Kuchisake-onna - simply referred to as The Slit Mouthed Woman - is a malevolent figure in Japanese urban legends and folklore. Described as the malicious spirit, or onryō, of a woman, she partially covers her face with a mask or other item and carries some sort of sharp object. She has been described as a contemporary yōkai.
Appearance[]
She takes the form of an adult woman (presumed to be between 20-30 years) with long straight black hair reaching to the lower part of her waist. Her eyes can vary in color, mostly being dull or desaturated shades of blue or green. There are the rare few adaptations that give Kuchisake bright or vibrant eyes.
As well as this, her clothing also varies depending on the encounter. Most artwork and adaptations depict her wearing either a large beige trench-coat, a kimono or other Japanese-orientated clothing. Sometimes, the location and timing might cause this factor of her appearance to change. However, as the legend goes, she is always wearing something covering the lower-half of her face which she takes off to reveal her scars.
Personality[]
Despite what the legend showcases about her, Kuchisake isn't inherently evil upon glancing at how she responds to reactions to her appearance. If the person answered with she is beautiful, she creates an almost identical wound to herself onto them, reflecting the so-called "beauty" they told to her. If the answered with she isn't beautiful, this causes her to lash out against the victim, either harming them beyond recovery or choosing to reflect her wounds onto them.
Overall, she seems to be rather neutral as she seemingly won't return to the same victim until a period of time has passed. And, she can easily be avoided with a neutral response to her questions or distracting her with luxuries like sweets or candles.
Behavior[]
Usually in darkened or abandoned areas occupied by teenagers and/or adults, she will present herself to a target in front of them. With a mask or her face covered in general, she'll ask "Watashi, kirei?" which translates to "Am I pretty?" or "Am I beautiful?".
If the person answers "No", she will kill the person with her weapon.
If the person answers "Yes", she will reveal her mutilated mouth. She then repeats her question (or asks "Kore demo?", which translates to "Even with this?" or "Even now?").
If the person responds with "No" or screams in fright, she will kill the person with her weapon. If the response is "Yes", she will slice the corners of the person's mouth from ear to ear, resembling her own disfigurement.
Some suggest there is an alternative to escaping her clutches which revolves around distracting or confusing the spirit. Answering with neutral responses like "You're alright", "You're average", or "You're so-so" might cause Kuchisake to become confused. This may also occur if you ask her the same question back. Distractions to avoid her wrath could include giving or throwing money or hard candies (particularly the kind of candy known as bekko ame, made of caramelised sugar) in her direction, as she will stop to pick them up; or by saying the word "pomade" three times.
In some witness accounts of this urban legend, Kuchisake may return to a victim who outsmarted her upon their first encounter. This may be in the same/similar locations or even in their own residence. Some adaptations state there is no way to deter her and attempting to trick the spirit only leads to fatal consequences.
Origins[]
According to legend, Kuchisake-onna was a woman who was mutilated during her life, with her mouth being slit from ear to ear. In some versions of the story, Kuchisake-onna was the adulterous wife or a mistress of a samurai during her life. As punishment for her infidelity, her husband sliced the corners of her mouth from ear to ear. Other versions of the tale include that her mouth was mutilated during a medical or dental procedure, that she was mutilated by a woman who was jealous of her beauty, or that her mouth is filled with numerous sharp teeth.
After her death, the woman returned as a vengeful spirit, or onryō. As an onryō, she covers her mouth with a cloth mask (often specified as a surgical mask), or in some iterations, a hand fan or handkerchief.
First Person Witness Story[]
I will tell you about my experience with her. It was the end of school and I was waiting for my friends Aiko-San and Daichi-Chan. We were walking to the park where we always go before heading to our apartments. While we were walking, we were stopped by a woman walking around like she was looking for something...Or someone...
She walked over to us and looked at Aiko-San. She told us to keep walking and said she had to ask Aiko-San something important. I and Daichi-Chan walked off confused and...Curious? When we got to our apartments, we found Aiko-San running towards her apartment room.
I shouted, "Hey Aiko-San, are you okay, you look rather, frightened?!".
She stopped in her tracks and said "S-s-she's coming for me!".
Daichi and I looked at each other and laughed a little, thinking she was joking because she loved to joke around with us. But in my head, I knew something was up. I have never seen Aiko-San look that frightened in her life. The next day, I and Daichi-Chan walked out of our apartment rooms, but, Aiko-San didn't come out.
