Mary Sue

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This article is about the concept in modern literary criticism. For either part of the given name or real or fictional people named as such, see Mary and Sue.

Mary Sue, sometimes shortened simply to Sue, is a pejorative term used to describe a fictional character who plays a major role in the plot on such a scale that suspension of disbelief fails due to the character's traits, skills and abilities being tenuously or inadequately justified. Such a character is particularly characterized by overly idealized and clichéd mannerisms, lacking noteworthy flaws, and primarily functioning as wish-fulfillment fantasies for their authors. Perhaps the single underlying feature of all characters described as "Mary Sues" is that they are too ostentatious for the audience's taste, or that the author seems to favor the character too highly. The author may seem to push how exceptional and wonderful the "Mary Sue" character is on his or her audience, sometimes leading the audience to dislike or even resent the character fairly quickly—kind of an "author's pet" effect.

"Mary Sues" can be either male or female, but male characters are often dubbed "Gary Stu", "Marty Stu", or similar names. While the label "Mary Sue" itself originates from a parody of this type of character, most characters labeled "Mary Sues" by readers are not intended by authors as such.

While the term is generally limited to fan-created characters, and its most common usage today occurs within the fan fiction community or in reference to fan fiction, canon and original fiction characters are also sometimes criticized as being canon "Mary Sues" or "canon Sues". Wesley Crusher[1] from Star Trek: The Next Generation is probably the best-known example. In role-playing games, original characters may also be criticized as "Mary Sues" if they dominate the spotlight or are too unrealistic or unlikely in other ways.

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[edit] Etymology

The term "Mary Sue" is taken from a character created by Paula Smith in 1974 for her parody story "A Trekkie's Tale,"[2] published in her fanzine Menagerie #2.[3] The character in question was Lieutenant Mary Sue ("the youngest Lieutenant in the fleet — only fifteen and a half years old"). Smith's story poked fun at what she considered to be the unrealistic and adolescent wish-fantasy characters appearing in Star Trek fan fiction of the period. Such characters were, in general, original (non-canon) and female adolescents who had romantic liaisons with established canon adult characters. They also possessed unrealistic, unlikely, and often exotic skills and traits above and beyond those that would have been expected of any character in that particular series or of a conventional author surrogate.

Later, however, the Mary Sue concept was expanded to include almost any author surrogate or highly-idealized character who plays a major role in a plot, especially those who upstage the canon characters and monopolize the spotlight via their special talents, beauty, erotic attraction, and so forth.

The term gained wider use outside of the Star Trek fandom in the late 1990s and the 2000s (primarily on the Internet) and has appeared in reference to fiction in the mainstream media. David Orr, in a review of online fan fiction websites FanFiction.net and Godawful Fan Fiction for The New York Times Book Review, wrote[4]:

When you've had your fill of slash, gen, and 'ship fiction (fanfic terms for various character entanglements), when you groan at the arrival of each new "Mary Sue" (a ludicrously empowered author proxy)...

Today, the term can also be applied to original (non-fan) fiction characters who are seen as being cliched, over-the-top, overly idealized and/or continuous upstagers of the other characters in the story. Anita Blake from the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series is one of the more well known Mary Sues.

[edit] Connotations

As is evident from the definitions given above, the term "Mary Sue" carries the strong connotation of wish-fulfillment. For this reason, it is commonly associated with self-insertion, the literal writing of oneself into a fictional story. However, a true self-insertion is a literal and generally undisguised representation of the author; many—perhaps most—characters described as "Mary Sues" are not literal self-insertions, though they are frequently said to be "proxies"[5] or stand-ins of some sort for the author. The negative connotation of the term comes from this very "wish-fulfillment" implication: the "Mary Sue" is regarded as being a poorly-developed character, one who is too perfect, too beautiful/handsome, too lacking in three-dimensionality to be accepted as realistic or interesting. Such proxy characters, critics claim, exist only because the author wishes to see himself or herself as the "special" character in question.

The term is also associated with over-the-top character features, such as exotic hair and eye colors, mystical or superhuman powers greater than those of the other characters, exotic pets, possessions or origins, or an unusually tragic past. These features are commonplace in examples of wish-fulfillment "Mary Sues", though even a character who lacks them may be labeled a "Sue" by some critics.

The term is more broadly associated with characters who are exceptionally and improbably lucky. The good luck may involve romance ("Mary Sue" always gets her man); adventure ("Mary Sue" always wins a fight or knows how to solve the puzzle); and popularity (the "right people" seem to gravitate towards the character). These characters confront very few significant problems while attempting to achieve their goals. "Everything goes her way" is a common criticism regarding "Mary Sues", the implication being that the character is not sufficiently humanized or challenged to be genuinely interesting and sympathetic.

