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All Things Sue
Musings on the most hated woman in fanfiction
Created on 2006-07-13 18:28:15 (#10661392), last updated 2006-08-01
3 comments received, 94 comments posted
Basic Account [Gift]
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Basic Info| Name: | Miss Swoon |
|---|---|
| Location: | Lancaster, United Kingdom |
BioWHO IS SUE?
There are already various Mary Sue guides and definitions out there. Below are links to some of them.
Mary Sue: An Explanation
Wikipedia: Mary Sue
Academic paper: Too Good To Be True - 150 years of Mary Sue
Whatever Happened to Mary Sue? (An interesting take on how Mary Sue's manifestation in fanfiction has evolved)
The Official Mary Sue Manual (General guide for all fandoms)
The Essential Guide to Mary-Sue (A Lord of the Rings guide)
The Many Faces of Mary Sue (A Pirates of the Caribbean guide)
Several LJ users and communities also specialize in the subject of Mary Sue, for instance The Mary Sue Report, The Canon Sue Report and many more.
MY OWN THOUGHTS
Most people and communities who specialize in Mary Sue also tend to specialize in making fun of her. Mary Sue is a detested woman.
Why?
Because she is perfect. Too perfect. Now, perfection is a strange thing. It is something we all aspire to, yet, when we perceive it in others, we envy it at best and resent it at worst. Unless perfection belongs to ourselves we feel threatened by it. Does this mean that we should stop giving all the Sues out there such a hard time and accept them as they are?
Maybe. Then again, maybe not.
Many people point out that the reason that Mary Sue is so disliked is because it is simply not possible to be as flawless as she is. Mary Sue is unrealistic.
The reason behind Mary Sue’s unrealism is hard to trace, but ultimately it does not seem to lie in her physical appearance, her attributes, or even her actions. Rather, what appears to be the defining characteristic of Mary Sue is other people’s reactions to her, and (to a certain extent) her response to their reactions.
To take a classic example from the PotC (Pirates of the Caribbean) fandom: Captain Jack Sparrow takes what appears to be a scared, helpless young girl under his wing and brings her onboard his ship, the Black Pearl. As they sail the seven seas together, he teaches her how to use a sword, and within a matter of weeks she is as good as him (perhaps even better) at fencing and has thereby accomplished what probably takes ordinary people years and years to achieve. Implausible, yes, but be that as it may. What really winds me up is the very improbable fact that Jack Sparrow thinks it completely normal that a young girl who claims to have no previous experience in wielding a sword can master such an advanced skill faster than he can say “savvy” (which he says way too often in most Mary Sue fics). It was Jack’s once trusting nature that lost him his ship to Barbossa, so at the very least he should be suspicious of his young protégée and question whether she is telling the truth about herself. She, in turn, would be perfectly within her rights to feel upset at Jack’s lack of recognition regarding her obvious aptitude, as long as she doesn't needlessly turn into a tragic martyr in the process.
If the "Mary Sueishness" of an original character is defined by the plausibility of other (mainly canon) characters' reactions to her, then one possible explanation for the existence of Mary Sue may be that some authors are not sufficiently familiar with the canon material of the original book, film etc.
Another explanation could be insecurity on the part of the author, particularly if s/he is inexperienced, regarding the likes and dislikes of his/her readers. Many authors seem to think that unless they make their oc the cousin of Elizabeth Swann, the long lost sister of Will Turner and/or Jack Sparrow's love interest, or unless the oc is in any other way connected to one or several canon characters, then the readers (as well as the canon characters, apparently) will find the oc uninteresting. This fear of writing a "boring" original character could also be a compelling reason for giving an oc other unusual qualities or aspects such as striking looks, a tragic past or paranormal abilities. Again, there is in my opinion nothing Mary Sueish/unrealistic about qualities like these per se (people with flawless appearances and/or tragic pasts do exist, after all), it all depends on how much attention an oc is given by other characters (as well as by the author) as a result of them, and how appropriate or likely this attention is.
Sure, if an attractive female pirate comes along, then, true to his nature, Jack Sparrow will likely be intrigued by her, though his fascination with her looks is not likely to last for ten (or even five) long chapters. Similarly, if Elizabeth Swann's cousin comes along, it doesn't necessarily mean that Jack will decide to take a liking to her just because she is a governor's daughter like Elizabeth or something of the sort.
