Do you feel like a hero yet? - Spec Ops: The Line and the Concept of the Hero
Veröffentlichungsdatum
2017
Autoren
Zusammenfassung
Working from a Folklore Studies and Cultural Studies perspective, I discuss the concept of a traditional hero-narrative as well as what makes up the hero-character. I then analyse the 2012 PC game Spec Ops: The Line as a modern contribution to hero-narratives, and as a conscious digression from them. My discussion of the hero-character is based on the work of notable Folklore scholars such as Propp as well as scholars from related fields, for instance Hourihan and Hosiaisluoma. I also discuss some particular aspects of analysing the narrative of a computer game - an interactive form of media - as well as briefly touching upon the intertextual context of Spec Ops: The Line. In my analysis, I come to the conclusion, that Spec Ops: The Line is a conscious subversion of the modern military hero-narrative; it at first sets up expectations of adhering to the genre and theme, which it then flaunts and actively criticises. The protagonist, Captain Martin Walker, starts out a heroic character, but soon fails this role. His final role in the narrative ultimately depends on the player s choices in the game s final chapter.
Schlagwörter
hero
;
protagonist
;
villain
;
interactivity
;
narrative
;
military
;
gamevironments
Institution
Fachbereich
Dokumenttyp
Zeitschrift/Sammelwerk
gamevironments
Band
6
Startseite
68
Endseite
99
Seitenzahl
32
Zweitveröffentlichung
Sprache