Queering of Gender: Fireflys Multi-Dimensional Warrior Woman

Aiyana Moore
Weve done the impossible, and that makes us mighty.
-- Captain Malcolm Reynolds, Firefly

Abstract
Science fiction has, traditionally, been a male dominated genre, in terms of its writers, characters, and
fans. Joss Whedon, however, has revolutionized science fiction with his strong female characters that
share power with their male counterparts and, as such, draw female audiences to the genre. Whedons
creation of Firefly and Serenity, a popular TV show and movie, introduced the character, Zo Washburne,
a warrior woman who is strong and independent, yet also a loving wife. According to Tanya Huff, fantasy
and science fiction author, Zo is the first truly believable warrior woman on television because she
isnt portrayed as extremely feminine in order to compensate for her masculine warrior persona, and
yet shes not defined solely by her fighting skills. In this paper, I explore how Zo encompasses both
feminine and masculine characteristics through her warrior persona and her marriage. I argue that Zo
truly is not a one-dimensional warrior woman. Her personality is not only masculine or feminine,
but is, instead, a mixture of both, which becomes apparent linguistically through Zos many discourses.
To fully grasp Zos character, I track her actions and language by using feminist discourse analysis. I
conclude that Zo is truly not a one-dimensional warrior woman; instead, she embodies multiple
complex roles in Firefly and Serenity, including that of a soldier, a wife, and a morally-torn criminal.
Keywords: FPDA, leadership, gender, queer theory, science-fiction, Firefly, Serenity, Joss Whedon,
Introduction
For many years, science-fiction has been considered mans work. Typically, lead science-fiction
characters are men and it is commonly assumed that sci-fi fans are a majority male. However, as is the
case with Firefly and Serenity (F/S), science-fiction creates a unique space for strong female characters
that very often queer gender. Since science-fiction commonly takes place several years into our future, it
makes room for societal changes, including a new imagined gender and how its perceived.
In the past, women in science-fiction have been portrayed as weak of will and physical strength.
However, there has been a push in recent years to create stronger, more independent women.
Unfortunately, these women are often flat and lifeless and become one-dimensional warrior women;
they have a biologically feminine body, but their actions and way of speaking are largely masculine. This
leads to the question of why its so difficult to find a strong female character that embodies not only the
stereotypically male characteristics of the fighter and warrior, but also of stereotypically female
characteristics. After all, there is nothing inherently wrong or bad about the characteristics that are so
often labeled stereotypically feminine.
Enter Zo Washburne, the fighter and gunslinger of Joss Whedons tv show, Firefly, and movie, Serenity.
Zo is, undeniably, a warrior woman. She fights just as well, if not better, than the male characters in
similar roles, but does not embody only stereotypically masculine characteristics. Instead, Zo queers the
idea of a one size fits all gender identity through her body language, speech, and interactions with those
around her. She displays, fully, that gender is not something that a person has, but what they do.

Moore 2
Zos unique position as a female fighter among men, a loving wife to a man that does not neatly fit into
the masculine role, and job as a morally-torn criminal all make her perfect for a gender analysis. Zo
alone is not stereotypically masculine or feminine. Instead, she co-creates her gender performance with
the other people in the context. Through her relationship with her husband, Wash, Zo displays both
stereotypically masculine and feminine characteristics, depending on the situation. She allows him to
exert displays of dominance over her when he wraps his arms around her or hauls her off to bed, but she
also acts as a soldier and is often the one making sure that Wash is safe instead of the other way around.
In the case of Serenitys captain, Malcolm Mal Reynolds, Zo most often plays the part of the soldier
and the criminal, as she fights and steals with the rest of the crew. However, she also becomes a
stereotypically feminine symbol of morality through her morally-torn stance as a criminal. Through my
research and analysis, I conclude that Zo is truly not a one-dimensional warrior woman; instead, she
embodies multiple complex roles in Firefly and Serenity, including that of a soldier, a wife, and a morallytorn criminal.
This research is relevant to society as a whole because it displays the way in which gender can expand
beyond the biological male or female. Instead, gender is a complicated subject that is often queered and,
for the most part, falls on a spectrum. Zo, though she is biologically a female, does not fit neatly into the
stereotypically feminine mold.
Review of Literature
My focus is feminism in the F/S universe. I look specifically at second in command, Zo, and her
relationship with Wash. Finding Serenity: Anti-heroes, Lost Shepherds and Space Hookers in Joss
Whedons Firefly sets several chapters aside to discuss Zos status as a female warrior and her
relationship with Wash. In Michelle Sagara Wests chapter, More Than a Marriage of Convenience, she
argues that Wash and Zos marriage is a happy adult one and that it is their differences and complete
faith in their own identities that make them perfect for each other. While I agree, I push further to look at
how Zos queered feminine identity affects their relationship and how her use of discourses makes their
marriage unique.
The Czech nationalist tale of Kateina Maralov makes use of the idea of a queered femininity as
Maralov serves as a European archetype of the familiar story of Mulan. Da Frankov suggests in
her article, The Queer Story of Kateina Maralov, that through analyzing Maralovs story, it is
possible to understand how female soldiers are able to conform to dominant cultural ideals and
transgress gender norms and identities (Frankov 354). She aims to argue that women do not have to
identify as completely feminine, but can combine ideals of masculinity and national self-assertion to
form a power, queered gender identity (Frankov 355). Even though Frankov suggests that it is
unusual for females to be glorified as soldiers, she makes it clear that Maralov was glorified and is even
often pointed to as an example of the ideal woman. Although F/Ss Zo is clearly comfortable with her
femininity and never has to dress as a man to receive recognition for her fighting skills, she still manages
to embody the idea of a queered version of femininity. Although I agree that it is unusual in many cases
for women to be honored for their roles as leaders and warriors, I explore whether Zo is unusual in this
aspect because of the time frame the F/S universe is set several hundred years after Maralov lived or
if it is because of the company that she keeps aboard the Serenity. I analyze both of these issues, while
still being able to relate Zos experiences back to the very basic experience that Maralov had with
queering the female gender.
Alexis Lothians article, Feminist and Queer Science Fiction in America, aims to push aside the idea
that science-fiction is a masculine genre. She discusses how sci-fi is used to overthrow the gender norms,
transform the idea of reproduction, and apply to real life. Lothian also discusses second wave feminism
and how it is used in modern day sci-fi, citing The Women Men Dont See by James Tiptree, Jr., which
tells the story of a woman who leaves earth to live with extraterrestrials, feeling more at home with them

