Shoya Ishida a character analysis
WARNING CONTAINS MENTIONS OF SELF HARM
Shoya Ishida is by far one my favorite written characters in all of fiction, his arc as he learns to get forgivness from both himself and others as he seeks to become a better person.
So I wanted to analysis him, specfically why he does what he does and other analysis stuff.
(My first char analysis)
(This will cover details from the manga and movie but mostly movie)
First it is important to see where Shoya starts, we first see him as a kid in elementary school who dosen't have much care and just seeks approval from his friends, this leads to him doing many "daredevil" stunts like jumping off bridges. This comes from Shoyas want for approval when he is a kid as he wants to fit in and be "cool".
Shoya really shows this with his bullying of Shoko as he begins to do and continues doing it as it gets him approval with his class and others join in which allows him to reason its okay as everyone else is doing it.
Here I want to go further into the "why" of Shoya doing it. Shoya was raised without a father and children with fathers are more likely to have issues like aggression, and due to having no good substitute role model (especially not the teacher her just enables him futher espeically in the manga.) Shoya wasn't able to learn alot of the why his actions were wrong. (Also it is important to note he was a child when he bullied Shoko he was still learning and while what he did was awful I think its worth it to give him some leway.
Flash forward to Shoko leaving, Shoya then gets bullied as he is essentially the scapegoat as while yes he was the main perpetrator of the bullying most of the class either partook (Ueno) or helped enable it (Miki/The Teacher)
Quick coverage of his middle school life, Shoya becomes cut off and develops social anxiety as we see with the iconic X's over faces. Through these years Shoya realized what he did to Shoko and he fell into depression as he was alone and began to give up hope that he could ever have friends again.
Shoya is in highschool and is ready to take his own life, but he still has one thing on his mind, returning Shokos notebook. As we know this leads to him not killing himself, but his first interaction with Shoko here is much deeper than I think most people realize. The moment Shoya decided he was going to live atleast to attone for what he did wasn't him asking to be friends but Shoko reacting to seeing him. Seeing that even after all these years Shoko is still affected by his actions is what caused him to decide to attone which is why thats the moment he knew he had to live.
Shoya was feeling a bit better but in the back of his mind one thing was nagging him, he was being selfish. He knew that while he felt regret he still wasnt prepared to understand Shoko, he just wanted an apology so he could selfishly feel better about himself as pointed out bu Yuzuru. But what I love about this bit it Shoya is aware of his flaws, unlike kid him he is aware of his shortcomings and does everything he can to overcome them. Because Shoya knows he can't change the past, no matter what he did what he did, but once he conquers his selfishness he can fully be who we wants to be, a good person.
But I'm jumping ahead a little, back in high school Shoya is finally making his first friend in Tomohiro, this is giving Shoya the first connection which breaks his isolation barrier. Tomohiro also acts as a heart of gold who teaches Shoya about unconditional love and that friends should pick eachother up when they're down.
Through the next while we see Shoya slowly reconnect with people from his past while trying to make a friend group of sorts, but they don't all work together. Shoya constantly trying to keep everyone happy while also dealing with a mountain of issues himself leads to pressure building and it eventually bursts. The amusement park as a whole serves to show the toxicity of tbe grouo and the fragileness of their bond (Especially when Ueno).
As my friends like to call it "The bridge crashout" by far one of the most important scenes in the entire movie/manga as from this we see the friend group fall apart as Shoya calls them all out and how they don't really seek to understand Shoko. This allows Shoya to stop being a people pleaser and finally overcome his selfishness and wants to build real connections.
The firework festival, this may very well be the most iconic part of the movie. Shoko here has made the decision to take her own life (quick side analysis of her) she blames herself for the breaking of the friend group not realizing it was off of the superficial bonds that they had. Shoko who at this point has feelings for Shoya blames herself and decides that she can't take anymore and it going to take her own life.
One detail I always find like to think about is, the only reason Shoya went to Shokos appartment is because Yuzuru forgot her camera, the same camera she used to take pictures of dead animals in an attempt to prevent Shoko from commiting suicide. So in a way Yuzurus camera did save Shoko. I'm sure I could find some meaning about how such a low chance thing saved Shoko and how it was something to with fate but its 10:30 when I'm writing this and I'm too tired to think about fate ngl.
Back on track (srry about the tangent) Shoya sees Shoko on the balcony and runs and catches her just in time, and as he pulls her up... he falls. She fell, but he fell harder. Theres a moment at the begining of the manga where Shoya is with his friends and he dares them to jump off a bridge and one of them says how hitting water from that height would be like hitting concrete. Those very same friends pulled Shoya out of the water, fate works in strange ways. This moment not only acts as a catalyst for the final part of the film but Shoyas the final bit of Shoyas arc.
The final bridge scene, Shoko and Shoya talk to eachother, they fully reveal their insecuritys and flaws. Through this Shoya is able to realize that to live he needs others, he needs someone who he can lean on as others need someone they can lean on. He learns to forgive himself and those around them for all their shortcomings. Shoya realizes that he needs to face his problems head on and that in order to be a better person all he had to do was listen, listen to what others had to say and listen to who a person truly is. (I hope that makes sense ;-;)
The school festival, Shoya is able to make amends with his friends and we see that his fall has brought them together with a real healthy connection and they all finally understand eachother and sre being true to themselves while also developing for the better.
To cap it all off with Shokos support Shoya finally fulfills his promise and looks everyone in the eyes, the X's fall off everyones faces as Shoya it no longer isolated. He had friends, people who care about him and who he cares about he no longer feels ashamed to be alive and he has conquered his anxiet, self-loathing and isolation.
(Bonus bit) In the manga the very end is a few years later with a class reunion, Shoko and Shoya walk in holding hands (more support symbolism) but Shoya and Shoko physically prepare to confront their past and it also acts as an opportunity for people to see how Shoya has changed.
Overall Shoya Ishida is one of my favourite fictional characters ever as he goes from a selfish kid who dosent care about much. To a loving caring person who overcomes his own issues and seeks to be the best person possible.