Playing Dad: An Analysis of Video Game Fathers and their Daughters as Playable Characters

• Author / Creator

  Claflin, Kaitlyn

• In this thesis I analyse the depiction of video game fathers and their daughters, who eventually become playable protagonists, in four popular, mainstream video game titles: The Last of Us, BioShock Infinite, Dishonored and The Walking Dead as well as the downloadable content add-ons Left Behind and Burial at Sea and their sequels Dishonored 2 and The Walking Dead: Season Two. I argue that the construction of fatherhood in games reflects a postfeminist media landscape that prioritizes fatherhood as a main, thematic narrative hook in response to feminist criticism of video games. I further argue that despite the inclusion of daughters as secondary playable protagonists in video games, this emphasis on fatherhood negatively impacts the daughters in order to prioritize the perspectives of their fathers.

• Subjects / Keywords

  • video games
  • fatherhood
  • mothers
  • postfeminist
  • violence
  • paternity
  • masculinity
  • daughters
  • female characters

• Graduation date

  Spring 2022

• Type of Item

  Thesis

• Degree

  Master of Arts

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/r3-q3j0-c584

• License

  This thesis is made available by the University of Alberta Libraries with permission of the copyright owner solely for non-commercial purposes. This thesis, or any portion thereof, may not otherwise be copied or reproduced without the written consent of the copyright owner, except to the extent permitted by Canadian copyright law.