Moore 3
than in the patriarchal society that she had left. Lothian argues that even though science-fiction is often
regarded as masculine, it is, in reality, an escape for feminists as they are able to do whatever they desire
with their futures in their writing and can even critique societal flaws. Though Lothian titles her chapter
Feminist and Queer Science Fiction in America, she really focuses more on the idea of a feminist
science-fiction than a queer science-fiction. My aim is to go beyond Lothian by showing that sciencefiction does not have to offer only traditionally masculine or feminine ideals, but that it can be a mix of
gender or even a queered gender.
In my study of the F/S universe, I bring together all of these elements of Zo and Washs relationship,
Zos identity as a warrior, and how this all works to queer Zos gender identity. I will expand further
and look at how Zo represents a newer gender identity that is not male, nor female, but rather more fluid
and ambiguous.
Theoretical Standpoint
Throughout my analysis of the F/S universe, I make use of the third wave perspective and feminist poststructuralist discourse analysis (FPDA). This standpoint is described as a feminist approach through
which speakers negotiate their identities, relationship and positions in their world according to the ways
in which they are located by competing yet interwoven discourses (Baxter 1). This contrasts with second
wave feminisms concentration on the binary differences between men and women.
Second wave feminism is traced to the 1960s to explain the equal opportunity movements. However, the
second wave celebrated universal female nature, making the assumption that all females are alike
(Baxter 4). Third wave feminism and post-structuralist discourse turn this idea on its head, working to tear
apart the idea of gendered identities. It is the third wave approach that discusses the possibility that a
woman could have more in common with a man than another woman and vice versa. Third wave
feminism looks at gender as something people enact or do, not something they are, own or characterise
(Baxter 5).
FPDA, then, breaks down the idea of a masculine gender and a feminine gender and encourages analysis
that looks at actions and speech and how theyre actually used rather than how a persons gender says that
someone should act. As no character in the F/S universe performs entirely feminine or entirely masculine
actions, FPDA helps to analyze these internal gendered differences and collect data about characters
without focusing purely on their external gender.
Though I use FPDA in my breakdown of the F/S universe, it is also necessary for me to discuss second
wave feminism in order to show how the F/S universe completely overthrows the idea of a universal
female gender. This show provides excellent examples of gender as something a person does, not what
they are and, as such, it would not be helpful to focus merely on second wave feminism. To do so would
mean ignoring the queered gender of characters such as Zo and Wash and their gender fluidity when
interacting with each other, along with their interactions with other characters. To analyze the F/S
universe purely from a second wave feminist approach would mean ignoring Zos masculine qualities,
her husbands feminine qualities, and even the genderless space that they sometimes seem to occupy.
Methodology
The method used in the following analysis is FPDA. FPDA is a useful tool for analyzing a text such as
Firefly because it works to challenge the modernist myth that girls/women are universally and uniformly
subordinated by a patriarchal order (Baxter 182), and to create a space for female voices that are being
silenced or marginalized (Baxter 190).
For the following paper, I look at exchanges between Fireflys Zo and other characters of the F/S
universe. To do this, I analyze the movie, Serenity, and several Firefly episodes. In order to research my

