Racism in Skyrim?

[bz316]

well you might argue that it is speciesism rather than racism as I don't think the human's and the mer can inner-breed.

Sure they can breed. That's where the Bretons came from. The product of man-elf mating

 

[RedRockRun]

It's no diffe

I first realised this just after I picked a race. I chose to play as a Nord which immediately brought the guard with the check list great joy. He was also very taken aback when after he gave his "Norse power" speech the front woman still ordered me to my death. This made me realsise that this game might have a slight Norse supiriourity thing going.

After surviving the dragon onsluaght I was sent to Riverwood, where another man sent me to Whiterun. When I reached Whiterun the first thing that I encountered was a squatter camp filled with Khajiit. I went closer and over heard two of them talking about how the Nords would not let them into Whiterun because they think all Khajiit are rapists and theives. They then went on to say that all they are trying to do is raise a family.

When I entered Whiterun I saw a group of Redguards being herassed by Whiterun guards. The guards where going on about how the Redguards only wanted to come in to rape children and abduct woman to sell into slavery. When I went up to one of the Redguards, he said that they where just looking for a friend and if I could help.

Things like this kept happening throughout the game, and I didn't make a post about it earlier because I thought Yatshee would bring it up in his review of Skyrim but he didn't. So I want to know if I am the only one who has experienced this racism, and if you have, share your tales of witnessed racist actions within Skrim.

Racism is no new thing in TES. Remember the Dunmer in Morrowind? Argonian and Khajiit slavery was a time honored tradition, and those beastmen who weren't slaves were treated coldly by pretty much every other Dunmer.

 

[Szayel Aporro Granz]

Yes there is racism in Skyrim because there is a fucking war going on!

 

[userwhoquitthesite]

The only race you missed were Bretons. I'd say they're considered somewhat similar to Imperials, just even weaker as they're all thought of as mages.

Oh yes, that's right, milk-drinking coward sorcerors

escapists, what am I forgetting?

That Bretons are elf-f**kers?

angerwing, i'm sorry. ^He wins

 

[userwhoquitthesite]

well you might argue that it is speciesism rather than racism as I don't think the human's and the mer can inner-breed. Also the nords only seem to really dislike emperials because emperials abuse the nords. They don't seem to be very any redgaurd for example.

But I'm just being pedantic. Yes, there is a very strong "Skyrim for the Nords" theme.

You also must be a neophyte. Man and mer not only can interbreed, but are descended from the same ancestors. In fact, that's a driving force behind the Aldmeri Dominion's rise and actions. They believe that humanity is a base corruption of elven existence, and that man is what keeps the altmer trapped on mundus instead of ascending to a higher plane.

also, the nords are pissy because Captain Supernord Supreme isn't being recognized as a god. like he has been for millenia. and totally is

 

[darkorion69]

Tamriel is culturally stagnant in my opinion. Racial equality would be very long and hard road when there are perhaps hundreds of sentient species. The closest thing to racial equality is the existence of The Empire. In the Empire (theoretically) all citizens are legally equal.

Personally, I think that Tamriel will always be held back by it numerous bickering factions, races, and their constant fighting and petty scheming. The Aedra and Daedra only encourage everyone to take sides and kill the other guy, with a few notable exceptions. I also feel that the abundance of Magic removes the necessity to advance technology (the development of which might eventually yield a more enlightened sociological viewpoint.)

 

[Nexus4]

The racism is one of the driving forces behind the war. I mean the Nords feel that their way of life is being threatened by the Empire, that happens to consist of literally every non-Nord race. Personally though, I think the Thalmor are bigger dicks in regards to racism. I am an elf too and they treat me like shit.

 

[chaosyoshimage]

This game won't let me marry a fuzzy Kahjit guy, so yeah, racist, although apparently I can find an Argonian guy to marry, so I guess it's scales for me. What? Humans? Elves? Ugh, they're hideous, get those rapists and thieves away from me. Although, I'm an elf, so maybe I should take back that rapist part...

