, but this: “The story of CANAAN, in many ways, is a story about that dichotomy of whether it is better to look at the truth and acknowledge it for what it is, or to pretend it doesn’t exist because recognizing its existence is too painful.” For what it’s worth, this felt like the heart of what you were getting at.
Thanks for the write-up on the symbolism which I hadn’t picked up on. I’m still enjoying the show but mainly for the entertainment that comes from the action scenes and, as Kabitzin so delicately put it, the goofy yuri subtext. I always enjoy the international politics angle but unless it somehow all finally adds up (like in the final ep of GITS:SAC 2nd Gig), I continue to be more amused by the Engrish and LOVE AND PEACE.
@ Kabitzin
I don’t know about the kicking like a piñata part, but I can certainly agree with the tying up.
And as for stuffed animal anatomy, the thing is sufficiently spherical that it’s hard to really argue whether a specific region counts as head or heart, but I’m pretty sure in this case Canaan nailed both with the one shot. =P
@DT
I agree that that is essentially the crux of my rant, if we can suppose that rants even have cruxes to begin with.
Yeah, as a big photography fan I really geeked out on Maria’s speech in the beginning. It’s probably half the reason why I still really like her character even though she uses a terrible camera.
Zyl
Glad it was at least interesting, if perhaps not particularly educational.
I definitely enjoy the more subtle thematic elements the story is building, but you’re right that the best enjoyment is the ridiculousness of so much of the story. LOVE ANDO PEACE-U~!
I really like the thoughts in here.
I wonder that you didn’t mention the portrayals of age in the show. Besides the comment on Canaan’s age and her obvious youth, there was at least once that Maria’s youth is commented on – the reference that her body looks really young. I feel that with Maria, Canaan, and Alphard’s characters we’re seeing how different levels of maturity, innocence, and disillusionment interact with each other and affect that symbolic third eye and the way each character approaches the world. We see this in the cat’s cradle that you mentioned and the stuffed animal, but also in Alphard’s cool and detached manner in handling everything. Even Yun Yun’s vivacity and Liang Ji’s obsession with Alphard (and childish avatar when addressing the hostages) demonstrate all the variations of these young girls’ perspectives on the world.
In fact, I’d even go so far as to say that Yun Yun is the most successful in combining hard realism with optimism in a generally successful and realistic manner, leaving a somewhat cowardly, but largely empathetic character. Especially with her determined outlook on self-preservation (that other characters seem to lack) and adolescent obsession with her cup size.
All that to say that most of the characters seem to be symbolic of the different possible approaches to “that dichotomy of whether it is better to look at the truth and acknowledge it for what it is, or to pretend it doesn’t exist because recognizing its existence is too painful.”
One of the things that I look forward to most with this show is to see how each of these perspectives develop and/or change as the girls mature.
To be honest, all the stuff you mention here went completely over my head so thanks for pointing it out…with any luck I’ll appreciate the series more from now on.
Canaan has been animated beautifully – I remember true tears looked really nice too, so it seems we have a bit of a dark horse of a studio here. Other than that, it’s seemed clumsy and a bit of a blunt instrument in delivering its messages. Don’t get me wrong, I AM enjoying it, but only after dropping my expectations a peg or so. It seemed to be making out to be more mature than it actually was, or trying too hard in general.
Fortunately I managed to avoid talking myself into dropping it so the points here are duly noted.
Slacker and weary traveler Guff, reporting in for duty. Sorry about my recent absence; I’ve been traveling around Hokkaido for the past few days. All I have the energy to say right now is that 70 degree (Fahrenheit) weather is much more preferable to the abominable sweat-stained nightmare that was my lot whilst in Aichi-ken these past six weeks. At any rate, I’m visiting my friend Doug who is an ALT up here in ( 羽幌 )Haboro: a town with just enough rusticated charm and friendly folk for it be quiet and peaceful without feeling like a complete ghost town. It’s the sort of place you that would expect to see in something like 5cm per Second or perhaps Aria: Podunk Hokkaido Edition…although I’m fairly certain that that series never left the drawing room floor.
