Okay, I've been thinking about Cain and gender roles and all...
Wondering that if Cain WERE a man, would the audience be more or less shocked at the things she's done? You can look at this from many perspectives. The way society is and the way we're conditioned, I think we usually expect a MAN to do the sort of things that Cain has done. However, and I've come across this in my Film classes, particularly Gender & Film, there's always the idea of the monstrous feminine -- the mysteries of the woman, her sexuality, her 'hold' over men and her impact on society...there are plenty of films that exploit this, especially in the horror genre.
With BSG, it's hard to say whether the writers were trying to sway the viewers into thinking that Cain was a monster, or to make them realize that BOTH men and women on the show were capable of violence. Normally we don't expect a woman to make the kinds of decisions or say things that Cain has said...society 'expects' women to be nurturing and innate caregivers. (In an episode of seaQuest, it's said that most ships *prefer* female captains, because they exude a calming presence...which I thought was interesting.)
I think that if Cain were male, there'd be more understanding, on the part of the audience, of the acts that were committed. The whole sense of the 'resolute admiral who put his crew/ship first no matter what it took'. It seems like there's more excuse for actions if the character is male...like you'd expect those kinds of actions.
Cain was a great foil for Roslin, and you touched a lot of that already. I was thinking about the physicality, and Cain definitely carries herself like a man. She acts like a man. But...that's *this* society's view of a man. Personally, if she'd been around longer, if they'd given a little more depth to her, I think we might've seen some more 'female' characteristics. Then again, like you said, we know so little of her and her background...we don't really know what she's been through and what of herself she's had to sacrifice. Roslin, on the other hand, is the consummate woman, and you touched on that, too. The writers are messing with us now, though, when they had her say that Adama had to kill Cain. You don't expect that from the 'earth mother' type. Roslin is nurturing; she's understanding. She's trying to look out for the fleet, yet taking a different route than Cain. Had she been in Cain's place, how would that have changed her, and would that have changed her at all?
I could probably go on and on about this ;o) Personally, I'm a fan of characters who are well-balanced, who exhibit both (contrived, because I don't think traits should be labeled...they're just traits, after all) male and female traits/personality flaws/characteristics.
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Wondering that if Cain WERE a man, would the audience be more or less shocked at the things she's done? You can look at this from many perspectives. The way society is and the way we're conditioned, I think we usually expect a MAN to do the sort of things that Cain has done. However, and I've come across this in my Film classes, particularly Gender & Film, there's always the idea of the monstrous feminine -- the mysteries of the woman, her sexuality, her 'hold' over men and her impact on society...there are plenty of films that exploit this, especially in the horror genre.
With BSG, it's hard to say whether the writers were trying to sway the viewers into thinking that Cain was a monster, or to make them realize that BOTH men and women on the show were capable of violence. Normally we don't expect a woman to make the kinds of decisions or say things that Cain has said...society 'expects' women to be nurturing and innate caregivers. (In an episode of seaQuest, it's said that most ships *prefer* female captains, because they exude a calming presence...which I thought was interesting.)
I think that if Cain were male, there'd be more understanding, on the part of the audience, of the acts that were committed. The whole sense of the 'resolute admiral who put his crew/ship first no matter what it took'. It seems like there's more excuse for actions if the character is male...like you'd expect those kinds of actions.
Cain was a great foil for Roslin, and you touched a lot of that already. I was thinking about the physicality, and Cain definitely carries herself like a man. She acts like a man. But...that's *this* society's view of a man. Personally, if she'd been around longer, if they'd given a little more depth to her, I think we might've seen some more 'female' characteristics. Then again, like you said, we know so little of her and her background...we don't really know what she's been through and what of herself she's had to sacrifice. Roslin, on the other hand, is the consummate woman, and you touched on that, too. The writers are messing with us now, though, when they had her say that Adama had to kill Cain. You don't expect that from the 'earth mother' type. Roslin is nurturing; she's understanding. She's trying to look out for the fleet, yet taking a different route than Cain. Had she been in Cain's place, how would that have changed her, and would that have changed her at all?
I could probably go on and on about this ;o) Personally, I'm a fan of characters who are well-balanced, who exhibit both (contrived, because I don't think traits should be labeled...they're just traits, after all) male and female traits/personality flaws/characteristics.
That was fun ;o)