Summary
- Tanjiro’s journey as a Demon Slayer humanizes demons, showing their tragic backstories and inner humanity.
- Nezuko’s existence challenges the notion of demons as purely evil beings, offering hope for coexistence.
- Tanjiro’s empathy and kindness towards demons, even in battle, show a deeper understanding of their struggles.
Demon Slayer starts as a tragic story. Tanjiro loses the majority of his family and his dear sister is also converted into a demon. This sets him on a path of becoming stronger so he can defend himself and his sister. He makes many great allies and meets many dangerous foes. But through many deadly battles, Tanjiro manages to find the humanity hidden deep inside the demons’ hearts.
To cure his demon sister, Tanjiro led a path that made him a demon slayer. This meant continuing to slay numerous demons to keep the people around him safe. But throughout his journey, Tanjiro never left his kindness and empathy behind. Even when fighting the most merciless enemies, he continues to see the good in them. Demon Slayer does not represent demons as mindless evil creatures but as unfortunate beings who were forced into giving up their humanity.
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Nezuko’s Role in Humanizing Demons
Nezuko is at the center of the plot. Tanjiro goes on the path of becoming a Demon Slayer, not only to save her from other demons but also from other Demon Slayers. While he loved and understood his sister, she was a mere demon to others. Through various episodes, we see her spend days living alongside humans without ever harming one. In Season 1, Episode 23, she even refuses Sanemi’s blood, which proves her harmlessness. Nezuko’s existence created a possibility that humans and demons could co-exist. This idea was further explored when Tanjiro met Tamayo and Yushiro. They proved that demons didn’t necessarily need to kill humans to survive. In Season 4, Episode 8, she even helps the Hashiras in attempting to kill Muzan. Proving that not all demons pose a threat, and some of them are merely doing their best to survive.
Backstories Help Create A Connection
Demon Slayer does a wonderful job of creating emotions in favor of the demons. It does so frequently by incorporating a tragic backstory for many of these demons. This starts as early as Season 1, Episode 5, when Tanjiro defeats a demon to pass the Final Selection. Because of all that happened to Tanjiro, it would be natural for him to be moved by emotion and feel revengeful towards the demon. But instead, he looks at him with sad eyes and feels sadness in the demon’s soul as well. The demon recalls its human life, and as its body vanishes, Tanjiro prays for the demon.
Yearning for Recognition
In Season 1, Episode 13, Tanjiro fights Kyogai, a former member of the Twelve Kizuki. During the fight, Kyogai recalls his past as a failed writer. He recalls that his writings were called trash and were never recognized. Even after becoming a demon, he was yearning for Muzan’s validation. Tanjiro makes sure not to step on the papers that Kyogai wrote on as a human. Also, before eliminating Kyogai, Tanjiro admitted that his Blood Demon Art was incredible. This allowed Kyogai to die peacefully, since someone finally appreciated his work. Though Kyogai was a demon, he yearned for recognition and affirmation like most humans do.
Trapped with No Escape
During the Mount Natagumo Arc, the story introduces a pretend family of demons. Their backstories show how they tried to live as a family, but their attempt was drowned by fear. Rui, the Lower Rank Five demon, led them. Though he called them family, he failed to care for any of them. The multiple backstories tell how their tragic human lives forced them to become demons. But after becoming demons, their life was equally miserable. This suggests that many demons were forced into becoming one, and even if they regretted it later there was no turning back.
Rui’s story is the most tragic, as he misunderstood his parents’ intention and killed them, which left him with an immeasurable regret. This regret caused his desire to be in a family. But after he dies, regardless of his actions, he is accepted by his parents in the afterlife. They continue to treat him the same, and he feels like he’s human again. Though their bodies change, demons continue to be human at heart. They just forget about their human life and values over time.
Rekindling Lost Relationships
Near the end of the Entertainment District Arc, the anime tells the story of the demon siblings, Daki and Gyutaro. After a long battle, they lose to the Demon Slayers. As their bodies start to vanish, Tanjiro reminds them to be kind to each other since they only have each other. This reminds Gyutaro of their past. Before becoming a demon, he was bullied for his ugly appearance.
But when his sister, Ume, was born, she became his pride and he protected her with everything he had. But in his absence, she was killed, which made him revengeful, and, to save her life, he decided to become a demon. But he regretted turning Ume into a demon and wished she could have had a beautiful life. He continued to protect her even as a demon. This shows how some demons manage to hold on to their human bonds even after losing their humanity.
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As Tanjiro’s story continues, he will continue to meet demons. Will he be able to face Muzan with the same empathy he had for other demons or are Muzan’s sins too big to be forgiven?
Demon Slayer is currently available on Crunchyroll and Netflix.