The problem isn’t the lack of focus on male’s ass; it’s the over focus of characters physical traits compare to the character’s well being and personality.
That’s the point Sarkeesian, and other feminists, were trying to make in regards to objectification in media; by reducing the characters to the most simplest of plot point, they allowed the audience to maintain a simplistic viewpoint about their society as a whole. Hell, you could even argue that by allowing these tropes to be used in children media, you’re continuing a tradition of “rape culture” due to ignorance and poor judgement. Their goal is to educate people on how those simple mindsets can hinder the relationship with each other.
Market capitalism doesn’t exist to answer moral questions
I never said it did. Economics is neither moral nor immoral. Economics is as concerned with right and wrong as the tides are and the rules of economics are just as easy to change.
It’s ignorant to complain about companies filling demand, that’s what companies do. If you want to change what companies make you have to change what consumers buy. That’s how economics works.
“I made up an arbitrary system so that I can act like I have no real choice or responsibility for my actions. Wheee!”
Yes, economics can be unethical. But it is also a deliberate pseudo-science. But discussing the pros and cons of economics, capitalism, or markets in general is a big enough topic to fill volumes, and I think is beyond the scope of the topic at hand. Not all video games are even made by commercial concerns, and the content obviously involves more artistic choice than watching piles of money blow around, FFS.
Morality involves adherence to human values. Volcanoes have virtually nothing to do with human values, while economics involves human created formalizations of economic ideas that have implicit value assumptions in them which may be immoral, and when economic ideas are applied this involves human activity and human consequences which can sometimes be found immoral. This isn’t a complicated thing. People selling stuff doesn’t free them from ethical responsibility.
I’m not talking about morals. If she wants things to change and not just complain on the internet then she needs to stop blaming companies for filling demand and start blaming consumers for CREATING that demand. Don’t blame cars for bad parking, blame their drivers.
As many people dudebros as they can
Yeah, call them names, that will change hearts and minds.
You realize your ideas are so flawed that you now have reached the point of minimizing the moral failure of rhino poachers. It’s time to take a good hard look at your life.
I don’t see why you can’t attack the problem from both sides. If you want to cause a cultural shift, I think either approach is valid. If you change things on the supply side, and in turn people realize they are fine with, or even like the new product more, then why not go after the producers?
Also, why do you think having a dialogue about the way games are produced doesn’t change the minds of some consumers when they see the videos?
I don’t know why you’re so concerned with morality, economics isn’t. Do you want things to change or do you just want to complain? If you just want to complain then by all means keep ragging on the terrible terrible morally bankrupt companies. If you want to change things, then understand the system that created them and figure out how to alter it’s output. You can’t change the economic system, it’s evolutionary hardwired, but you might be able to change what people buy.
That’s just if you want to change things though.
I personally don’t like complaining about things I don’t intend to help change.
Economic system can be change to de-power the Capitalistic Elites.
You didn’t mention the fact that majority of the technology we buy and the clothes we wear were made by forced labor, who have no choice to create these goods if they don’t want to slave away at a plantation.
This is about Objectification in Video Games; complain about Sarkeesian all you like, but you can’t deny that the bigotry still exist as a part of our culture and society.
That is not to imply that Lara is a male character placed in a woman’s body. I believed Lara as a human being, but I also believed her as a woman. Something within me related to her almost right off the bat. This is a character who manages to retain her femininity — oh my god, I can’t believe I’m about to write this about Lara Croft — without becoming objectified. There are times when the camera frames her differently than it might a male character, but in a broad sense, I felt that Tomb Raider lets its players decide whether or not to sexualize its protagonist. Unlike its predecessors, it does not make that decision for us.
So I guess opinions vary, and stuff, but having played the game I would happily encourage my daughters to play these 2013 and 2015 iterations of Tomb Raider, once they are old enough.
The earlier Tomb Raiders? Not so much. Good thing we are making progress here, despite all the doom and gloom.
I’m a pragmatist.
If you want companies to change tell them with your wallet. Getting mad on the internet doesn’t do anything except make you feel superior.
Why should humans consider the consequences of human ideas and activity in terms of human values? Because if we don’t it turns out badly.
You adhere to the modern economic position that in the realm of economics we shouldn’t ever look at the moral consequences of economic ideas, and that we especially shouldn’t make moral judgments of economic activity. Among the neo-liberal/libertarian faithful it’s an implicit moral assumption about economics that is supposed to just be accepted and never questioned, and it’s a favorite excuse of sociopaths, but I am not of that faith, and those ideas are an incoherent mess like any other faith-based system.
False dichotomy. I don’t want to change things (here) or complain. This is a forum. We talk here. We don’t change the world. So I want to point out that your ideas are inconsistent, sociopathic, and wilfully blind. Take that as a complaint if you like.
I’m sure my personal $50 or whatever doesn’t do squat. But someone with a platform getting mad on the internet might. And/or might get others to vote with their wallets.
That’s exactly what I think Sarkeesian should do. Convince people to buy better games and the industry will follow. It doesn’t work the other way around which seems to be what her and everyone else is trying to do.