 

[DalekJaas]

Uhhh one of the reasons not to like the Stormcloaks is because they are blatantly racist. Racism is a sub-plot of the game and you are acting as if you are surprised it's there -_-. Racism was even pretty apparent towards Argonians in Oblivion as well. It has always been a fairly prominent feature of the game.

 

[Yoshemo]

Racism has been a key feature in every TES game so far, although maybe I've experienced it more than most since I always play as Argonians. I think it's pretty cool, really, and adds an extra dynamic of relationships between my character and the NPCs. Honestly I'm as racist as the Nords in that game, since I always try to avoid harming fellow Argonians even when I have no qualms with massacring entire towns of other people. It just makes me feel so guilty when they clearly trust me, and call me their friend (or marsh-friend) and I kill them anyway.

Also if you think the people of Skyrim are racist you clearly haven't played Morrowind, where Argonians and Khajiits were commonly enslaved and put to work, and practically everyone thought they were "lesser" beings.

Fear not, Marsh-brother. Shortly before Skyrim, the Argonians of Black Marsh invaded Morrowind, took it over, and set all the slaves free. Then the Argonians slaughtered the major families or drove them out. (Near Windhelm theres a very small farm owned by the once great House Hlallu)
Argonians ftw. Always the race I play as.

 

[brainslurper]

I used to be rasist like the Nords. Then I took an arrow in the knee.

At what point will those jokes stop being funny?
Until horse armor is announced.

 

[Char-Nobyl]

I'll just slip in my text in bold for the sake of not re-quoting each it me I want to make a minor comment.

...you've never played the Elder Scrolls before, have you?

Lets see, racial stereotypes include

khajiit: sneaky, drug-addled, thieving liars Sounds about right. It certainly doesn't help that skooma is made from a Elsweyr-exclussive crop.
argonians: lizard ents, obviously they are stupid I didn't pick up 'stupid' so much as just 'animals.' Sorta more insulting that way: it's hatred in spite of acknowledging intelligence and the like.
dunmer: aristocratic, backward, ancestor-worshipping lying slavers and drug dealers The main stereotypes I saw of them were treacherous, magically-inclined, and prone to daedra worship.
altmer: arrogant, supremacist bastards (and now some of them are full-on nazis) Well, it certainly doesn't help that the Thalmor government banned the worship of Talos based solely on the belief that no human could ever join the ranks of the Divines.
orsimer: raging, drooling, ignorant barbarians Yep. Though more of a barbarian-savant: no one seems to deny the quality of orcish smithing.
Nords: DRUNKEN ignorant barbarians Nothing much to add here.
Redguards: savages I think it's more 'baffling foreigner' than outright 'savages.' They're human, but their customs are nonetheless alien to Imperials/Bretons/Nords.
bosmer: untrustworthy, flighty, thieving cowards Yeah, more or less.
Imperials: arrogant, lazy, weak, greedy. Arrogant and greedy, definitely, but I think 'weak' only applies to the Empire as a whole, seeing as it's struggling to hold itself together.

escapists, what am I forgetting?

The only race you missed were Bretons. I'd say they're considered somewhat similar to Imperials, just even weaker as they're all thought of as mages.

I recall one of the Nord slurs for them being 'chinless,' which sorta makes sense. They tend to have naturally less pronounced jawlines than Imperials and Nords.

Then there's the dwemer, who most people assume are stereotypical dwarves rather than basically bearded elves. I think werewolves and vampires can qualify as nearly having 'racial' status at this point. The Companions were proof enough of werewolves being ultimately human, yet the disciples of the god of mercy dedicate themselves to eradicating them.

 

[Matthew Valkanov]

Wow.. I guess not too many play as Redguard eh? Always fun having a general good store clerk outside of Dragonreach offering to buy one of my relatives.

