David Slovikosky IRLS 150b1 Professor: Lenhart Section: 001 Damsel in Distress Analysis The Damsel in Distress series by Anita Sarkeesian explores a worrying trope found everywhere in many old and new video games. Traditionally, a damsel in distress is the male hero's wife or love interest who is helpless and is in need of mercy killing or rescuing. Women are portrayed as "disposable objects or symbolic pawns" (Sarkeesian) in these kinds of games. Sarkeesian states that this theme "normalizes extremely toxic, patronizing, and paternalistic attitudes about women". The important fact about this trope is that it is not simply an "isolated incidence" but a re-occurring theme. This builds into her main point, that "The Damsel in Distress trope …show more content…
These are mostly seen in modern games, with new and revamped high definition gory graphics. The first of the three victimized women themes, The Damsel in the Refrigerator, shows the brutal murder of a female character whose soul is captured and must be avenged by even more slaughter (Sarkessian). This is seen in many video games such as Medievil 2, The Darkness 2, and Shadows of the Damned. This horrific representation of women, as Sarkeesian states, "fools gamers into thinking their games are becoming more emotionally sophisticated, but the truth is there is nothing 'mature' about most of these stories and many of them cross the line into blatant misogyny". This theme is repeated once again in Max Payne 3 where there isn't even a heroic rescue. The death of a woman in a game for the sake of a quest is what Sarkeesian calls "Disposable Damsel". The "Euthanized Damsel" is the last of the victimized women tropes. In this trope, the damsel, who the player believes is alive, has been dead the whole time (Sarkeesian). This is seen through a large variety of games such as God of War: Ghost of Sparta, Shadows of the Damned, and Resident Evil 5. All of the victimized damsels are simply mutant objects to advance the story, not people to relate
Secondly, the story highlights Jeannette's resilience and resourcefulness. Despite the fact that her dress is on fire, she remains calm and figures out how to put out the flames. This is a theme that runs throughout the book, as Jeannette and
Maybe because her ex-husband still lives his life the same way he did with her; unfaithful. The female in the story is shown as meek and easily taken advantage of, while her husband seems to be as unfaithful and objectifying. Overall the gender roles got switched around. The man is now viewed as the villain and the woman is viewed as the hero of the story. This gives the story its feminist
Losing a loved one or close friend is one of the hardest things to absorb, the regrets of not doing something we might have wanted to; or maybe we did not tell them something that we wanted to. On the other hand, we could have possibly done all that we could have and not regret a thing, perhaps we just feel broken without them. In the event that you lose multiple close friends, not to mention right in front of your eyes, how would you feel? Do you think you could handle it? What would you do to cope with it?
Should I Save The Day? Society is in the mindset of not taking initiative on issues. As a whole, we rely on each other to take the first step and when one isn’t taken, it leaves the opportunity for growth fairly stagnant. The article “The Dying Girl
The term, “Welfare Queen”, stemmed from Ronald Reagan's campaign to put an end to women in particular, who abuse the welfare system. A Welfare Queen “has emerged from a long and deeply racialized history of suspicion of and resentment toward families receiving welfare in the United States” (Black and Sprague 2). In Season two of Orange is the New Black, we are introduced to a new character named Vee. Before being placed at Litchfield Prison, she was a foster mother to Taystee and her brother RJ. Throughout this season Vee is questioned if she abuses the welfare system and fits the title “welfare queen” by cheating the system.
For example, during wartime deputy husbands could turn into a termagant and women who were Christians could potentially become saints. This form of heroism contrasted female violence with female goodness. Women who were heroines were often praised. Compared to the captive heroines in the Good Wives, Little compares her definition of heroines in her article. The difference is not whether or not who killed more people or who did a better deed for the community, but what a woman defines as heroism in their culture or community.
During times of crisis, women have been marginalized continuously, and although many would like to think so, conditions for women have not changed much over time. Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand and The Book Thief by Markus Zusak both reflect that. Women in literature and in real life who deserve lead roles are often forced into supporting roles. Most people understand this but few acknowledge it. Strong female characters such as Liesel in The Book Thief, Penelope in The Odyssey, and Antigone in Antigone need to be honored the same way strong male characters are.
A classic trope in a romance narrative involves a damsel in distress who is usually
Women in Comics Historically, women in comics have portrayed a variety of roles ranging from a helpless woman that needs to be saved by a man to a powerful heroine that protects a man. Women originally played insignificant roles in comic books, they were depicted as dependent on men or as victims of crime who needed to be rescued by a “male” superhero. In the beginning of the comic book age, female character attributes represented the stereotypes that women were inferior or subordinate to men and they belonged in the home as a home maker or source of emotional support. As the role of women in society has evolved, so has the characterization of women in comics, graphic novels, and superhero movies; they are portrayed as strong and powerful.
Lady Macbeth and Medea are therefore considered tragic heros because they put their loyalty above their own self-worth. Ultimately, this ideal encompasses how femininity is controlled by men, because the actions of the Macbeth and Jason were the cause for Lady Macbeth and Medea’s
These concepts are depicted within the classic Disney princess film Cinderella directed by Clyde Geronimi. This film has ‘taught’ and/or shown little girls to stop everything they are currently doing and to become dependent on a man to save the day. Cinderella can be seen as the ultimate example of a “damsel-in-distress” because she gets saved from being “abused, humiliated and a servant in her own house to her stepmother and stepsisters” (Cinderella). However, the film does not fail to mention how despite this Cinderella still remains “gentle” and “kind.” The usage of ‘gentle’ and ‘kind’ rather than ‘understanding’ pinpoints the societal gender norms in action— according to these, a woman should be compliant and quiet.
Misery: Challenging Gender Stereotype Misery is the most thematically satisfying of all Stephen King’s novels. The theme this paper will explore further is that of King’s disturbing interpretation of gender roles. Gender stereotypes are what is thought of as societal norms dictating types of behaviour based on whether a person is a male or female. In popular literature gender stereotypes often see women as good, pure and innocent, whereas men are seen as strong and at times the evil beings, most often being the villain.
Feminist theory shows the ways of a gender structured life . This culture is also displayed in Crime and Punishment by Sonya and Dunya. Feminist criticism is a type of literary criticism that was well known in the 1970’s. Women would begin taking apart the classics and analyzing how the author portrayed women. The women in Crime and Punishment , especially Sonya and Dunya have a stronger state of mind and are able to handle the pressures and struggles of life better than the men in the novel.
Literature Review The study of media influences on society is important because of the impact it has on shaping our beliefs, behaviours, and biases. Many Sociologist have examined the different aspects of media influence on society and this literature review will summarize the findings of five different research articles which focus on the effects of media exposure on society as a whole. A variety of issues are explored including, feminism, racism, sexism, and inequality of the different socioeconomic classes. It is important to highlight the influential practices used by the media to influence people, so that we may better understand the impact that it may have on our daily lives. This literature review examines the many aspects of media
The role of women in literature crosses many broad spectrums in works of the past and present. Women are often portrayed as weak and feeble individuals that submit to the situations around them, but in many cases women are shown to be strong, independent individuals. This is a common theme that has appeared many times in literature. Across all literature, there is a common element that causes the suffering and pain of women. This catalyst, the thing that initiates the suffering of women, is essentially always in the form of a man.