Nisioisin, the creator of such anime, manga, and light novel works as Zaregoto, Medaka Box, Katanagatari, and The Monogatari Series, writes in such long, descriptive, and tangential strokes that it wouldn’t be unfair to say he likes hearing himself talk. Amidst his stylistic tendencies tough, a core theme recurs throughout all of his stories. It is one that he is sympathetic to, one that may be described as “Nietzschean.” Without knowing better, many people believe there is an absolute, irreplaceable, inviolable, and ultimate truth.
That truth, to these people, demands them, without objection, to conform their behavior and beliefs to truth. In both their respective works, Nietzsche and Nisioisin express and illustrate what they believe is the actual reality: That those demands are all just self-delusions. Like an abyss full of nothing, nothing in life has meaning. Morality doesn’t exist in nature. There is no such thing as objective good or right, objective wrong or evil. Morality is all arbitrariness in self-denial. It is all stuff that people made up.
Yet as Nisioisin characters like, but not exclusive to, The Monogatari Series’ Kaiki Deishu and others point out in one way or another. Life having no inherent meaning doesn’t make it completely pointless. Quite the contrary, it means that life is full of endless possibilities. All people need to do is acknowledge and embrace the arbitrary. They should believe, behave, and act on what they feel.
Very nice text, I really like the writing style! – Daziigirl9 years ago
Thank you for the comment. – ZeroReq0119 years ago
I love Nisioisin, as a light novel author he is one of my favorites, especially because he shares his own kind of point of view with you. I thoroughly enjoyed reading your thoughts on it. Good job on this post! – AyakaHoshina9 years ago
I was never able to get into the Bakemonogatari, even after watcing the first episode twice but after reading your article, I'll give it a shot again. Thanks for the great post! – Allthefujoshiunite9 years ago
Morality is always such a big pile of gray. I think that's why so many anime's/stories in general at least touch on morality if not focus on it. – Tatijana8 years ago