I've always thought of V as male. I dunno, Roy first calls him "V-man" and I didn't really consider him to be anything else until I read the FAQ. Kyrie's appearance made me more sure, she seems more female to me than V. Though since the kids are adopted, the two gay males theory works for me too.
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Stoats legit King Arthur by The Succubus.
Whilst there will quite obviously never be either a definite word on this matter or a consensus on it. Leaving this entire question a moot point I'm sure alot of people have their pet theories.
Mine is that V and his mate are both male.
I don't think V's a herm because there's Pompey... he's only a half-elf sure, but he's clearly male, so I'd be surprised if elves are herms.
I think Haley knows V best, and likely knows his gender. So either V was another girl, or V was male. If V is male but she still rooms with him, then V is likely a gay male. (Which is my personal view on the matter)
Vaarsuvius and Inkyrius (and Aarindarius for that matter) all have masculine endings.
V's gender wasn't actually supposed to be a joke, it was one added in early on after people where confused about V's gender. An early reference to V in the first comics was 'the V-man'. Which makes me assume, along with the name that the character was originally intended to be male.
V's behaviour is aggressive and masculine. (Which makes Inky the more feminine of the couple.)
I think Inky is male as well because they adopted their kids. If Inky was female, they probably would have just had kids the natural way.
Is this conclusive? Of course not. But that's my theory on it. I'm sticking to the view that V is both male and gay.
Vaarsuvius and Inkyrius (and Aarindarius for that matter) all have masculine endings.
No, they're just in the fourth declension instead of the second. (For that matter, second declension nouns CAN be feminine, they just generally aren't. And some first declension (the ones that end in -a) nouns are male, notably nauta. We've seen a lot of nautas recently because of Fleet Week. Thus ends your tangent on Latin nouns.)
For the record, I don't get this obsession with proving or disproving V's gender. V seems likely to me to be out of the gender binary altogether. That does *not* mean that V is intersexed or a hermaphrodite - sex != gender.
As far as rooming with Haley goes, wouldn't you rather room with one person (who's not Belkar) rather than with four (one of whom is Belkar)?
Remind me, other than the fact that we STILL have nothing better to talk about, and also the fact that we feel the need to know personal details about a ficticious character, why do we NEED to know this? I wouldn't judge V any different if I found him to be a her, or her to be a him. Personally, I'm going with the gay male thing, there is fairly strong evidence for this actually... well.... relatively speaking (i.e. none)
What was my point? Oh yes... What difference does it make? Seriously?! I think we should counteract this find-V's-'true'-gender movement, with a counter movement of keep-V-androgynous... The simple reason being, I've read a lot of these threads and posts, looked in high detail at the suggestions, the comments, the theories, the arguments and counter-arguments, and all the stuff in between; and seriously, after looking at all of that in great detail, I've finally come to the conclusion that you're all running out of material on this topic. I mean seriously. Starscream used up the last good joke (which is a shame, 'cos I also thought of that one ) but, yes.. Umm... What was my point? I dunno, I'm gonna go and lick a mushroom, seeya!
Uhh... what's all this about not knowing V's Gender? It's simple, but hidden.
There is a comic strip, where V only appears once, casting a fireball. If you click on V's hair in this comic strip, you will be taken to this site which details V's life, including gender.
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As far as rooming with Haley goes, wouldn't you rather room with one person (who's not Belkar) rather than with four (one of whom is Belkar)?
Well, if you're going to room with one person, why specifically V? Might as well be Roy then, or Durkon.
Sure its not PROOF of anything, but I already said there is no such thing. It just suggest to me that V is either female, or gay. And to me there's just no reason to assume he's female, but plenty to assume he's male.
I also don't think V is genderless or something odd like that. Because again... Pompey isn't genderless, and Inky is as ambiguous as V is. Now if V was genderless due to some ultra-rare magical incident, then what are the odds Inky is too? Seems a bit to slim to me.