[edit] Sub-concepts of or relating to "Mary Sue"

Frequent subtypes or sub-subtypes of perceived "Mary Sues" will be named on the fly using certain patterns. Two of the most common methods of doing this are listed below:

  • The ! convention. Generally this is a one-word description of the character as portrayed in a particular story, set against the word "Sue" with a ! symbol, e.g. rebel!Sue (to denote a rebellious character seen as a "Mary Sue"). For "canon-Sues" the symbol is usually preceded by the canon character's name. It may also be used to ascribe traits to non-Sues. This convention is limited to online use.
  • The - convention. Used less frequently (in part due to less freedom, as the ! convention allows for multiple descriptors; for example, goth!alien!rebel!Sue), but still used nonetheless in some areas of fandom.

The "subtypes" listed below are by no means a comprehensive list of all cliches associated with "Mary Sues". Furthermore, note that a "Mary Sue" is, first and foremost, perceived to be an unrealistic and unsympathetic character, and a character possessing these characteristics can be written well enough not to be considered a "Sue".

[edit] "Angsty" Sue

This subconcept of the larger "Mary Sue" concept comes in two common variations. The first is a character who is constantly depressed and has a tragic past, frequently involving such things as child abuse, rape, or abandonment of some sort. She or he often feels guilt for something that happened in the past, even though it is usually not his or her fault, which gives him or her the ability to feel bad about something without having done anything wrong. Generally, if she or he doesn't commit romanticized suicide, then only the love or close friendship of one or more canon characters can convince her that she is not responsible for a tragic or horrific childhood or event that was obviously not of her making. Such backgrounds constitute an ill-advised attempt to gain sympathy from the reader.

The other version of the "Angsty Sue" subconcept involves a character who has a similarly tragic past, but rather than angsting about it, she or he seeks revenge for what's been done to his or her family/home village/civilization, etc. She or he is thrust into the spotlight of the story while doing so. The writer is seen as using his or her past not merely as a device to gain sympathy, but also to claim moral superiority and justification for his or her actions. As such, this type of "Angsty Sue" rarely has any guilt at all - after all, she or he hasn't done anything "wrong."

[edit] Anti-Sue

Some authors make an extreme effort to avoid making their character into a "Mary Sue". The attempts or results of such attempts are sometimes referred to as "Anti-Sues". Given that the key difference between a well-developed, sympathetic character and a "Mary Sue" is often considered to be a lack of realistic faults, this generally involves making such characters extremely flawed. Some such attempts are seen as creating interesting, three-dimensional characters - though others are seen as being similarly over-the-top as the more stereotypical "Mary Sue".

"Anti-Sue" traits include physical unattractiveness, mental illness (including sociopathy and psychopathy), noticeably lacking in power or competency relative to other characters, being generally disliked by others or never interacting with them, cowardice, and other unflattering characteristics. While characters who can arguably be described as "Anti-Sues" have proved popular in some fiction, especially in modern times (see anti-hero), at other times they may be perceived to be as bad as or even worse than "Mary Sues" for their cliché nature or lack of sympathetic traits. "Anti-Sue" is viewed as merely another cliché stock character, or even simply an anti-hero variation of the "Sue" - especially if he or she still manages to take the spotlight away from the canon heroes.

[edit] Canon-Sue (in fan fiction)

The term "canon-Sue" (also written as canon!Sue) or "Possession Sue" is used to describe canon characters who are changed significantly from their original canon characterization and sometimes even divorced from their original context completely. Such characters are seen as having been heavily idealized to the point of being more of a stand-in for the author's wish fulfillment than being the original canon character.

Characters most frequently labeled "canon-Sues" often develop the typical associated over-the-top traits of a "Mary Sue" with little precedent or explanation, a process sometimes called "sueification." Some examples are the discoveries of tragic pasts and abilities superior to other canon characters, the elimination or romanticization of flaws, and being antagonized by characters disliked by the fan-author while befriended by canon characters liked by the author - regardless of how friendly or unfriendly they were before.

If the "canon-Sue" deviates enough from the original, it may be referred to jocularly as an act of "canon rape" - a term often used when a significant (and disliked) change has been made to the canon world or characters, such as when a former hero is vilified without explanation, a character who is unpopular in the canon receives a make-over and becomes popular, or a usually-chaste canon character is easily seduced by a fan-created "Mary Sue" character. Even in alternate universe stories where the premise ostensibly might involve examining how the story might play out differently if characters behaved differently, many readers criticize such changes as being too extreme.

