A Thin Veneer of Woman
By Awhile back, I went down one of those internet rabbit holes we are sometimes wont to go down. I ended up at a (sci-fi/fantasy?) author’s blog. At her blog, she quoted–disapprovingly–another author. He said (I’m transcribing from memory; this is not an exact quote): “When I create a woman character, I start with a man, then add a thin veneer of woman on top of him.” Now. While I’m glad the author goes for the veneer and not the under-coat, which everyone knows is a rip-off, I’m less glad he thinks that men are the default human beings and women are some unpleasant, exotic other that must be thinned out and applied like something you’d use to refinish wood. In 2014 why are so many people still under the impression that “default human” is “white male?”
If you’re not in the mood for clicking, the linked article is about the release of the new “Assassin’s Creed” videogame, which will not feature any female assassins/avatars for reasons that are still unclear to me. Something about “…too complicated…mumble mumble mumble…hard.” Silly, Ubisoft. Don’t you know you just have to put a little glittery pink girl-shellac on your already-existing male characters to make a chick? Oh, the shellac’s too thick, you say? Thin it out with some of their girly emotion-tears they’re always excreting when they miss that one shoe sale. Easy peasy lemon squeezy–problem solved.
#womenaretoohardtoanimate what do women even look like? Has anyone even seen one in person I doubt it
— ㄅ₮∆иﾚ◊ (@StanloGraphics) June 11, 2014
"Woah woah woah. We have to make her WALK?! What are we, wizards?" #womenaretoohardtoanimate
— Jen Spragg (@Badpie24) June 11, 2014