In addition I don't think Rich looked up the grammar of latin when naming Vaarsuvius, so unless he studied it, I don't see much of an argument in wether or not the ending is properly male in latin. Because people who don't know that would use -us as masculine. If he was created intended to be female, why not name him Vaarsuvia? Which is what most people would do. Correct latin or not.
As I said, canonically V's gender is unknown. And people are free to think for themselves if he's male, female or neither, or if they at all care. But I'm going for the 'V is a gay male' theory. I see nothing that really contradicts it, and that's what is most likely if you ask me. Not because I think Rich neccesarily intended. (He may well have not really thought about it at all.) But just that's how it comes over to me.
I guess to summarize, I'd put my idea like this...
V can be female, male, herm or genderless.
V is unlikely to be herm, because Pompey is male. For there to be half-elves (or half-orcs at all) the species must be closely related. One species having males and females but a close sister species being herms is extremely unlikely. (And science does work in the OOTS-verse, just ask Redcloak (They aren't called reactionals you know!)
V is unlikely to be genderless, because it is likely elves have males and females. And Inkyrius is equally ambiguous. A weird magical accident happening to just V is possible sure... But to V AND Inkyrius? (And possibly Aarindarius?) Unlikely.
Now V COULD be female. But I think everything from his name, what we know of how the character was created and his behaviour is more male then female.
If Inkyrius is of the opposite gender then V, why didn't they have their own children? I say they are the same gender and thus adopted instead.
If V is homosexual, he makes the best partner for Haley to bunk with, which I think does have to do with the fact that Haley is the only character who is with CERTAINTY a female in the core group. The same is true if V is another female.
So... I'd say V could be female... But I doubt he's a herm or genderless myself. Its not logical to me.
V is unlikely to be genderless, because it is likely elves have males and females.
But no one can tell them apart, so it doesn't really matter.
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And Inkyrius is equally ambiguous. A weird magical accident happening to just V is possible sure... But to V AND Inkyrius? (And possibly Aarindarius?) Unlikely.
Now V COULD be female. But I think everything from his name, what we know of how the character was created and his behaviour is more male then female.
V's gender ambiguity is the joke (at least it is now). Threads like this are missing the point. The waters continue to be muddied because it keeps the joke running.
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If Inkyrius is of the opposite gender then V, why didn't they have their own children? I say they are the same gender and thus adopted instead.
Just throwing this out there but there's a large number of reasons why a couple might adopt rather than have their own children that have nothing whatsoever to do with being homosexual.
In this case, V and Ink adopted because it was the best way to maintain the whole gender ambiguity of both of them because it's funny.
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So... I'd say V could be female... But I doubt he's a herm or genderless myself. Its not logical to me.
This is a comic strip with stick figures. There doesn't need to be an actual objective truth on the matter.
Last edited by DoctorJest : 05-26-2009 at 12:43 PM.
"You are what you do. Choose again, and change." --Miles Vorkosigan
"The really unforgivable acts are committed by calm men in beautiful green silk rooms, who deal death wholesale, by the shipload, without lust, or anger, or desire, or any redeeming emotion to excuse them but cold fear of some pretended future. But the crimes they hope to prevent in the future are imaginary. The ones they commit in the present--they are real." --Aral Vorkosigan
1. We say V's kids are adopted because V refers to them as "my adopted progeny".
2.
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I also don't think V is genderless or something odd like that. Because again... Pompey isn't genderless, and Inky is as ambiguous as V is. Now if V was genderless due to some ultra-rare magical incident, then what are the odds Inky is too? Seems a bit to slim to me.
Gender is psychological. Sex is physical. V probably has some sort of physical sex organs (although it's certainly possible that Pompey was the weird one out, not V and Inky), but sex != gender. It's possible to have female genitals and identify as male, or to have male genitals and identify as female, or to have one or another set of genitals and identify as no gender or both genders or "other". Yes, people do this. Yes, human people. Yes, human people in the real world - it has nothing to do with ultra-rare magical accidents or anything of the sort, it's just a quirk of how some people's minds operate. Not everything neatly fits in a male-female gender binary where these parts make you male and those parts make you female and that's that. In real life, for many people (not the majority, but a bigger minority than you may realize) gender is much more fluid.
