RPGs, Identity, & Ritual

RPGs are an excellent way for individuals to explore their identity, in a multitude of ways. Noirin Curran, of University College Cork, states that "the most relevant types of identity, which comprise the main body of work on identity with respect to role-playing games, are personal identity, social identity and gender identity (2011)." As explored on the home page, gender identity is explored by way of character creation. Social identity is explored by way of forming groups and finding which group suits the player's vibe, and personal identity encompasses both of these.

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I will discuss ritual in terms of the RPG, Dungeons & Dragons. For a typical session, players come together in groups of 5 to 7 (including the Dungeon Master). They bring objects (dice), character sheets, and sometimes miniatures. This is for the physical ritual; there is a digital ritual as well, by way of host tabletop sites. Sims and Stephens say "during a ritual...reality can be suspended (pp 99, 2011)." This suspension helps players explore identity during a session in a way that reality cannot offer. Arnold van Gennep says in his book The Rites of Passage that "at the simplest of level of development...there are social groups that reach across boundaries (1960)." LGBTQIA+ individuals have reached across the heteronormative, cisgender boundary in Dungeons & Dragons by forming their own groups and allowing full identity exploration within the campaign settings.

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