Thread by @Secret_Doves

THE POLITICS OF PART II: A STATE OF NEGLECT 🧵

In part one of Chainsaw Man, political discourse hinges on the character of Makima. Through her, the metaphor of state as abuser is established. In part two, such a figure is absent. That absence is the point.

Part one focuses on the damage state institutions do *with intent*. Part two is focusing on the secondary damage done when the state focuses on maintaining control *rather than* allocating resources to the population. Abuse on the inside; neglect on the outside.

The media plays a crucial role in this neglect. They manufacture not just consent for the government’s actions, but also consent for government inaction. They portray the current situation as acceptable or inevitable. Or at least not bad enough to organize for change.

A key part of this manufacturing is *allowing the people to speak*. At the base, opinions about devils and Chainsaw Man are not monolithic. But the “opposing” opinions are not silenced. They are corralled into acceptable spaces: a moment in a man on the street interview.

Legitimate criticism (property damage) is juxtaposed with absurd criticism and uncritical praise. None of this addresses the real question: “Where is Public Safety in these incidents?” Spectacle and discourse distract from state neglect. And the media maintains the last word.

Asa is acutely aware of this hypocrisy. She sees how devils and devil hunters are used as a distraction from the state’s abdication of responsibility. Those in power use their authority to tighten their grip — abuse — while leaving their subjects to their own devices — neglect.

But Asa changes her mind about Chainsaw Man after he saves her. This dynamic is part of the Chainsaw Man media circus. Public Safety *purposefully allows* Denji to act in their place, further abdicating responsibility. The people he saves then support him, legitimizing his role.

The state neglects its subjects in the face of an overwhelming force. They allow citizens to fight for themselves, then legitimize successes and marginalize failures. Failures like Asa Mitaka, an orphan from a Devil Attack the government failed to predict, prevent or defeat.

The state hides its failure by also neglecting the institutions which address that failure. Material conditions are minimal (kids in one room) and abuse goes unchecked. Victims of neglect are victimized again by further neglect *because they were a victim in the first place*.

The state’s abusive focus on control internally leads to neglect externally. That neglect compounds as victims seek support. This spawns new cycles of abuse among the neglected in response to layered trauma. If the state addresses these failures, it questions its own legitimacy.

And it cannot afford to be questioned because the reality is the state *cannot* fulfill it’s stated responsibility. It makes promises in exchange for authority it cannot uphold. Public Safety cannot defeat these devils. And they can’t stand up to the apocalypse. So they lie.

This blatant hypocrisy and material failure opens the door for radicalization. People seek salvation in other places, and so the Chainsaw Man Church is formed. This further destabilizes the situation leading to more abuse and more neglect as the state scrambles to hold control.

And so Fujimoto maintains his strongly pessimistic view of both authority and human nature around authority. Power is taken by force, then used to maintain control. Legitimacy is a fiction spun through propaganda. This applies to the government and to the radicals.

Whats the conclusion? We’ll have to find out. The story is still developing; especially with regards to the Chainsaw Man Church it seems like it will develop soon so I will leave it here for now. But tldr: keep state neglect in mind when thinking about politics in part 2.