It's worth noting that, aside from the fact that Pompey could be a weird elf rather than V and Inky being weird elves, Pompey doesn't necessarily have a clearly stated gender identity. We're projecting "male" on Pompey because of the clearly stated sexual orientation (liking hot chicks), but xe could just as easily be gay, or nongendered, or any form of "not in the binary system" you can imagine. (Besides, Pompey is only *half* elf. Could be that humans have elaborate views of gender and elves don't, but Pompey gets his gender identity from the human half. Actually, the fact that elves call their parents "parent" and "other parent" supports this view, though of course I haven't read the prequels or anything like that.)
Gender is psychological. Sex is physical. V probably has some sort of physical sex organs (although it's certainly possible that Pompey was the weird one out, not V and Inky), but sex != gender.
Oh good we're down to arguing semantics. You're half right. Gender now means different things, ranging from the physical to the social. It depends on the context. If you're speaking to a biologist, gender and sex are the same thing, but if you're speaking to a psychologist they may differ. See Biology of Gender in Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biology_of_gender
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It's worth noting that, aside from the fact that Pompey could be a weird elf rather than V and Inky being weird elves, Pompey doesn't necessarily have a clearly stated gender identity. We're projecting "male" on Pompey because of the clearly stated sexual orientation (liking hot chicks), but xe could just as easily be gay, or nongendered, or any form of "not in the binary system" you can imagine. (Besides, Pompey is only *half* elf. Could be that humans have elaborate views of gender and elves don't, but Pompey gets his gender identity from the human half. Actually, the fact that elves call their parents "parent" and "other parent" supports this view, though of course I haven't read the prequels or anything like that.)
It's A JOKE people! A JOKE!
Best way to render a joke unfunny is to over analyze it.
I think V said it best:
Elan: I think she was a girl. You know, in stories, Oracles are always female.
Belkar: No, no, no the Oracle was a man.
Vaarsuvius: I fail to see what difference it makes.
It wasn't funny to begin with. I only "overanalyzed it" because it didn't even look like a joke to start. Maybe you should have put LOL or a cute little smiley at the end to be clear.
And there, your comment proves my point. V fails to see why gender should matter in the first place - probably because V doesn't fit inside the gender binary to begin with.
As far as arguing semantics goes - do you guys *really* want to disrobe V to see whether V's parts dingle dangle or don't? I mean, whatever floats your boat, but I was under the impression that you all meant what goes on in V's head and how V identifies - in which case we're talking about gender identity and wikipedia articles about "Biology of gender" don't apply at all.
In any case, V can't be a herm, since herms are ityphallic pillars, typically set to demarcate borders/drive off evil spirits, and take their name from Hermes; this makes them different from V in that:
1) there's no doubt concerning their sex
2) they are inanimate statues
3) knowledge of Hermes has been all but forgotten, which makes V being an object named after Hermes highly unlikely
Also, V's behaviour has no distinct male/female patterns, which indicates he either transcends the gender characteristics, or ignores them completely, which in either case makes the whole discussion moot. One thing I might be interested in learning is his sex, but I'm content with knowledge that he was originally intended to be male. :
I think we should counteract this find-V's-'true'-gender movement, with a counter movement of keep-V-androgynous
I wouldn't bother. V's gonna stay androgynous regardless of what "movements" get bandied about on message boards.
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Originally Posted by Conuly
Pompey doesn't necessarily have a clearly stated gender identity. We're projecting "male" on Pompey because of the clearly stated sexual orientation (liking hot chicks), but xe could just as easily be gay, or nongendered, or any form of "not in the binary system" you can imagine.
Nope. People are saying Pompey is male because he himself says he is, in the last panel of this strip.
I wouldn't bother. V's gonna stay androgynous regardless of what "movements" get bandied about on message boards.
Quoted for truth.
I see there being only 2 possibilities for the revalation of gender.
