#KUROSHITSUJI: KISHUKU GAKKOU-HEN

[luxphoros]

For I moment I feared the ending might have been straight. Glad to see I was wrong.

[chuwannin]

黒執事 -寄宿学校編- (2024)

[princessbutler1316]

[movielosophy]

Kuroshitsuji: Kishuku Gakkou-hen | Sebastian!

[elyonholic]

— Gregory Violet ┊ KUROSHITSUJI (2024) Character Trailer

[brightersoul2]

Kuroshitsuji: Kishuku Gakkou-hen Episode 2

[michiru]

[theanimeview]

[Analysis] Black Butler & Aestheticism

Source: Chapter 138

By: Peggy Sue Wood | @pswediting

To be honest, after completing my Master’s thesis on Oscar Wilde and aestheticism, I never thought I’d revisit the concept of aestheticism again in my life. Yet, here I am—drawn back into it and overlapping it (much to my dismay) with the world of Black Butler, a series I’ve loved since middle school. With another arc now adapted into an anime this season, I’m excited to discuss the latest installment of this gothic tale, this time with a bit on aestheticism, the gothic, and academia.

Black Butler: Public School Edition is a distinctive arc. While each arc in the series has its unique qualities, this one is perhaps the most interesting to me because it is the first time we really get to see Ciel work independently and prove himself apart from Sebastian for a prolonged period. Sure, Sebastian is there and working too, but Ciel is powering through this particular arc solo more than we’ve seen before and since. So while the series has always told us Ciel is smart, this time we actually get to see him in action. 

Moreover, in this arc we get to see the role of aestheticism and gothic literary form wrapped in a dark academia theme—a match made in my dark academia aesthetic soul. 

Of course, Black Butler fans have probably noticed how the series consistently embraces various aspects of the gothic aesthetic, but what is aestheticism and how is that different?

Aestheticism is a cultural and artistic movement that emerged in the late 19th century, with Oscar Wilde being a known proponent of the movement, the setting in particular being in the second half of the Victorian era. It emphasizes the importance of beauty and the pursuit of refined sensory experiences as the highest ideals in life and is often associated with a rejection of the notion that art and beauty should be valued for its moral or political utilization rather than for its own sake. To quote, badly I might add, my own thesis: 

“the literature on the subject of Aestheticism highlights four consistent tenets of the movement (and the art within said movement),… These four principles are the pursuit of beauty for the sake of beauty, the elevation of art or the pursuit of beauty alone, the celebration of individualism, and the idea that art is separate from life, meaning that while art should not have limits, life should” (Wood, pages 4-5 I think). 

Meaning:

The pursuit of beauty for the sake of beauty = We should like things simply because we like them and appreciate that sometimes things are just beautiful without meaning behind it.

The elevation of art or the pursuit of beauty alone = We should champion the autonomy of artistic expression, rejecting external moral or utilitarian purposes in expression.

The celebration of individualism = An encouragement of individuals to seek and appreciate beauty in all aspects of life.

The idea that art is separate from life = While we should pursue a beautiful life and not always try to apply morals or ethics or utility to art, we should not confuse that with reality. Reality has rules and should, but art can and should be free for expression of any and all forms. This rule extends to several things. For example, a morally and ethically horrible story about doctors killing patients might be a well-written thriller that people love, but that doesn’t mean the reader likes murderers. If they like the book, it doesn’t mean that they should become a murderer either. It means that life does and should have moral and ethical limitations, but art should be free of those and that we can like art while being free of those same moral and ethical limitations.

On the other hand, an “aesthetic” is a broader term that refers to the appreciation and study of beauty, whether in nature or art. It encompasses a wide range of styles, tastes, and artistic preferences, without necessarily subscribing to the specific principles of the Aesthetic movement. 

With that said, I always viewed Black Butler as a largely aesthetic piece, not applying aestheticism. The aesthetic of the work is gothicism, and you can see this in every arc, which contains some aesthetic focus within the realm of the gothic. We see it in a wide range of themes from the circus to J-pop imagery, but with different forms of the gothic theme based on the setting/frame. These aesthetics also fit within the realm of the gothic novel. Paraphrasing here, ”The gothic novel is defined by its emphasis on mystery, horror, and the supernatural. It frequently features elements such as haunted castles, concealed passageways, spectral visions, and various artifacts that contribute to the overall atmosphere of terror within the narrative (NTC’s Dictionary of Literary Terms by Kathleen Morner and Ralph Rausch).

When we think of the gothic, we often think of the architecture or clothing styles, but there is a lot more variation to this aesthetic than you might think and we see how the creator is applying these variations of the aesthetic throughout the series as we trace some pivotal parts of late-Victorian era history.

So, broken down, we have the Black Butler Arc & Red Butler Arc, which present a basic gothic tale. We have the Indian Butler Arc, which focuses less on the gothic, but more broadly sets us in late Victorian England to match the Red Butler Arc’s Jack the Ripper narrative, based on the socio-political context. 

