NoeL said:
You're misunderstanding me. You've given examples of the trope existing but haven't provided any reasonable explanation as to WHY the trope exists. Both you and Ms. Sarkeesian just seem to imply "this exists, it paints a (in my opinion) negative picture of women, therefore men are to blame for it". I presented the origins of the trope (which you agreed with) to try to explain WHY it exists - and it's not because men are jerks.
Actually I never accused men as being "to blame" for it. Neither did Ms. Sarkeesian in her (new, KS funded) videos either. If you see me blaming men in general for this, anywhere, you are imaging an attack that does not exist. I might blame a specific man (the Pope, Walt Disney) but never men in general. And never did I suggest that men used this trope because they hate women (well, maybe the Pope, but certainly not Disney).
What I (and she) blame are lazy writers. These writers needed a quick prize, an easy goal to frame their game, and most of them went with "helpless woman" and that isn't right. Were the creators of these games woman hating sexist assholes? No. They were lazy guys stealing an old Disney trope (or old Victorian trope before that) and slapping it into their game because it was quick, easy, and required no original thought.
You want to know why? Fine.
In the 1940s-60s, Disney did it because the current movement in society was to get women out of the factories (where they were needed during the Second World War) and back into homes (ie, the Kitchen) so that the menfolk could have their jobs back. It is the same reason that toys at the time broke into different toys for boys and girls (prior, most toys were generic to both genders).
And since out of work veterans is a bad thing, that part almost doesn't bother me. However, it started a trend - getting women out of factories only took a few years, but the trend went on for a decade and a half. It became part of "Americana" or "American Culture" or "The American Dream" - the father working, the mother staying at home with the kids. The nuclear family, in their little suburban home. It became a market, so advertisers and media in general pushed this idea that women had to stay home while men worked. It pushed the idea that young girls had to prepare for marriage from the time they were 5 years old.
There is a reason that the older Disney films involves female characters who only dream about being brides. That changed when Disney left that era - for a while, Disney didn't use Prinesses, and when they brought them back, the Princesses were focused on other things. The Little Mermaid is considered to be the beginning of the Disney Renaissance - she was a Princess who wanted freedom and legs so she could go explore the surface world. The Prince was more or less incidental - a means to an end. That was Disney adapting to a modern audience where a woman existing ONLY for marriage would have been off-putting and upsetting.
So yes, even modern Disney (and by modern, read anything made since Little Mermaid) recognizes the Damsel trope as bad. That's why they stopped using it.
Anyway, if you want me to go farther back into the past, PM me, because really we're getting seriously off topic here.
One last thing, your Star Wars comment. Um, no. Obi Wan could not be replaced with a book. He offers encouragement and mentorship aside from training. In fact, it's questionable how much training he actually provides (that's mostly Yoda). A book couldn't have told Luke to "use the Force" at the end of the first movie.
So no, your idea that Obi Wan is objectified is absolutely laughable. Did not happen. And, while Leia is captured, notice I don't mention her as a Damsel trope - because she picked up a blaster and HELPED rescue herself. She was not helpless - she is able and competent (for the most part) throughout the three movies.
I don't care much for Star Wars in general, but one thing it did right was not objectifying anyone. Even when Leia wears her metal bikini, she still manages to be competent. (And, pointedly kills the one objectifying her - by strangling him with the leash he held her with.)
Ahem.
Once again, this thread is about an Awesome Dad who did something nice for his daughter. He showed how simple it is to make a game fair and equal. So why not answer me this - why do
you find equality offensive?