I just think everyone should take a moment to consider the question “what is your visual shorthand for cruelty?” and then follow it up with a critical “and who taught you that?”
specific examples include but are not limited to
- why is an evil timeline character design disabled? (why do the heroes go through equally punishing battles and never lose an arm, a leg, an eye?)
- why are the futuristic scifi terrorists uniformly darker skinned? (why are the heroes so much lighter?)
- why is the greedy boss fat? (why are the heroes skinny?)
- why is the criminal mastermind heavily scarred? (why is the brooding, traumatized hero unscathed?)
- why is the predatory creep a bearded person in a dress and makeup? (why are none of the heroes trans women?)
- who taught you that this is how things are?
- how long do you plan on repeating it?
guys the point is “reflect on how you have learned bigotry through exposure and you parrot it in your own works and in the fandoms you engage with without self awareness” not “tell me, specifically, what random motifs you think are evil”
on the flipside, to everyone adding notes about hooked noses, turbans + headscarves, nonwhite features and cultural clothing in general, mental and physical disorders, and surely others I’ve missed in recollection: you are entirely right and should say it.
all very good points.
we use tropes without thinking, a lot of the time.
most of us have been thoughtless like this in our writing at least sometimes in the past.
and thinking about it can help make our future works better, more sensitive, less biased…. and often also more original and interesting in the process!