Scott Pilgrim vs. Himself: The Patriarchal Presence of NegaScott in Edgar Wright’s Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
Document Type
Panel Presentation
Start Date
20-4-2017 10:45 AM
End Date
20-4-2017 12:00 PM
Keywords
gender fluidity, game-centered film adaptation, comics, super hero, alter ego
Biography
Alicia Turner is currently a graduate student in the English department at Marshall University. Her interests involve film studies and feminist critical theory. This is her second time presenting at the COLA Research and Creativity Conference. Alicia was recently a speaker at the Women and Gender in the Social and Natural Worlds: Rural Perspectives conference and has been nominated for a 2017 Maier Award for her research in the wickedness of women in Appalachian literature.
Major
English—Literary Studies (Graduate)
Advisor for this project
Dr. Jana Tigchelaar, P.h. D.
Abstract
This paper will examine the ways in which the figure of NegaScott in Edgar Wright’s 2010 film Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, a text derived from Bryan Lee O’Malley’s comic book series Scott Pilgrim, exists as a presence that represents the characters’ conflicting unconventional and stereotypical portrayals of masculinity, as in the text, he is seen merging with this manifestation of himself, and in the film, confronts and separates from it. Using a feminist, theoretical lens, I will examine the portrayal of masculinity as it is viewed in bell hooks’ work on the feminized male, going into the significance of Scott’s reoccurring run-ins with his violent vision of himself. I will argue that the addition of this fragmented character is to interrogate institutionalized gender dynamics throughout our culture, as the being is not wholly there as Scott himself is not a complete person through maintaining both unconventional and hyper-masculine traits. Scott challenges our institutionalized idea of the heroic modernist narrative by possessing the prowess needed to defeat a league of challengers, while also existing in the “needing to be saved role,” a position that is typically associated with female characters in young adult works of literature and film. By examining the fantasy, game-centered adaptation, I intend to expose how Wright addresses issues that are very true and prominent throughout our culture by bringing up a conversation regarding gender role manipulation, as Scott is forced to face his greatest opponent yet: himself.
Scott Pilgrim vs. Himself: The Patriarchal Presence of NegaScott in Edgar Wright’s Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
This paper will examine the ways in which the figure of NegaScott in Edgar Wright’s 2010 film Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, a text derived from Bryan Lee O’Malley’s comic book series Scott Pilgrim, exists as a presence that represents the characters’ conflicting unconventional and stereotypical portrayals of masculinity, as in the text, he is seen merging with this manifestation of himself, and in the film, confronts and separates from it. Using a feminist, theoretical lens, I will examine the portrayal of masculinity as it is viewed in bell hooks’ work on the feminized male, going into the significance of Scott’s reoccurring run-ins with his violent vision of himself. I will argue that the addition of this fragmented character is to interrogate institutionalized gender dynamics throughout our culture, as the being is not wholly there as Scott himself is not a complete person through maintaining both unconventional and hyper-masculine traits. Scott challenges our institutionalized idea of the heroic modernist narrative by possessing the prowess needed to defeat a league of challengers, while also existing in the “needing to be saved role,” a position that is typically associated with female characters in young adult works of literature and film. By examining the fantasy, game-centered adaptation, I intend to expose how Wright addresses issues that are very true and prominent throughout our culture by bringing up a conversation regarding gender role manipulation, as Scott is forced to face his greatest opponent yet: himself.