What some authors appear to forget is that readers become attached to characters in books and on screen in pretty much the same way that they take a liking to people (or dislike them) in real life. How many times can we remember caring for someone (in fiction as well as in real life) because everything about them was perfect? Granted, at the beginning of any relationship we are likely to focus mainly on the positive qualities of the other person, but, in the long run, isn't it rather the case that we like someone because we can identify with their thoughts and feelings, and with their flaws and preoccupations? Many Mary Sues often react shallowly, irrationally or stereotypically to situations they are faced with, making it hard for readers to follow the trains of thought and the emotional journey that the characters supposedly go through. Given that an author usually wants their original character to be liked (or at elast understood) by readers, it is rather strange that they don't take greater care to explore their character's emotional life. The reason for this is more often than not that the author is a bit too eager to get to "the good stuff" in the story, such as having their character share a night of passion with one of the canon characters (usually the author's favourite canon character). In order for this to happen they usually come up with a "pseudo-reason", such as having their oc blame him or herself for an accident that in the readers' eyes obviously wasn't the oc's fault, but for which the oc nevertheless requires comfort from the other characters.
The irony of Mary Sue's typically immediate and inexplicable affinity with canon characters is that, for most readers, what makes for instance a love scene between two characters worth reading is not how well-written the scene itself is, but the journey that each character has had to make in order to "get" to that scene. At the end of "Pirates of the Caribbean: the Curse of the Black Pearl" this is what made Will and Elizabeth's long-awaited kiss so memorable; had these two not been faced with adversity such as different social backgrounds, cursed pirates, arranged marriages and even doubts about the mutuality of their feelings, their eventual liplock would have been nowhere near as satisfying to watch. People wanted the characters to get together simply because the odds were against them, and the characters' respective flaws, such as Elizabeth's obstinate nature and Will's tendency to rush into things without thinking, added to those odds.
OTHER STUFF
How to deal with critiquing by Rich Hamper. Indispensable advice on how to deliver (and receive) a fair, conctructive and honest review of someone's work.
OC Analysis A livejournal community that specialises in the detection and evaluation of potential Mary Sue traits in original characters. A great help for authors who feel they need a helping hand in creating believable, well-rounded characters.
The Universal Mary Sue Litmus Test Unlike the OC Analysis, a non-interactive but quicker way to find out whether a character is a Mary Sue. Has great checkable boxes that automatically add upp the score for you.
Ms Nitpicker's Guide To Writing Marginally Readable Fanfiction Insightful advice and reflections on everything from characterisation to the finer points of redundancy and repetition. Food for thought seasoned with sharp wit that readers and writers alike should partake of.
Holy Mother Grammatica's Guide To Good Writing "Punctuation, grammar, and spelling are not things that only happen to other people." H.M.G. has taken the words of Terry Pratchett to heart and created an easily read, well-organised guide to plot development, dialogue construction and other aspects of writing.
Dictionary.com Use it, love it, but make sure to activate the pop-up blocker on your internet software.
There are already various Mary Sue guides and definitions out there. Below are links to some of them.
Mary Sue: An Explanation
Wikipedia: Mary Sue
Academic paper: Too Good To Be True - 150 years of Mary Sue
Whatever Happened to Mary Sue? (An interesting take on how Mary Sue's manifestation in fanfiction has evolved)
The Official Mary Sue Manual (General guide for all fandoms)
The Essential Guide to Mary-Sue (A Lord of the Rings guide)
The Many Faces of Mary Sue (A Pirates of the Caribbean guide)
Several LJ users and communities also specialize in the subject of Mary Sue, for instance The Mary Sue Report, The Canon Sue Report and many more.
MY OWN THOUGHTS
Most people and communities who specialize in Mary Sue also tend to specialize in making fun of her. Mary Sue is a detested woman.
Why?
Because she is perfect. Too perfect. Now, perfection is a strange thing. It is something we all aspire to, yet, when we perceive it in others, we envy it at best and resent it at worst. Unless perfection belongs to ourselves we feel threatened by it. Does this mean that we should stop giving all the Sues out there such a hard time and accept them as they are?
Maybe. Then again, maybe not.
Many people point out that the reason that Mary Sue is so disliked is because it is simply not possible to be as flawless as she is. Mary Sue is unrealistic.
The reason behind Mary Sue’s unrealism is hard to trace, but ultimately it does not seem to lie in her physical appearance, her attributes, or even her actions. Rather, what appears to be the defining characteristic of Mary Sue is other people’s reactions to her, and (to a certain extent) her response to their reactions.
To take a classic example from the PotC (Pirates of the Caribbean) fandom: Captain Jack Sparrow takes what appears to be a scared, helpless young girl under his wing and brings her onboard his ship, the Black Pearl. As they sail the seven seas together, he teaches her how to use a sword, and within a matter of weeks she is as good as him (perhaps even better) at fencing and has thereby accomplished what probably takes ordinary people years and years to achieve. Implausible, yes, but be that as it may. What really winds me up is the very improbable fact that Jack Sparrow thinks it completely normal that a young girl who claims to have no previous experience in wielding a sword can master such an advanced skill faster than he can say “savvy” (which he says way too often in most Mary Sue fics). It was Jack’s once trusting nature that lost him his ship to Barbossa, so at the very least he should be suspicious of his young protégée and question whether she is telling the truth about herself. She, in turn, would be perfectly within her rights to feel upset at Jack’s lack of recognition regarding her obvious aptitude, as long as she doesn't needlessly turn into a tragic martyr in the process.
