Virgins Never Die: How Patriarchal Ideology Created the Most Important Trait of the Final Girl
As horror culture becomes more mainstream, scholarly analysis is close behind, however, it can be easy to neglect some important horror tropes and the reasoning behind them due to their canonical connection to this genre of film. The purpose of this research is to determine when the horror trope of the “Final Girl” came about in “slasher” horror films specifically, a sub-genre of the traditional horror film. Furthermore, it will unearth why the female protagonist and sole survivor is almost always a virgin; a recurring theme within slasher films spanning decades. Conclusions made from careful research illustrate that this horror trope was created due to the traditional gender roles of women, and more specifically, the taboo of sex before marriage. More women might be interested in staying celibate until marriage when they learn that all final girls have one thing in common: they’re virgins. These women are more sought after partners than their counterparts who are sexually active prior to marriage. This gives way to the notion that virgins are smarter, braver, and are able to outwit the antagonist because their reputations aren’t clouded with promiscuity. Furthermore, showcasing the “Final Girl” this way made more women of the time want to exercise celibacy, as it is projected as the only method of survival against the enemy, while sexual promiscuity is frowned upon, and is even violently punished as seen in the slasher film.
- Jacqueline D. Kunkel (Butler County Community College, US)
As horror culture becomes more mainstream, scholarly analysis is close behind, however, it can be easy to neglect some important horror tropes and the reasoning behind them due to their canonical connection to this genre of film. The purpose of this research is to determine when the horror trope of the “Final Girl” came about in “slasher” horror films specifically, a sub-genre of the traditional horror film. Furthermore, it will unearth why the female protagonist and sole survivor is almost always a virgin; a recurring theme within slasher films spanning decades. Conclusions made from careful research illustrate that this horror trope was created due to the traditional gender roles of women, and more specifically, the taboo of sex before marriage. More women might be interested in staying celibate until marriage when they learn that all final girls have one thing in common: they’re virgins. These women are more sought after partners than their counterparts who are sexually active prior to marriage. This gives way to the notion that virgins are smarter, braver, and are able to outwit the antagonist because their reputations aren’t clouded with promiscuity. Furthermore, showcasing the “Final Girl” this way made more women of the time want to exercise celibacy, as it is projected as the only method of survival against the enemy, while sexual promiscuity is frowned upon, and is even violently punished as seen in the slasher film.
Death and the Maiden: The Development of the Feminine Psyche in the Slasher Film
The slasher film is characterized by a series of conventions that distinguish it from other cultural texts within the horror genre. Specifically, these movies feature a young virginal heroine who is stalked and eventually attacked by a psychopathic killer for cryptic reasons. In my conference paper, I will examine the most widely recognized films of this subgenre through a psychoanalytic lens in order to better understand the emotional and symbolic dynamic between the protagonist and villain. In his text Amor and Psyche, Jungian scholar Erich Neumann proposed that during the development of the feminine psyche the subject must undergo a rite of passage called “the marriage to Death.” During this stage of development, the individual is either literally or symbolically wed to Death, embodied by a monstrous villain, and must confront this figure in order to attain psychological maturity. This meeting with Death symbolically expresses the act of sexual intercourse and is necessary for the subject to cross the threshold into adulthood. In my research, I suggest that the “the marriage to Death” theme is dramatized in the slasher film through the violent confrontation between the Final Girl and the killer. Though the heroines in these films are not literally married to the villains, they share a sexually charged relationship rooted in repression and express their libidinal impulses through the violence they perpetrate against one another. Through her intelligence and wit, the slasher heroine is able to confront and overcome Death to transition into the realm of adulthood.
- Kevin McGuiness (Niagara College, CA)
The slasher film is characterized by a series of conventions that distinguish it from other cultural texts within the horror genre. Specifically, these movies feature a young virginal heroine who is stalked and eventually attacked by a psychopathic killer for cryptic reasons. In my conference paper, I will examine the most widely recognized films of this subgenre through a psychoanalytic lens in order to better understand the emotional and symbolic dynamic between the protagonist and villain. In his text Amor and Psyche, Jungian scholar Erich Neumann proposed that during the development of the feminine psyche the subject must undergo a rite of passage called “the marriage to Death.” During this stage of development, the individual is either literally or symbolically wed to Death, embodied by a monstrous villain, and must confront this figure in order to attain psychological maturity. This meeting with Death symbolically expresses the act of sexual intercourse and is necessary for the subject to cross the threshold into adulthood. In my research, I suggest that the “the marriage to Death” theme is dramatized in the slasher film through the violent confrontation between the Final Girl and the killer. Though the heroines in these films are not literally married to the villains, they share a sexually charged relationship rooted in repression and express their libidinal impulses through the violence they perpetrate against one another. Through her intelligence and wit, the slasher heroine is able to confront and overcome Death to transition into the realm of adulthood.
The Evolved Final Girl: Reconfiguring Identification and Space for Women’s Narratives
This paper will outline the evolution of the Final Girl in horror television, specifically Slasher: Solstice, and begin to unpick Clover’s process of identification with regards to women’s identification. There is a documented history of how cult horror texts were created for male audiences (Sconce, 1991; Jenkins, 1992; Clover, 1992); equally, there is recognised history of how television as a medium within the domestic space meant it was more accessible to women (Wheatley, 2002). In the early 1990s, such inclusive cult texts began to infiltrate to mainstream television such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and The X-Files. Yet over the past ten years, there has been purposeful and self-reflexive change and significant increase in contemporary horror television texts which situate carefully constructed characters and narrative to engage women to the text.
Clover’s Final Girl and theory on gendered identification in the horror genre is an important starting point in understanding the relationship between women, characters in contemporary horror texts and processes of identification. While Clover’s work could now be considered outdated as Buffy and The X-Files highlight the experiences of women to a degree, the focus of these representations does remain problematic in that they become ‘heroic’ and (literally) self-sacrificing. Buffy/Scully can be framed within that ‘final girl’ process of identification; in that it is only through their culturally understood masculinities and masculine behaviours (scientific intellect, logic, violence, etc.) that they are deemed identifiable for women. While many have updated the Final Girl, few have examined this change on the small screen and how Clover’s identification works given the long-form televisual form.
- Charlotte Baker (University of Derby, UK)
This paper will outline the evolution of the Final Girl in horror television, specifically Slasher: Solstice, and begin to unpick Clover’s process of identification with regards to women’s identification. There is a documented history of how cult horror texts were created for male audiences (Sconce, 1991; Jenkins, 1992; Clover, 1992); equally, there is recognised history of how television as a medium within the domestic space meant it was more accessible to women (Wheatley, 2002). In the early 1990s, such inclusive cult texts began to infiltrate to mainstream television such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and The X-Files. Yet over the past ten years, there has been purposeful and self-reflexive change and significant increase in contemporary horror television texts which situate carefully constructed characters and narrative to engage women to the text.
Clover’s Final Girl and theory on gendered identification in the horror genre is an important starting point in understanding the relationship between women, characters in contemporary horror texts and processes of identification. While Clover’s work could now be considered outdated as Buffy and The X-Files highlight the experiences of women to a degree, the focus of these representations does remain problematic in that they become ‘heroic’ and (literally) self-sacrificing. Buffy/Scully can be framed within that ‘final girl’ process of identification; in that it is only through their culturally understood masculinities and masculine behaviours (scientific intellect, logic, violence, etc.) that they are deemed identifiable for women. While many have updated the Final Girl, few have examined this change on the small screen and how Clover’s identification works given the long-form televisual form.