Talk:Blue Eye Samurai

Deaf or "deaf-mute"

I'd think deaf is a better fit for the article, "deaf-mute" is an old offensive term and by being in the article it just reinforces usage, even if you link explanatory article. If used in the shows dialogue it's within a fictional historical context, but if used in the summary in a modern day article it's outside historical context. Another example would be the summary within an article of Forrest Gump calling him a "retard", even if historicaly permits, nowadays it's considered a slur for good reason and the article would be within a modern and not a historical context, so it shouldn't be used. Also you wouldn't wouldn't use "ye olde english" in a Shakespeare summary? 79.209.44.187 (talk) 20:30, 17 December 2023 (UTC)

It's relevant to the series, and by being included with a link it can give people a fuller understanding of the context and meaning of the term. This is an encyclopedia, hiding things away is the opposite of what it should do. (Hohum ^@) 00:54, 18 December 2023 (UTC)

Genuine question, how is it relevant to the summary? What purpose does "deaf-mute" serve, that deaf cannot fulfill? Especially given the added context of Kinuyo's and Kaji's relationship being positive, meaning no reason beside historic context to use a modern day slur.

In regards of fuller understanding, that'd need it being put into context right then and there, which isn't gonna happen because not fitting context of a summary. A link really is just a plaster.

Also on hiding things, if it was hiding, I'd agree. But it ain't hiding if a word is just falling out of use and not fitting modern times, if neither context demanding this exact slur eg by being dialogue citation, or it being used in a medical, or historic context. You wouldn't use out of date words, even if they ain't slurs, just so you're not hiding. Again you wouldn't use "ye olde english" for fuller understanding, even if you could make a good case that original Shakespeare's english is incredibly important to his work, neither would you use "retard" in a modern article on mentally disabled, just so you ain't hiding

And even if it is "hidden", meaning not reproduced in a open space, maybe it's for good reason, just as other slurs. Or to use a different example, I don't see Thatcher being called "milk snatcher" all over her article, or it even being at top of her article, even if that'd be synonymous to most people. Why not? Because even if she was vile, it'd be in bad taste, as well as not fitting context. 79.209.44.187 (talk) 11:55, 19 December 2023 (UTC)

A few points. It is not universally considered a slur, depending on region and period and usage. It is important to the plot that the girl is both deaf and mute. Even if you consider it a slur, so can be being called mixed race, or an Onryu, etc. The sensible thing to do is to link to a full article on the subject, so that people can find out meaning, context and usage. A fuller description does not belong in the plot summaries, which are already at their size limit or over it.

Since we are restating our opinions on this, it may be better to seek a third opinion, if other editors don't make their thoughts known here. (Hohum ^@) 20:57, 19 December 2023 (UTC)

Agree on restating opinions.

Just one last explanation "deaf-mute" is very much considered a slur by deaf people. Deaf people aren't mute, having sign languages of their own. While terms mixed race or Onryu are both plot relevant, or in case of mixed race there isn't a accepted word by their own community, if "mixed race" considered a slur by mixed race people? I'm not talking about other terms for mixed race people, lots offensive terms exist, which aren't used in this article even if historically accurate. 79.209.44.187 (talk) 21:24, 19 December 2023 (UTC)

Pronouns for Mizu

Mizu consistently presents as male throughout the series, and other characters refer to him as such with male pronouns and titles. But this article uses she/her, not citing any source for why this choice was made. Whether the character personally identifies as male or not (and this will likely be unclear until the series' conclusion), would it not simply be more correct to refer to him with he/him pronouns, as he is described in the text? Chip Wiseman (talk) 20:29, 31 August 2024 (UTC)

* Interview with co-creator Amber Noizumi:
Q: "Mizu’s gender is initially obscured, leading to the idea that Mizu might be nonbinary. But you ultimately reveal she’s a woman who is navigating a man’s world, which is its own journey. Why did you want this story to center the experiences of a woman during this time, versus just even going with a male lead?"
A: Noizumi: "I think mainly because I’m a woman, and I was imagining what it would be like for me there. I guess it was also just giving her a second otherness, that it wasn’t just her having to deal with her race. It was somebody who had to overcome two challenges. She had to be so driven and so focused, and we can really see that she didn’t just take it lying down. She had to really rise up."
* Director-Producer Jane Wu:
"Like Noizumi, Wu shared a personal connection to Mizu — Wu understood Mizu’s decision to disguise herself as a man, since in the early Edo period she didn’t have much choice as a woman. “Describing Mizu is almost like describing myself in the way that her journey of self-acceptance was a journey I had to go on,” Wu said."
* "As a woman, she wouldn’t be allowed to pursue her enemies. So she disguises herself as a man, ready to inflict her justice by whatever means necessary." Pyxis Solitary (yak yak). Ol' homo. 09:10, 1 September 2024 (UTC)

References