Presentation Type

Oral Presentation

Abstract

This paper is an exploration of what I call asexual, transvestive role-projection, which is the act of watching a film or television show, and imagining oneself as a character of the opposite gender. I argue that this can occur when the character in question is not sexualized or sexually attractive to the viewer, and that this type of role-projection has become a more common phenomena especially for viewer’s who identify as male due to the rise of the “girl hero” in film, like Eleven in “Stranger Things,” Hit Girl in “Kick Ass,” and “Game of Thrones”’ Arya Stark, who along with her sister Sansa are the main subjects of my analysis.

My ideas build off of and counter Laura Mulvey’s quintessential film theory article “Visual Pleasure in Narrative Cinema,” in which Mulvey argues that male viewers get pleasure from film in two ways: by picturing themselves as the hero, and by imagining themselves possessing the heroine. Considering the characters of Thrones, Arya and Sansa Stark in particular, it is clear to me that the portrayal of men and women, at least of the heroes and heroines, is different in Thrones than the description Mulvey offers. Thrones’ heroines do not exist only “to connote to-be-looked-at-ness” as Mulvey says women in film do, or at least did in 1975 when Mulvey published “Visual Pleasure.” Not only has the portrayal of men and women in film become more progressive, but so too has the viewer’s gaze. Considering more contemporary film theory than Mulvey’s work, I find it crucial to consider that the male viewer has moved beyond the pleasure of imagining possessing the heroine, to pleasure in imagining himself as the heroine, as long as she is not sexualized. Because Thrones has been scrutinized and criticized by feminists and misogynists, it serves as an especially important text to examine the breakdown of gender binaries in film.

From conversations I have had with other fans of the show, most viewers seem to admire and respect Arya, but loathe and scorn Sansa. Further research into fan forums, magazine articles featuring interviews with Thrones actors, and even one book about the show, confirmed what I had heard fans of the show articulate: Arya is a badass, Sansa is a bitch. If Mulvey is correct in her assertion that women in film represent to men the fear of castration and an alien otherness, then it stands to reason that male viewers in particular would be able to identify with and admire Arya, who accomplishes her goals through “male” means of physical violence; however, if a male viewer identifies with and admires Sansa, who asserts her agenda through “feminine” strategies of manipulation and cunning, the male viewer risks “castration” by seeing himself in the feminine Sansa. I further this argument through special attention to the Stark sisters’ relationships with their male mentors, and through close reading of scenes throughout the series in which Sansa is sexualized, but Arya is not.

Keywords: Scopophilia, voyeurism, role-projection, gender binary

Start Date

6-5-2017 11:15 AM

End Date

6-5-2017 11:30 AM

Genre/Form

presentations (communicative events)

Subjects - Topical (LCSH)

Asexual; Motion pictures--Philosophy; Projection (Psychology); Voyeurism; Imagination; Gender identity in motion pictures; Gender identity on television; Gender-nonconforming people

Type

Event

Format

application/pdf

Language

English

COinS
 
May 6th, 11:15 AM May 6th, 11:30 AM

Asexual, Transvestive Role-Projection:"You Go Girl!" Guys and Game of Thrones

Miller Hall

This paper is an exploration of what I call asexual, transvestive role-projection, which is the act of watching a film or television show, and imagining oneself as a character of the opposite gender. I argue that this can occur when the character in question is not sexualized or sexually attractive to the viewer, and that this type of role-projection has become a more common phenomena especially for viewer’s who identify as male due to the rise of the “girl hero” in film, like Eleven in “Stranger Things,” Hit Girl in “Kick Ass,” and “Game of Thrones”’ Arya Stark, who along with her sister Sansa are the main subjects of my analysis.

My ideas build off of and counter Laura Mulvey’s quintessential film theory article “Visual Pleasure in Narrative Cinema,” in which Mulvey argues that male viewers get pleasure from film in two ways: by picturing themselves as the hero, and by imagining themselves possessing the heroine. Considering the characters of Thrones, Arya and Sansa Stark in particular, it is clear to me that the portrayal of men and women, at least of the heroes and heroines, is different in Thrones than the description Mulvey offers. Thrones’ heroines do not exist only “to connote to-be-looked-at-ness” as Mulvey says women in film do, or at least did in 1975 when Mulvey published “Visual Pleasure.” Not only has the portrayal of men and women in film become more progressive, but so too has the viewer’s gaze. Considering more contemporary film theory than Mulvey’s work, I find it crucial to consider that the male viewer has moved beyond the pleasure of imagining possessing the heroine, to pleasure in imagining himself as the heroine, as long as she is not sexualized. Because Thrones has been scrutinized and criticized by feminists and misogynists, it serves as an especially important text to examine the breakdown of gender binaries in film.

From conversations I have had with other fans of the show, most viewers seem to admire and respect Arya, but loathe and scorn Sansa. Further research into fan forums, magazine articles featuring interviews with Thrones actors, and even one book about the show, confirmed what I had heard fans of the show articulate: Arya is a badass, Sansa is a bitch. If Mulvey is correct in her assertion that women in film represent to men the fear of castration and an alien otherness, then it stands to reason that male viewers in particular would be able to identify with and admire Arya, who accomplishes her goals through “male” means of physical violence; however, if a male viewer identifies with and admires Sansa, who asserts her agenda through “feminine” strategies of manipulation and cunning, the male viewer risks “castration” by seeing himself in the feminine Sansa. I further this argument through special attention to the Stark sisters’ relationships with their male mentors, and through close reading of scenes throughout the series in which Sansa is sexualized, but Arya is not.

Keywords: Scopophilia, voyeurism, role-projection, gender binary