What's the Philosophical Significance of Certain Motifs in Castle in the Sky?

Jun 9, 2013 12:06 PM

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Jun 2013

After I watched Castle in the Sky, I still couldn't understand the significance of the floating castle. What is it supposed to represent? Did Miyazaki intentionally make it deserted for some particular reason?

I know that Miyazaki's films have quite a bit of subtlety, so there must be some meaning behind the castle in the sky behind the good vs. evil veneer.

Jun 9, 2013 1:08 PM

saka

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May 2008

4052

It could also be something abstract, like being a setting that embodies the power of imagination.

Themes like "the land of your dreams" are common to fairy tales and may be just been used by Miyazaki as an extension of that. I'm not sure there is a particular significance to it. What makes you think that?

I am a banana.

Jun 9, 2013 1:22 PM

Hethalos

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Jun 2013

Well, after I googled the philosophy of Laputa, I actually came across a long essay about the significance of Castle in the Sky. It can be found here: http://www.english.ufl.edu/imagetext/archives/v5_2/lioi/

Jun 9, 2013 2:11 PM

Cyanide-

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Nov 2012

293

Wasn't he just inspired by "Gulliver's Journeys" ?

Jun 23, 2013 4:32 PM

keero16

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May 2012

I never thought Laputa had any significance other than Miyazaki's fascination with flying and airships.

Aug 3, 2016 2:48 AM

Diana_Sofia

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Oct 2015

To me, this island represents science, beautiful and destructive at the same time. And when this castle floats up, losing all its weapons it is a symbol of peaceful coexistance of technologies and nature, which we people may never achieve.

Omnia munda mundis

Nov 13, 2017 8:48 PM

NihilisticAngst

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Sep 2012

Diana_Sofia said:
To me, this island represents science, beautiful and destructive at the same time. And when this castle floats up, losing all its weapons it is a symbol of peaceful coexistance of technologies and nature, which we people may never achieve.

I totally agree with you, you got it spot on. The tale of Laputa has a lot of similarities with cautionary sci-fi tales about the dangers of science. Some people also seem to be afraid of science because they view it as “trying to have the power of a god” or something like that. So at the beginning of Castle in the Sky, when it shows us the story of the flying islands that took off some point in the past, the movie was telling us the entire history of this world. They developed flying, got more and more developed, made flying islands, something happened to make them all disappear (mass destruction possibly) and then they redeveloped again in the distant future. I found it almost similar to nuclear apocalypse stories(like Fallout). So, on one hand, Laputa represents the power of science, and the destruction that may occur from humans being able to control such power.

On the other hand, the present state of Laputa is very much trying to tie in to the narrative’s environmental message. The giant tree that has taken over Laputa has caused there to be a living, breathing ecosystem. There’s a scene where they see that part of the city is submerged, and now there are deep bodies of water where parts of the city are. I’m assuming that either the people that left Laputa for the surface converted Laputa to have an ecosystem, or that it somehow collected rainwater over the years. Sheeta also mentions a song from her homeland that emphasizes that people should live in harmony with nature and the seasons. In the end, when the castle loses all of it’s weaponry and power, as Diana_Sofia said, Laputa becomes a symbol of coexistence between science and nature. However, as we’ve seen with Muska who craved it’s power, there’s no guarantee that humanity will not make the same mistakes again.

Also, Laputa is heavily influenced by “Gulliver’s Travels” and “Treasure Island”. In the world of the movie, no one believes that Laputa exists, and view it as some sort of fairy tale. This trope is fairly common, and seems to be based on real life legends like Atlantis and El Dorado. The characters then attempt to go find Laputa, many with entirely different motives. That trope is also fairly common, especially in pirate treasure stories, like Treasure Island(which was pretty much the origin of the trope), The Goonies, Skypeia arc of One Piece, etc. Treasure Planet(which is itself based on Treasure Island) is similar to Castle in the Sky in that the main character has some sort of technologically advanced tool that will help them find what they’re looking for, and in both stories the characters have to basically fly to go ships to go find their giant, “floating” destinations. Essentially, the entire plot structure of Castle in the Sky is this kind of story, and the idea of a flying castle was most likely just picked due to Miyazaki’s well known love of flying. It also feels very appropriate for the steampunk fantasy setting.

Sorry if there are any inaccuracies, I just finished watched the movie for the first time, and wanted to explain my thoughts.

Mar 27, 2020 2:16 AM

Prince_Utena

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Jun 2014

135

Great analysis! I agree with you.

Jul 23, 2022 8:13 PM

hypergoob

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Mar 2018

241

It's the Tower of Babel. La Puta is translated, in Spanish, as 'the Whore' (of Babylon). "Revelation 17 (verse 18) states that the woman (the whore) is actually a representation of "the great city which reigneth over the kings of the earth"." It's certainly shaped like the Tower of Babel.

All I'm confused about is that Sodom, and Gomorrah were destroyed by God (frequently attributed to thunder) in the Bible, and "Sodom was destroyed by the Laputan Kingdom much like other Biblical city of Gomorrah by the Thunder of Laputa." So is Laputa God's kingdom, or the Babylonian kingdom?

Might be Miyazaki's out of his depth with all this symbology, but it's interesting either way.

Edit: Could be an Evangan situation. The Japanese like creating stories out of Christian theology, and mythology, but they're foreign to it, so they get some things wrong, here, and there.

hypergoobJul 23, 2022 8:17 PM

Yesterday, 11:27 AM

#10

EtherLux

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Jun 2017

Also Muska's obsession of his family's ancient civilization and power definitely reflects what Imperial Japan and other fascist regimes were always after. Like this weird cosmic superiority.

It was so satisfying seeing his glasses break and him just screaming for help.

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Poll: » Tenkuu no Shiro Laputa Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Cele - Dec 3, 2009	124	by mangalicker94 »» Mar 30, 9:10 PM
» Dub Discussion JTurner - Feb 21, 2008	17	by IamCheri »» Sep 24, 2023 6:05 AM
» Anna Paquin as Sheeta Duckielover151 - Jan 13, 2019	5	by JTurner »» Feb 5, 2019 11:48 PM
» Is this movie a ripoff?? tobanga - Dec 23, 2015	2	by Ichilicious »» Dec 7, 2016 10:41 AM
» Rest in Peace, Uncle Pom (Richard Dysart) JTurner - Apr 20, 2015	0	by JTurner »» Apr 20, 2015 7:53 PM

What's the Philosophical Significance of Certain Motifs in Castle in the Sky?

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