Roles of Asian women and Dollhouse
I wondered if anyone here has been watching Dollhouse. I haven't been very pleased with the show for a lot of reasons. I have a question about a particular scene in episode 5 and how it plays into racist tropes. (For anyone not familiar with the show, Wikipedia has good information but it's also critical to know that the Actives are "blank slates" in between their assignments. They are childlike in their innocence, with even less self-awareness.) I'd appreciate any further insight on the way Asian women in US media are often given the role of arousing the white man.
(There are spoilers for episode 5 below!)
In this episode there is the scene where they talk about discovering that a male active has been experiencing erections in the shower, and only when he is sharing the shower with Sierra (the only Asian American in the cast). The way they talk about how she is arousing him was upsetting on a few levels, but specifically I am trying to find a way to further understand how it involves the exoticizing of Asian women, and how they are portrayed as arousing and alluring, but innocent of sexuality themselves.
ETA: I falsely assumed Dichen Lachen is American, and tree has corrected me. According to her bio on IMDB, she is of Tibetan and Australian descent. Thank you for the correction, tree , I'm sorry for the mistake.