shotgun-shepard wrote...
Basically I'm going to explore the argument between players that Isabela is a. a shallow piece of fan-service, or b. a deep character and potential feminist figure.
I think she is both.
I think her character design clearly illustrates an attempt at fan-service. She does not wear pants, and her panties are a black thong, apparently. Her very large breasts remain unrealistically uplifted beneath her tight, tiny top.
She is a deep character. All of the Companions in DA2 are incredibly deep characters.
Is she a potentially feminist figure? She either is or she isn't.
Feminism is unique in that it can be interpreted and explained in a multitude of ways, as there are a multitude of competing voices and arguments in the world of feminist criticism.
To determine whether or not Isabela is a feminist character (she cannot be a feminist protagonist since this is not her story) I think we have to look at the milieu she is placed in. How is Isabela defined? Can Isabela define herself and does she attempt to? I'd like to look at Isabela as what Kristeva called the subject-in-process; I do think Isabela fits this categorization. The world she lives in attempts to define her: wh-re, sl-t, thief. Other characters reinforce this; Aveline calls her a wh-ore; Fenris calls her a thief. Does Isabela attempt to define herself and is she successful? Isabela says she doesn't care what people call her. Her actions show that she is loyal (not always a thief, not always a sl-t). She chooses who she goes to bed with (she will not go to bed with Castillon's right-hand man; she will also not go to bed with Emil de Launcet). She will go to bed with Zevran even if in a relationship with Hawke but will stand down if Hawke asks her to.
Isabela attempts to define herself in a world that makes it impossible for her to do so. Isabela's milieu stamps her with a variety of labels; meanwhile, Isablea herself struggles against this.
Is Isabela a feminist figure; I say, yes, she is.
shotgun-shepard wrote...
So how does our head-canon affect our reading of her and to what extent?
Video games and RPGs in particular hand a significant amount of narrative power to the reader/player. Isabela's character, however, is firmly written; her personality and motives do not change regardless of the decisions the player makes. The player can manipulate Hawke so that Isabela either realizes her mistakes and returns at the end of Act 2 or chooses to strike out on her own and never return. Isabela herself is NEVER altered though; Hawke can either befriend (or romance) her, earning her love and loyalty, or remain disinterested.
"Head-canon" stands apart from anything is written in-game; so in that sense, Isabela can be manipulated by the player infinitesimally. She is still a feminist character; the world that defines or attempts to define her has simply become incredibly powerful. (Ultimate instance of reader response)
shotgun-shepard wrote...
And what are everyone's reasons for using a particular gender when romancing her, how does this affect the reading, if at all?
I've never fully romanced Isabela; I've let one M!Hawke sleep with her before moving on to Anders. Head-canon: Lachlan Hawke was good friends with Isabela and enjoyed flirting with her. He was also confused and frustrated about Anders. He slept with prostitutes at the Blooming Rose, too. His friendship and (non-romantic) love for Isabela remained strong afterward. Isabela is at 100% friendship and he's taken her on Legacy quest after the game finished. They are good buddies.
I tried to do a FemHawke x Isabela playthrough but got bored. This has nothing to do with Isabela's character and more to do with the fact that I'm a straight woman who vastly prefer m/m romances
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