Moore 4
topic, I use episode transcripts to highlight crucial moments in the dialogue and to take note of character
actions. Even though the F/S universe is full of moments that would be interesting to analyze through a
feminist third wave perspective, the scope of my paper must be limited. As such, I analyze only certain
exchanges within the episodes and movie, though I ensure that a wide variety of exchanges are used to
portray different instances of femininity, masculinity, and queered gender.
I do make use of a second wave analysis to explain the stereotypical ideas of femininity and masculinity,
but I primarily use FPDA to deconstruct these binaries. My analysis of the F/S universe focuses on how
characters such as Zo and Wash do not simply fit into a male or female role but, instead, queer the idea
of gender. Zo is not a silent female who allows her husband to do everything for her and Wash is not a
strong, manly man who always runs to Zos rescue. With the help of FPDA, I discuss these gender
differences to show how science-fiction, such as Firefly and Serenity, queer the stereotypical ideas of
gender.
Context
While The Train Job occurs at the beginning of the Firefly series, The Message occurs closer to the
end and Serenity is a movie made to wrap up the series, as many fans felt it had ended before its time. The
two Firefly episodes display crucial moments concerning Zos character. The Train Job portrays Zo as
a soldier and a criminal, though she is also portrayed as allowing her husband, Wash, to assert his
masculinity and dominance through his ability to comfort her. The Message, on the other hand,
shows Zos past as a military officer, her love for her husband, and a mix of her cold and warm
personalities.
Both Firefly and Serenity are set several hundred years into the future, when the Earth that we know, or
the Earth that was, has been used up and humanity has been forced to expand and find another place to
live. As such, humanity has colonized a star system made up of hundreds of planets, where the inner
planets serve as modern havens with up-to-date technology and medicine and the outer planets as barren
wastelands where people struggle to survive. The large central government, located in the innermost
planets, is created from a fusion of the Earths only two remaining superpowers, the United States and
China, which results in a combined culture and language. Before the start of the series, and constantly
mentioned throughout, is the Unification War between the Union of Allied Planets, or the Alliance, and
the Independent Planets. After taking resources from the planets on the outer reaches of the star system,
the Alliance left the people to fend for themselves with very little to survive on. The war began when the
outer planets attempted to secede and start their own alliance, to which the Alliance did not take kindly. In
this battle, both Zo and a man named Malcolm Mal Reynolds fought for the independents. They were
beaten at the battle of Serenity Valley and the independents were forced to give up their dreams of a new
alliance. In response to losing the war, Mal went on to purchase a Firefly-class transport spaceship that he
named Serenity. Zo was hired as Mals second-in-command and a fighter. From there, they filled the
ships necessary positions: a pilot and Zos eventual husband, Hoban Wash Washburne; a mechanic,
Kaylee; a well-known and respected companion named Inara; and a mercenary called Jayne. To avoid
working for the Alliance as much as possible, Mal and the crew take odd jobs throughout the star system,
most of which are illegal. These jobs come with many dangers, including the Alliance and Reavers, a
group of cannibals that have lost touch with humanity to the point of self-mutilation.
The Train Job is close enough to the beginning of the series that viewers are still getting an
understanding of Zo as a character. This episode, in particular, shows how Zo works under pressure, her
relationship with Mal, her fighting skills, and her position as a morally-torn criminal aboard Serenity.
The Message gives a unique look at Zo as it flashes back to her time in the military and on the
battlefield, though it also shows her obvious concern and protectiveness of Wash. Similarly, Serenity
provides an interesting take on the warrior woman as Zo must continue on after the gruesome death of
her husband.

Moore 5
Even though Zo is often portrayed as a warrior woman considering her fighting skills and cold exterior,
she also has moments of warmth, love, and affection, especially concerning her husband. These episodes
provide a look at all of Zos extremes, showing that she does not only have feminine attributes, but she
does not only have masculine ones, either. Through these episodes, it becomes clear that she actually falls
in between on a gender spectrum.
Language Analysis
Reappearing Discourses
Zos complicated nature makes it especially difficult to label her as purely feminine or masculine.
Instead, she falls somewhere in between regarding almost everything, from body language to speech
patterns. As such, the audience might see Zos identity as conflicted through both masculine and
feminine discourses. Some of the more stereotypically feminine discourses that I discuss include the
discourse of domesticity, the discourse of morality, the discourse of helplessness, and the discourse of
emotion. On the other hand, because Zo displays many stereotypical masculine qualities, masculine
discourses must also be mentioned: the discourse of the criminal, the discourse of the soldier, the
discourse of protection, and the discourse of independence.
The Soldier
Zo is, first and foremost, a soldier. During the civil war, she joined Mal in fighting for the Independents.
Even though the war is long over, Zos skills remain in use as second-in-command of Serenity. Though
much of the time Zos skills as a soldier are used to help complete jobs for the crew, she also uses her
skills to protect her husband, Wash, confusing the idea of a masculine discourse of the soldier for
viewers.
In The Message, several flashbacks are shown of Zo and Mal during the war. Zo is always portrayed
as a strong soldier who can take care of herself and her platoon. To begin, I will analyze Zos skills
during the war.
The Alliance Soldier as ZO calmly appears behind him and draws a knife across his
throat. Zo drops the soldier and enters, taking the extra rifle.
TRACEY: Thanks. Didnt know you were there.
ZO: (stone cold) Thats sort of the point. Stealth, you may have heard of it.
This is the first war scene that we see Zo in during this episode, and she is simultaneously taking the life
of human and saving the life of another human. These masculine actions show Zo as both a soldier and
a protector. She is able to dispatch the intruder fairly quick and with little noise, saving the less
experienced soldier, Tracey, from death. She then addresses the younger soldier coldly, making him aware
of his mistake. He claims that he didnt know she was there and she replies with, Thats sort of the
point. She doesnt dance around the issue by telling him that its ok and that hell do better next time.
Instead, she makes it clear that he was expected to do the right thing and had failed. Later, when Tracey
tells her that he wont make the same mistake again (see Appendices A.1.f), Zo replies with It does, Im
just gonna watch (see Appendice A.1g). Her no-nonsense attitude shows that she fully expects other
soldiers to carry their own weight on the battlefield.
Zos no-nonsense soldier attitude is displayed again aboard Serenity (see Appendices A.2). When Tracey
threatens to shoot Wash, Zo shoots him without hesitation. She doesnt aim for his arm or leg, something
that would be non-lethal. Instead, we are told that Tracey looks downto his chest, where a big red hole
gapes (see Appendices A.2.a). Zo then cocks her gun and readies to shoot again. Her cold exterior and

