Sophie from Howl’s moving castle: the power of kindness and determination

In today’s climate filled with superheros holding incredible powers, it can be hard to feel powerful yourself. Sure, the escapism provided by these movies feel good — but back to your own reality, you can’t really blast an unfair boss away when he/she makes a snarky remark, or save your colleagues from impending deadlines with a magic hammer.

Not to mention that for each generation, specific values prevail. Facing obstacles head on, never giving up, and the idea that it all depends on you are strongly established today (see the explosion of self-help books or advices on social media on how to crack your own code). This is simplifying a complex picture, making us feel inadequate for not succeeding and forgetting there are bigger forces at play. Worse, it can prove damaging to individuals struggling to get by (“Don’t be sad” is like saying to someone “Don’t be poor”. It just is not that simple.)

Of course, the pandemic has helped us see that we need to cut ourselves some slack — and that the system can always derail at times.

So, with that in mind, what if we looked towards a more human hero, one that has no apparent superpowers, and shines with humanity? What could such a hero could teach us? Cue in Sophie, from Hayao Miyazaki’s Owl’s moving castle.

Sophie at the very beginning of the story.

Heads up: spoilers ahead, as I talk about the journey the characters make.

The perils of being normal in a world full of great powers

In Howls Castle, Sophie is as normal as it comes. At the beginning of the story, she is a modest hatter — an occupation she took after her father passing away, as the eldest of the family. Her world is filled with contraints, both internal and external — and to complete a bleak picture, a war is raging in the background.

Although very focused and hard working, Sophie is absent, and a heavy fume from a train passing again and again in front of her window hints at a heavy heart. She is in an apparent state of apathy: accepting her fate passively, which doesn’t prevent her to take her job seriously, but she does it without joy or optimistic perspective for the future. In that way, she feels relatable — we too can feel stuck in a daily routine, feeling that it’s only downhill from there.

We see very early that she does not exude confidence. This contrasts heavily with all of her colleagues who are obsessed with matters of the heart, or her sister, who looks like a little doll and seems like the opposite of Sophie in every way (make up, flamboyant clothes, personality). When first mention of a sorcerer in town, Hauru, that could « eat the heart » of young women, she retorts that she risks nothing, because he is notoriously only interested in beautiful girls.

So, at first, Sophie is as normal as they come, almost fading into the background. Nothing seems to prepare her to live an exciting adventure. And yet!

From here, the story kicks into high gear when she meets Hauru in a fairytale kind of way (he literally makes her walk among the clouds, above the city). We learn that this encounter angers the witch of the meadow, a terrifying sorceress in town with some unfinished business with Hauru. Except, she takes it out on poor Sophie, making her age rapidly from a young women to a 80 year old grandma (ouch.)

Yep.

And that’s really where the journey starts for Sophie. You could think that being turned into a 80 year old grandma would have her spiraling into an endless depression. And yet, after a few moments of disbelief, she does the only thing that she can: going to the meadow to try and fix her problem — and her cracking back. Although she is an old women and moves at a slow pace, she starts to find solutions and embraces a “let’s see what we can do” attitude and she doesn’t waste much time lamenting on her fate.

Sophie escapes her bland existence in the face of difficulties through a practical philosophy: immediately accepting the things she doesn’t have control over (the Japanese: “Shoganai”, “it can’t be helped”) but still doing her best to improve her situation. This is the first glimpse into what will be one of her most defining traits: courage.

Determination and steadiness in the face of danger

As a war is menacing, Sophie finds the moving castle and meets its occupants : Calcifer the fire demon (under some sort of maléfice — I mean in this movie, who isn’t), the young apprentice, Marco, and of course, Hauru the sorcerer.

Very soon, we get to see Sophie assert herself. She starts to show she is far from passive. She makes a pact with Calcifer (I’ll get rid of your malefice if you understand how to get rid of mine), establishes herself as the maid of the house and is uses her frustration for her situation to fuel her incredible energy — one we’ve never seen before as a younger Sophie. We really see that age here has nothing to do with her capabilities, and when she is focused on her goals, her determination is unmatched. In fact, everytime she feels a strong emotion or defends Hauru, she gets younger and younger, showing that “being old” is more an attitude than anything else.

