Buffy defies the norm. As usual.

Since everyone is probably going to talk about music and lack of music and talking and lack of talking, I’m going to concentrate more on Buffy’s character, particularly in the context of “Hush.” The peer-reviewed article I found talks about this as well, and discusses Buffy’s character’s place in the world of heroine, concentrating a lot on gender roles. It begins by describing why Joss Whedon essentially created Buffy. We’ve talked a lot about the paradox of Buffy’s appearance and culture and the fact that she also holds this age-old sacred duty / burden to protect the world from evil. Whedon said that he became so frustrated with the stereotypical American girl walking into a dark room and almost immediately being slaughtered in so many horror films. So in spite of all that, Whedon made a character with the same stereotypes, who instead when thrown into a dark room with nasty things, kicks ass and saves everyone else (Early 13).

This push against the norm for Hollywood portrayals isn’t done behind the scenes. As we have discussed before, Joss Whedon is always very aware of what he’s doing with his storylines, dialogue, right down to the musical score and wardrobe. In ‘Hush’ Riley shows his extreme surprise and confusion at Buffy’s role when he and she realize the other is there fighting monsters. When Buffy swings across the room on a hanging rope and kicks a minion many feet into the air, his facial expression tells all. Buffy as a superhero is unique because she’s also very much a normal girl who wants normal things. Thus the surprise. “Hush” really brings out Buffy’s heroism because she’s the only (human) one who, when she finds out she has no voice, doesn’t panic. Willow keeps it calm, simply freaking out and thinking she’s gone deaf. Xander immediately blames others and tries to call for help / reinforcements, asking someone else to fix the problem. The other students we see are busy having total breakdowns. After the initial shock, Buffy quickly recovers herself and immediately begins to look for clues and solutions. She is able to think coherently and form a plan. As my article said about Buffy’s character, “Although Buffy struggles with her fate, in contrast to her male friends and lovers, Buffy (almost) always knows who she is and what she must do.” (Early 19) Buffy shows herself in this episode to be a courageous leader and fearless fighter. Even in the end, when Riley comes in to talk, she accepts and sits down, ready to divulge her darkest secret (which we will see in the next episode, btw).

I think that the lack of speech in “Hush” serves to highlight Buffy’s embracement of her role as female heroine. Even in “The Body,” with no music (bringing into sharp relief the drama of the situation, making it all almost surreal with Buffy’s flashbacks and imaginings) and high emotions, Buffy finds a way to cope. Although we do see her arguably in one of her weakest moments during this episode, she is able to think at least somewhat rationally. She thinks to call for help, then to call for Giles, then to tell Dawn (which she does as well as anyone in such a situation can be expected to). Even when she is most vulnerable, Buffy is still the slayer (she slays a vampire to save her sister) and therein defies the stereotype of damsel in distress. Also we see that Buffy doesn’t need a backing track to slay to. She’s still just as badass.

Early, Frances H. "Staking Her Claim: Buffy the Vampire Slayer as Transgressive Woman Warrior." Journal of Popular Culture 35.3 (2001): 11-27. MLA International Bibliography. EBSCO. Web. 2 Oct. 2011. .