If the "Mary Sueishness" of an original character is defined by the plausibility of other (mainly canon) characters' reactions to her, then one possible explanation for the existence of Mary Sue may be that some authors are not sufficiently familiar with the canon material of the original book, film etc.
Another explanation could be insecurity on the part of the author, particularly if s/he is inexperienced, regarding the likes and dislikes of his/her readers. Many authors seem to think that unless they make their oc the cousin of Elizabeth Swann, the long lost sister of Will Turner and/or Jack Sparrow's love interest, or unless the oc is in any other way connected to one or several canon characters, then the readers (as well as the canon characters, apparently) will find the oc uninteresting. This fear of writing a "boring" original character could also be a compelling reason for giving an oc other unusual qualities or aspects such as striking looks, a tragic past or paranormal abilities. Again, there is in my opinion nothing Mary Sueish/unrealistic about qualities like these per se (people with flawless appearances and/or tragic pasts do exist, after all), it all depends on how much attention an oc is given by other characters (as well as by the author) as a result of them, and how appropriate or likely this attention is.
Sure, if an attractive female pirate comes along, then, true to his nature, Jack Sparrow will likely be intrigued by her, though his fascination with her looks is not likely to last for ten (or even five) long chapters. Similarly, if Elizabeth Swann's cousin comes along, it doesn't necessarily mean that Jack will decide to take a liking to her just because she is a governor's daughter like Elizabeth or something of the sort.
What some authors appear to forget is that readers become attached to characters in books and on screen in pretty much the same way that they take a liking to people (or dislike them) in real life. How many times can we remember caring for someone (in fiction as well as in real life) because everything about them was perfect? Granted, at the beginning of any relationship we are likely to focus mainly on the positive qualities of the other person, but, in the long run, isn't it rather the case that we like someone because we can identify with their thoughts and feelings, and with their flaws and preoccupations? Many Mary Sues often react shallowly, irrationally or stereotypically to situations they are faced with, making it hard for readers to follow the trains of thought and the emotional journey that the characters supposedly go through. Given that an author usually wants their original character to be liked (or at elast understood) by readers, it is rather strange that they don't take greater care to explore their character's emotional life. The reason for this is more often than not that the author is a bit too eager to get to "the good stuff" in the story, such as having their character share a night of passion with one of the canon characters (usually the author's favourite canon character). In order for this to happen they usually come up with a "pseudo-reason", such as having their oc blame him or herself for an accident that in the readers' eyes obviously wasn't the oc's fault, but for which the oc nevertheless requires comfort from the other characters.
The irony of Mary Sue's typically immediate and inexplicable affinity with canon characters is that, for most readers, what makes for instance a love scene between two characters worth reading is not how well-written the scene itself is, but the journey that each character has had to make in order to "get" to that scene. At the end of "Pirates of the Caribbean: the Curse of the Black Pearl" this is what made Will and Elizabeth's long-awaited kiss so memorable; had these two not been faced with adversity such as different social backgrounds, cursed pirates, arranged marriages and even doubts about the mutuality of their feelings, their eventual liplock would have been nowhere near as satisfying to watch. People wanted the characters to get together simply because the odds were against them, and the characters' respective flaws, such as Elizabeth's obstinate nature and Will's tendency to rush into things without thinking, added to those odds.
OTHER STUFF
How to deal with critiquing by Rich Hamper. Indispensable advice on how to deliver (and receive) a fair, conctructive and honest review of someone's work.
OC Analysis A livejournal community that specialises in the detection and evaluation of potential Mary Sue traits in original characters. A great help for authors who feel they need a helping hand in creating believable, well-rounded characters.
The Universal Mary Sue Litmus Test Unlike the OC Analysis, a non-interactive but quicker way to find out whether a character is a Mary Sue. Has great checkable boxes that automatically add upp the score for you.
Ms Nitpicker's Guide To Writing Marginally Readable Fanfiction Insightful advice and reflections on everything from characterisation to the finer points of redundancy and repetition. Food for thought seasoned with sharp wit that readers and writers alike should partake of.
Holy Mother Grammatica's Guide To Good Writing "Punctuation, grammar, and spelling are not things that only happen to other people." H.M.G. has taken the words of Terry Pratchett to heart and created an easily read, well-organised guide to plot development, dialogue construction and other aspects of writing.
Dictionary.com Use it, love it, but make sure to activate the pop-up blocker on your internet software.
ConnectInterests (18):
bad fanfiction, bad titles, canon characters, canon sues, constructive criticism, gary stus, good fanfiction, good titles, grammar, litmus tests, mary sues, misspellings, original characters, original fiction, punctuation, reviewing, self-insertions, sporking
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 | miss_swoon@livejournal.com |
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