Yeah, I don't often see anyone posting that they play as a Redguard. Could be because they don't have as good racial qualities as before...doesn't stop me from playing them though^^

Funnily enough though, I was hoping for some racial tension seeing as how Skyrim and Hammerfell have had quite a few...disagreements in the past, but Redguards seem to be the only people who AREN'T targeted by the resident racists(except for Nords, obviously)

 

[Angerwing]

I'll just slip in my text in bold for the sake of not re-quoting each it me I want to make a minor comment.

...you've never played the Elder Scrolls before, have you?

Lets see, racial stereotypes include

khajiit: sneaky, drug-addled, thieving liars Sounds about right. It certainly doesn't help that skooma is made from a Elsweyr-exclussive crop.
argonians: lizard ents, obviously they are stupid I didn't pick up 'stupid' so much as just 'animals.' Sorta more insulting that way: it's hatred in spite of acknowledging intelligence and the like.
dunmer: aristocratic, backward, ancestor-worshipping lying slavers and drug dealers The main stereotypes I saw of them were treacherous, magically-inclined, and prone to daedra worship.
altmer: arrogant, supremacist bastards (and now some of them are full-on nazis) Well, it certainly doesn't help that the Thalmor government banned the worship of Talos based solely on the belief that no human could ever join the ranks of the Divines.
orsimer: raging, drooling, ignorant barbarians Yep. Though more of a barbarian-savant: no one seems to deny the quality of orcish smithing.
Nords: DRUNKEN ignorant barbarians Nothing much to add here.
Redguards: savages I think it's more 'baffling foreigner' than outright 'savages.' They're human, but their customs are nonetheless alien to Imperials/Bretons/Nords.
bosmer: untrustworthy, flighty, thieving cowards Yeah, more or less.
Imperials: arrogant, lazy, weak, greedy. Arrogant and greedy, definitely, but I think 'weak' only applies to the Empire as a whole, seeing as it's struggling to hold itself together.

escapists, what am I forgetting?

The only race you missed were Bretons. I'd say they're considered somewhat similar to Imperials, just even weaker as they're all thought of as mages.

I recall one of the Nord slurs for them being 'chinless,' which sorta makes sense. They tend to have naturally less pronounced jawlines than Imperials and Nords.

Then there's the dwemer, who most people assume are stereotypical dwarves rather than basically bearded elves. I think werewolves and vampires can qualify as nearly having 'racial' status at this point. The Companions were proof enough of werewolves being ultimately human, yet the disciples of the god of mercy dedicate themselves to eradicating them.

You know your stuff. This pleases me.

The chinless thing ties into the whole 'milk-drinking pansy' idea. Have a pronounced jawline is a classic sign of an 'alpha male' in media, and saying someone is chinless has been an insult for the upper class. Bretons are half Altmer, racially, and the Altmer are a very arrogant, aristocratic race. The Bretons would catch some splashback from this from the Nordic population. Ironically, the Altmer have always had outrageous chins in the Elder Scrolls series.

The dwarves are a huge mystery to most, enough that they haven't really got any stereotypes (rather, rough understanding). The mystery is compounded by the entire race (barring the one corprus-ridden dwarf in Morrowind) leaving at once, to a place nobody knows. They have written records, and a few visual representations (assuming the Centurions represent the Dwemer), but the knowledge about the Dwemer is too vague to really understand anything about them. You can tell by the anthropological annotations in the Marobar Sul tales. One tale (can't recall the name) mentioned a dwarven smith making a 'Calling' to his dwarven leader. Are dwarves psychic in some way? Nobody knows. Basically, the only ways common people see the Dwemer are 'Good smiths, extremely smart, love traps and contraptions, all disappeared'.

