Is Guybrush Jewish?
Lately, I've observed that throughout the Monkey Island series, many of Guybrush's personality traits seem to perpetuate Jewish stereotypes and many themes revolving around the character have parallels to actual Jewish history. Here are some of the ones that I've noticed.
*Throughout the games, especially in Secret, other characters make fun of or mispronounce his name. Many characters have also said that he does not have a good name for being a pirate. (This parallels how many Jewish entertainers would go by stage names because their birth names sounded "too Jewish.")
*In the series, it is implied that the first place he ever visited in the Caribbean was Melee Island and upon first getting there, he knew he wanted to be a pirate. (During the Golden Age of Piracy, many European Jews left Europe for the Americas to escape the religious persecution that they faced in Europe. Furthermore, some of these Jews would make a living by becoming pirates, such as Jean Lafitte.)
*At some points in the games and especially in Escape, Guybrush incorporates numerous Yiddish words and phrases into his speech.
*Guybrush often solves solutions to his problems using very unconventional logic. (The concept of solving problems by perceiving the situation in a way that differs from how most people would solve it is a very common source of the humor in traditional Jewish humor and comedy.)
*Guybrush has been shown, most notably in Revenge, to not be able to handle alcohol well. (Jews are often stereotyped as either not drinking a great deal or not being able to hold their liquor well.)
*Guybrush is also often shown to be very intelligent, but also very absent-minded, clumsy, and socially awkward (all of which are very common stereotypes of Jewish men.)
*Elaine clearly has a more dominant role in her relationship with Guybrush (A very stereotypical image of Jewish couples is that the wife wears the pants in the relationship and that she often treats her husband as if he is another kid to raise.)
I apologize if I come off as offensive. However, as a Jew, I find it exciting to observe that my favorite video game character of all time has many aspects that can be attributed to Jewishness. What are your opinions of these observations?
*Throughout the games, especially in Secret, other characters make fun of or mispronounce his name. Many characters have also said that he does not have a good name for being a pirate. (This parallels how many Jewish entertainers would go by stage names because their birth names sounded "too Jewish.")
*In the series, it is implied that the first place he ever visited in the Caribbean was Melee Island and upon first getting there, he knew he wanted to be a pirate. (During the Golden Age of Piracy, many European Jews left Europe for the Americas to escape the religious persecution that they faced in Europe. Furthermore, some of these Jews would make a living by becoming pirates, such as Jean Lafitte.)
*At some points in the games and especially in Escape, Guybrush incorporates numerous Yiddish words and phrases into his speech.
*Guybrush often solves solutions to his problems using very unconventional logic. (The concept of solving problems by perceiving the situation in a way that differs from how most people would solve it is a very common source of the humor in traditional Jewish humor and comedy.)
*Guybrush has been shown, most notably in Revenge, to not be able to handle alcohol well. (Jews are often stereotyped as either not drinking a great deal or not being able to hold their liquor well.)
*Guybrush is also often shown to be very intelligent, but also very absent-minded, clumsy, and socially awkward (all of which are very common stereotypes of Jewish men.)
*Elaine clearly has a more dominant role in her relationship with Guybrush (A very stereotypical image of Jewish couples is that the wife wears the pants in the relationship and that she often treats her husband as if he is another kid to raise.)
I apologize if I come off as offensive. However, as a Jew, I find it exciting to observe that my favorite video game character of all time has many aspects that can be attributed to Jewishness. What are your opinions of these observations?
This discussion has been closed.
Comments
No but seriously I do not think it really matters... Im pretty sure you could link him to almost any race if you tried hard enough.
He steals a lot so he must be...I really shouldn't finish that sentence.
But if you finish that sentence in your head your racist to the race you put there.
Yeah STUPID STEALING UNICORNS!!!11!!!!1#4!!!beef!!!!