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Consider a teen classic movie like Mean Girls. there was any way to make a female and write her exceptionally well. 'Fridging' is the practice of killing off or hurting a minor character in order to motivate or torture a main character. In a way it's hard around that and it is going to depend on their relationship. If you are writing a story for a mixed-gender audience, your cast should be about 50% female, and the women should get about equal screen time. Plus Whedon would be classy enough to avoid fridging one of only two female superheroes. Is there an effective way of killing off a female character, with a male protagonist, and it NOT coming off as a little misogynist? (In a possibly self-aware twist, her back-up body even emergedfrom a cryogenic chamber, having been literally fridged.) Bella Swan from Twilight is sometimes cited as an example. the issue with fridging is not that a woman is killed but that she is killed/exists for no reason but to motivate the male character. The worse the body looks, the louder the obligatory "NOOOOOO!" Theres a vocal audience who want pulp fiction without harmful clichs. She wants to prove herself and make a meaningful contribution to her field. That's it! : How to avoid fridging Fridging : r/writing - Reddit Acts of sexism extend beyond the over-sexualized characters. "Character fridging" simply had the unfortunate luck to be named for and become generally known for the times it was handled very badly.. Overly sexy female characters, constraining female characters to secondary roles, and dull or extreme personalities are the patterns of sexism observed in comic books or graphic novels. Women in Refrigerators (or "Fridging" for short) is an unfortunately popular plot device in storytelling where female characters are killed off or brutally harmed for the sole purpose of having an impact on a male character. I want my book to be cliche in a fun way. A very simple version would be Character A reading a book, Character B asking if theyre enjoying it, and Character A saying they think the author is going to kill someone off for cheap tension. If you have no other female characters, this becomes especially noticeable. Respondents often found different meanings to the list itself, though Simone maintained that her simple point had always been: "If you demolish most of the characters girls like, then girls won't read comics. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. Fridging can be an ugly blemish on fan-favorite stories or make lesser ones look even worse. The moment works because Mr. Crepsley is an established character there to do more than just die; his death isnt just a loss to the protagonist and a sympathetic cue to the reader, but a loss to the world and a tragedy in its own right. Former Anime/Manga Features Lead for CBR. That is, protagonist and antagonists are more interesting and more complex when they stand in the way of each others mutually exclusive goals, but where they have a greater sense of purpose than beating one person. If a protagonist is hurt or wronged, most writers communicate that hurt or wrong as something thats happening to that character. Why is fridging female characters popular again? (Spoilers) - Page 2 I have looked at my storys plot over and over and after informing myself of the fridging trope, I am scared that is what people will think of if they see my book. In the movie John Wick, the premise is simple: the title character is the most capable assassin ever, forced out of retirement to right an unforgivable wrong. How do I do that without starting or contributing to stereotypes? Not in a vacuum, but in an environment where theres a pattern of killing off female character in a way that encompasses existing prejudices, its worth considering. The more authors overuse fridging, the less versatility it has left for those authors who want to use it in a considered and effective way. Would this be considered 'fridging?' What exactly qualifies as fridging After their personhood is exchanged with property-based value, the women have to continuously die in order to motivate the two protagonists. In conclusion, she s is dying from the incident from the villain but the main character gave up his life to her so she can live (from a power he has) and then the main character dies but his special lives. I dont believe hell ever be ready, but he doesnt have to be. What exactly is fridging? And how can one Fridging last edited by Marino on 06/30/21 06:36PM View full history. This does not mean to never place women in distress. The precise nature of their suffering stops mattering, stops being about them, so long as it upsets the protagonist. More characters will not lessen the sting of seeing opportunities missed. If the writers intent is to kill off a character as part of their own journey but they fail to evoke emotion, that would be poor writing, but it wouldnt be fridging. With over 20 years of industry experience, Lucy is an author, script editor, and award-winning blogger who helps other writers through writing workshops, courses, and her blog Bang2Write. But considering she never made it clear like that, and her husband was raised by an immensely wealthy family, he