The Giant will never reveal this.
It will be at the very conclusion of the story.
Given the extent to which this world is based on D&D, and the fact that elves definitely have a gender, V is either male OR female, not "other" but I think that we can basically treat it as the same as Shroedinger's Cat, in that we will not know until it is made known.
Of the two listed possibilities, I find the first most likely. The second, I'd envision as something akin to Douglass Adams' "Arthur bruised his upper arm" -- though that wouldn't work nearly as well in this instance. I an't imagine the Giant writing himself into a corner where V's gender becomes pivotal to the story, so, it will remain a mystery.
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People lean toward male on Inkyrius because of body shape. He's got a clearly visible body (not hidden under robes like V) and it's the same basic shape as Roy's or Belkar's. These people will go either way on V.
People lean toward female because of baking, nurturing, nagging, and varios other behaviors, but generally those cast V in the male role for being career-oriented and not listening to his mate, among other behaviors.
Last edited by Penquin47 : 05-27-2009 at 10:15 PM.
Just out of curiousity, don't most people call V "it"? Whereas the imp calls V "her" in OOTS #657.
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Well, going off penguin's point, I immediately jumped to the conclusion that V was female when I saw the box-body. I think body shape is a clear indicator of gender, so V must be female.
But then I considered: What if V is a homosexual?
I'm not actually using the evidence that V's mate is effeminate; perhaps the elves are merely very practical, and are far ahead of us in 'gender role' issues.
The confusion continues. It would explain him adopting children...
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Last edited by Wreckingrocc : 05-30-2009 at 12:26 PM.
Just out of curiousity, don't most people call V "it"? Whereas the imp calls V "her" in OOTS #657.
Most people choose one or the other, or avoid having to decide.
Then others, like Xykon, don't bother and makes jokes. Which implies that V really is exceptionally androgynous (even for an elf, maybe), since it means people think that V realizes people find her gender ambiguous, not that it's just them who can't tell.
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We may have been given hints since the beginning, but I'm pretty sure the giant would not have given any useful information - if he could help it. Throwing Inkyrius into the mix was just another poke at the sore that has tormented us since the beginning. Right? Well if you were the giant, and you were trying to get the most of this running gag, and (assuming you would some-day reveal the truth) wanted to kick it up a notch? Maybe you'd even go out of your way to trick the readers again. I think that this gives us an opportunity to think outside the box, and maybe not fall for the trick.
I think V and I are a gay couple O_O.
I'm guessing... male
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Not another thread! We keep detonating pesticides by the canister ad these threads keep on spreading....
V's gender is undefined, and I think by now its clear it really will never be revealed with absolutely no hints given ever other then to endlessly confuse the issue further, V's gender is whatever we the reader and the characters perceive it to be, I say female, other people who are clearly wrong think male (irony blinkers)...
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While i agree with you on V being male and being in a homosexual realationship, you aren't really bringing anything new into this, EVERYTHING has been tried to prove V's gender.
http://www.giantitp.com/comics/oots0428.html
We may have been given hints since the beginning, but I'm pretty sure the giant would not have given any useful information - if he could help it. Throwing Inkyrius into the mix was just another poke at the sore that has tormented us since the beginning. Right? Well if you were the giant, and you were trying to get the most of this running gag, and (assuming you would some-day reveal the truth) wanted to kick it up a notch? Maybe you'd even go out of your way to trick the readers again. I think that this gives us an opportunity to think outside the box, and maybe not fall for the trick.
I think V and I are a gay couple O_O.
I'm guessing... male
What does the link have to do with anything? It just takes you to Xykon on his dragon.
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Re: We Need To Find V's Gender!!!
) but, yes.. Umm... What was my point? I dunno, I'm gonna go and lick a mushroom, seeya!
No, none of us were altering the unimutable laws of physics. That would be wrong.
Re: We Need To Find V's Gender!!!
Yeah... by tomorrow, we'll all be swimming in hobgoblins.
I can't even spot the ninja panel.
