Yōkai Repurposed: A Historiography of Present-Day Yōkai

Abstract

From Manga to databases, yōkai endured their popularity because of their malleable material, ready to be remixed and repurposed. Yōkai go from being figures in Edo-period horror stories to becoming commodities and to serving as external and internal supports for this generation. This essay examines the scholarly consensus on yōkai and how their reshaping of yōkai fosters positive change. Over time, yōkai have undergone significant transformation, evolving from terrifying figures in Edo-period horror stories to valuable cultural commodities and, more recently, to external cultural touchstones and internal sources of self-reflection for the current generation.