Moore 6
willingness to shoot an already injured man further shows that Zo soldier persona is a large part of her
identity.
The discourses at play in these scenes are mainly masculine ones, including the discourse of protection
and the discourse of the soldier. Zo wants to protect those around her, especially the ones that she loves,
and the only way that she knows how to do so is with guns and fighting. She fully expects others to put as
much effort into fighting as she does and she has no patience for slackers or mistakes.
However, there are a few of the more feminine discourses at play in these scenes, too. When Zos old
war buddy, Tracey, goes crazy and starts waving a gun around (see Appendices A.2), Zo does not shoot
until Tracey has shot his own weapon. Her first response is to check if her husband, Wash, was seriously
injured. Though she covers Tracey and doesnt let him out of her sight, Wash is still Zos first concern.
She uses not only a discourse of emotion, but also a discourse of domesticity. Zo is often around
wounded people and it is very little of the time that she cares about who is hurt. However, because it was
her husband that was potentially injured, she breaks from her soldier mold for a second to ensure his
safety.
Zo also exhibits a more feminine discourse during her time as a soldier (see Appendices A.1). Even
though she begins the scene with a cold, soldier discourse, she ends the scene with a discourse of
friendliness. In the beginning, Zo appeared to be annoyed with Traceys lack of knowledge and skill. Her
cold and aloof attitude and sarcasm really emphasized her soldier personality. However, toward the end of
the scene, she refers to Tracy as little one and gives him a piece of advice (see Appendices A.1.k).
Instead of retaining the soldier-like personality, Zo drops it for a minute and merely becomes a friend.
Stereotypically, women are viewed as sneaky and clever while men approach things head on. Even
though war-time Zo is displayed as using a strong masculine discourse of the soldier, she also uses a
more feminine discourse. She berates Tracey for not knowing how to be stealthy (see Appendices A.1.c),
which is often seen as stereotypically feminine ways to approach a situation. She does not suggest that
Tracey, or any other soldier, take an enemy head on as would be the stereotypically masculine approach,
but rather says to never let em know where you are (see Appendices A.1.k). Mal, however, contradicts
her advice and uses a stereotypically masculine discourse when he comes plowing through the pair,
yelling and laughing at the enemies. He has obviously made himself known to them, as he tells Zo and
Tracey, They don't like it when you shoot at them (see Appendices A.1.o). Hes not afraid of face-toface combat and even seems to enjoy it more than Zos sneakiness. Zo clearly disapproves of Mals
methods as she sarcastically tells Tracey, Of course, theres other schools of thought (see Appendices
A.1.m).
Zo is a professional and very rarely allows her own personal feelings to get in the way of her job. She
does what needs to be done, whether she likes it or not. In Serenity, Zoe follows Mals orders and drives
away from a Reaver attack, not allowing a man aboard the ship because he would weigh them down and
they would not be able to get away. Though she knows that Mals choice is wrong, as the man will most
certainly die, she still leaves him behind. Here, the soldier discourse is complicated. She follows orders
but, in the process, leaves a man behind to die. Even though Zo appears calm and collected during the
experience, afterwards, she confronts Mal about his decision (see Appendices A.3.i) and tells him that he
should have found another way because, in a time of war, they never would have thought about leaving a
man behind. Through this scene, Zo uses not only a discourse of the soldier, but also of emotion and
morality, complicating the stereotypically masculine discourse with stereotypically feminine discourses.
Zo feels bad when removing the man from the ship, but she does not address her feelings until after the
fact. She questions whether or not they should have ditched the man when they could have just as easily
ditched the money. She also makes it a point to acknowledge the fact that they dont know for certain
whether the ship would be able to carry the mans extra weight. Mal, however, fires back that none of the
options were reasonable the ship could not hold so much weight and dropping the money would have

Moore 7
been suicide as those that hired the crew would have most certainly come after them. At this point, Zos
only response is Sir, I dont disagree on any particular point, its just in the time of war, we woulda
never left a man stranded.
This last line alone exhibits not only the discursive world of a soldier, but also, again, morality and
emotion. Zo remembers what it was like to be a soldier and to have to fight for a cause and those that she
loves. She also remembers what that means. Mal, on the other hand, seems to have changed in ways that
Zo never will. As she feels upset about the man and berates Mal for choosing to leave him behind and
reasons that no real soldier would leave a man stranded, Mal responds, Maybe thats why we lost.
Where Zo remembers being a soldier and the responsibilities that come with it, Mal only remembers the
pain and dishonor that comes with losing a war.
Zos discourse of a soldier is, once again, conflicted when it comes to Washs death (see Appendices
A.4). When Reavers attack her crew, she is willing to fight to the death to save them. However, it is the
one situation where she allows her emotions and desire for revenge to get in the way of her common
sense. After Washs death, Zo has very little time to grieve. Instead, she is immediately put in charge of
protecting the crew from those that killed her husband. At first, she appears calm and collected, but she
begins to allow her anger to show and control her emotions:
Zo stands up and shoots [the Reaver] in the head. He arcs back hard as the second comes, Zo
shoots him, calmly walking toward the door.
JAYNE: Zo Gorramnit
But she is in a trance, as we see beneath the calm, to the bubbling magma of rage that keeps her
firing, single shots, each one a kill, till five are men down and shes out of ammo.
Even though Zos aim is to protect her crew, she is overcome with emotions about her husbands death
and acts with concealed rage, hurt, grief, and a desire for revenge. She follows her soldiers instincts to
kill, but is reckless enough in her depression and anger that she puts herself and her crew in danger. Jayne
tries to call Zo back, but she ignores him, opting to kill until she runs out of ammo. Even after, she
continues to fight with a knife. Zos reckless fighting ends with her and the rest of the crew wounded and
without much protection.
The Wife
Even through Zos mask of the soldier and many other masculine qualities, she is also a loving wife
and friend. She may spend much of her time fighting and being a criminal, but she also loves her husband
and is often seen touching and speaking to Wash in a way that is not only stereotypically feminine, but
that also embodies a discourse of domesticity. She often refers to Wash with pet names, allows him to
exert dominance over her, and occasionally worries about his safety.
In Serenity, Wash and Zos relationship appears more obviously than in past episodes. When looking at
the radar to see what the spaceship would be flying in to, Wash and Zo use pet names to refer to each
other (see Appendices B.3):
Zo: Thats a bad notion
Wash: Honey
Zo: I got it, baby.

