an actual SPN post!
So, the lovely and talented trollprincess did some counting and I guess Dean uses the word 'bitch' a lot. And sometimes 'slut.' And since this is all anyone on my flist is interested in talking about today, here are some thoughts I had!
So, going on the assumption that word choice is both important and intentional:
1) Possibly part of Dean's animosity towards Ruby (who receives the vast number of 'bitch'es and 'slut's) is because he sees himself in her. She's what he's going to become, it's his worst nightmare, and when he calls her a bitch and a slut, he's also calling himself those things. I'm sure I could write a whole essay on that, actually. They're mirrors in a lot of ways, not just because Dean has sold his soul and is about to become her, but because they both fight for Sam's attention; they fight to have Sam believe them and not the other.
2) It's definitely important to look at the ways in which the other characters and the world of SPN itself reacts to the name-calling. Does the world ever punish Dean for being a jerk? Yeah, it does--Ruby beats the crap out of him. Clearly, the world itself isn't so keen on Dean being a jerk. His character might be misogynistic, but the show itself doesn't condone that.
3) I think it's also important to look at Dean as a whole person with a background and a history and so on. In SPN, as in a lot of horror/fantasy shows, the supernatural is a traditionally female world; if we consider old, patriarchal views of society, science = masculine and witchery, faith, etc = feminine. In that case, you've got Dean, inherently masculine and physical, trying to navigate his way through a feminine space that he not only doesn't understand, but has been brought up to NEVER understand and to hate without just cause or reason. In Dean's world, masculine=good and feminine=bad, and only in a very few instances can he be convinced that supernatural=good (ie the Vampires), and that's only when those supernatural beings give UP their supernaturalness (ie their femininity) and embrace science (ie animal blood, etc) instead.
So maybe Dean's freaking out in S3 with the bitches and sluts because he realizes that very soon, he's going to become a part of that feminine supernatural world he's been fighting against since he was a kid, and this is just one of his many petty forms of resistance. If he tries to strip the supernatural world of dignity with words, maybe he can regain some of the masculine power he lost when he made his crossroads deal.
...or something.
So, going on the assumption that word choice is both important and intentional:
1) Possibly part of Dean's animosity towards Ruby (who receives the vast number of 'bitch'es and 'slut's) is because he sees himself in her. She's what he's going to become, it's his worst nightmare, and when he calls her a bitch and a slut, he's also calling himself those things. I'm sure I could write a whole essay on that, actually. They're mirrors in a lot of ways, not just because Dean has sold his soul and is about to become her, but because they both fight for Sam's attention; they fight to have Sam believe them and not the other.
2) It's definitely important to look at the ways in which the other characters and the world of SPN itself reacts to the name-calling. Does the world ever punish Dean for being a jerk? Yeah, it does--Ruby beats the crap out of him. Clearly, the world itself isn't so keen on Dean being a jerk. His character might be misogynistic, but the show itself doesn't condone that.
3) I think it's also important to look at Dean as a whole person with a background and a history and so on. In SPN, as in a lot of horror/fantasy shows, the supernatural is a traditionally female world; if we consider old, patriarchal views of society, science = masculine and witchery, faith, etc = feminine. In that case, you've got Dean, inherently masculine and physical, trying to navigate his way through a feminine space that he not only doesn't understand, but has been brought up to NEVER understand and to hate without just cause or reason. In Dean's world, masculine=good and feminine=bad, and only in a very few instances can he be convinced that supernatural=good (ie the Vampires), and that's only when those supernatural beings give UP their supernaturalness (ie their femininity) and embrace science (ie animal blood, etc) instead.
So maybe Dean's freaking out in S3 with the bitches and sluts because he realizes that very soon, he's going to become a part of that feminine supernatural world he's been fighting against since he was a kid, and this is just one of his many petty forms of resistance. If he tries to strip the supernatural world of dignity with words, maybe he can regain some of the masculine power he lost when he made his crossroads deal.
...or something.