What does Haku mean in Spirited Away?

The name Haku means "master, lord, overseer", which may refer to his lofty position as Yubaba's respected apprentice as well as his power as 'god' of the river. Kohaku (琥珀) means "amber", making his english title "Spirit of the Amber River", similar to his original Japanese title.

What does Haku symbolize in Spirited Away?

In his guise as a white dragon his appearance suggests a river: flowing and graceful. As Haku, however, he is not always so composed, and he exhibits both bravery and real sadness. The river he once represented, the Kohaku River, was drained and paved over to build an apartment complex, and Haku is truly a lost soul.

What does Haku stand for?

Haku is a word that means to braid or plait, as in braiding a lei or your hair. Interestingly enough, haku is also the word used to described the writing action of writing poetry or songs in Hawaiian.

What is the real message of Spirited Away?

Spirited Away is a manifestation of fears and anxieties as seen through the lens of its young lead female character, Chihiro. How Chihiro chooses to react to the ever-changing circumstances around her, even the most horrifying ones, defines this film's central moral.

Why did Haku forget his name?

In this scene, Haku can't remember his own name. It's because Yubaba has taken his name away from him. Haku can't even remember his own name, but he says, "But it's strange. I remembered Chihiro."

Spirited Away Revealed: The Real Mythology

Why did Haku tell Chihiro not to look back?

In my vantage point, Haku told Chihiro not to look back because she would've been somehow stuck between the two dimensions. If not that, Haku just probably didn't want her to remember looking back at his face while she was leaving the spiritual world.

Why does Haku have human form?

He is a young boy who is a river spirit in the form of a human, who helps Chihiro after her parents have transformed into pigs. Haku was once a river spirit who had entered the spirit world seeking to learn magic from Yubaba, and as a result became a worker who followed her every command.

What did No-Face represent?

In an interview, Miyazaki reminded us that Japanese spirits do not have a form, so each spirit, including No-Face, is really just a representation of that god or spirit in a more solid form. "Japanese gods have no actual form: They are in the rocks, in pillars, or in the trees.

Is Spirited Away about child trafficking?

It is said that Miyazaki likes to address political problems and current events in his films. The one that is linked to Spirited Away is the major issue of child prostitution. Throughout the movie, there are also several instances that may serve as proof for this theory, so let's go through them.

What is the relationship between Chihiro and Haku?

Haku isn't just Chihiro's brother, he's her dead older brother, who drowned while saving her in a river. This news came as a huge surprise to fans of the movie, but Okada provided a wealth of evidence to back up his claims, creating a strong argument that has many convinced the theory might be true.

How old is Haku in Spirited Away?

Appearance. Haku appears to be around 12 years old in physical age. He has straight, dark green hair in a bob haircut and slanted, green eyes.

Was Haku originally a girl?

Haku is a boy. It's stated in the First Databook, page 91.

Is Lin from Spirited Away human?

Lin is portrayed as a human being in the film. In the Japanese picture book (The Art of Spirited Away in English) Lin is described as a byakko (Japanese: 白虎), a white tiger, in the draft, which was later changed to byakko (Japanese: 白狐) meaning white fox..

Why are Chihiro's parents so mean?

According to a translation by RocketNews24, Miyazaki turned Chihiro's parents into pigs to represent the greed that took place during Japan's recession in the eighties.

What were the paper things chasing Haku?

Shikigami, in traditional Japanese folklore, are either invisible or appear in the shape of neatly-folded paper manikins. However, in the film's adaptation, the Shikigami are portrayed as fully-visible, semi-humanoid paper creatures with the ability to fly at extremely high speeds (on par with Haku in his dragon form).

Is Haku evil Spirited Away?

In Spirited Away, every character is a mix of good and bad qualities and actions. Even those who seem good at first, such as Haku and No-Face, have their share of evil qualities.

Is Haku no-face?

History. No-Face was first introduced standing on the bridge watching a rushing Chihiro and Haku, who were, at the time, trying to avoid any spirits from persecuting her for being a human. He subsequently disappeared and reappeared again on the bridge the morning after, watching a passing Chihiro with fascination.

What was the point of no-face in Spirited Away?

No-Face is a dark spirit who resembles a black humanoid being with a white mask. He devours other spirits and can absorb their emotions into his own soul, causing him to take on their attitudes, especially negative ones, which lead to his transformation into a villain. He serves as an antagonist until his redemption.

Is Spirited Away based on a true story?

Miyazaki's 'Spirited Away' Is a Fantastic Animated Fairytale Based on True-Life Events. Be first to like this. Japanese auteur Hayao Miyazaki was supposed to be retired, but he just couldn't stay away from animation.

What did the stink spirit give Chihiro?

He is shown to be very energetic once freed of his polluted burden and displays a hefty amount of gratitude to Chihiro, who freed him, by giving her a famous type of medicine as thanks.

What did No-Face want from Chihiro?

No-Face becomes obsessed with Chihiro, and wants her to see her and her only. He becomes extremely volatile after being fed the Unnamed River Spirit's emetic dumpling by Chihiro, and, while fleeing from the obviously now-hostile spirit, she calls out to him twice to follow her.

How did Chihiro recognize her parents?

Zeniba explained that if Chihiro has ever met them before, everything stays within. Chihiro was able to break the spell on Haku by recognizing that he was the river spirit and calling out his name. By the same token, she was able to recognize that her parents were not among the pigs assembled.

Did Haku and Chihiro ever meet again?

So when one fan asked if Chihiro and Haku ever reunited, they learned it was possible. "Haku was the spirit of the river that runs near the house where Chihiro used to live. If Chihiro ever visits that river...," Suzuki wrote. So, there you have it.

Did Chihiro forget Spirited Away?

Well, according to Miyazaki himself, Chihiro did not recall her experience after leaving the spirit world at the end — but added that it doesn't mean completely forgetting it, and how there's a likely chance she'll eventually remember what happened.

What does the ending of Spirited Away mean?

Part of "Spirited Away" is about Chihiro realizing this herself. Compared to her time in the bathhouse, moving away becomes much more manageable and she ends the film with a more optimistic outlook on it. This idea of recontextualizing the past is hammered home by another character named Haku.