At any rate, as pathetically articulated as this may be, since we usually blog in tandem, it would be remiss of me to not mention some of my thoughts on CANAAN.
First off, spot on with the thoughts concerning the idea of denying reality by refusing to acknowledge the convicting evidence. The idea of accepting the real only through a proxy, in the case of Maria, her camera, is definitely a strong theme throughout the series thus far; interestingly enough, it can also be correlated to Canaan’s character in that while the shape of the cat’s cradle remains the same, the material is metal and only made malleable through force.
The idea being that Canaan must forcefully impose the false reality of a normal life upon her bloodied existence. Things like idle children games were forever torn from her life when her family was slaughtered and she was raised to be a merciless solider. Conversely, Maria cannot except the harshness of Canaan’s cruel nature, or perhaps better stated believes that by shifting her perspective (again through the camera lens) she can return Canaan to the innocence that was robbed from her traumatic past. However, as with “the land of Canaan itself,” the metaphor of a paradise is only obtained by slaughter, espionage, and conquest. (Yes the Old Testament is quite hardcore indeed…suitably enough for the titular character’s namesake)
The idea being that things like innocence can only be achieved by conquest or by turning a blind eye to the harshness of reality.
Secondly, another persistent theme with Canaan is color; without delving too much into the topic of synthesia, as this subject most assuredly warrants a more focused post, one of the most poignant moments in the series thus far was Canaan describing how she hated the color of the sun, which she sees as blue: the color of war. While it is interesting to note that warm colors seem to be reversed for Canaan perhaps the more intriguing observation would be that the heat from the light of the sun and the light of the human bodies, presumably something akin to infrared, makes a strong statement about the Canaan’s loss of contact with the world. Human warmth, particularly in western art, is always associated with notions of trust, friendship, and love. However, Canaan can only see the warmth of humans as a color of conflict, strife, and inevitable death. The light of human bodies is simply a target to be snuffed out without hesitation or remorse. However, her one friend Maria has a different color which perhaps may hold hope for the preservation of her shattered humanity. Maria’s color is separate from the blighted gaze of the sun and the violent hues of the enemies. Maria’s color and her presence keeps Canaan attached to the world, albeit through the bloodstained threads of a iron Cat’s Cradle.
Again folks, Orion especially, sorry about my inexcusable slacking. If I can offer anything else, I’d like to mention that trains are fun, but trains for 14 hours are quite possibly substantial evidence for purgatory’s existence. Not-Shinkansen is not fast. Sheesh…it’s almost 5 AM.
And with that I bid you all good day…morning…ermm night. Whatever.
-Guff out
The sheer size of this post and the comments so far means I will take a bit to read this, and knock out more of this when I am less tired, but I like what I’ve read so far, and I’m SO glad to see someone else who loves this show!!! All of the disappointed reactions are pissing me off!
Although, I have to ask, even you said it’s ‘not without it’s flaws.’ What are these so-called flaws? I honestly can’t find any!!!
[...] I mentioned in my more detailed Canaan post, the concept of synesthesia as a superpower is really a legitimately interesting concept. Of [...]
@ Harlequin Valentine
I actually didn’t really think of the “maturity” of the characters in that sense. It’s an interesting perspective, but given the fact that it’s not really referenced that much I have a hard time reading any real significance into it.
Yun Yun definitely is an awesome and surprisingly believable character, though, no doubt about that.
@ Martin
That’s interesting to hear you say that, as I’ve really enjoyed the approach that’s been taken with this series. Maybe I just have a penchant for this kind of quirky storytelling, because I seem to end up making the same arguments over and over defending shows like this.
Ultimately it’s about the characters, not the overarching plot, and I feel like too often people see a really intricately conceived plot, get caught up in it, and are then let down when they realize it’s not really what the show is about.
@ digitalboy
Glad to see a comment from someone who shares my enthusiasm!
