In a way, the trade-off is worth it for Ann. In order to awaken and possess the power of the Persona, she must accept her role as ‘the sexy one’. In discussing the presentation of modern female pop artists, Kristy Fairclough argues that women “ultimately must accept mass objectification in exchange for success,” (2017, p.126), something which rings true for Ann. However, for Ann, taking on her persona involves playing into a problematic stereotype. Joker grows in confidence and stature, accepting the role akin to the lead singer. Ryuji gains a skull mask and becomes more reckless and destructive, embracing his identity as the band’s rebellious wildcard. Both relish their new roles and costumes, accepting their position in the band with glee. In Take That, they are Gary Barlow and Robbie Williams in Boyzone, Ronan Keating and Shane Lynch or in One Direction, Harry Styles and Zayn Malik. Player-character Joker is the lead singer-type, he is charismatic, cute, and mysterious, while Ryuji is the rebellious bad boy. However, its view of gender roles is extremely conservative, and Ann is the best lens to view this through.įor the most part, the other characters get cooler or more heroic Personas. It is clear from the villains of the game that Persona 5 views itself as somewhat progressive it targets factory bosses who overwork their staff and other overtly capitalist foes. She is ditzy and bratty but has clear agency, demonstrated both through the fact she is a competent party member and through her actions and dialogue as the game progresses. 137) in music videos, but this is one stereotype that Ann Takamaki breaks. Imani Perry writes that “women are often presented as vacuous, doing nothing but swaying around seductively” (2004, p. Being sexy and being a bimbo are often the same things when it comes to pop music, with the media of the early ‘00s depicting Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera especially as airheads. Often, ‘the sexy one’ translates to vacuousness or lack of intelligence. These identities are developed over the course of a career, and the party members of Persona 5 also follow these rules.Īnn Takamaki is the only ‘band member’ who appears to resent the role given to her, and she is clearly cast as ‘the sexy one’. The Spice Girls, for example, became known by their single-line identities, as Posh, Sporty, and so on. While no pop band has them all, easily stereotyped identities are common across the genre. There may be ‘the bad boy’, who adopts a rebellious identity, or ‘the goofball’ who is known for joking around, often to extreme lengths. The aesthetic, codename, and personality of the Personas resemble the construction of manufactured pop bands, where every member can be defined by the archetype they embody. These Personas form a sort of poetic iconography of each character’s sense of self, of what each character imagines themselves to be. The central characters are everyday school students in their regular life, who also possess a supernatural ability to explore a fantasy version of reality, one where they can awaken their true selves and gain the power of a Persona. Persona 5 (Atlus, 2016) is a game about self-identity. She’s an editor for Into The Spine, and spends her free time discovering new worlds and exploring vast terrains, but only in video games. Stacey Henley is an entertainment reporter who has written for The Washington Post, IGN, Polygon, and more.
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