The Possibility of Miss Piggy as a Transsexual

[Helen]

I'm doing a bit of research and one of the essays I've read suggests that Miss Piggy's gender is problematic - that while she tries her hardest to fit into the female role, she is by nature masculine. It argues that she is neither man nor woman, and that part of the reason for this is that she is the projection of a man through a 'female' puppet. It says that when she is trying to be feminine, she has this falsetto voice and she doesn't seem all there, but when she gets mad and acts on impulse and emotion, she has this gruff voice and very masculine attributes.

It's a bit controversial, and I'd like to know what you guys think about the possibility that Miss Piggy isn't strictly female (in terms of gender identities).

Let me know!!

Oh! and the other thing it mentions is the muppets wearing clothes - it says that the gender of the other muppets is inherently masculine and there are no real issue with their gender - so they don't wear clothes (except for scooter and skeeter, because they are child-like muppets.) Piggy, however, is the only sexualised muppet, so she wears clothes (which only makes the gender issue more confusing!)

So please, if you read this, post some replies! I'd really like to know what you guys think!


Helen

 

[MuppetQuilter]

Okay, since I have a masters in sex and gender I'll jump in here.

Who wrote the essay and is it on the web? It's difficult to comment without the full context.

Given what you presented, I'd begin by pointing out that a number of other Muppets wear clothes. Gonzo, all of the Electric Mayhem, all the main character pigs-- Link, Strangepork, the pigs in MT-- Statler and Waldorf.... Plenty of clothes-wearing Muppets out there so I think you can pretty well discount that part of the argument.

Gender identity is a serious topic. This seems like a reach to me. Like taking a serious subject and stretching it pretty close to the point of absurdity. Of course Piggy is a puppet worked by a male puppeteer. But is Romeo and Juliet about a gay couple because Elizabethian England didn't allow women on stage?

I would argue that Frank Oz, as a puppeteer, has a special flare for throwing Muppets in the air. No one does that kind of stuff like Frank. Piggy may seem her more vibrant, most 'real' when she is karate chopping someone but I'd argue that is a reflection of what Frank enjoys the most and the most interesting parts of the scripts. Honestly, what's more exciting-- watching Piggy primp at a mirror and go on about her Kermie or watching Piggy get her nose out of joint and get mad? There's a lot more for a puppeteer to work with when Piggy is mad than when she is love sick. That's not a comment on gender; it's a comment on what makes for interesting entertainment and what the Muppets, as a whole, do best.

Another problem with the argument is the reliance on voice as an indicator of gender. Voice is more closely tied to biological sex than gender. Gender is not about physical characteristics so you can't use physical characteristics to define it.

I'd have to read the full essay to go further.

 

[Mr.Penguin]

I'm oficially wierded out....

 

[The Count]

Mayhaps this could help... To quote directly from the characters themselves from a Vet's Hospital sketch.

Nurse Piggy: "I'm a woman first."
Dr. Bob: "No, you're a pig first, a nurse second. I don't think woman even made the top ten."

 

[Vic Romano]

When I was a little little adoreable Vic Romano, the Muppets were like Santa to me. I knew they were operated by puppeteers, but wasn't convinced of it totally. Now when I got older, and began to start appreciating the magic of Jim and learning the brilliance of this art, I'll never forget learning that Frank Oz performed Piggy or t]hat Richard performed Janice. I was amazed at how acurately they portrayed female characters, not only in voice, but in movement, style and essence as well, even if sometime it was a very dramatic generalization.
So my personal feelings is that there was never a question of Piggy's gender.
Many years later and now married, my wife who was not a Muppet fan (until she met me!) was also very surprised that most of the female Muppets were performed by men.

 

[MuppetQuilter]

Nurse Piggy: "I'm a woman first."
Dr. Bob: "No, you're a pig first, a nurse second. I don't think woman even made the top ten."

That's a comment on how Rowlf perceives Piggy, not on how Piggy sees herself. Gender identity is how one feels, not how others feel about them. It's a little tricky sometimes because terms like gender are often used inaccurately by the media, but gender identity refers to how one self identifies not how others read them.

 

[The Count]

Thanks MQ. Meant it as a joke/help. Thanks for reminding me of my Sex Education class from high school too.

 

[mikebennidict]

I'm doing a bit of research and one of the essays I've read suggests that Miss Piggy's gender is problematic - that while she tries her hardest to fit into the female role, she is by nature masculine. It argues that she is neither man nor woman, and that part of the reason for this is that she is the projection of a man through a 'female' puppet. It says that when she is trying to be feminine, she has this falsetto voice and she doesn't seem all there, but when she gets mad and acts on impulse and emotion, she has this gruff voice and very masculine attributes.

It's a bit controversial, and I'd like to know what you guys think about the possibility that Miss Piggy isn't strictly female (in terms of gender identities).

Let me know!!

Oh! and the other thing it mentions is the muppets wearing clothes - it says that the gender of the other muppets is inherently masculine and there are no real issue with their gender - so they don't wear clothes (except for scooter and skeeter, because they are child-like muppets.) Piggy, however, is the only sexualised muppet, so she wears clothes (which only makes the gender issue more confusing!)

So please, if you read this, post some replies! I'd really like to know what you guys think!


Helen

some reason why you must post such garbage. it's bad enough somebody accuses E&B being gay now this.

 

[MuppetQuilter]

Count, you had a high school sex ed class that talked about gender identity? Things must have changed a lot since I was in high school. Now I'm feeling really old.

 

[Helen]

Thank you all for posting - it's lovely to have some replies.

some reason why you must post such garbage. it's bad enough somebody accuses E&B being gay now this.

I'm sorry you felt this way Mike - believe me, I love the muppets and I don't intend to degrade or overanalyse them in my research, but in order for me to carry out this project, I need to probe a bit - I'm not suggesting that Miss Piggy is a transsexual, I'm asking whether any of you agree with what this person has written in terms of Piggy's gender and sexual identity, rather than her literally being a transsexual. I hope I haven't caused any offence - I'm just trying to stimulate some discussion that might help me in my research.

For your reference, the essay is by Chandra Mukerji, entitled "Muppets and Monsters: A history of childhood techniques and cultural analysis" and I'm not sure if there's a full-text version available on the web.