Daria Morgendorffer: Difference between revisions

''For the TV series of the same name, see [[Daria (TV series)]].''

 

{{Infobox character

|episodecount= 16 (''Beavis and Butt-head'') <br/> 65 (''Daria'') <br/> 2 ''Daria'' TV movies <br/> 2 ''Beavis and Butt-head'' TV movies (one non-speaking) <br/>

|gender=Female

|occupation= Student at [[Highland High]] (''Beavis and Butt-head'') <br/> Student at [[Lawndale High]]<br/> Student at [[Raft College]] (by the end of the show)

|family=[[Jake Morgendorffer]] (father) <br/> [[Helen Morgendorffer]] (mother) <br/> [[Quinn Morgendorffer]] (sister) <br/> [[Amy Barksdale]] (aunt) <br/> [[Rita Barksdale]] (aunt) <br/> [[Erin Chambers]] (cousin) <br/> [[Ruth Morgendorffer]] (paternal grandmother) <br/> [["Mad Dog" Morgendorffer]] (paternal grandfather, deceased) <br/> [[Grandma Barksdale]] (maternal grandmother, name unknown)

'''Daria Morgendorffer''' is a fictional animated character from two of MTV's animated series: ''[[Beavis and Butt-head]]'' and ''[[Daria (TV series)|Daria]]''. In 2002, Daria placed at number 41 on TV Guide's list of the ''[http://archives.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/TV/07/30/cartoon.characters.list/index.html Top 50 Greatest Cartoon Characters of All Time]'' for her role in the two shows. She was voiced in both incarnations by [[Tracy Grandstaff]].

 

 

 

==Character Overview==

She has described [[Jane Lane]] as basically the only real friend she's ever had. "[[The Daria Diaries]]" states she was "always invited to slumber parties" as a pre-teen, but only because she had an adult library card and could bring along sex-filled romance books.

 

 

Daria has a high intelligence for her age group, knowing about a wide variety of subjects and noted to be both at the top of many classes and getting repeated A grades. Daria is also shown to be quite lazy and apathetic: she manages to get her high grades despite, as far as we can see, not working that hard.

 

[[image:babydaria.jpg|frame|right|D'awwww]]

 

Sources like "[[The Daria Diaries]]", "[[Cafe Disaffecto]]", and "[[Camp Fear]]" have established the following about Daria's pre-[[Highland High]] life:

 

 

 

 

* Daria found it hard to fit in at school and early on decided to stop bothering. Her parents would be called in to school time and again over this. ("[[Boxing Daria]]")

 

 

* She was sent to [[Camp Dragonfly]] and [[Camp Grizzly]] during the summer holidays. Grizzly in particular was hell for her, causing her to be trapped with the bullying [[Skip Stevens]] and sycophantic [[Amelia]] in close contact.

 

 

 

==''Beavis and Butt-Head''==

[[Image:Dariabb.jpg|thumb|300px|left|Daria Morgendorffer, as depicted in later episodes of ''Beavis and Butt-head'']]

 

 

''[[Beavis and Butt-head (TV series)|Beavis and Butt-head]]'' took place in a small town called [[Highland]] in Texas, where Daria, Beavis, and Butt-head were in the ninth grade at [[Highland High]].

 

In an [[off-canon canon]] interview on the ''CBS Early Show'' (January 2002), Daria was asked whether she still keeps in touch with the duo, and replied: "I'd like to but first, they have to figure out that when the telephone makes that funny sound, you're supposed to pick it up and say hello."

 

===Daria at Highland High school===

[[Image:AmyDaria2.jpg|right|thumb|150px|(Which is which?!)]]

 

 

In "Aunt Nauseum", however, Daria was disillusioned to find Amy was just as flawed as her mother and Aunt Rita, and was only ''contributing'' to a problem. Daria and Quinn had to solve it themselves, and Amy recognized that fact.

* [[Fashion Club]]: Quinn's fashion-obsessed friends. Daria's path has crossed with theirs several times, much to the horror of both sides; they'll only deliberately seek her out if they're desperate. The Club used to pretend they didn't know Daria was Quinn's sister. Daria and Jane once casually bet on whether the Club would dissolve, and then tried to nudge events ("[[Fat Like Me]]"). Sometimes, when [[Sandi Griffin]] is clearly trying something against Quinn, Daria will take minor action to help her sister ("[[Just Add Water]]"). Daria seems more sympathetic to Stacy ("[[Fair Enough]]") than to Sandi ("The Misery Chick").

