Joe Z.

184 reputation

bio	website	joezeng.com
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	age	19
visits	member for	4 months
	seen	Apr 29 at 14:38
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	184 reputation	bio	website	joezeng.com	visits	member for	4 months
8 badges		location			seen	Apr 29 at 14:38

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31 Comments

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Apr 29	comment	What are some examples of modern original plots? I'd dispute Harry Potter, due to this.
Mar 13	comment	Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”? And I guess an obligatory "warning" that the above link is a TVTropes link that will immediately kill three hours of your time.
Mar 13	comment	Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”? McCann's answer also focuses on "undue attention". It would seem that the "real" definition of Mary Sue is the Black Hole Sue.
Mar 13	comment	Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”? "violet eyes and fiery hair." This reminds me of the dragon girls from the Last Dragon Chronicles by Chris D'Lacey.
Mar 12	comment	Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”? "Embody"! That was the word I was looking for!
Mar 2	comment	Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”? It makes people think Mary Sue is some a priori categorization of a character that will ruin the story just because it's there.
Feb 27	comment	Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”? I think "encompass" or "cover" would have been correct. Anyway, I still consider the listing of character traits that are "considered harmful" (and treating a Mary Sue as an archetype in general, as people are wont to do) to generally be a negative thing, as people will bend over to avoid those traits and create something equally as contrived but avoiding those things. Best to get to the root of the problem if at all possible.
Feb 27	comment	Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”? I've seen that page before, and it only further supports the belief that the term "Mary Sue" is nowadays much too overarching.
Feb 26	comment	Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”? Not really. I was asking whether the notion of a Mary Sue really did have a unified, agreed-on meaning that I simply wasn't aware of.
Feb 26	comment	Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”? (I'm sure there's a better term than "encloses". It's on the tip of my tongue, but for the love of me, I can't remember what the word is.)
Feb 26	comment	Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”? I feel like this really is the most workable definition, especially with that concept of "reversed narrative causality", which encloses my "traits for the sake of traits" rather nicely.
Feb 26	comment	Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”? "Most descriptions of a Mary Sue are essentially lists of character traits commonly used to prop up a Mary Sue in this manner." And if they didn't do this, maybe our definitions would be more consistent.
Feb 26	comment	Is there any merit to the term “Mary Sue”? @ShantnuTiwari, You can write that question. I think it's too far away from what I was asking here.
Feb 26	comment	Is there any merit to the term “Mary Sue”? But yeah, this topic will generate way too much discussion. Maybe we should, like, start a chatroom for this topic.
Feb 26	comment	Is there any merit to the term “Mary Sue”? Personally, I think that bolting flaws onto a character will not stop them from being "Mary Sues". In fact, bolting too many flaws on a character is also considered a signal of a Mary Sue nowadays. Hence the definition that I now use, "a character that has any traits, good or bad, that are just bolted on for the sake of being there." I find it covers most cases I find, even if I never use the term in any serious way in literary criticism.
Feb 26	comment	Is there any merit to the term “Mary Sue”? I can see why this question might not be good for the type of QA that Stack Exchange intends now.
Feb 26	comment	Is there any merit to the term “Mary Sue”? @NeilFein Okay. If that's the case, you can close the question if you wish. If I can find an acceptable rewrite, I'll use that instead.
Feb 26	comment	Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”? ^ Mary Sue is used for both genders, while Gary/Marty Stu is exclusively male.
Feb 26	comment	Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”? Of course, in my ventures, I've seen people use the term "Mary Sue" in a way that it need not apply to only those characters that are written as versions of the author.
Feb 26	comment	Is there any standardized definition of a “Mary Sue”? I prefer "Gary Stu" myself. "Marty" sounds androgynous.