[edit] Canon Sue (in original source)

A "canon Sue" may also refer to a character whose canon portrayal itself is seen as a "Mary Sue", rather than a character who has been altered in fan fiction. Typically, this refers to a character accused of being overly idealized or having other traits traditionally associated with fan fiction "Mary Sues", such as being "special" by having a gratuitously tragic past, unrealistic skills, or a seeming inability for the character to do wrong, such as Wesley Crusher[1] and Amanda Rogers[1] in Star Trek: The Next Generation.

[edit] Male variations

A male "Mary Sue" is usually referred to as a 'Gary Stu' [1], 'Larry Stu' [2], or 'Marty Stu' [3]. References to male characters being a 'Gary Stu' (or similar masculinized term) are less common than those to female 'Mary Sues'. They are generally identified as being much cooler, tougher, and sexier than the canon characters. Gary Stus are often shown as the popular, excessively popular, and the jock of every story. Girls in the story will fall over themselves to capture a Gary Stu's attention.

While "Gary Stu" can be interpreted as the male version of the perfect character, he will often display more extreme anti-hero traits than the typical "Mary Sue," making him an "angsty sue" or a "villain sue". While anti-heroes have in recent times become increasingly more popular among their devoted fans (such as Wolverine, Batman and Jack Sparrow) the most notable qualities of a "Mary Sue" still persist - a "Gary Stu" manipulates the canon universe around him, and furthermore he lacks an individual personality.

While the term is generally limited to fan-created characters, rare but still prevalent cases of Gary Stu exist in reference to canon characters. In a play-by-post role-playing game, many original characters are criticized as Gary Stu if they dominate the spotlight or can miraculously escape a near-impossible predicament (usually with an unlikely manliness and heroism). Very often, Gary Stus will appear in Japanese anime and manga which makes the "Gary Stu-ness" even more powerful because it has a handsome image to go with the description.

[edit] Parody Sue

This "Mary Sue" is intentionally created for a parody, usually aimed at readers who are familiar with the "Mary Sue" concept, and dislike said "Sues." Her vast repertoire of skills and lack of personality are emphasized in a humorous way and generally, one of two things happens in the story:

  • She succeeds and everyone in the canon universe falls under her buxom charms.
  • She fails, either because there are too many other "Mary Sues" fighting her, because another of the author's original characters interferes, or because the canon characters see how uninteresting she really is.

Note that the "original" Mary Sue from "A Trekkie's Tale" is in fact a Parody Sue. A recent trend among fans of Brian Jacques' book series, Redwall, is to have 'Sueslayers', characters who hunt "Mary Sues."

[edit] Self-insertion

Self-insertion is used to describe clear (and usually seen as indisputable) cases where the author has directly inserted a version of him- or herself into the story in lieu of a wholly or even partly original character, generally going so far as to use the same name or pseudonym for character and author. Though some author surrogates are common in fiction - such as Philip Roth in several of his novels, Clive Cussler in his Dirk Pitt novels, or Lin Carter in his work - "self-inserts" in fan fiction are frequently seen as the most blatant of "Mary Sues", especially when heavily idealized. Some online fan fiction archives have an outright ban on any story which involves self-insertion. They are also sometimes frowned down upon in role-playing communities, despite that some argue that it is easier for inexperienced or casual role-players to learn.

[edit] Villain-Sue

"Villain-Sue" usually replaces, befriends or is romantically involved with a major canon villain. Other traits include defeating canon characters with ease, secretly having redeeming qualities, having a tragic past that somehow excuses and justifies all her heinous deeds and letting the canon characters live when she could kill them — not out of bad qualities such as wanting to see them suffer, a desire to have all of them as prisoners at once, or wanting to gloat, but because she really isn't so evil as others might think. In fact, she may even secretly be a hero, or have hidden heroic tendencies. This can be seen as a variant of the "Angsty Sue" seen above.

[edit] Litmus tests

Various tests, commonly known as "Mary Sue litmus tests", have been written ostensibly to help writers (especially inexperienced ones) gauge whether or not their character is a Mary Sue, as well as bring the "Mary Sue" concept to writers' attention[6]. These tests list fiction clichés and character traits that are also commonly associated with stereotypical "Mary Sues", ranging from questions on hair and eye color ("Is it a color found in nature?") to the author's relationship to the character (such as if they share a name or nickname with the character). Matching more traits results in a higher score for a character. Once the score is high enough, the character is said to be a likely "Mary Sue", to varying degrees of apparent severity including "Uber-Sue". The original "Mary Sue Litmus Test" was meant for those writing in the Gargoyles fandom, though it has since been almost endlessly adapted for other fandoms and original characters, becoming somewhat of a minor meme online.