As for the werewolves and vampires, I'd definitely agree with you. The werewolves are able to control their bloodlust, and even can choose to forgo it completely. The only reason some of the Companions choose to turn in to wolves is because they rationally believe that the power gained is worth the risk. Some choose otherwise, and that's okay. There's also one dude cursed by Hircine in, I think, Falkreath. He randomly changes into a wolf, and can't control it, resulting in the murder of a young girl. He's not a normal werewolf though, he's cursed by a Daedric prince, and he tries his hardest to fix himself. As for vampires, their hunted throughout Tamriel, so they understandably are mostly bad guys. The same goes for necromancers, and even a lot of conjurers. This isn't because their vampirism warps their brain, I believe it's because their constantly being hunted. Non-hostile vampires, such as Babette, are shown to be in complete control. She hasn't fed on anyone in the Dark Brotherhood, and neither did Vicente Valtieri in Oblivion (not without consent, at least). In one quest, I had to assassinate a vampire who lived peacefully in a town with his partner, another vampire. They had succesfully passed as human for years, which indicates a reasonable degree of control.

Sorry about the overload of text. I get really passionate about Elder Scrolls, haha.

 

[Char-Nobyl]

You know your stuff. This pleases me.

The chinless thing ties into the whole 'milk-drinking pansy' idea. Have a pronounced jawline is a classic sign of an 'alpha male' in media, and saying someone is chinless has been an insult for the upper class. Bretons are half Altmer, racially, and the Altmer are a very arrogant, aristocratic race. The Bretons would catch some splashback from this from the Nordic population. Ironically, the Altmer have always had outrageous chins in the Elder Scrolls series.

Shit, that's right. I forgot about them having Altmer blood as the source of their magical-inclination.

The dwarves are a huge mystery to most, enough that they haven't really got any stereotypes (rather, rough understanding). The mystery is compounded by the entire race (barring the one corprus-ridden dwarf in Morrowind) leaving at once, to a place nobody knows. They have written records, and a few visual representations (assuming the Centurions represent the Dwemer), but the knowledge about the Dwemer is too vague to really understand anything about them. You can tell by the anthropological annotations in the Marobar Sul tales. One tale (can't recall the name) mentioned a dwarven smith making a 'Calling' to his dwarven leader. Are dwarves psychic in some way? Nobody knows. Basically, the only ways common people see the Dwemer are 'Good smiths, extremely smart, love traps and contraptions, all disappeared'.

And also that they didn't put much stock in everyone else's gods. They certainly knew they existed, but in the Terry Pratchet sense that they knew, so there was no point in believing in them. And in the spirit of everyone else completely missing that, lots of writing about them referred to the dwarven reverence for 'Reason' and 'Logic,' complete with capitalization, as if they perceived them as dwarven gods.

Though bear in mind that the Dwemer left a lot of statues and the like, giving us at least a general idea of how they look. And dwarven armor can be found within ruins that is clearly meant for someone of normal stature.

As for the werewolves and vampires, I'd definitely agree with you. The werewolves are able to control their bloodlust, and even can choose to forgo it completely. The only reason some of the Companions choose to turn in to wolves is because they rationally believe that the power gained is worth the risk. Some choose otherwise, and that's okay. There's also one dude cursed by Hircine in, I think, Falkreath. He randomly changes into a wolf, and can't control it, resulting in the murder of a young girl. He's not a normal werewolf though, he's cursed by a Daedric prince, and he tries his hardest to fix himself.

Yeah. Frankly, it seems like a lot of the negative attention that werewolves get is (disregarding the 'wolf-monster' thing) because of how closely they're tied to Hircine. Being favored by a daedric prince is rarely a good thing to have out in the open. Even the not-blatantly-evil ones have to keep their shrines outside of population centers. The most widely accepted among them seem to be Azura and Malacath, through sheer virtue of being the patron of non-evil things and being incapable of subtlety or deception of any form (respectively).

As for vampires, their hunted throughout Tamriel, so they understandably are mostly bad guys. The same goes for necromancers, and even a lot of conjurers. This isn't because their vampirism warps their brain, I believe it's because their constantly being hunted.

Yeeeaaah...that tends to be the case a lot. Take an individually but not inherently aggressive group and hunt them essentially as sport, and you'll turn them aggressive real quick.

