Popular Culture Review Volume 29, Number 2, Summer 2018 | Page 46

“ Here You Are at Last , in a Ruined and Drowning World ”: The Dishonored Series as Environmental and Social Commentary
by Amy Green
ABSTRACT
“‘ Here You Are at Last , in a Ruined and Drowning World ’”: The Dishonored Series as Environmental and Social Commentary ” explores at depth the intersection of environmental destruction , social stratification , and the exploitation of the poor . What emerges from the narrative is a compelling ecological warning , as the player embodying Corvo first witnesses the ruined city of Dunwall and the casual slaughter of whales , then becomes a subject of The Outsider ’ s interest . This warning carries through Dishonored 2 and Dishonored : The Death of The Outsider as these sequels continue to explore the exploitation and oppression of the poor and to follow The Outsider , who is at once a ringmaster , observer of what those who bear his mark enact on the world , and beleaguered victim , enduring fetishization by those who worship him as well as his own history as the subject of terrible violence . The narrative that emerges across all three games provides a stark warning about the consequences of those with power and wealth ravaging the environment and the vulnerable .
KEYWORDS
ecocriticism , video game studies , Dishonored , leviathan , whaling
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