The influence of anime and Japan on Black popular cultures is well documented in recent literature. However, significantly less attention has been given to the opposite: the influence of Blackness and Black popular cultures on anime and Japan. This research project takes an African American studies approach to explore how Blackness is interpreted and re-interpreted for anime, with special attention given to the rise of hip-hop in Japan between 1990 and the early 2000s. The two anime examined for this study were Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water (1990) and Afro Samurai (2007). Using a combination of content analysis and literature reviews, I traced a path between older and newer interpretations of Blackness in Japan that are linked together by hip-hop. The study findings showed that choices in the character designs, lighting, camerawork, and plot structure of Nadia, especially in regard to the titular character, were largely influenced by colonialism and White-centric values. By contrast, after the rise of hip-hop in Japan in the 1990s, anime creators had a different lens to interpret what Blackness was when creating Afro for Afro Samurai. I concluded with a brief discussion of how these different representations demonstrated transculturalism as well as the present hybridization of Black and Japanese popular cultures.

I examine Trevor Noah's unique position as a comedian, highlighting his ability to challenge societal perspectives through humor. Noah's transnational identity allows him to connect with a global audience, and his humor often employs tragicomedy to present serious topics in a manner that makes difficult information more accessible. Through humor, Noah addresses critical issues such as feminism, immigration, and racism, and suggests that our problems with such issues often persist due to erroneous societal beliefs we manifest in language. His comedy reveals these beliefs, calls them into question, and then suggests unseen or ignored connections between diverse and divided people. Noah not only entertains but also informs, empowers, and unites his audience. For this examination, I use Richard Lanham’s “Rhetoric of Style,” as referenced in "A Sense of Humor for Civic Life: Toward a Strong Defense of Humor," by Jonathan Rossing, to argue that humor can draw our attention, destabilize our beliefs, and encourage critical insight. Rossing's question, “Does engagement with, appreciation of, and understanding of humor equip citizens with sensibilities needed to act responsibly and justly in the world?” is foundational for this inquiry into the role of humor in civic life and social critique. Also foundational is the essay, “Trevor Noah and the Contingent Politics of Racial Joking,” by Jennalee Donian and Nicholas Holms, which uses Critical Race Theory to show how Trevor Noah shapes, reshapes, and de-shapes societal norms.

This essay is an investigation in the field of aesthetics in philosophy, particularly regarding the underlying structures, functions, and the potential roles of bodily adornment and interior decoration in everyday life. Initial anecdotes are provided to highlight the subjective nature of this field in philosophy, and to set up topics that will be discussed in later parts of the paper. An analysis of what fits under the category of “adornment” will first be a detailed examination of work from philosophers Marilynn Johnson and Stephen Davies, in order to have a clear frame for the investigation. From this discussion, a review of Johnson’s reading of bodily adornment as systematically similar to Gricean philosophy of language will lead to a new reading of adornment through the lens of the philosophy of language and aesthetics of 20th Century philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein. Special attention will be placed on the concepts of “language games,” “meaning as use,” and the “private language argument”. The investigation then turns to how the outcomes thus far apply to created living spaces, addressing issues such as the balance between beautification and efficiency, personality imbued in living spaces, and the intersection between public and private aesthetic choices. Near the end, the essay touches on psychological aspects such as color theory and sensory perception drawing on cognitive science in an attempt to account for certain kinds of aesthetic choice making. Finally, the essay concludes with reflections on the topics addressed and questions for further research.