Is Virgin Mary looking at us? Some notes on the idealization of feminine love in the sub-genre shōjo-ai

Abstract

MarIa-sama ga miteru is probably one of the most successful yuri of the 21st century. In it, the passions and hidden desires of the protagonists confront inside the walls of a strict Catholic institute for young ladies. But if there is a striking element in the eyes of the viewer it is undoubtedly the ambiguous and exacerbated friendship shown by the students of the center, structured from a system of relationships in pairs called soeurs. Now, to what extent does this concept mask a much more intimate connection than mere friendship? The aim of our text will be to use Maria-sama ga miteru and her characters as platforms to discern what cultural, ethical, social and religious circumstances act when configuring the so-called shōjo-ai, the softest line within the yuri.