A somber salute for Princess Leia from a sci-fi geek
As I walked into the office Tuesday, I announced to no one in particular that George Michael would be the last celebrity death for 2016.
Apparently, no one in particular was listening, because I didn’t even make it to lunchtime before hearing that Carrie Fisher died. As Princess Leia, she was the ideal woman to a generation of geeky boys.
This is one of the great quotes about Princess Leia I read from her the other day: “I got to be the only girl in an all-boy fantasy, and it’s a great role for women. She’s a very proactive character and gets the job done. So if you’re going to get typecast as something, that might as well be it for me.”
I’m not sure why, but her death has hit me harder than a lot of the other celebrity deaths this year. My attitude has always been to never really get that worked up about the death of a celebrity. It’s not like I know these people personally or that they would feel the same about me.
I certainly can feel empathy for anyone who is dealing with the death of a loved one, we all go through that eventually. It is a part of life.
And I certainly understand why many feel sadness when a celebrity they admire dies. Many famous people get that way through the arts or through actions that are admirable in some way. It makes sense that if you admire someone, you might feel sadness at his or her demise. I just don’t get how ordinary people can have outright grief over the death of a celebrity. Of course it is sad, but I don’t think anyone needs to miss a day of work to deal with that sadness.
So it surprised me that I found myself getting a little blue over Carrie Fisher’s death. Whether I like it or not, she was a part of my childhood, and Princess Leia wasn’t a bad female role model. Leia was bad-ass, make no mistake. She could handle a blaster better than anyone, she took no guff from “the boys,” and killed Jabba the Hutt with her bare hands and a chain while wearing a bikini. She was no Disney princess, that was for sure.
Over the years, much has been made about that image of Princess Leia in the bikini. We know Carrie Fisher didn’t like it, not only from interviews she had done over the years, but from the look of disdain on her face in those scenes. Yeah, she looked good, but you got the feeling that if you made too much of a big deal about it she would wrap the chain around your neck and give you the same treatment as old Jabba.
There is a segment of male science fiction fans who can’t get past the bikini, though, on Princess Leia or any other female character. Carrie Fisher would have none of that, and from the photos I’ve seen online, would be more than likely to shoot the middle finger at some sexist Neanderthal.
When she showed up in the new Star Wars movie last year, she complained that she was made to lose weight and then had to deal with online comments about how she had gotten “old.” As a science fiction fan, I’m bothered by this type of treatment of women.
As I was growing up, liking science fiction put you in a category most people labeled “other.” You get called names like “geek” or “nerd,” and all you want to do is tell the world that these stories are really cool and universal. Then finally, the rest of the world comes around, except for the people who think women in science and science fiction should be seen and not heard. That women should only be in bikinis.
Carrie Fisher didn’t believe that, and neither did Princess Leia, and that’s what I’ll miss about both of them.