Although every artist has a different style of drawing anime and manga characters, there are a few features common to them across all genres. The most distinguishing feature of them all is the enormous eyes of almost every character. It's a controversial topic among anime and manga fans that the characters often have unusually huge eyes, some even half the size of their faces. Although it makes the characters look distinctive, one cannot deny that unusually large eyes make human faces look less natural.
There are several reasons behind the big eyes in anime and manga characters. The trend started back in the mid-20th century and later became the norm. There is also some symbolism behind this since it's said that people cannot hide their true feelings from showing in their eyes, and huge eyes are often used as a means to make characters seem more expressive. Here's a look at why enormous eyes are so common in anime and manga.
The History and Western Influence Behind the Trend of Large Eyes
Osamu Tezuka was a famous Japanese anime and manga author during the 20th century. Often referred to as the "God of Manga," Tezuka is the pioneer of modern manga and anime. He was heavily influenced by Disney, and these inspirations are reflected in his works. His main influences were characters with big eyes, such as Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse and Betty Boop.
In all these cases, the large eyes were drawn simply to exaggerate the facial expressions. Tezuka designed his characters in a very specific way, all of which had the same kind of eyes. Later, because of his influence, other artists started drawing their characters in such a way, and this soon became a trend. Now, almost every series features characters with huge eyes.
The Symbolism Behind Big Anime Eyes
There is also symbolic meaning behind big anime eyes. In western parts of the world, eyes are known to be the "windows to the soul." In other words, the eyes are thought to immediately reflect a person's emotions, fears and deepest selves. Larger eyes in anime make it easier to depict emotion more accurately, making characters more relatable. The position of the eyes, the shapes and colors of the pupils and iris, and their gradations allow animators and designers to portray a character's entire personality and story with just the face. It is difficult for artists to create a story using only basic facial features, and because anime and manga are mediums of storytelling that use art as a medium, the artists have to condense the human features into simpler drawings. Therefore, it's easier to portray multiple characters with the simplicity of using large eye shapes.
Jun’ichi Nakahara's Traditional Japanese Art
Traditional Japanese aesthetics value the artist's ability to make the viewers realistically feel stronger emotions. Apart from Tezuka, there's one more person who introduced characters with large eyes. Jun’ichi Nakahara was a Japanese graphic artist and fashion designer who became popular when his work appeared in the magazine Shojo no Tomo. He pioneered the shojo manga characters that are distinguished by their thick lashes, big irises and pure white reflections. According to Nozomi Masuda's book International Perspectives on Shojo and Shojo Manga: The Influence of Girl Culture, Nakahara "greatly developed the eyes of shojo manga characters," thus further helping to popularize today's now well-known convention of large-eyed manga and anime characters.
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