Twisting the Vigrin Power trope

[Jabrosky]

Virgin Power

My latest plot bunny features a group of pirates or other adventurers hiring a female diviner to help them locate something of value. The diviner initially dislikes these "uncouth barbarians" but later unlearns her prejudice and even falls in love with one of them. The problem emerges after she consummates her love: her divination power weakens with pregnancy. The idea is that her body redirects energy from divination to her womb as she grows a baby inside. The adventurers henceforth must find another way to locate whatever they're looking for until she gives birth.

Would making pregnancy rather than virginity the determinant of a woman's magical powers suffice as a twist on the old Virgin Power trope?

 

[Ireth]

I think it's an interesting twist to a well-used trope. Go for it.

 

[Ivan]

I like it, it's different, and it makes much more sense than the cliched magical celibacy. Clever.

 

[Jabrosky]

I think it's an interesting twist to a well-used trope. Go for it.

The thing is, I brought the same idea up at TV Tropes, and the posters there complained that the whole Virgin Power trope had sexist implications. Even the pregnancy thing didn't alleviate their objection: they phrased that as "women losing their power after sex until they produce babies like good little baby-drones".

 

[Steerpike]

You're spending way too much time looking at that site (and from what I've seen of the people here who reference it I can only think it is a big hindrance to writers), and also way too much time worrying about what this or that other person might think about a given trope. You're much better off just going with your vision for the story and writing it without over-thinking every point along the way. The vast majority of the time that I see writers fixated on this sort of thing to the point that it consumes their thinking and drives them to purposefully avoid and/or twist every trope, the end result is a contrived mess. My advice would be to stay well away from the TV Tropes web site, and stop running this sort of thing past people there. If you like the story idea, write it.

 

[Ivan]

You can always find a critic if you want one.

 

[Caged Maiden]

Actually I like it a whole lot. Some little known things about pregnancy, your hormones the first three months, besides making you nauseated, make you EXTREMELY sleepy. It's hard to focus or pull up the energy to do much of anything. One time, my husband was trying to argue something with me and I just walked away and went to sleep. Yep, true story. And I never back down when I think I'm right.

Also, you get flighty and sort of stupid at times, unable to recall things, or simply not comprehending things which should be easy. So that fits well into your dilemma.

In fact, the changes are so drastic and quick to set in, I know I am pregnant before a test comes back positive. I just want to nap all the time, and even thought I am a seasoned sleep-deprived functioner, I get so apathetic I don't care to make myself stay up. It's actually quite remarkable how much hormones contribute to how we function. When you re pregnant, something primal kicks in, taking the steering wheel in a big way and driving you to do weird things sometimes. I don't know whether you are writing a comedy or something much more serious, but you could introduce an element of humor with some of that craziness. Best Wishes.

 

[The Din]

Instead of the virginity thing, why not simply have her body automatically transfer some of her magical aptitude to the fetus. Ie: you cannot create something out of nothing so the same amount of magic is now shared between two.

 

[Ireth]

The thing is, I brought the same idea up at TV Tropes, and the posters there complained that the whole Virgin Power trope had sexist implications. Even the pregnancy thing didn't alleviate their objection: they phrased that as "women losing their power after sex until they produce babies like good little baby-drones".

Not every example of Virgin Power is sexist, though. There are some examples that emphasize male virginity rather than female virginity: Hocus Pocus, for example, has a male virgin inadvertently set the plot in motion. In one of my own stories I plan to have a male virgin as well as a female virgin interact with unicorns, common Virgin Power victims: they both will help rescue a unicorn foal, and later on the male virgin will ride an adult unicorn (though not tame it). Non-virgins who travel with the virgins can't get close to the unicorns without being driven off.

 

[Caged Maiden]

I was wondering about that. Is it regarded as unlikely to have a male virgin MC? I have one (he's 19 and a religious zealot) but does that automatically resonate as unlikely? He doesn't have any special powers, just a strong set of beliefs, but it's not something taught within the church in my world.

 

[Steerpike]

@Ireth: also, the trope has been employed by feminist fiction writers. Some people will see sexist, racism, etc. in everything. You can't take those opinions seriously.

