...Interesting how FF's representation of females seems to be maturing as the games develop further. Looking forward to how FFXIII's female lead (the first one?) fits into this pattern.
Do you think Aeris is possibly one of the strongest female characters in FF, even though she's bound by the archetypal 'sacrificial female' role? She's nice. She's nice in a world where niceness is meaningless, changes nothing, where Tifa and Cloud and everyone is so full of hate and cursing, and she stays nice. Nice is hard...
...and correspondingly, as FF's females develop emotional depth and maturity, FF's representation of males seems to be moving away from the idealised male. Strength isn't everything, wit isn't everything, a big sword is, ah, actually - completely meaningless.
Can you tell I've wanted to pick up this line of thought for a long time? ;)
I think FFXII's characters in general are more complex than previous games. They feel more realistic, much less superpowered. Even Basch does not have the godly abilities that Cloud had.
Very interesting thought about Aeris. I've always considered her to be a strong character. She has to be strong, to be able to remain cheerful living in a bleak place like the Midgar slums. She's had misfortunes in her life and yet doesn't blame anyone, not even Shinra, for them. She can still trust in people, and smile despite being a young woman in hopeless circumstances. I'd never thought about the other characters being full of hate before, but you're right, Aeris is definitely a contrast to them
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I know the essay is only referencing FFs 7 through 12, but I just wanted to comment that I think Terra (FF6) is the first female lead in the series, although like FF12 the cast is an ensemble. Another thing about Terra is that she's also not romantically linked (to Edgar's dismay) to anyone else in the cast (unlike Celes).
You've made some interesting points. I would be interested to see what Ashe's personality was like before Rasler's death, and how she changed in the years she had to live among men in the sewers. I think she would have been determined to learn how to wield a sword, and she would have also learned to conceal her emotions. She wanted to earn the Resistance's trust, and she probably felt that she had to acquire more masculine traits like aggressiveness and reason in order for them to respect her. I wonder how she will adjust to life in the palace once again.
The point of my essay was trying to show that a woman doesn't have to have typical "masculine" traits to be strong or a good leader (just look at Lucil).
I've noticed that magick does seem to be typically a feminine trait as far as FF is concerned. The only exceptions to this are Vivi and Arc. Perhaps this is because magick=mystery, and females are considered more mysterious and spiritual than males. Ashe does seem to rebel against her feminine aspects. Maybe she sees feminity as weakness, or gained that view from living with the Resistance for so long. Or she may feel that she must be masculine so men will admire her, because leaders who show feminine qualities are not considered as capable. Perhaps by adopting masculine traits she is renouncing her role as a sex object, so that she will gain respect. It's easier to be "one of the guys" when they no longer see you as sexually desirable (though I still believe the words masculine and feminine are obsolete because I don't feel the sexes are born with inherent traits
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Female characters have a lot of expectations pressed upon them by the fan community. I can't speak for males, but females seem to want to relate to and admire the female characters.
I wonder what age-bracket of female fans you're referring to here - Ones who have already defined themselves in RL as (mature) women, or the teens?
I ask because I've often thought the complete inverse. Apart from FFXII, I've not had a lot of respect for any FF female, and I've never wanted to admire them; their issues have no parallels with my own.
I've speculated that the trend for yaoi writing is (in part, only in part - I have an essay outline on this somewhere) a backlash from young female fans unable to actually relate to a single female representation in FF. Far better to 'be' Cloud, to relate to Cloud, to parallel Cloud's depth, strength, angst, issues, and then sleep with Zack as 'strong desirable male', than to 'be' Tifa with her problems that can't be related to, and sleep with Cloud as 'broken male'.
Females want to find female characters to relate to, even if they don't necassarily find them. Personally, I've always found at least one trait in a character I could relate to, in females moreso than males. I suppose I'm referring to teenage fans, since I am one myself.
I've never understood why females like yaoi except for the sexual aspect (the same reason men like girl/girl), so I don't have anything to add there. I've never related to Cloud more than Tifa, but maybe that's just me. As a teenager, I relate to the female protaganist's romantic issues and desire to be accepted within the party.
Re: In defense of Asheeuphonious_glowJanuary 13 2009, 01:15:24 UTC
Hi, thanks for expressing such valid points. I'm not sure what my opinions were when I first wrote this essay, and my thoughts about many of the characters have changed since then. At this time I agree entirely with your opinions about Ashe and the discussion about feminine/masculine traits.