As for the “flaws” – the series has some issues with pacing, and it also feels like it can’t make up its mind what kind of show it wants to be. It’s trying to blend some very serious realism with other elements that are clearly unrealistic. It tries to pull off serious drama, but switches gears to action / comedy quickly, leaving me a bit disoriented.
Ultimately it means that most people will choose to enjoy the show as just fun mindless action entertainment, and many of the deeper elements will get passed over, as you can see in the many responses to this post and others.
@Orion: You’re right in terms of maturity not being really symbolic, but I think it is an important theme of the show, at least for me as a female viewer of the show it is.
The issue here is that you don’t talk about something like that, you merely portray their youth in the actions and interaction with each other. I mean, Cat’s Cradle, the doll, the childish avatar, the bra stuffing, the ice cream eating, the jealous teen rage, the teen idol loving, the desire to be someone’s friend, the “let’s go play”…? Aside from Hakko and Alphard, the main female characters are so evidently adolescent in their mannerisms at times, yet so very adult at others that I felt a clear struggle in each of them in terms of how they handle the world and what they allow themselves to believe.
I thought what made the concept so clear was that they didn’t have to mention any of it, it just IS in who the characters are. In my opinion one of the best ways to portray a symbol and/or theme is to be able to do so without having to mention it in the first place.
Of course, after your response I realized this all may just be a female empathy/intuition nonsense that made each of the girls’ quirks seem symbolic of their level of maturity and particular world view. That’s been known to happen in the past.
In any case, what’s really important is that Canaan kicks ass. ^_^
I can see how things may be confusing, but I don’t think they are that way by accident. Personally I’ve never found it disorienting, perhaps because I marathoned the episodes up to 8 and when you do so, they flow into each-other so beautifully it’s hard to criticize. and I think the pacing is ~perfect~.
Canaan is an example of a show that I think you are meant to see it’s cards before you make assumptions. People seemed to assume after the first episode that this show would be all serious, but I don’t believe this was ever the show’s intent.
This is kindof underwhelming but I dont even know what to say to this except that I agree with all the symbolism you pointed out. I’m glad you pointed out so many things I probably wouldn’t have picked up on my own, regardless of the fact that I probably should have.
But i think the most important thing that needs to be said is, i love oosawa. My work is done here.
@ Harlequin Valentine
Well said! Now I see the point you’re making there, and that is a very interesting consideration I’ll have to keep in mind.
It’s noteworthy that the primary contrast, the older more mature Alphard, is cool as a cucumber throughout the show, not distracted by Liang Qi’s more petty concerns and undeterred in completing her objective.
@ digitalboy
Fair enough, but speaking as someone who occasionally rubs shoulders with a few Hollywood screenwriters and sees how their creative process works, the end result in CANAAN feels like it got through the initial brainstorming session, but then didn’t get much further refinement to tighten up the story threads and arrange the presentation of events.
I just feel that with a bit more thought it could re-order some of the scenes to avoid changing gears too rapidly, and change the way it foreshadows certain events to better present some of the story’s undercurrents.
When guys like Martin, real pros at story analysis and literary critique, watch a show and don’t catch the subtext, you have to wonder how the average Joe viewer would ever have a chance. And if the average viewer is missing all this carefully planned subtext, maybe it could have been better presented so it doesn’t go to waste.
@ J$
“Sugoi!”
Perhaps you are right, and Canaan is probably not a masterpiece in the grand scheme of cinema, and I was a little blinded just in that it is SOOOO much better than most shows in pacing and directing department. I also think that some of the things that are confusing about it are things that are very specific to the writer, Nasu, whose other works are full of far more ham-handed subtext and plots.
I have no idea who Martin is, by the way.
Ahh sorry. Martin is the gentleman that commented above, who operates an excellent blog of his own (which I highly recommend, btw).
[...] best Canaan posts are at Epic Win September 1st, 2009 | Tags: Action, Alphard, Canaan, episode 9, episodic, Hakko, Liang Qi, Maria, [...]
[...] Canaan – Symbolism in Style [...]