Shoujo

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Definition
Shoujo is a Japanese term that refers to an audience-based genre of anime and manga. Shoujo translates to "girl" in English, which implies that shoujo is for girls, young and older teenagers. Although shoujo is aimed towards girls, older woman and even men read it as well.



Western Adaptation
Shoujo series are usually stereotyped as romance or melodramatic stories that center around a female protagonist. Shoujo can be contrasted to western “chick-flicks”. As series are adopted into western culture, many publishing companies have given different definitions to the word shoujo. One such publisher, Viz Media, started printing a definition inside the cover of many of its series: //shô·jo// //(sho'jo)// n. //1.// //Manga appealing to both female and male readers.// //2.// //Exciting stories with true-to-life characters and the thrill of exotic locales.// //3.// //Connecting the heart and mind through real human relationships.// (Viz Media) It would seem that they are trying to disassociate the term from the literal meaning “girl” so as not to scare away any potential male readers.

Examples of Shoujo Series:

 * Fruits Basket || Hana Kimi ||
 * [[image:fruitsbasket.jpg width="279" height="417"]] || [[image:hanakimi.jpeg width="280" height="421"]] ||