THE QUEST FOR PERPETUAL PEACE IN NARUTO: SHIPPÛDEN 119-134

Abstract

The aim of the following paper is to offer an interpretation for the anime Naruto: Shippûden. I will argue that the main philosophical idea of the series is the search of a sustainable project of bringing about and maintaining peace. There are several failed projects of it, and one feasible – namely Naruto’s. The first, that are characteristic mainly to anime villains, are grounded on asymmetric relation, and inevitability of war, that makes them similar to dictatorships. The viable one is based on the idea of acknowledgement, that itself relies on the sameness, togetherness that are opened up by the acknowledgement of pain. The central above-mentioned concept can be seen in the light of Hegel’s movement of recognition. In this regard, I will argue that among similarities, the movement of acknowledgment, unlike that of recognition, doesn’t involve the dialectic of asymmetrical relation.