We knocked on her door a few times before Daichi-Chan said "She probably went on without us", and I agreed.
When we got into the building, she wasn't there either. We asked every student she knew, and they all said they didn't know where she was...Which I found weird. When I and Daichi-Chan walked into the class, we saw people crying, some stormed out of the classroom, and some chatting with others. While I and Daichi-Chan looked at the projector, We were devastated. It said that Aiko-San was found dead in her apartment with her mouth slit on both sides! I saw a note on the side of her, and my heart sank when I read what it said...
"You're next...Daichi!" Is what it read.
When Daichi-Chan read it, He started crying and screaming, I was staring at the note and wondered "Did it have something to do with that weird lady we saw yesterday or did it have something to do with Aiko-San.
When I and Daichi-Chan had to go to the library, I went to a computer and looked up" Woman with a slit face" I pulled up...The same woman we saw yesterday! When I went deeper into research, I saw all the information I need. Her name was Kuchisake-Onna. She used to be a beautiful woman who had the most wealthy man in the village. She always asked every kid in the village if she was pretty, and they always said yes, making her feel like she could get away with anything and everything. One night when her husband was coming home from work, he saw his wife cheating on him! The next night, Kuchisake tried to apologize over and over, until her husband forgave her. He slit her mouth open and pushed her over a bridge, where she was never found again. The next day, her husband felt bad about what he did, and he started thinking about her.
Then that's when it happened. She was standing by his bed when he came home from work and she asked "Am I pretty?".
He responded by saying "Yes darling, of course!".
When she turned around, she had scissors in her hand and walked towards him.
He asked "What are you doing de-" Just before he could finish his sentence, the slit his mouth opened.
He screamed in agony and despair. Begging for mercy. Then she stabbed him and hung him in his house, put her name on a note, and ran off into the wilderness. Some said she disappeared forever, while others say she asked 3 high school students if she was pretty, then she killed them one by one and this went on for 3 years.
"Oh my god...!" Daichi-Chan said.
When we're walking to our apartments, we saw the same woman.
She asked "Am I pretty?" and Daichi said, "Yes, you are beautiful!".
I had a pit growing in my stomach. Then she took off her mask and I think I almost peed my pants.
She had a slit mouth and asked the same question, then Daichi said "No you're not!"
What happened next made me run for dear life. She slit Daichi's mouth and he fell to the ground as she stabbed him. I ran so fast my shoe almost fell off. I ran into my apartment and locked my door. I ran straight to my wardrobe, got dressed, closed the blinds and curtains, and went to bed. I walked to school, tired, sad, and devastated. My hair had lost its spark and my eyes were kind of droopy.
I went back to the library to find how to defeat her. I only came across one answer. You must distract her in a way that she forgets what she asked. So when I was walking back to my apartment she came up to me, asked the same question, and of course, I said yes. Then she took off her masks and asked the same question. Then I asked her about her personal life, and how old she was, where did she live, and such things.
Then I said "Welp, look at the time, I have to go. I was good talking to you!" and walked off.
I walked into my apartment and went to school the next day. When I walked through the alley, she wasn't there. This kept going for a year now. I am still sad about my friend's deaths, but knowing they will be by my side at all times, I am fine. And that is how I escaped Kuchisake-onna.
Trivia[]
- Author and folklorist Matthew Meyer has described the Kuchisake-onna legend as having roots dating back to Japan's Edo period, which spanned from the 17th to 19th centuries.
- In print, the legend of Kuchisake-onna in dates back to at least as early as 1979. The legend was reported in such publications as the Gifu Prefecture newspaper Gifu Nichi Nichi Shinbun on 26 January 1979, the weekly publication Shukan Asahi on 23 March 1979, and the weekly news magazine Shukan Shincho on 5 April 1979.
- Rumors about Kuchisake-onna spread throughout Japan, creating hysteria to the point that young children would sometimes be accompanied by members of parent–teacher association groups while walking home from school.
- Kuchisake-onna has appeared in live-action films, as well as in manga, anime, and video games. The character appears in the 1994 animated film Pom Poko, produced by Studio Ghibli, and later appears in the 1996 live-action short film Kuchisake-onna, directed by Teruyoshi Ishii.
- She is also mentioned in the 1998 film Ring, directed by Hideo Nakata.
- Kuchisake-onna was also the basis for a character that appears in the episode "Danse Vaudou" of the American television series Constantine.