Most such tests include a disclaimer noting that even characters with extremely high scores can be executed well enough not to be considered a "Mary Sue", and that the test is primarily meant as a guide for better characterization. Nevertheless, many writers believe that many of the litmus tests are too strict, finding that they make not only popular fictional characters out to be "Mary Sues", but also some real people as well (notably, the original test and a good number of its adaptations explicitly mention Bono as an example of a non-fictional person who actually tests as a "Mary Sue" by the test's criteria).

Additionally, in determining the "Mary Sue" status of speculative fiction characters, some tests will score characters higher if they have magical powers, superhuman abilities, or "unusual" names, appearances, and pets - all of which are far more common and somewhat more accepted in science fiction and fantasy settings. Even if such powers or appearances are common in the setting, many of the questions on older "Litmus Tests" will still rate a character higher for having them in the first place. Litmus tests have also been criticised for increasing a character's rating for trivial attributes, such as having the same gender as the author.

[edit] Parodies of "Mary Sue" in the media

As the concept (and term) has increased in usage over time, it has started to become referenced parody in the mainstream media:

  • In 1997, the television cartoon series Duckman referenced "Mary Sue." In the 4th season episode "Aged Heat 2: Women in Heat," a cute, sweet blonde character named "Suzie" is introduced who takes over Duckman's fame, fortune and attention.
  • In the British horror spoof Garth Marenghi's Darkplace, the character Rick Dagless that the eponymous (and equally fictitious) star plays on the self-penned show-within-a-show is clearly the person that Marenghi wishes to be, or believes himself to be already. Examples include other characters stating their wish to be "more attractive, like Dagless" and Dagless being told by a priest that "you are the most sensitive man I know. And I know God.". The character's name is also always given as "Dr Rick Dagless M.D." whereas none of the other doctors in the show have M.D. after their name.
  • In the Saturday morning cartoon Johnny Test, which premiered in 2005, Johnny has twin sisters named Mary and Susan (which can be shortened to Sue). They both are inventors, top of their class, who create elaborate gadgets in extremely short periods of time (hours) -- many of which violate the laws of physics.
  • In 2007, The House of Black, a wizard rock band, released a music video of their song, "Mary Sue." Erin Pyne and Magus Dethen spoof various types of Harry Potter "Mary Sues" in the video.
  • A 2008 episode of Torchwood featured an alien character named Adam who had the power to manipulate his way into the Torchwood team by implanting false memories. Similar to the above, the opening titles were re-edited to feature him as part of the team.
  • In the British comedy show Red Dwarf, Arnold Rimmer's counterpart from another dimension, Ace Rimmer, is so incredibly talented and beloved that other characters consistently proclaim "What a guy!" upon meeting him.
  • In 2008, the Yu-Gi-Oh! parody series "Yu-Gi-Oh! The Abridged Series" released a video titled "Yu-Gi-Oh: The Other Abridged Movie," made from footage from the original Yu-Gi-Oh! "Season Zero" movie. Series creator LittleKuriboh renamed the protagonist (Shogo in the original Japanese) "Gary Stu."
  • In the Futurama episode Where No Fan Has Gone Before, an alien captures the cast of Star Trek for a “convention”. Among other indignities, he forces them to perform his fan script in which he single-handedly saves the Enterprise and is praised by the crew.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

[edit] Origins/history

[edit] Additional essays

[edit] Mary Sue "Litmus Tests" online

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c Pat Pflieger (2001). "TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE: 150 YEARS OF MARY SUE". 3. . Presented at the American Culture Association conference Retrieved on 2007-01-15.
  2. ^ Smith, Paula, A TREKKIE'S TALE, <http://books.google.com/books?id=V81wCQ_4BiwC&pg=PA15&lpg=PA15&dq=a+trekkie's+tale+paula+smith&source=web&ots=yTmGDQRgTu&sig=VYd5H1K66REshTlrSw1MNd4QLak> 
  3. ^ SF Citations for OED: Mary Sue. Retrieved on 2006-05-20.
  4. ^ Orr, David (2004-10-03). The Widening Web of Digital Lit. The New York Times. Retrieved on 2006-10-02.
  5. ^ Orr, David (2004-10-03). The Widening Web of Digital Lit. The New York Times. Retrieved on 2006-10-02.
  6. ^ http://www.springhole.net/quizzes/marysue.htm
  • Verba, Joan Marie. Boldly Writing: A Trekker Fan and Zine History, 1967–1987. Mankato, MN: FTL Publications, 1996.