Then we have the Circus Arc, which presents a new, dark meaning to the freak shows of England’s history and returns us to the gothic novel themes. We have the Phantomhive Manor Murders Arc, which I’ve discussed already as being true to the gothic form for the inclusion of the sublime. Next is the The Luxury Liner Arc, which coincides with the Titanic that sank just as the Victorian era was coming to an end. The Public School Arc, which we’re discussing here, followed by Emerald Witch Arc and the Blue Arc(s) that I will not discuss at the moment, but probably will in a later post. 

Now, all of these arcs are–in some way–gothic. They all feature the supernatural, they all include a bit of horror, and they all contain some mystery that the Queen’s watchdog must solve. In the Public School arc, the story unfolds within the chaotic halls of academia, weaving a prolonged and intricate narrative involving demon contracts, soul reapers, and other unearthly mysteries. The aesthetic is still gothic, this time as a dark academia vibe, and though I started to notice this turn to the aesthetic during the circus arc, really all of BB has spent a significant amount of time overlapping history, image, and the gothic to build us up to the aesthetic notion. 

However—when thinking of the latest arc to be animated, something clicked. In this arc it really started to click for me that, actually, this work is both a gothic novel and a follower of aestheticism, much like Dorian Gray or Wuthering Heights.

In Chapter 138, Sebastian makes references to following the aesthetic–and that does not seem unintentional. He could have said it was against a code, or policy, or moral or ethic–but he doesn’t. He says it’s against his “aesthetic” and all throughout the series Sebastian has a very hard time letting go of beautiful things. The mansion must be clean, the staff must be well dressed (so too should their lord), the cats are “beautiful” creatures, he doesn’t do “dirty” things to the best of his ability and will give up on what is natural in appearance or progress for a human with his human image to maintain his aesthetics. 

So too does our story. 

Ciel is rejecting external morals by maintaining his contract with Sebastian. We’re told in the anime and the manga that he doesn’t care what is “right” and he’s not getting revenge for anyone else but himself–others be damned. 

What I pull from this is that Sebastian is representative of the art for art’s sake and Ciel is the elevation of art, and their approach is that of celebration of individualism. As Sebastian encourages Ciel’s individuals to seek and appreciate “beauty” in all aspects of life on the road to hell because, as mentioned, art is separate from life. The consequences of following the aesthetic, in this case revenge, are there and Ciel is actively moving towards them because his “art” is not separated from his life.  

If I am right about this, then it adds some new meaning to the work as a whole. The gothic novel element still stands, but it adds additional meaning to the end and makes the use of Hamlet in the “His Butler, Performer” so much more reflective of the tale. Ciel is chasing revenge for revenge’s sake, for his own sake and it is a costly journey. One that, like Dorian Gray, will capture Ciel’s soul not because of the revenge itself, but because of the inability to separate life from art.

To me, it is an absolutely fascinating idea! I look forward to seeing how aestheticism works its way further into the work. What about you all? Do you agree or disagree with this idea?

Copyedited by: Krow Smith | @coffeewithkrow

[almaadst]

I just watched the first episode of Kuroshitsuji: Public School Arc yesterday, and oh my God, what did they do to poor Sebastian?! （；´д｀）ゞ Why is he so cute??? TT Where is my sexy demon?? LMAO I was hoping they would fix this ;; And why does the animation sometimes look like animation from visual novels?? ヽ(・､ ．)ﾉ

[losercaps]

Black Butler: Public School Arc

His Butler, at School 1,438 caps

His Butler, in Disguise 1,422 caps

His Butler, Plotting 1,422 caps

His Butler, Colluding 1,419 caps

His Butler, Gaining Admittance 1,420 caps

His Butler, Scheming 1,414 caps

His Butler, Final Match

His Butler, Locking Up

His Butler, Having a Laugh

His Butler, Assenting

His Butler, Taking Off

[professionalfangirllife]

Animes I'm definitely going to watch this spring 2024 season and animes I'm going to give a chance.

Definitely going to watch:

Boku no Hero Academia 7th Season

Kimetsu no Yaiba: Hashira Geiko-hen

Kuroshitsuji: Kishuku Gakkou-hen

Going to give a chance:

Blue Archive the Animation

Boukyaku Battery

Girls Band Cry

Hananoi-kun to Koi no Yamai

Henjin no Salad Bowl

Jiisan Baasan Wakagaeru

Kaii to Otome to Kamikakushi

Kaijuu 8-gou

Karasu wa Aruji wo Erabanai

Ooi! Tonbo

Ookami to Koushinryou: Merchant Meets the Wise Wolf

Sentai Daishikkaku

Unnamed Memory

Wind Breaker

Yoru no Kurage wa Oyogenai

Yozakura-san Chi no Daisakusen

Let's see how many I'm actually going to finish 😊

[violet-eien]

Not Ciel ordering Sebas-chan like he's a ChatGPT XD

This should've been me!

[hairunowa]

Black Butler - Public School Arc - ED

「贖罪 (Shokuzai)」 by Sid

[shiruba-tsuki]

KUROSHITSUJI: KISHUKU GAKKOU-HEN ENDING THEME    ↳ Shokuzai by SID

[brightersoul2]

Kuroshitsuji: Kishuku Gakkou-hen Episode 2