Thursday, October 3, 2013

They can't all be winners

Let's talk about how tired I am of feminists.

My first impression of the feminist was a woman who wasn't submissive in any way. She was a fighter and never let silly things like a man telling her 'no' to bring her down. Feminists were the definition of a strong, independent woman who didn't need no man! Wonder Women personified this type of person. Lately, almost everything I've come across the labels itself "feminist" has come off as really bitchy. There's really no other word for it. It's articles upon articles of women complaining about things that really don't need to be different and it ends up sounding like they're digging for something to add to their "cause."

The latest example that pissed me off was an article from some random website I found by clicking on a link to a link. This article discussed 5 points why Bioshock Infinite is just another sexist game. For those of you who haven't played Bioshock Infinite, it is a game set in 1912 where you play a former Pinkerton agent by the name of Booker Dewitt, sent to the flying city of Columbia on a rescue mission. In 1912, things were a little different. Women weren't going around toting heavy firearms trying to rescue a helpless man trapped in a tower guarded by a giant metal bird. And the way the story came full circle would have never worked with a woman as the player's character. It's not that I don't think a woman can be a main, playable character, it's just that you have to have the right environment, atmosphere, or time period. It wouldn't have made sense to have Elizabeth as the main character. She was powerful enough on her own and was able to give some enemies a run for their money, even if she was in a more accessory, supportive role. The "5 points" this article put together, in my opinion, are not good points at all. I don't want to argue against each right now, I've already done that in my head, but I'll say that what the writer/blogger is pointing out either has nothing to do with the context of the game or they're pulling shit from so far up their ass, somebody else must be feeding it to them.

The way the article portrays it's "answers" to all the sexist problems with Bioshock Infinite would end up making it a completely different game. It is a fictional, fantasy game but it's still based on a real time in American history. Things were a certain way in that era and in order to preserve that in the game, the creators had to respect and embrace the bountiful racism and sexism that was rampant during that time. If they played the goddamn game maybe they would see how much Booker respects and is in awe of Elizabeth, and not even in a sexual or affectionate way, but just as a human being, so young and so full of promise.