The Representation of the Erasure of Ohara's History: A Social Critique of World Government Power in the Anime One Piece

Abstract

This study aims to examine the representation of the erasure of Ohara’s history as a form of social critique of the World Government ‘s exercise of power in the anime One Piece. This study employs a qualitative descriptive method, drawing on the sociology of literature approach and a mimetic perspective. The primary data source in the anime One Piece, particularly episodes 275 - 278, which depict the tragedy of Ohara. The data consist of dialogues, narration, character actions, and scenes related to historical research, the destruction of knowledge sources, and the control of information. Data were collected through observation and note-taking techniques and analyzed through the stages of identification, classification, interpretation, and conclusion drawing. The findings reveal that the tragedy of Ohara represents several forms of social critique concerning the use of power to control knowledge and history, including the suppression of knowledge, the destruction of sources of knowledge, the erasure of history, the control of information, and the use of suppressive force through the Buster Call. The scholars of Ohara are portrayed as an intellectual group seeking to uncover suppressed history, whereas the World Government is portrayed as an institution that exercises its power to restrict research and control the information available to the public. From a mimetic perspective, these events can be understood as a representation of social issues concerning the relationship between knowledge and power. Meanwhile, the sociology of literature perspective reveals an unequal power relationship between the intellectual group and the institution that holds political authority. Thus, the tragedy of Ohara in One Piece functions not merely as part of the narrative conflict but also as a representation of social criticism directed at the abuse of power, the control of knowledge, and the erasure of historical information.