The Rashomon effect and ethical ambivalence in contemporary media culture

The relevance of this study stems from the transformation of classical narrative models in contemporary digital audiovisual culture, where the principles of unambiguity and objective truth increasingly give way to a plurality of interpretations. The subject of this study is the implementation of the «Rashomon effect» in the anime series «The Original Sin of Takopi» (2025), examined as a holistic ethical and epistemological model. The aim of the study was to identify the mechanisms for constructing narrative polyphony and its role in shaping the viewer’s state of ethical ambivalence. The methodological framework was formed by narratological analysis of focalization as described by Jean Genette, the theory of unreliable narration, and elements of media discourse analysis. The analysis revealed that the series operates with three key tools: rigid internal focalization, which creates a cognitive asymmetry between versions of events; temporal nonlinearity, which transforms memory into a performative act; and the rejection of a final restoration of objective truth in favor of a specific ethical polyphony. As a result, the classic «Rashomon» situation of searching for the guilty party is transformed into an existential dimension, where guilt is distributed among all characters as a condition of their communication, and the figures of hero and antagonist are deconstructed.

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