Personal Identity and Image Management A Dramaturgical Study of Anime Cosplayers in Cirebon

Zakiya Ashari Julianti; Abdul Jalil Hermawan

doi:10.58905/jse.v6i2.788

Authors

Zakiya Ashari Julianti Universitas Swadaya Gunung Jati, Cirebon, Indonesia
Abdul Jalil Hermawan Universitas Swadaya Gunung Jati, Cirebon, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.58905/jse.v6i2.788

Keywords:

Anime, Cosplay, Dramaturgy, Identity, Interpersonal Communication

Abstract

In social life, individuals inevitably have both a public and private side, the same is true for anime cosplayers in Cirebon. Cosplay is understood as a performative practice of portraying characters from anime, manga, and video games to recreate those characters identities within social spaces. The practice of anime cosplay in Cirebon understood not merely as hobby, but as medium for self-expression and development personal identity. This study was conducted using descriptive qualitative research method with inductive approach to anime cosplayers in Cirebon based on dramaturgy theory Erving Goffman, 1959 [1]. Data collected through in-depth interviews with cosplayers in Cirebon, EO of Japanese events, and professional Japanese cosplayer. This study aims to analyze how and why anime cosplayers in Cirebon manage their public image by separating their identities between front stage and backstage dramaturgical perspective, amidst negative social stigma of cosplay. The results of this study show that majority of cosplayers in Cirebon separate their identities between cosplay and their realife. This study contributes theoretically dramaturgical studies, particularly in anime cosplayers context that under-researched and helps public to understand that cosplay should not be automatically viewed as negative stigma but rather as form of creative self-expression in social life.

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