Misfits paper: Femininity and Female Disempowerment in Misfits

[da_phoenix13]

So I'm dead tired right now, and seriously about to pass out, but I just finished my final paper for my female superheroes class, talking about the portrayal of the female characters in Misfits and how they are ultimately more disempowered than any of the male characters. There are a bunch of citations in here that I just don't feel like taking out

Comments

[idioticonion]

Ooo, okay, this is completely fascinating. Absolutely brilliant and I enjoyed reading every word

[otempora42]

Poor Simon seemed the most victimised.

Simon's victimized because of his quiet and introverted personality. His power doesn't cause him to be victimized - in fact, he uses his powers to victimize others (spy on Alisha and Kelly in the changing room, enter Sally's home without her knowledge). And, again, Nathan is disempowered in his personal life, but his powers did save him from death - given enough time, he could get out of his grave. Neither of their powers actually make them weaker, whereas Alisha's definitely does.

[idioticonion]

Playing devil's advocate for a moment. Simon's power are horrible. they turn him MORE introverted and MORE alienated than he was before. They accentuate his pain, make real the feeling that he's cut off from the rest of humanity. They cause him to go all creeper, which furthers his disconnection from his peers.

So in that way, I'd say that his powers make him victimize himself.

Also, he's terribly victimised by whats-her-name - the probation officer lady. YES he eventually kills her, but that's a product of his powers and the deep disconnect he's feeling.

[da_phoenix13]

God, I completely disagree with you about Simon. Yes, he was the most victimized before he got his powers, because blonde boy bullied him and he was shy and no one ever listened to him, and this came out in the fact that he was granted invisibility (they said somewhere that the characters' powers enhance portions of their personalities that they don't really like). It doesn't take him long to use his power of invisibility to victimize others, spying on the girls and turning invisible to intimidate Sally right before he kills her (which was an accident, but you know). He also starts using Kelly's power to his advantage, thinking things rather than saying them out loud so he knows she'll hear him. I see Simon as one of the darker characters, because he has so little hesitation at doing evil and covering up his wrongdoings -- it was his idea to bury the bodies in concrete, thus ensuring they'd never be found, and he keeps Sally in a freezer so he can finally be alone with her, not even telling his "friends" that she's even dead. Hell, I

[otempora42]

This was really interesting! I do think that there are some really complex gender issues in Misfits, particularly how Alisha, who is introduced as a woman in control of her sexuality, is given a power that robs her of control. The power is almost a punishment for her sexual liberation - as she was once in the traditionally masculine role of controlling sex and having lustful urges, she was given a power that puts her in the more feminine position of being dominated by men. It's not as simple as that, of course (Alisha does still use her ability to manipulate men), but it's an interesting concept.

[idioticonion]

Ooo, good point. But... let me give you another point of view. From the very first I thought Alisha was gross, just really unattractive and trashy. I felt like her powers were there to show her that using people like she did wasn't a good idea. To me, that wasn't about her gender, it was about her being a generally sucky and hateful person. So I guess you see in the show stuff that you thought about the characters when you first met them.

Not that any of the characters are sympathetic!

[da_phoenix13]

Yeah, that's exactly the point I was trying to make about Alisha. She starts out in control of her sexuality, but her more wanton tendencies cause it to go out of control until her sexuality completely controls her, and the power is too much for her to really handle. Like I said, it's her relationship with Curtis, letting him decide the best way to handle her abilities (she seems lost until he reassures her and helps her figure stuff out), that puts her character on a "good" path, entering a heterosexual romance where the male is the more dominant partner.

But all this is just restating what you and I have said before. Thanks for reading! I'd never really put that much thought into gender in the series before I got this assignment, and there's definitely a lot of stuff in here with regards to men and women that makes you go "Wait..."

[idioticonion]

Now I'm waiting for your essay entitled "the mysoginy of Supernatural". Seriously, I'm waiting for it.

&taps foot.

[snogged]

You know...I still haven't gotten the chance to watch Misfits yet.

*sigh*

But I was intrigued by your paper nevertheless, considering how freaking jealous I am that you're taking this class and because of the women's studies minor that hasn't been crushed by the weight of her counseling degree yet.:D

I can't pick on the nuances the same way IO and Otemps can, but I can say that the content is good and the thought process is there and that's what the prof is probably going to find more important anyways.

[secondmezzanine]

Female sexuality is totally a double edged sword.

I'm so proud of you, Phoe! You always write the best analyses. And how awesome that you got to write it about one of your shows! So cool!

This makes me miss college and grad school a bit!

[fivil]

Oh man, good stuff. I've thought about how problematic I find Alisha's power.. It's not at all progressive and sex-positive, it's all "you slept around a lot, well, let's see that turn against you". It really annoys me, though I love the show otherwise