I personally do not believe that a woman has to have stereotypical feminine traits to be a good female character. In analyzing her character, I thought that Ashe might see femininity as a weakness. I certainly don't, but I also understand that "feminine" traits are socially defined and human behavior falls on a wide spectrum. I would no longer consider her masculine, but there is the possibility of the character trying to be that way
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To be honest, I think this is far too simplified. It's also interesting that you describe several characters as physically weak when in reality they... well, they aren't. I mean... Just because they're mages doesn't mean that they're weak.
I don't know. I disagree with you on multiple points and I don't think you've really addressed the issue here, even though you've unwittingly identified it. The problem is not necessarily the characterization, but it is the lack of diversity between the characters and the way in which they are often undercut.
Actually, I agree with you. I was trying to appreciate the characters for what they did have instead of what they didn't, and I realize now that the female characters are really lacking in diversity.
Mages generally have the lowest physical strength of party members, but they do a lot of damage with magic certainly.
This is one of the first essays of this type I've written, so it's probably not as well thought out as I originally intended.
If you have more specific criticisms, I would certainly appreciate hearing them.
Comments 18
Do you think Aeris is possibly one of the strongest female characters in FF, even though she's bound by the archetypal 'sacrificial female' role? She's nice. She's nice in a world where niceness is meaningless, changes nothing, where Tifa and Cloud and everyone is so full of hate and cursing, and she stays nice. Nice is hard...
...and correspondingly, as FF's females develop emotional depth and maturity, FF's representation of males seems to be moving away from the idealised male. Strength isn't everything, wit isn't everything, a big sword is, ah, actually - completely meaningless.
Can you tell I've wanted to pick up this line of thought for a long time? ;)
Much pondering on my part. Thanks for writing!
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Very interesting thought about Aeris. I've always considered her to be a strong character. She has to be strong, to be able to remain cheerful living in a bleak place like the Midgar slums. She's had misfortunes in her life and yet doesn't blame anyone, not even Shinra, for them. She can still trust in people, and smile despite being a young woman in hopeless circumstances. I'd never thought about the other characters being full of hate before, but you're right, Aeris is definitely a contrast to them ( ... )
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The point of my essay was trying to show that a woman doesn't have to have typical "masculine" traits to be strong or a good leader (just look at Lucil).
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Female characters have a lot of expectations pressed upon them by the fan community. I can't speak for males, but females seem to want to relate to and admire the female characters.
I wonder what age-bracket of female fans you're referring to here - Ones who have already defined themselves in RL as (mature) women, or the teens?
I ask because I've often thought the complete inverse. Apart from FFXII, I've not had a lot of respect for any FF female, and I've never wanted to admire them; their issues have no parallels with my own.
I've speculated that the trend for yaoi writing is (in part, only in part - I have an essay outline on this somewhere) a backlash from young female fans unable to actually relate to a single female representation in FF. Far better to 'be' Cloud, to relate to Cloud, to parallel Cloud's depth, strength, angst, issues, and then sleep with Zack as 'strong desirable male', than to 'be' Tifa with her problems that can't be related to, and sleep with Cloud as 'broken male'.
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I've never understood why females like yaoi except for the sexual aspect (the same reason men like girl/girl), so I don't have anything to add there. I've never related to Cloud more than Tifa, but maybe that's just me. As a teenager, I relate to the female protaganist's romantic issues and desire to be accepted within the party.
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Green, S. & Jenkins, C. "Normal Female Interest in Men Bonking: Selections from the Terra Nostra Underground and Strange Bedfellows," republished in Fans, Bloggers, and Gamers, H. Jenkins (ed), NYU press, 2006 ( ... )
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I personally do not believe that a woman has to have stereotypical feminine traits to be a good female character. In analyzing her character, I thought that Ashe might see femininity as a weakness. I certainly don't, but I also understand that "feminine" traits are socially defined and human behavior falls on a wide spectrum. I would no longer consider her masculine, but there is the possibility of the character trying to be that way ( ... )
Reply
I don't know. I disagree with you on multiple points and I don't think you've really addressed the issue here, even though you've unwittingly identified it. The problem is not necessarily the characterization, but it is the lack of diversity between the characters and the way in which they are often undercut.
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Mages generally have the lowest physical strength of party members, but they do a lot of damage with magic certainly.
This is one of the first essays of this type I've written, so it's probably not as well thought out as I originally intended.
If you have more specific criticisms, I would certainly appreciate hearing them.
Reply
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