This is the forth and final plot device, click to read the introduction, and parts one, two, and three ♡
In 2012, another rad comics author Kelly Sue DeConnick described her Sexy Lamp test for fictional ladies, saying:
In 2012, another rad comics author Kelly Sue DeConnick described her Sexy Lamp test for fictional ladies, saying:
“As an industry, we have to make more female-led books that are actually worth buying. Never mind the Bechdel test, try this: if you can replace your female character with a sexy lamp and the story still basically works, maybe you need another draft. They have to be protagonists, not devices.”1
Yeah! (For those who are
uncertain of what the Bechdel test is, take a gander at the the Bechdel Test Movie List for a definition. It’s worth Googling, too, for a delightful array of links.)
So, Sexy Lamp. Basically what
we’re working with here is an attractive female character who… exists, and
that’s about it. She shines a little light on our heroic males, and she may
provide a little warmth in times of trouble. She provides warm encouragement,
is a beautiful symbol of what’s good (and sexy!) in the world, and stands
around waiting to reward our male protagonist once he has slayed the dragon or
saved the city. However, she doesn’t express autonomy or affect the plot in any
active, meaningful way.
Nostalgia Chick gives a great
rundown of the Sexy Lamp in her review of the natural disaster film “The Day After Tomorrow,” where Emmy Rossum’s character Laura takes this trope hilariously
literally, using her body warmth to thaw out our protagonist, Jake Gyllenhaal's Sam, so that he may
continue to protect a sub-zero New York City.
The Sexy Lamp may overlap with
the Damsel in Distress or Woman in Refrigerator at times. Double Female Plot
Device Achievement Unlocked!
Some great examples from literary
history include Desdemona in Othello
(a Sexy Lamp who ultimately becomes a quasi-Woman in Refrigerator, her death at
the hands of our male protagonist teaching him An Important Lesson), Daisy
Buchanan in The Great Gatsby, even
Bella Swan from Twilight until she
began throwing herself off cliffs, the first action she took to substantially
impact the plot of her own franchise.
Sexy Lamps are generally not main characters, but exist somewhere in the second tier of cast members, popping in to offer some of her sexy, sexy light to our male hero, before disappearing to move out of the way of the plot.
Sexy Lamps are generally not main characters, but exist somewhere in the second tier of cast members, popping in to offer some of her sexy, sexy light to our male hero, before disappearing to move out of the way of the plot.
I also stalked down this conversation on Tumblr
positing a sub style of this woman-as-plot-device, the
“Sexy Lamp with a Post-It Stuck On,” wherein the Sexy Lamp also holds
and
helpfully relays useful information to our male protagonist; “shedding
light”
on a situation for our hero to then act upon (I hold no responsibility
for that shedding light line, that’s from the fiendishly clever folks at
Tumblr).2
So a piece of fiction may
spectacularly flunk the Bechdel test, but pass the Sexy Lamp test – the women
in The Avengers never talk to each other, but they do actively impact the plot
of the film – or vice versa. Whilst the Bechdel test’s focus is on having more
than one female character, and fostering relationships between those women that
aren’t hinged upon men, the Sexy Lamp looks at the actions and roles of each
individual female character. These tests are simply a guideline that aim to
draw attention to the representation and use of female characters.
Go read Forrest Helvie’s Sequart article on the Bechdel and Sexy Lamp Tests. It includes more discussion
with DeConnick and some helpful examples
This article also posits the Mako Mori test, which is rad.
If you need a visual, this lovely cosplayer’s got your back. She’ll pat it whilst encouraging you. Then she’ll
cheer for you from a safe distance whilst you save the world.
This is the last installment of the Field Guide to Women as Plot Devices, for now~!
This is the last installment of the Field Guide to Women as Plot Devices, for now~!
The trend of relegating both primary and secondary female characters to plot devices is firstly a terrible wasted opportunity. It is incredibly important that pop culture narratives include strong, layered, and autonomous characters of all genders. However, these stock tropes also provide intriguing insight into popular perceptions of gender roles, expectations and requirements, and the ways that women are perceived to affect or be affected by male stories. If women in our mainstream narratives are continually othered and made into objects of convenience and symbolism, it will surely continue to be an acceptable way to treat women in contemporary life.
1 Laura Hudson, “Kelly Sue Deconnick on the Evolution of Carol Danvers to Captain Marvel [Interview],” Comics Alliance,
Mar 19 2012, http://comicsalliance.com/kelly-sue-deconnick-captain-marvel.
She also spoke about it in this interview: Joshua Yehl, “Kelly Sue DeConnick Talks Captain Marvel, Pretty Deadly, and the Sexy Lamp Test,” IGN, June 20 2013, http://au.ign.com/articles/2013/06/20/kelly-sue-deconnick-talks-captain-marvel-pretty-deadly-and-the-sexy-lamp-test.
She also spoke about it in this interview: Joshua Yehl, “Kelly Sue DeConnick Talks Captain Marvel, Pretty Deadly, and the Sexy Lamp Test,” IGN, June 20 2013, http://au.ign.com/articles/2013/06/20/kelly-sue-deconnick-talks-captain-marvel-pretty-deadly-and-the-sexy-lamp-test.
2 sweaterkittensahoy, trailofdesire, shitifindon, inky-petrel, “Bechdel vs. the sexy lamp,” Tumblr thread, 2013, http://inky-petrel.tumblr.com/post/58417840839/bechdel-vs-the-sexy-lamp.
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