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Although the approaching space objects do not appear good, the couple still shows their love for each
other through their speech. While Wash calls Zo Honey, she refers to him as Baby. As a couple that
often cannot spend a lot of time together due to their jobs, pet names appear to be one of the main ways to
keep their relationship alive. These names show the clear devotion that they feel toward one another, even
while Zo is out in the field fighting and Wash flies the ship.
However, even though Zo makes use of a traditionally feminine pet name for her husband, she also
conflicts her role as a wife with her role as a soldier and as a criminal. They worry about each others
safety, though Zo is often the only one that can do anything to help when there is a situation. When there
is a possibility of Wash being severely hurt (see Appendices A.2), Zo stops what she is doing to make
sure that her husband is alright. It is not until she sees that it was merely a scratch that Zos soldier
persona fully returns.
Where Zo is normally the one in a position of the protector when it comes to her marriage, Wash also
does his best to be protective of his wife. Zo is a strong, independent woman who can clearly take care
of herself shes a better fighter than most of the men in the series. However, she still allows Wash to
exert his masculine qualities over her feminine person. When he is comforting her (see Appendices
B.2), Wash reaches for Zo and puts his arms around her, not the other way around. In this case, Zo is
taking a break from her soldier persona and allowing herself to fall into the discourse of domesticity. She
allows herself to be held and, in doing so, performs a very stereotypically feminine action. Similarly,
when Zo returns from a bar where a fight broke out between the crew and townsfolk, Wash makes it a
point to ask Mal if he is getting Washs wife into trouble (see Appendices B.5.d). Although everyone
aboard Serenity knows that Zo can take care of herself and does not need her husband to protect her,
Wash still makes it a point to communicate his annoyance with Mal that his wife was put in danger. Zo
does not respond that she is able to take care of herself but, instead, berates Mal for always being where
the trouble is (see Appendices B.5.f). She does not stand up for herself or make it known that she does not
need Wash looking out for her. Instead, she follows Washs lead and questions Mals desire to look for
danger.
After Washs death, Zo exhibits the most stereotypically feminine actions, including her need to be saved
by a man. Throughout the F/S universe, Zo has done a majority of the saving. She rescues Tracey from
being killed (see Appendices A.1.a), she rescues the crew when she stops a man from shooting (see
Appendices C.2.a), and she even stops to make sure that she does not need to save Wash before going
back to shooting Tracey (see Appendices A.2.f). However, immediately after Wash is killed, Mal must
swoop in and pull Zo out of harms way (see Appendices B.3.f). The idea that a woman needs a man to
save her is everywhere in our culture, from Disney princesses to modern TV shows. Stereotypically, it is
the man who has the strength and rationality to do the saving, while the woman faints or is too emotional
to be of any help. Throughout the F/S universe, Zo has defied these expectations by being strong and
independent. In this scene, however, Mal rips her away and to the floor as another projectile slams
through the window into the wall above them. She is so overcome with emotions about Washs death
that she exhibits not only the discourse of emotionality, but also the discourse of helplessness. She is
unable to protect herself as she had in the past and she relies on Mal to show the rationality that she
cannot.
Even though a majority of Zos position as a wife is filled with stereotypically feminine actions and
discourses, she remains strong and independent from her husband. She does not evolve into a woman that
needs her husband to live and breathe. Only minutes after Washs death, Zo is expected to stand up and
protect the group from Reavers, and she does not disappoint (see Appendices B.5). Although she is
saddened that her husband is gone, she is still able to fight and be a soldier. She is aware of what needs to
be done and when her ability to do her job is questioned, she answers by saying Do the job, sir (see
Appendices B.5.c). She remains independent and wants everyone to stop worrying about her. She no
longer appears to exhibit the discourse of helplessness or emotionality. Instead, she shifts to