As for the whole idea of using tropes, or ideas for dealing with tropes, as a starting point, I think it is a mistake in most cases (though not all). The story should be the driving force in most instances. The tropes that come into it, as well as how they are addressed, should flow organically from the story. When you start at the outset being overly-concerned with tropes and making sure that everyone (or at least a plurality) like how you've put a spin on it, you're engaging in a sort of mental masturbation where you and people on web sites like TV Tropes can feel self-assured of having taken a high-minded approach to tropes, or else commentators can feel that they have the superior view while they point out how your twist on a trope still doesn't accomplish its goal. In the mean time, no writing gets done, and once it does get done it is probably going to suck because you're so busy worrying about extraneous nonsense like tropes that you've lost sight of the story.

EDIT: only the first sentence is a specific response to Ireth. The rest is just general commentary and the "you" in it is the generic.

 

[Ireth]

My male virgin MC is a 43-year-old bachelor. He doesn't believe in having sex before marriage, and he's never been married, so there you go. The female virgin MC in the same story is his 17-year-old niece. They both come from 21st-century Earth, and so their religions reflects that -- they and their family are Protestant Christians, though they do also believe in (and interact heavily with) Faerie and the Fae.

 

[Steerpike]

Jabrosky: getting back to your question, instead of my asides

I like the idea. There's no reason you can't go with it and make a great story out of it. There's nothing inherently sexist about it. I'm sure it could be written in a sexist way, but the mere use of it doesn't have to be sexist. I say if the story speaks to you, then write it.

 

[Jabrosky]

Steerpike is right. I care way too much about tropes and how people will react to my ideas, probably because I'm a huge perfectionist who spends more time worrying about the problems with his stories than actually writing them.

 

[Steerpike]

Steerpike is right. I care way too much about tropes and how people will react to my ideas, probably because I'm a huge perfectionist who spends more time worrying about the problems with his stories than actually writing them.

Don't worry about it, I think we've all been there. As someone pointed out above, you can always find a critic. But no one else can write your story. Whatever you produce is going to be unique. It won't be perfect (and that stopped me from working on my first novel for a long time), but no one else has your unique vision on things. Even if someone else runs with the same idea, they won't produce the same story. So at this point, I figure we go with the stories at appeal strongly to us, knowing they won't appeal to everyone, and do the best job we know how with it

 

[Devor]

As for the whole idea of using tropes, or ideas for dealing with tropes, as a starting point, I think it is a mistake in most cases (though not all).

You should start a thread on it.

I've found tvtropes to be useful when I'm looking for ways to add complexity to a story. If I was writing a parody I would probably live there. But it does seem very easy to get carried away with it.

 

[Steerpike]

You should start a thread on it.

I've found tvtropes to be useful when I'm looking for ways to add complexity to a story. If I was writing a parody I would probably live there. But it does seem very easy to get carried away with it.

I can see it for that purpose. I think when you let them weigh on you such that you're either not writing a story or changing your vision as the author so as to comply (or not-comply) with one, it is unfortunate.

 

[Mindfire]

The thing is, I brought the same idea up at TV Tropes, and the posters there complained that the whole Virgin Power trope had sexist implications. Even the pregnancy thing didn't alleviate their objection: they phrased that as "women losing their power after sex until they produce babies like good little baby-drones".

Link to that thread please.

 

[Mindfire]

I was wondering about that. Is it regarded as unlikely to have a male virgin MC? I have one (he's 19 and a religious zealot) but does that automatically resonate as unlikely? He doesn't have any special powers, just a strong set of beliefs, but it's not something taught within the church in my world.

My main character is a virgin. Not because of any ideological reasons on my part or his necessarily, but mostly as an afterthought. He's grown up an outlaw in a strange country with no one for company except his close relatives (parents + cousin). Not exactly a situation rife with sexual opportunity. Now that I think about it, that could explain his rashness and ill-temper quite conveniently...

But to respond to the actual thread topic- I think the idea makes great sense, Jabrosky. TV Tropes be blasted. Go for it.

 

[Aravelle]

I love that idea. In fact, that makes for a fantastic story. I wanna read it now. >.<