unintentionally overly spoiled their son. The simplistic nature of fridging has also led to many identifying it as a sexist trope. Spoilers for Deadpool 2 below. Or, as Sarkeesian notes, a digital reward inGod of War III in the form of a PlayStation Trophyfor using a half-naked woman's body as aliteral objectto wedge open a door after liberating her from a sexually violent god. Fridging is also specifically when a character is killed off (or maimed, tortured, ect) for no other reason than to cause emotional pain to a different character. If you only have one major female character, you may be tempted to make her hyper-competent, to show that you believe women can be capable too. As for Wonder Woman? In real life you would have to be a narcissist, or for a male, some sort of chauvinist, to believe that the world is spinning around you, but in fiction it's really true. Hence, his parents didnt give him time to at least get therapy before forcing an arranged marriage onto his shoulders. He has also given a lot of her clothing to a person who was a parental figure to his wife in the past, since she was a child. In Star Wars, Anakin's flaw was pride. Character A could try reading a favorite book and balk that the hero loses a loved one and doesnt lose a step (which now seems unrealistic to them) something to signal to doubtful readers that youve anticipated their concerns. As well as an exhaustive list of heroines on ice, Simone also created a list of responses to the site from industry professionals -- and she snagged some top drawer responders. In the course of their attack, the villains also steal Wicks car. Their conflict revolves around a moment that can easily feel like an excuse to create that conflict, and the opportunity for character development is eschewed. Switching the gender is a good idea, but I don't know if that would be possible with this character even though she's a minor character. Fridging is the practice of killing off or hurting a minor character in order to motivate or torture a main character. The person who named this trope was a pompous writer more concerned with politics than story. In a landscape where protagonists and antagonists tend to be male, this creates a situation where a womans suffering becomes an incidental moment in a conflict between men, even if thats not the intention of the author depictions of death, mutilation, and rape accidentally, purposefully, or carelessly position the man as the victim of these acts and the woman as the vessel through which theyre delivered. How to Avoid Creating Female Character Stereotypes in Your Writing And while I admit, the love interest dying is definitely a huge plot motivation for the MC moving out of town and eventually meeting the second MC, She is not just a card-board-cut-out only there to die. As with most other tropes. But in truth fridging a character isn't bad. Don't make her someone who lashes out at other people because of her religious beliefs or you risk demonizing all Islamic people. How to Kill Off a Female Character Without it Being Gratuitous? If she's out running for her life, give her a damn sports bra! Females are equal to males in both good and bad aspects, they can be as heroic, virtuous, powerful, inspiring and competent as any man. I just fucking hate when people use the word 'rape' in connection to this issue. Of course, since the thing the antagonist does is there to enrage the protagonist, it can make more sense to just do it to the protagonist. Do You Need To Rewrite Your Inciting Incident? Don't write a Mary-Sue. Why is fridging female characters popular again? (Spoilers) - Page 5 - CBR The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. Don't subscribeAllReplies to my comments Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. Wicks wife is still dead recently dead, in fact but that happened before the events of the film. Being a Better Writer: Character Fridging | Unusual Things We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. Deadpool 2 Killing Vanessa Continues Hollywood's Female Character - CBR This act is not meant as a way to spur the MC on a revenge rampage, but as a plot point that leaves the MC with a child, and an aimless future. You can replace fridging with pretty much any slight, and as an author who can control the entire universe, there are plenty of opportunities to do so. It's very normal, and you can revisit the character to grow them beyond their current characterization. [] Some have been revived, even improved -- although the question remains as to why they were thrown in the wood chipper in the first place.". She soon commits suicide. If you must fridge a character, its worth reflecting that the traditional sexism of fridging is a constant specter. Plus, given the frequency with which women have seen female characters (wives, daughters, sisters, mothers) fridged to give male protagonists some motivation, theres a genuine sense of gratitude towards writers who deliberately dont make that choice. It seems like the Fridging trope and the Disposable Male trope are working at both ends of this either you do one or you do the other. How To Avoid Writing A Redshirt Character, Why Writers Like You Need To Know Their Key Event From Their First Plot Point.