Epi.8-Note: Beautiful and Cute Ghosts – Their History in Japan

In Episode 8, I wrote a story related to cute ghosts.
In Japan, ghosts have long been portrayed with a sense of beauty and melancholy—a tradition that dates back to the Edo period (17th–19th century).

Among the best-known classical ghost stories are Botan Dōrō (1666, included in Asai Ryōi’s Otogibōko) featuring Otsuyu, and Banchō Sarayashiki (late 18th century) featuring Okiku.
Both are remembered as “beautiful female ghosts,” and were also depicted in ukiyo-e by artists such as Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839–1892).

In that era, ghosts were not only objects of fear but also symbols of sorrow and beauty.

When Japan entered the Shōwa period (1926–1989), ghost stories began to be adapted into film.
In works such as Kaidan Botan Dōrō (1955) and Kaidan Yuki-onna (1968), beautiful actresses were often cast as ghosts—
further reinforcing the cultural image of the beautiful female ghost.

Thus, ghosts came to be seen not only as frightening beings, but also as figures so beautiful one could not look away.

Even today, there is thought to be a strong affinity between “extraordinarily beautiful women” and horror.
Junji Ito (born 1963), the horror-manga artist known for Tomie (first published 1987) and Uzumaki (serialized 1998–1999), once said in an interview:

“Fear and beauty are, in fact, very closely related emotions.”

So, when did the idea of the beautiful-girl ghost first appear?

Although the term itself didn’t exist then, stories featuring young, beautiful, and fragile female spirits began appearing in literature from the late Meiji to early Taishō periods (1890s–1910s).

With the rise of formal education and magazine culture—such as Shōjo no Tomo (“Girls’ Friend”)—the concept of the shōjo, or young girl, came to represent purity and dreamy innocence as an idealized stage of life.

Then, in the Taishō period (1912–1926), artist Takehisa Yumeji (1884–1934) established what became known as bishōjo-ga, or “beautiful-girl paintings.”
The girls Yumeji depicted carried both innocence and melancholy; their fragile beauty is often cited as the origin of Japan’s modern kawaii and moe aesthetics.

Notable literary examples include:

Through these works, the image of “a girl so beautiful she remains ethereal even in death” began to spread.
In other words, the bishōjo ghost evolved from a symbol of terror into one of sorrow in literature.

By the early Shōwa period (1930s–40s), films were already portraying ghosts as young and beautiful women— a depiction that would later shape the archetype of the beautiful ghost and eventually the cute ghost.

In the postwar mid-Shōwa era (1950s–60s), artists such as Kaburaki Kiyokata (1878–1972) and Itō Shinsui (1898–1972) portrayed ghosts as “graceful and tranquil presences,” giving rise to the enduring aesthetic of the beautiful female ghost.

In the 21st century, ghosts are now depicted not only as frightening, but also as characters with whom audiences can feel familiarity and affection.

As a side note, when I chose to include cute ghosts in Two in the Abandoned House, it wasn’t because I wanted to follow this tradition—
but simply because I thought, “Wouldn’t a ghost who’s afraid of other ghosts be kind of cute?”

Of course, similar concepts may exist elsewhere.
But if you happen to find one, please consider it not as plagiarism — but as a coincidence.

And with that bit of self-defense, I’ll wrap things up here.
I hope to see you again in the next story.