 

 

 

==Daria and Romance==

 

 

While a simplistic view of Daria's personal view of relationships with boys can be seen as being summed up in a single line, spoken to Jane in [[Dye! Dye! My Darling]]: "Can you picture me making out with anyone? ''Ever?''" (this view made even more so when taking [[Trent Lane]] into the picture from his very first appearance in the series) - an in-depth observation of the character reveals her to genuinely be interested in romance. However, she's:

 

b) Unwilling to open up emotionally, and possesses a fear of physical intimacy

 

Her crush on Trent was never acted upon, even though Trent was aware of it and would sometimes gently play up to it; this was most notable in "[[Pierce Me]]", where he told her how "hot" a piercing would make her and in a clearly flirtatious way. She'd try to cover up her crush but sudden loss of speech ("[[This Year's Model]]") or outright blushing ("[[Pierce Me]]") made it obvious. "Pierce Me" showed a dream about Trent, which turned into a nightmare when she dreamt Trent would have no interest in her at all and find the very idea laughable. MTV's [http://www.mtv.com/onair/daria/chapter2/tangle.jhtml "It Takes Two to Tangle"] described the situation as: "Quite a bit of sublimation and projection going on here, and not much action. Here is a rare example of passive-passive behavior."

 

 

She would eventually realize they just wouldn't be compatible ("[[Jane's Addition]]"), thought she'd realized before that he would make for an unreliable partner and what made him seem cool now would be pathetic in later: when trying to visualize their future together, her first vision was Trent as an unemployed, lazy failure whom she had to support ("[[Lane Miserables]]"). After the end of the crush, her relationship with Trent developed into a good friendship with a lot of trust; Trent even came to her aid with some well placed advice in "[[Fire!]]", showing that he isn't as oblivious as he puts on, and was still friendly and helpful towards her even after she was on the odds with Jane.

 

Tom Sloane was her first real boyfriend and she initially tried to push him away, as with Ted; while guilt over betraying Jane played a part, Daria was clearly rattled by Tom's angry point that she was afraid to have a relationship in case it made her "vulnerable". Tom's different class would go on to cause problems, as would her recurring inability to verbalize any problems she had (such as her concerns he was taking her for granted, "[[Sappy Anniversary]]"); Daria tended to have a ''lot'' of problems, being nervous and edgy on many occasions as she tried to navigate unfamiliar territory. Despite problems, she was insightful enough to notice and eventually apologize when she was being difficult with Tom; the two would usually talk through these issues by the end of the day. Daria would sometimes turn to Tom for advice. "Two to Tangle" described the couple as "[having] a healthy sense of boundaries, probably due to the fact that hers are extra-thick and lustrous. His family background puts him at risk for hyper-exclusivity."

 

The relationship managed to last for almost a year, but came under clear strain (again) during the college application period, partly due again to differing views & social circumstances, and partly due to actions by Tom that Daria didn't properly challenge: she ended up losing out on visiting Boston campuses after Tom decided, without asking her first, to stay at [[Bromwell]] longer to network with a professor (to get "influence" sent both their ways), and didn't view it as a big deal that they'd have less time (and, when they were hideously late, joked it was a good thing they didn't get to Bromwell this late, pissing her off). In one scene in "[[Is It College Yet?]]" (cut from the DVDs) Daria had abruptly called off a date a few seconds after agreeing to it. She was also initially put off by his offer to try and use family influence to get her into Bromwell, saying to Jane it felt like "some crappy romance novel where the troubled young viscount decides the lowly stable girl is good enough for him after all" and that she didn't see why their word should mean more than her own abilities.

 

* Poe's ''The Telltale Heart'' and Joseph Conrad's ''Heart of Darkness'' ("[[Gifted]]")

 

* ''[http://www.amazon.com/Chess-Garden-Brooks-Hansen/dp/1573225630 The Chess Garden]'' ("[[Through a Lens Darkly]]")

[[File:StoryOfD_01.jpg|230px|thumb|left|]]

 

 

Outside of "Write", all of the above - as well as the "[[The Story of D]]", references to writing "violent revenge fantasies" in "[[Boxing Daria]]", and a mention of a story she was writing in "[[Is It College Yet?]]" (cut from the DVD) - show that Daria enjoys writing violent, disturbing fiction with a black sense of humor. They appear to be somewhat lurid as well. The first Melody Powers story (and likely the homework assignment in "Write") was deliberately over the top to get back at Mr O'Neill. The virus story in "The Story of D" used a variety of writing styles.

"Write Where it Hurts" has Daria writing a realistic light drama about her own family, depicting how she'd like their future to be. While idealized, she showed an ability to write realist scenes.

 

 

"The Lost Girls" and "The Story of D" have work by Daria (non-fiction and fiction respectively) submitted for publication; in the first case, O'Neill did it without telling her, and in the latter Daria did it after pushing from Tom. She was highly reluctant in "The Story of D", stating she felt she wasn't good enough for publication and being afraid of trying only to face rejection. The article in "Lost Girls" was going to be published in [[Val Magazine]] (until Daria annoyed Val); her virus story in "D" was rejected by the magazine ''[[Musings]]'' as not being suitable, but they encouraged her to submit again, something they rarely did.

 

==Daria's websites==

* In "[[The Daria Diaries]]", she expresses a desire to be a writer... "a bitter, angry hack who starts fights fistfights at cocktail parties."

 

 

* "[[The Daria Database]]" and other points reveal that during S2, Daria is saving up to buy herself a remote cabin in Montana.