Yesterday my boyfriend and I were discussing Star Wars. Recently he, as well as my mother, roommate, friends, and a probably a significant portion of Americans, are disappointed in me because I, a self-proclaimed nerd, have not seen all of the movies.
Commence groaning.
In the month since the seventh installment was released, I have been exposed to more Star Wars than I have been in years. And through this exposure, I'm starting to think I have seen them. Or at least I know what I need to know: use the Schwartz and the one guy is the other guy's dad.
See? I got it.
But as we talked about the movies, I mentioned how, despite seemingly universal dislike, I wanted to watch the prequels because 1) I am required to and 2) Natalie Portman.
And as I explained this to him, I found myself saying something like this: "If you haven't noticed by now, all of my favorite characters as a kid were the women. And they still are. Mostly girls who kick ass or girls who are nerds. Preferably girls who are nerds who kick ass, because that is who I am."
He laughed and said this: "Of course. I mean, how dare you like characters that you identify with and want to be like?"
I don't think he knows how much I have been thinking about this comment.
I mean yes. Identity has a lot to do with it.
I like the character Velma from Scooby-Doo because she was a smart female character who was loved by her friends and was necessary in solving mysteries. I felt a similar thing with Hermione Granger.
Over and over I identified with female characters because of things like this.
So when he said this out loud, it struck me as to just how much I have perceived this as a bad thing. As in, I have trained myself to think that enjoying these characters (and sometimes real people) to the extent I do is embarrassing.
But as I've thought about it further, I have found myself thinking more and more that it's not just about identity. It's about simply liking the character.
