| Summary |
The purpose of this thesis is to examine the construction of gendered and racialized identities in video games. It is argued that landscapes play a key role in creating the masculine, feminine, and racial identities of video game characters. Through there positioning in the landscape, characters become associated with the particular ideologies of a place, thereby receiving identities. The findings of this thesis are intended to support constructionist theory of identity, which asserts that gender and racial differences are socially constructed rather than naturally existing. By determining which ideologies are present in video game landscapes, and drawing attention to the masculine, feminine, and racial characteristics attributed to characters as a result of their being in these landscapes, the constructed nature of gender and race is demonstrated. In the role-playing video games, Shadowrun, Chrono Trigger, and Landstalker, multiple gendered and racialized identities are found. These identities are discovered to have varied and complex association with the landscapes in which they are constructed. |
