CV of Lara Croft

Vital Statistics
Nationality: British
Date of Birth: 14.02.1968
Birthplace: Wimbledon
Marital Status: Single
Blood Group: AB negative
Height: 180 cm (5ft 9in)
Weight: 59,7 kg (9st 4)
Measurements: 86D-61-89 (34D-24-35)
Hair Colour: Brunette
Eyes: Brown

Hobbies
Lara prefers non-team sports such as rock-climbing, extreme-skiing and marksmanship

Favourites
Film: Deliverance, Aguire, Wrath of God
Music: U2, Nine Inch Nails
Food: Beans on Toast
Transportation: Norton Streetfighter Motorbike
Cities: Atlantis, Venice, London
Weapons: Uzis (one for each hand), M-16 fully automatic rifle

Background
As daughter of Lord Henshingly Croft, Lara was born into the secure world of aristocracy. During her time in Gordounstoun she discovered the Scottish mountains and free-climbing. She learned extreme-skiing during her time in Switzerland. On the way home from a trip to the Himalaya the plane crashed, leaving her as the sole survivor. Forced to survive by her with for more than two weeks, she returned to civilisation a changed woman. No longer willing to live a life of luxury - and unwilling to comply with her parents' desire that she marry the Earl of Farringdon - Lara instead opted for a life of adventure and intrigue which she is still leading today. Since her parent have disowned her she makes a living by writing books about her adventures.

Analysis

This CV of Lara Croft can be found in any fan-article about her or on any fan-webpage. It was created by Eidos when it became clear that the fans demanded to know all these things about their favourite character. As can be seen from this CV, Lara is upper-class, highly educated, physically fit, beautiful and she lives her life the way she wants to. All of these things are of very high value in our current society, therefore she can be someone we admire and find attractive.

The key attributes that are usually associated with her are: powerful, sexy, agile, charming, virtual, no-nonsense, independent, athletic, adventurous and feminine. The mix of these characteristics illustrates the recurring themes in Lara's representation (both verbal and visual): her 'masculine'/macho/hero side, her 'feminine'/erotic side and her virtuality.

We see her macho/'masculine' side when she is represented as strong, courageous, intelligent, with a no-nonsense attitude, having no scruples to do what needs to be done using her skills, determination and weapons if necessary.

Her 'feminine' side is to be found in her charm and her sexiness; she is cultivated, beautiful and has a body that will not let us forget that she is a woman. One author of a computer game magazine brought it to the point when arguing: "Lara represents independence and strength of conviction in a really feminine way - although she's tough, there's nothing at all butch about her. She still retains her feminine qualities".

It would seem that the more a woman breaks out of traditional role models - which Lara certainly does - the more she has to emphasise her femininity. Only then will her transgression be tolerated and accepted. This is not a new realisation and Lara confirms it once again.