Author: Taha Safadi

On October 9, we conducted an activity using Legos to “build” our research question. My research question was unclear and a work in progress. This was perfect for the exercise as it allowed me to step outside structural constraints and freely experiment with my thought process and intentions for my project.

My research question as of that moment was: How does character-building in video games challenge default identities and disrupt norm chronology, fostering alternative self-concepts?

Our first iteration was to create a model based on our concept. Introducing…. the yellow brick road. Many perceive the yellow brick road (from The Wizard of Oz) as a metaphor for the path of happiness and freedom.

On one hand, we have the yellow brick road which signifies freedom and an embrace of individuality. Conversely, we have the road of adaption and mundaneness (default identity). Rooted in traditionalism and reinforced by capitalist ideals, this path creates a conventional standard of living that revolves around clocking in and out without purpose and adhering to “inoffensive” traditional standards of heteronormativity. Let’s call this model the cobblestone road.

While the presented ideology is not a new phenomenon of choosing between two paths, the yellow brick road is self-exploration, freedom and authenticity, whilst the cobblestone road is the standard route for professional success and societal acceptance. At the end of the cobblestone road is the treasure chest. Complete the cobblestone road and realise the treasure chest is monetary success and a family. The yellow brick road does not have an end or a treasure chest, as the prize is the journey of living authentically.

The final part of the Lego activity was combining the outcomes we had created into one. Ultimately, this led to the yellow cobblestone road. In the Lego universe we’ve made in this exercise, the most realistic outcome would be to combine the idealistic perspective of what the world could be with the actual world. The combination is what many people have been able to succeed in. They create their sect in our current worlds and live authentically through them, ultimately looking for the silver lining.

This Lego activity allowed me to step back and assess all the influences at play, such as hierarchies of power that make these decisions, capitalism, religion, etc. It is clear that there are many influences at play, and I want to refrain from “pin-balling” between ideas.

Moving forward, I aim to solidify my approach and test how well video games serve as a lens for examining these themes. The concept of “default identities” feels especially relevant, and through additional testing and research, I aim to determine if video games can offer a powerful space for players to explore identities beyond societal expectations.

“The thing I always say about marginalized people is that we are not actually marginal. Social codes, laws, norms and other pathologies beat up on us and take us out of the center. But even as systems get scared and throw us to the margins, we use imagination as the best revenge.” (Moore, M. 2018, p.11).

Fabulous: The Rise of the Beautiful Eccentric written by queer artist-scholar Madison Moore explores what it means to be fabulous in today’s world, what it means for a marginalised individual who stands out from the social constructs and lives authentically and vicariously through the tumultuous environment that punishes individualism.

Out of interest, I began exploring the concept of Default Identity. I define Default Identity as an individual shaped by societal and cultural expectations—the ideal hetero-normative person. While the default identity varies from culture to culture, its definition remains the same relative to the specific cultural practices of where the individual is based.

Moore’s book about fabulousness directly challenges default identities. Moore defines the occurrence of fabulousness as when marginalised individuals and social outcasts resist the pressures of conforming to the norms (Moore, M. 2018). As Moore (2018) states, this is executed successfully through the “power of abstraction—the ability to see through the here and now and to live dangerously through radical style, art, music, and ideas.” (page 5)

It is important to distinguish true fabulousness from what the media and society want to convince us. Cambridge Dictionary defines fabulous as the following: “very good; excellent; extremely large in amount or number; imaginary, not existing in real life” (2024). Moore (2018) urges us to comprehend that fabulousness is not tied to material means, such as wealth, grandiosity, mansions, jewellery, exotic furs and especially celebrities, as they are part of an industrialised system of the cultural industry in which celebrities are produced by machines designed to make them fabulous with limitless funds (2018).

The nature of being fabulous is provocative and political as it is usually heralded by minorities revered by society solely based on their choice of appearance and commitment to living authentically. Being fabulous is dangerous. It is an intrinsic expression influenced by societal hate and oppression that is then bravely translated into how people present themselves, their lifestyles and values. Many attempts to rob an individual of their authenticity and happiness and, by doing so, ultimately rob them of their true identity. “Fabulousness is an intangible aura, a glow. But to pry an object from its shell, as Walter Benjamin once put it, is to destroy its aura.” (page 35)

It will be interesting to explore how fabulousness plays a role in the evolving landscape of self-expression, authenticity and identity. A big takeaway I’ve gotten from delving into the world of fabulosity is you don’t have to be fabulous if you don’t want to. If you wish to succumb to a default identity, you may do so. However, you cannot stand in the way of one’s choice of being fabulous. Even if you choose to stand in someone’s way, they will still overcome your prejudice, just as many generations have done before because, as we’ve learned time and time again, real fabulosity was born through the resistance of normativity.

References:
Moore, M. (2018) Fabulous: The Rise of the Beautiful Eccentric. New Haven : Yale University Press