The word デニムベスト was used in a fashion magazine ad for a denim vest. The use of katakana could be to indicate that the denim vest fashion came from another culture besides Japan in order to distinguish between classic Japanese attire and that from another country. I think katakana has this effect because in modern day Japan one of the common roles that katakana plays is to write words from foreign languages and cultures1. Katakana can hint that a certain fashion isn’t from Japan because people expect that when katakana is used to describe the features of the clothing (not the name of the clothing company) then it might mean that that type of clothing came from another country.
I chose the word ドゴオッン from the manga Rurouni Kenshin because it is a good example of how katakana is used in a fight scene. I think katakana is used in almost all manga fight scenes because it brings the action to life by imitating the sounds that would be made in real life. Katakana does this better than kanji because it is easier to read, especially for children; and it does it better than hiragana because katakana it is more sleek and sharp (like weapons). Using katakana draws more attention to the page when the characters are plastered all over it because they are appealing to the eyes in their simplicity (lines put together to make characters). I think all of these traits of katakana makes the action more “in your face” when it is used.
References: 1) Yookoso! An Invitation to Contemporary Japanese 1st edition McGraw-Hill 1993, page 29 "The Japanese Writing System (2) Katakana"
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