Prof. Jenna Spevack | COMD3504_D061 | SPRING 2024 | Thurs 2:30pm
Since the beginning of entertainment, women have had a tendency to be portrayed in less human ways than men. There are various examples supporting this. A common theme, particularly in comics, involves harming women in order to advance a male character’s plot. This trope is called “Women in Refrigerators” or “fridging” for short.
I will be taking a dive further, dissecting the trope and examining why it’s problematic and what could be done to prevent further fridging.
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Really important topic Andre. This is something that I canât stand when I watch superhero content. I really hope Lois Lane isnât a âdamsel in distressâ when James Gunn reboots the DC movies. I couldnât stand Amy Adamâs Lois Lane in the Henry Cavill Superman movies. The same with Kristine Dunst Mary Jane in Rami’s Spider-Man or the girlfriend character in the Dark Knight trilogy. Although, I wished you added some examples of more stories towards the end.
Thanks Avar. Glad you feel the same.
Hi Andre, really interesting topic you picked. I enjoyed your slide visuals and that you included many examples of the trope. I think what could improve your presentation would be if you spoke about how this relates to real life and what this trope can mean within society. It’s important to acknowledge how the media we consume can shift our behaviors and mindsets. I also really enjoyed what you said about misogynistic naturalization, really interesting! Overall great presentation.
Thanks Adrika! Glad you liked it!
Hey Andre, I was not aware of “Fridging”; your presentation was very clear and concise. To add to your presentation, I’ve grown in a home where dad watches Indian movies and majority of it is based on the woman being victimized or dead. It was a constant trend in these productions but never knew it was an actual term to it. I like that you state a solution to the problem in your conclusion.
Hey Andre, first of all, snaps for the trigger warning! Ugh! I want that in mine now! Nice.
I had never heard of “fridging” (and wonder why). You told us the background, showed us the source. How cool Gail Simone called out Green Lantern #54 for that fridge scene!!!
“Heavens to Mergatroid!”, as an old cat cartoon used to exclaim. Dead women as “innocence the man has lost,” “men portrayed as victims,” and the late 1980’s “comics code” ending. What a mess, given this trope “will always work.” Nightmare.
Thank you for the heads up. What a great piece of nerd-dom exposed. Nice presentation!
Hello, Andre I found your presentation to be very enjoyable and interesting. I have seen many example of this trope in media before , but I never knew there was an official term for this trope which had me bad suprise. Representation is important in media and tropes such as this can lead to very harmful depictions of women, this was a great topic that you have chose. It would be even better if you added some comics or other forms of media that show women in a brighter light, Overall Amazing Job!