She is set in contrast with Hauru, her romantic interest — he keeps moving around and flying responsibilities, she stays and faces her duties head on — first in the castle, and then when Hauru sends her in his place to meet the queen and invent some story to dismiss his participation to the impending war. He possesses immense magical power, she doesn’t and needs others to help her (although she is key for the resolution of the story).

Her normalcy in the story is what makes her a true champion, because despite being limited, literally cursed by a powerful witch, and 80 years old, she does her best with what she has. We do see her defeated at times, when her insecurities about her appearance pop back. she cries at some point about never feeling beautiful in her life (this was a hard moment). Yet, despite all of that, she is an incredible force to reckon with, because she commits to everything that is put in front of her, and this changes the course of the story.

Determination and courage his her first superpower. She possesses another, which carries the plot to the end: her caring attitude and generosity. Yep, love.

Caring for others but standing your ground: Sophie’s ultimate superpower

Sophie shows all sorts of supports to characters around her — whether they are nice to her or not really. She provides an essential thing throughout the story, similar to emotional labor in an office. She transforms completely the moving castle, and her dusting and cleaning reflect the effect she has on Hauru, Calcifer the crackling fire, and the apprentice Marco. She is the glue that brings all these individuals together to form a family.

But Sophie’s empathy extends beyond the realm of the moving castle. She consistently shows consideration to others. She is not expecting anything when she choses to help, she just does it because it is the right thing to do (which annoys her sometimes). Notably, performing small acts of kindness doesn’t mean she lets anyone walk all over herself. The biggest consequence is that, of course, this kindness is repaid to her. Let’s do a quick count:

• she retrieves a stuck piece of wood who turns out to be an enchanted scarecrow that stars following her everywhere. Well, mr Scarecrow protects her during the whole movie , and plot twist, she thanks him at the end by planting a kiss on him. Turns out, he is actually a prince who can put an end to the war!
• When Sophie has to meet the queen and try to get Hauru out of participating to the war, there is a dog following her which she assumes is Hauru. She lifts him up the many stairs that lead to the castle AND helps the which of the meadow by encouraging her, although she is the cause of her turning into a grandma. Note, Sophie is still mad about that, but makes the difference between her predicament and the current situation. The witch of the meadow, a scorned person who uses her power to fix her bruised ego, is deeply surprised by Sophie’s attitude and resilience. As a result, at the end, the witch helps her, and the dog does not report her to the queen (yep, the dog is in fact a spy for the queen — Miyazaki rules).
• Of course, the person who benefits the most from Sophie’s constant attention and care is none other than Hauru. Day after day, Sophie learns more about him, his attitude, and confronts his fears in a healthy way. More importantly, Sophie doesn’t really tell him what to do. She does better: she shows him, by supporting him. Take her courage in facing the queen in his place for example. If anything, it his her capacity to open up to Hauru, show herself for who she is, and give it her all that inspires and saves him.
• Caring and being passionate literally makes you younger. In the movie, Sophie is cursed to turn old, being in the body of a 80 year old. Yet her appearance regularly changes throughout the movie. Everytime she is empowered, excited, or passionated, she instantly turns into a younger self. In that sense, being old is not so much a question of outward appearance and much more a state of mind.

So, what could we learn from Sophie’s relentless courage and empathy?

1/ it’s okay to be vulnerable and fallible and to show it. In howl’s moving castle, Sophie cries, screams, or feels defeated at times. She is not scared of showing it and once her feelings are out, she always gets back up. It’s ok to have moments where you are down. The important part is to show up everyday and work it out.

2/ Consistent acts of kindness, without expectations, go a long way. Of course , it doesn’t always work, it won’t always change the people around you . But it shows YOU won’t be changed by their actions and stay true to your moral compass. It’s a way to become assertive and keep your dignity in all situations, even in the face of bullying or conflict.

3/ Understanding and empathy can change the world around you. At the end of the story, despite having powerful sorcerers and magicians all around, it is Sophie who moves the story to its conclusion. She does it with her emotional intelligence, by understanding what happened to Hauru as a child. By digging up the truth, almost in a therapeutic way, she sets him free.

4/ Simply showing up everyday and not giving up IS hard and takes tremendous energy. But the results are incredible: you build safety and trust in the long term. Sophie feels very quickly like an indispensable part of the moving castle, and her dedication is not a spectacular display of power, but a steady work and energy that lifts other up. In the words of another great show, BoJack Horseman: “Everyday, it gets a little easier. But you gotta do it everyday, that’s the hard part. But it does get easier.”