The Lolita Complex: - Scholarly Commons Home

I will return to analysing these connections between the Gothloli and
the Doll and explain my reasoning for these theories after the next section
and continuing on to the next chapter. But before examining potential
relationships between the loss of the childhood doll, trauma and
bereavement, reading into the psychological links between these aspects and
how they relate to one’s place in the world, it is important to discuss the role
that dolls play in historical Japan.
While the Doll is pertinent to and resonates with the Gothloli, it is
evident that a powerful relationship with ningyō is also traditionally Japanese.
According to Alan Scott Pate:
Ningyō have played a far more important role in Japanese culture than one might
initially imagine. From the dawn of Japanese history right down to the present day
ningyō have been woven into the very fabric of Japanese society serving a multitude
of roles from talismanic to onanistic, from high art to child’s play and nearly every
conceivable shade in between…. Ningyō represent a category of objects that goes
far beyond our limited concept of Doll. 51
This connection supports my opinion that the image of the Japanese Lolita,
while it is partially drawn aesthetically from Western design elements and
relates to a particular notion of Western Gothic, is loaded with meanings
that are also inherently Japanese and belies strong Japanese affinities and
influences.
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