Non-hostile vampires, such as Babette, are shown to be in complete control. She hasn't fed on anyone in the Dark Brotherhood, and neither did Vicente Valtieri in Oblivion (not without consent, at least). In one quest, I had to assassinate a vampire who lived peacefully in a town with his partner, another vampire. They had succesfully passed as human for years, which indicates a reasonable degree of control.

Yep. And don't forget Janus Hassildor. Not only is he a vampire, but he's a respected political figure who isn't secretly evil. Valtieri and Babette are both in control of their urges, certainly, but they're both also career killers.

Sorry about the overload of text. I get really passionate about Elder Scrolls, haha.

Nah, it's not problem. It's a slow night anyway, and I enjoy the Elder Scrolls mythos.

 

[Tiamat666]

I believe Morrowind had it a bit worse. With racism, slavery etc.
Fun times. But hey! It's war and society! WhoO

That is true, I cant remember a single time in Morrowind where I saw a Khajiit or Argonian that wasnt a slave. Why are those two groups hated so badly by the other groups?

They're the 'beast races', and have always been seen as primitives by the elves, who occupied Tamriel long before the human races showed up.

So the reason for all the hate against the Khajiit and Argonians is exactly like what happened in South Africa, or well any country that was colonised by a colonial power. The Colomial power comes into a country that is not theirs and stomps on the natives?

The reason is the same reason with racism in real life. They look the most different.

 

[Savagezion]

Hah! I roleplay a racist Nord.

His view on the races:
Altmari - Racist (against humans) assholes. All of 'em. Always trying to put humanity under their thumb. Need to be eradicated.
Dunmer - Sneaky Racist lot. All of 'em. Most in Skyrim are beggars or Assassins or potential spies. Practice dark arts that are savage. Need to be eradicated.
Bosmer - Slightly racist assholes. Most of 'em. Some are 'OK' if detached from elven society. Like the dude in Riverwood.
Imperials - Racist assholes. Most of 'em. Just want to rule over everyone. Care more about their Empire than Tamriel. Destroys cultures with their own and are trying to assimilate Tamriel.
Khajiit - Sneaky assholes. Never trust any of them if you must deal with them at all.
Redguards - Good people for the most part. Strong capable warriors who reflect a bit of Nordic cultural ideas.
Bretons - Mostly OK. Hasn't known many. The few he has have been cowards and assholes.
Argonians - Good people for the most part. Respects their culture and dealings.
Orsimer - Monsters. Can be useful if trained. Like a bear.

If possible, will not trade with:
Altmari
Dunmer
Imperials
Khajiit
(He has had to trade with Imperials so far but I will go out of my way if I can.)

Will kill out of spite:
Altmari soldiers
Imperial soldiers

Overall, he would rather have Skyrim's independence with an alliance with the Imperials over an enemy. He would prefer no elves of any kind or Khajiit being in Skyrim.

It is fun to play into it a little bit. My next character will either be a Khajiit or an Argonian and they will both probably hate Nords. I know the Khajiit will. I'll see where the Argonian goes.

 

[Proverbial Jon]

The general racism doesn't bother me all that much. It's a fantasy world filled with various different races and a rich lore, there's bound to be people who don't get along. Besides, you need conflict in any story.

What does bother me is the way EVERYONE believes my Khajiit character to be a sneaky thief even though she is not. The only one who understands her is Ysolda in Whiterun... but she won't give her the time of day *sigh*

Plus, the amount of times my Khajiit has been called a "milk drinker" is quite disheartening! I'm not sure if that's a racial slur because she is a cat-person or not, because I have heard other characters refer to other races as milk drinkers too...

Khajiit - Sneaky assholes. Never trust any of them if you must deal with them at all.
He would prefer no elves of any kind or Khajiit being in Skyrim.

It is people like you who make Skyrim such a terrible place for my character!

 

[Pat8u]

I have alot of racism towards my khajjit
but that doesent stop all the male nords and dunmer who are interested in my male khajjit