Moore 9
stereotypically masculine discourses, including independence, the soldier, and protection. Mal tells her to
hold the Reavers back and to protect the crew until he can return (see Appendices B.5.d). In doing so, he
returns the power to her that she lost when Mal was forced to save her from being killed (see Appendices
B.3.f).
The Morally-Torn Criminal
In some situations, Zo appears to be a voice of morality. She tells Mal that leaving a man to die is wrong
and that they should have figured out a different way (see Appendices A.3). On the other hand, however,
Zo also seems to be a force of criminality. Obviously, her job as a criminal affects her moral standpoint,
but Zos morality is intriguing when we look at the differences in her standards of criminality and
morality in different contexts.
Traditionally, women are portrayed as the voice of morality while men are the criminals. Because women
have such strong emotions and men are supposed to be cold and logical, women are the ones that should
say if something is morally right or wrong.
Zos job as a thief means that she has very little room to think about the moral problems of what she
does for a living. However, she does seem to make space for morals, even in her situation. She knows that
a majority of her thieving is from the Alliance, which she appears to be content with. She even mentions
that something about stealing from the Alliance just warms a body like whiskey in winter (see
Appendices C.1.b). Through this quote, Zo exhibits the stereotypically masculine discourse of the
criminal. She likes the idea of stealing something from the Alliance so much that it is a pleasant feeling
for her, comparable to a warm body in the cold winter. There is very little thought given to the moral
problem of stealing in this situation. She wants her share of the cash and is willing to steal in order to get
it.
This lack of morals is exemplified in Zos questioning of Mal during The Train Job (see Appendices
C.3.b-d). Not only is she following through with the discourse of the criminal, Zo also jokingly asks Mal
if she can have his share of the money. When he replies no, she retorts with If you die, can I have your
share? In this scene, Zo moves further from the stereotypically feminine discourse of morality. She
shows no shame in asking after Mals cut of the money in the off chance that he should die. Instead, she
appears amused at the idea. This discourse of criminality is exhibited in the fact that Zo is not only
committing a crime, but she is hoping to benefit from it further than what she is owed. She displays no
discourse of emotionality at the thought of Mal, her close friend, dying. Instead, she only hopes that she
will be the one to receive his part of the money.
The discourse of criminality is confused when Zo must stop a man from fighting back against the crews
takeover of a bank (see Appendices C.2). She puts her gun against his cheek to stop him from moving, but
does not shoot. Even though he is a very real threat to the crew and their job since he has a gun and is
obviously not afraid to reach for it, Zo uses the discourse of morality and allows him to live. Zo does
not want to needlessly kill the innocent, or to even harm them. In fact, she goes on to warn the man that,
in her mind, a hero is someone who gets other people killed (see Appendices C.2.b). Though this
warning exhibits the masculine discourse of a criminal, it also shows the feminine discourse of morality.
Not only does Zo not want to kill the man, she also doesnt want to kill anyone else caught at the bank.
The discourse of morality is further exposed through Zo and Mals discussion of a job that they took
from Niska, a man with a reputation for extreme violence (see Appendices C.4). This is the only instance
in the scenes that I am analyzing that Zo shows reluctance and regret about a job. She warns Mal that
Niska is a psycho and follows it up by saying I just have an image in my head of a guy hanging from
the ceiling (see Appendices C.4.c). Zo wants to complete the job because of the money involved, but
she fears for the safety of the entire crew. Here, the discourse of criminality takes a backseat to the

Moore 10
discourse of morality. She knows that Niska will do something very similar to Serenitys crew to what he
was doing to the guy hanging from the ceiling and she reminds Mal of such. It is here that Zo fully
becomes the stereotypical feminine voice of morality for Mal, in that she tells him that what theyre
doing, and what Niska is doing, is wrong and that they should further think about the situation. Mals only
response is that they have to do the job, otherwise the man hanging from the ceiling would be him (see
Appendices C.4.d).
Conclusion
Firefly and Serenity have been praised for their strong, independent female characters that defy gender
norms. The females are not wimpy women that constantly need to be saved by their male counterparts; on
the contrary, the women of the F/S universe often hold their own and even are able to save the men.
When I first set out to analyze F/S universes Zo Washburne, I was convinced that she was merely one of
these strong, females that never needed, nor wanted, saving a one-dimensional warrior woman.
Instead, I discovered that she is not stereotypically feminine, nor is she stereotypically masculine, but
a queering of the genders.
No, Zo is not a boring, flat female character. She is not a simpering female that always needs a man to
save her, but she is also not a warrior woman with no feminine qualities. She is a good mix of both,
masculine and feminine, and she is not afraid to flaunt either. Where she can hold her own in a fight, she
also likes that her husband wants to hold her and protect her. While she often saves the men in her crew,
she also has moments of weakness where the men save her. Zo is not perfect she is, after all, a
criminal. Even in her criminality, though, she experiences moments of morality, which make her the
perfect embodiment of the morally-torn criminal.
Through her use of both masculine and feminine discourses, Zo creates her gender identity and
shows that gender is not something that a person has, but what they do. Zo displays characteristics of
both stereotypical genders through her many discourses, from the stereotypically masculine discourse of
the soldier to the stereotypically feminine discourse of emotion. She is not purely masculine or feminine
and it is her actions that truly define her gender, not her biological sex.
Bibliography
Baxter, Judith. Positioning Gender in Discourse. NY: Palgrave, 2007.
Burnett, Tamy. "'Just A Girl': The Community-Centered Cult Television Heroine, 1995--2007." (2010):
OAIster. Web. 1 Oct. 2015.
Clayton, Amy E. "The Future Of Feminism Is Slayed: Tomboyism In Joss Whedon's Fray." Red Feather
Journal 1.1 (2010): 26-38. Film & Television Literature Index with Full Text. Web. 1 Oct. 2015.
Cochran, Tanya R. "Past The Brink Of Tacit Support": Fan Activism And The Whedonverses."
Transformative Works & Cultures 10.(2012): 14. Humanities International Complete. Web. 1 Oct.
2015.
Cochran, Tanya R., and Rhonda Wilcox. Investigating Firefly And Serenity : Science Fiction On The
Frontier. London: I.B.Tauris, 2008. eBook Collection (EBSCOhost). Web. 1 Oct. 2015.
Finding Serenity: Anti-heroes, Lost Shepherds and Space Hookers in Joss Whedons Firefly. Ed. Jane
Espenson. Dallas: BenBella Books, 2004. Print.

