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“Damsels” of Zelda 101: Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

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It’s been a year since I finished my independent study where I examined The Legend of Zelda franchise from a feminist lens – and what a year it’s been. It only seems fitting that I celebrate the last 12 months by tackling the newest addition to the Zelda family. Plus, hopefully the game will have been out long enough that people will have finished the game and are able to read this without fear of spoilers.

 

If I learned anything from my independent study, it’s that Zelda tends to be used as a plot device in these games. Sometimes, like in Twilight Princess or Skyward Sword, Zelda is given the chance to develop into a strong and powerful leader and woman. Other times, she spends the whole game in a painting or asleep. Either way, she turns into a plot device more than she is a fleshed-out character – something that still disappoints me.

 

I’m mostly disappointed because The Legend of Zelda is full of strong girls and women that are great representations – you just have to look for them. Or, you know, in a shameless plug go through and read some of my old blogs (this one especially) to find out/refresh yourself. So, with the exception of Zelda, I was expecting some pretty kickass women in Breath of the Wild. While I may have been a little surprised about the level of representation in this game, I definitely wasn’t disappointed.

 

*** Just in case spoilers start here***

 

 

I’ve always been a fan of getting the bad news first, and this is post is no different. Although I do love the women in BotW, I can’t ignore the fact that Zelda is once again presented as a plot device. In such an open-ended world and story, your one real objective is to save Zelda from Ganon. While her inability to save herself is explained and valid, she still fits the definition of what a damsel in distress is – a beautiful young woman who is powerless to save herself. While beating Ganon is a large part of your motivation, what narrative we do get encourages you to motivate yourself by learning Zelda’s story.

 

But, I don’t want to get to that story quite yet. Instead, I want to talk about bodies. The oversexualization of the female form is not a new discussion. But, I want to applaud BotW for, while still making a game filled with attractive women, giving them different body shapes – well, some of them at least. My favorite example of different body shapes comes with the Great Fairies. Zelda has a history of sexualizing the fairies in their games (Majora’s Mask), and BotW still does. But, instead of being unrealistic, the fairies are depicted as being plus sized and still beautiful.

 

 

The media rarely shows plus size women as being attractive. But, what I love about these fairies is that they show a growth in how the series depicts their women. Way back in A Link to the Past, the greatest Great Fairy of them all is in distress because Ganon made her heavy. Really, she looks to be the same size as any of these fairies in BotW. And their story doesn’t revolve around them wanting to lose weight, they just want money which I sure relate to. These fairies really make me think that Nintendo is looking at their history and trying to make an effort.

 

I feel the same way about the Gerudo. Always attractive, the Gerudo here are do have different shapes to them. There are very skinny women, “average” women, and more plus sized women. I loved seeing characters that there was an effort to make these women look different. I especially loved that not all of these women seemed to have flat, toned stomachs. It made the world feel a bit more realistic, and a bit more familiar. Games still have a long way to go in not sexualizing women, but giving them different body types is such a good and cool start.And, while we’re on the subject of Gerudos, I want to talk about how much I love the Gerudo women we get to know through cutscenes.

 

 

Riju is so great. I love how Zelda games depict female leadership and the struggles that come with it. Riju is realistically struggling with taking on an enormous role and not feeling equipped to handle it – a theme that we see with Zelda as well. She’s also a very good leader. I love that she is so explicit that you will not get the Thunder Helm until you help everyone in her town. She shows that being a leader isn’t just about the big responsibilities. And, despite everything, she’s still strong and willing to risk her own life to help Link. Plus, I love that she’s younger – I like this trend of tough girls in games

 

Which, leads me to the next lady – Mipha. There’s something about how soft-spoken she is that makes her seem young. That, and her dad feels pretty overprotective and seems to still think of her as his little girl. But, Mipha isn’t. She goes against what’s the norm to pursue a relationship with Link and make him armor. She’s also strong enough to be the Zora Champion and hold off Ganon until the very end. Just because someone is shy and quiet, it doesn’t mean that they can’t be strong as well.

 

I think that Urbosa is another great example of this. She’s intimidating in a lot ways, but that’s not what made her one of my favorite characters in the game. In one of the memories we see her talking to Link as Zelda lays asleep in her lap. Urbosa is so protective over Zelda and whether it’s as a sibling or more, it’s a really great moment because it shows how important female friendships are. It’s important to show heroes being kind as well as tough – it’s also so important that we see Zelda being tired and drained.

 

 

This Zelda, is my favorite Zelda in any game and is a character that reminds me a lot of who I was younger. I always put a lot of pressure on myself to be perfect and fit myself to others expectations of me. While I don’t have to worry about training to stop the world from ending, sometimes it felt like it. Zelda really captures that pressure – a pressure a lot of girls face – in a really beautiful and encouraging way.

 

I love how vulnerable this Zelda is– it gives her a sense of character and personality that she has never had before. Making her almost jealous of how secure Link seems is brilliant. Not only does it make Zelda feel realistic, but it allows us to actually learn about Link as well. Seeing their relationship build from animosity on her side to mutual respect is so refreshing. This is partly because Zelda never feels like a romantic interest. Instead, she’s a realistic woman dealing with more pressure than she knows how to handle.

 

 

Every time I watched a memory, I was waiting to see Zelda’s growth – and I almost missed the best moment. I completely forgot to go see Impa after I found all of the other memories. I almost missed seeing Zelda finally come into her “powers”. I love the message that this memory has – sometimes strength comes when you least expect it and when you need it most. Or basically, you’re a lot stronger than you think. Zelda felt useless, but at the end of the day she ended up saving the world from complete destruction.

 

Zelda is the most complex character of the game and I think she makes a great role model for any girl out there who feels worthless because she’s trying to conform to someone else’s idea of what she should be. It’s hard, but in the end, you’re strong enough to get through it and it’s okay if at the end of it all you still need help. She’s a wonderful character and was one that I wasn’t expecting to find knowing Zelda’s track record.

 

All of this said, there is one more lady I want to talk about before I sum up. Do you remember that little girl in Kakariko Village who’s trying to cook for her sister? Her name is Koko and she’s trying to recreate the dishes her mother used to make – a mother that was killed by the Yiga Clan after her father left. Koko is such a tough little girl. She’s staying strong for her dad and her little sister. She’s a girl that’s more mature than she should be and is all the stronger for that.

 

 

Koko is why I think BotW may have the best representation of women since Ocarina of Time – and maybe even better representations. The world is large and filled with women and girls that are worth finding and learning their stories. Women don’t feel like plot devices or cookie cutter versions of the same women we’ve seen before. Each feel unique and memorable – which is something I can’t say about a lot of games. BotW understands that all women are different and that to represent them well, you have to try to represent as many as you can. It’s not perfect, but it’s such an enjoyable sign of progress.

 

So, who is your favorite woman in BotW? How do you feel about Zelda? And for those who have been reading my stuff since the beginning, did you miss this series? I didn’t realize just how much I did until I started writing and knocked out 1600 words in an hour and a half. Thanks for reading and let me know what you think!

 


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