Common Themes in Anime: Opposition

I'm sure that many of you have noticed, but a lot of anime are more than mindless entertainment. They are works of art. There are many common themes in anime, so I thought that it might be a good idea to start a series of threads covering some of them. Perhaps one of the most common themes in anime is that of opposition. By this I mean showing contrasts, opposites.

Take for example, Wolf's Rain -

Spoiler:

the world is on the verge of the apocalypse, it is more or less dead. We are presented with an image of hopelessness, of darkness. The humans are not presented in a good light. Opposing this are the wolves and the girl, Chesa (am I remembering the spelling correctly?). The wolves present raw emotion, instinct. They are symbols of freedom and hope. They are searching for "Paradise", a place of happiness, of roving pastures and forests where game is plentiful and life is easy.

So, what do you think of this theme. Is there a movie, series or OVA in particular that stands out to you? If so, how? What do you feel is the message that the creators are trying to get through, and do you think that they did a good job?

Feel free to skip include spoiler tags.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

... Nobody cares to add anything to this?

There's nowhere I can't reach.

I wasn't talking about conflict packrat. . .

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.