Moore 11
Frankov, Da. The Queer Story of Kateina Maralov: The Female Soldie, Ideal woman, and
Masculine Femininity. Gender & History 24.2 (2012): 353 367. Print.
Kamm, Rebecca. Can a man be a feminist?." New Zealand Herald n.d.: Points of View Reference
Center. Web. 1 Oct. 2015.
Lothian, Alexis. Feminist and Queer Science Fiction in America. The Cambridge Companion to
American Science Fiction. Ed. Eric Carl Link and Gerry Canavan. New York: Cambridge
University Press, 2015. Print.
Rowley, Christina. "Firefly/Serenity: Gendered Space And Gendered Bodies." British Journal Of Politics
& International Relations 9.2 (2007): 318-325. Political Science Complete. Web. 1 Oct. 2015.
Christian Rowley argues that even though Firefly and Serenity are science fiction and are,
therefore, set several hundred years in the future, they are still controlled by conventional ideals
of gender. She uses Neta Crawfords article, Feminist futures: Science fiction, utopia, and the art
of possibilities in world politics, to show what features need to be present in science fiction for it
to be considered a feminist text.
Rowley begins by unpacking the terms gender and international relations as they are used
now and how they might relate in the F/S universe. She discusses how masculinity and femininity
relate to International Relations, including the separate spheres that men and women are confined
to. She then relates these separate spheres to the F/S universe by showing that domestic and
international divides do not work in the same way as they do today. Even though women and men
may still have their own set gender norms, as Rowley plans to show, the ideas of domestic and
international vary greatly due to the multiple inhabited planets and the possibility to inhabit the
space between them while on a spaceship.
Rowleys next move is to analyze the different female characters aboard Serenity and their male
counterparts. This part is particularly helpful to me because it discusses Zo and her relationship
with Walsh in several paragraphs. Not only do these paragraphs summarize Zos personality and
reason aboard the ship, it also looks at her character from a feminist perspective as it relates to
male characters in similar positions. As a soldier, Rowley says, Zo is respected and not
questioned about her physical strength. However, Zo also embraces her feminism through her
husband, Wash, with whom she has a stable and loving relationship. In all, Rowley points out, she
is the character who is the least sexualized as she very rarely takes off her clothes and prefers
practical armor to the skimpy armor that many women are shown as wearing in todays video
games and television shows.
Rowley also discusses the positions of the other F/S women and ends her paper with Joss
Whedon quotes about his choices in the F/S universe.
Men and women are the stories that have been told about men and women.
Tanya Huff claims that [Zo] is the first truly believable warrior woman on television, being
neither defined solely by her fighting skills, nor by a hyper-feminine spectacle of sexuality that
must compensate for her warrior characteristics.
In so far as F/S encourages us to think gender differently, it gives us some points of entry into
critiquing our own contemporary society.
Keywords: feminist, gendered space, conventional notions of gender, science fiction, Firefly,
Serenity, feminist utopian

Moore 12
Wilcox, Rhonda, et al. "Hot Chicks With Superpowers: The Contested Feminism Of Joss Whedon."
Television and Popular Culture. 356. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2014. Project MUSE.
Web. 1 Oct. 2015.
Appendices
Contents
Appendices A: The Soldier
1.
2.
3.
4.

Zo protects a younger soldier from being killed

Zo shoots a friend to protect Serenitys crew
Mal and Zo disagree about a situation
After Washs death, Zo takes down Reavers in anger

Appendices B: The Wife

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Wash and Zos physical contact

Communication between Wash and Zo
Zos immediate reaction to Washs death
Washs protectiveness
Conversation between Zo and Mal regarding Zos state after Washs death

Appendices C: The Moral Dilemma

1. Zo laughs about stealing from the Alliance
2. Zo holds a man at gun point to stop him from interrupting their bank robbery
3. Conversation between Zo and Mal about payment for a job
4. Mal and Zo discuss the job from Niska
Appendices A
1)
a) The Alliance Soldier as ZO calmly appears behind him and draws a knife across his
throat. Zo drops the soldier and enters, taking the extra rifle.
b) TRACEY: Thanks. Didnt know you were there.
c) ZO: (stone cold) Thats sort of the point. Stealth, you may have heard of it.
d) TRACEY: I dont think they covered that in basic.
e) ZO: Well, at least they covered Dropping your weapon so you can eat beans and get
yourself shot.
f) TRACEY: Yeah, I got a badge in that (off her look) Wont happen again.
g) ZO: It does, Im just gonna watch.
h) TRACEY: Anything interesting out there, you dont mind my asking?
i) ZO: (indicating) Bout 30 troops behind those buildings. Mortars, but no rollers yet. I
expect they plan to pick at us a spell before they charge. They had two scouts sniffin,
about ten yards out, but I took em down.
j) TRACEY: (impressed) I didnt hear a single thing.
k) ZO: First rule of battle, little one. Never let em know where you are.
l) Mal runs in, screaming and firing behind him, and dives over a wall for cover, lands
nearby, bullets zinging over his head.
m) ZO (CONTINUED): Of course, there's other schools of thought...
n) Mal scrambles over to them, laughing.
o) MAL: Oh! That was bracing. They don't like it when you shoot at them. I worked that
out myself.
2)

