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cheshire
Arbiter-General (Moderator)
Joined: 04 Jan 2004
Posts: 4834
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 Posted: Sun Dec 11, 2011 4:06 pm Post subject: Star Wars is all about |
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| Quote: | | Even though I have mentioned several traditionally "masculine" types of interest, I know it runs deeper-we all do. BTW even geeky guys who like sci-fi are into adventure, violence, and conquering. That is sorta what Star Wars is all about. |
Granted, this is out of context, but I've been lurking in a thread on another forum, and some of the subtext of that thread is the subject of masculinity and masculine interest. Some people have tried arguing with one particular guy that you can't really pigeon hole men into small categories of interest. My wife mentioned that she married a Star Wars geek that isn't into the generalizations he mentioned. The above quote was his response. I'm most interested in the statement, "adventure, violence, and conquering. That is sorta what Star Wars is all about." I was rather turned off by that statement, but I'm open to being wrong about the general perception of Star Wars within Star Wars fandom.
My perception is of a story (In the original trilogy particularly) is that it is a mythic story with spiritual elements that deal with the hero's journey and a story of redemption. Certainly there is violence. Certainly there is adventure. I guess there's conquering. But is this what Star Wars is about?
What do you think? Am I wrong for bucking this guy's dropping of Star Wars into the "stereotypical man" bucket? Is my perception idiosyncratic among us fans?
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Henrik.Balslev
Commander
Joined: 22 Apr 2006
Posts: 278
Location: Denmark
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| Posted: Sun Dec 11, 2011 6:14 pm Post subject: |
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To me Star Wars is essentially a Fairy Tale in Sci-fi clothes. You have the evil usurper, and his henchman. The wise old man with the youngster from a (seemingly) common background who will rise to greatness. A princess who needs rescuing. The rascal (with a golden heart) and his sidekick.
So I guess what I'm saying its all about adventure and (mostly) the underdog succeding against impossible odds, and the journey to get there. Yes there may be violence along the way, but mainly it think its about the adventure.
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jmanski
Arbiter-General (Moderator)
Joined: 06 Mar 2005
Posts: 2065
Location: Kansas
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| Posted: Sun Dec 11, 2011 9:14 pm Post subject: |
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To me Star Wars is the "manly" version of the fairy tale, just like Lost is the "manly" version of the soap opera (along with the other "character driven" dramas).
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Urban Spaceman
Lieutenant Commander
Joined: 13 Sep 2010
Posts: 194
Location: UK
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| Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2011 4:49 am Post subject: |
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I go with the fairytale perception too. Maybe because I was young when they first came out, but also because of the things like having Knights trying to rescue a Princess, a farmboy discovering he was destined for greatness. Classic fairytale elements, really.
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Bren
Vice Admiral
Joined: 19 Aug 2010
Posts: 3868
Location: Maryland, USA
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| Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2011 6:25 pm Post subject: Re: Star Wars is all about |
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| cheshire wrote: | | by some guy on another board who wrote: | | Even though I have mentioned several traditionally "masculine" types of interest, I know it runs deeper-we all do. BTW even geeky guys who like sci-fi are into adventure, violence, and conquering. That is sorta what Star Wars is all about. |
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What a dweeb. 
| Quote: | | Some people have tried arguing with one particular guy that you can't really pigeon hole men into small categories of interest. |
You can't pigeon hole people into small categories of interest. My wife is a big Sci-Fi fan and definitely likes adventure and violence in her gaming. (Not so sure about the conquering.) and the other women we game with seem to enjoy violence about as much as the average guy we game with.
| Quote: | | I'm most interested in the statement, "adventure, violence, and conquering. That is sorta what Star Wars is all about." I was rather turned off by that statement, but I'm open to being wrong about the general perception of Star Wars within Star Wars fandom. |
Not surprising that turned you off. It's simplisitic and inaccurate. While those elements are part of Star Wars - the conquering is a staple of the bad guys and violence is not the first resort of the good guys. But yes adventure is a strong element - but not central element.
| Quote: | My perception is of a story (In the original trilogy particularly) is that it is a mythic story with spiritual elements that deal with the hero's journey and a story of redemption. Certainly there is violence. Certainly there is adventure. I guess there's conquering. But is this what Star Wars is about?
What do you think? Am I wrong for bucking this guy's dropping of Star Wars into the "stereotypical man" bucket? Is my perception idiosyncratic among us fans? |
No your position is not ideosyncratic. No you are not wrong for disagreeing with the dweeb guy's stereotypical and overgeneralized rant. And yes, I agree with your depiction of Star Wars as a mythic redemption story. Redemption is a central element. |
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Fallon Kell
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Joined: 07 Mar 2011
Posts: 1846
Location: Tacoma, WA
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| Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2011 9:52 pm Post subject: |
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Well, I'll sit here in my cunning Jayne Cobb hat, and be honest. I'm a big, hairy, masculine man, and the adventuring, conquering, and violence may not be what Star Wars is about, but it's certainly my favorite part of it! You can't pigeonhole people, but occasionally you'll find an empty pigeonhole into which you fit quite cozily...
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