Moore 13
a) TRACEY swings his gun off MAL and fires a shot at the radio console. He misses, and it
ricochets off the railing above it, grazing across WASHs temple, throwing his head back.
TRACEY stands, mouth open. He looks down, and the camera tilts down, to his chest,
where a big red hole gapes. He looks up at ZO, who holds her gun on him.
b) TRACEY: You shYou shot me
c) ZO cocks her gun, sending the spent shell flying.
d) ZO: Damn right I did.
e) ANOTHER BOOM. A little dazed, but still standing, TRACEY backs out of the bridge.
ZO covers him as she calls to WASH.
f) ZO: Wash --? Sweetie--?
g) WASH dabs a finger at the bullet graze.
h) WASH: Ow?
3)
a) ZO: Like that man back in town?
b) MAL: I had to shoot him. What the Reavers woulda done to him before they killed
him
c) ZOE: I know. That was a piece a mercy. But before that, him begging us to bring him
along
d) MAL: We couldnt take the weight. Woulda slowed us down.
e) ZOE: You know that for certain
f) MAL: Mule wont run with five. I shoulda dumped the girl? Or you? Or Jayne?
(considering) Well, Jayne
g) ZOE: Coulda tossed the payload.
h) MAL: And go to Fanty and Mingo with air in our mitts, tell em heres your share?
Theyd set the dogs on us in the space of a twitch, and there we are back in mortal peril.
We get a job, we gotta make good.
i) ZOE: Sir, I dont disagree on any particular point, its just in the time of war, we
woulda never left a man stranded.
j) MAL: Maybe thats why we lost.
4)
a) ZO stands up and shoots him in the head. He arcs back hard as the second comes, ZO
shoots him, calmly walking toward the door
b) JAYNE: Zo Gorramnit
c) But she is in a trance, as we see beneath the calm, to the bubbling magma of rage that
keeps her firing, single shots, each one a kill, till five men down and shes out of ammo.
The sixth comes at her swinging a blade and she blocks, the precision of military training
still in her as she flips him, wresting the blade free and singing it down out of frame,
bringing it up bloody, swinging again as the door bursts open and shes rushed from
behind But JAYNE totes an automatic, sprays killing fire on the lot, moving forward
himself
d) JAYNE: ZO! Get yer ass back in the line!
Appendices B
1) Wash reaches Zo, slides his arms around her.
2)
a) WASH: Whoah, no, no
b) ZO: (moving to the screen) Thats a bad notion
c) WASH: Honey
d) ZO: I got it, baby.
3)

Moore 14
a) WASH: I am a leaf on the wind. Watch
b) A massive harpoon CRASHES through the windshield and impales him to his chair. Its
as thick around as a telephone pole. Wash has time to open his mouth in surprise before
he is dead.
c) ZO: WASH!
d) She moves to him
e) ZO: Wash baby baby no, come on, you gotta move you gotta move baby please
f) Mal rips her away and to the floor as another projectile slames through the window into
the wall above them
4)
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)

KAYLEE: Theyre fine. So (excited) what happened? Was there a terrible brawl?
Camera pans to ZO, sitting close to WASH
ZO: Oddly enough, there was.
WASH: (to MAL) Are you gettin my wife into trouble?
MAL: Wha? I didnt start it! Just wanted a quiet drink.
ZOE: (deadpan) Funny, sir, how you always seem to find yourself in an Alliance-friendly
bar come U-day looking for a quiet drink.

a)
b)
c)
d)

MAL: (moving back to ZO) Zo are you here?

She looks up at him.
ZO: Do the job, sir.
MAL: You hold. Hold till Im back.

5)

Appendices C
1)
a) MAL: Alliance payroll. Theres peace enforcing squads stationed all about this quadrant.
Cant use credits out here they got to pay their boys in cashy money. Which once a
month rests here.
b) ZO: Something about stealing from the Alliance just warms a body like whiskey in
winter.
2)
a) RIVER suddenly looks around, perturbed. CLOSE ON: a young tough. RIVER looks up
at ZO, alarmed, and silently points to the young man. He is slowly reaching for the
weapon in his belt. He finds ZOs sawed-off nuzzling his cheek.
b) ZO: You know what the definition of a hero it? Its someone who gets other people
killed. You can look it up later.
3)
a) MAL: Come on. We stick to the plan. We get the goods, were back on Serenity before
the train even reaches Paradiso, only now we do it under the noses of twenty trained
Alliance Feds. And that makes em look all manner of stupid. Hell, this job I would pull
for free.
b) ZO: (amused) Can I have your share?
c) MAL: No.
d) ZO: If you die, can I have your share?
4)
a) ZO: Hes a psycho you know. Niska.
b) MAL: Hes not the first psycho to hire us, not the last. You think thats a commentary on
us?
c) ZOE: I just have an image in my head of a guy hanging from the ceiling.
d) MAL: Ive got an image of it not being me. Lets do the thing.

Moore 15
Professional Biography
Aiyana Moore is a first semester senior at Xavier University. She is majoring in English, with minors in
Writing and Public Relations.