#and late-game wheatley's “fatty-fatty no-parents”

[skallyeen]

Very true! That did cross my mind. Some biases probably would have carried over from the time period in which Caroline grew up.

I saw GLaDOS as not holding these beliefs very strongly just by the disconnected sort of way in which she talks about them and humans in general (she's very "them" about it any time she mentions humans in co-op, including their attitudes about weight). I imagine living as GLaDOS separated her from most of her prior human life (she doesn't even remember Caroline beyond a vague sense of familiarity, at first) including her societal worldviews or any strong feelings about them she may have had.

Then again, Caroline does influence her subconscious strongly enough that she responds "Yes sir, Mr. Johnson" to Cave's voice without even realizing why. Inheriting Caroline's subconscious prejudices is certainly not off the table.

In either case, I figure her human origin is probably what allows her to know the context and weight of her insults. They're calculated in a way that suggests that she fully understands what she's saying, the context, and the way in which it degrades. She just doesn't appear to hold the sentiment herself in any meaningful way. As opposed to "Fatty-fatty no-parents!" Wheatley who doesn't seem to understand either, haha.

GLaDOS's insults are interesting. Because they're so clearly prejudiced, right? She's making fun of Chell for being fat and adopted. These are scummy things to make fun of someone for, and things that would realistically be punching bags for prejudiced people interacting with this character.

But I don't think GLaDOS actually holds the sentiments she's expressing. Rather, they're a means to an end.

I get this mostly from her lines in co-op on the subject:

"Did you know humans frown on weight variances? If you want to upset a human, just say their weight variance is above or below the norm."

She calls Chell fat not because she thinks she's fat or that she personally finds anything wrong with weight variances, but because she knows calling humans fat makes them feel bad, and she's bitter about being killed and wants to make Chell feel bad.

Same goes with her being adopted. As soon as it doesn't emotionally or pragmatically benefit GLaDOS to make fun of Chell for being fat or adopted, she actively refutes Wheatley's attempt at bullying her for these things:

"And...? What, exactly, is wrong with being adopted?" "Also: Look at her, you moron. She's not fat."

She walks back her previous derogatory assertions as if they don't mean anything to her, because they don't. She never believed them in the first place.

She treats Rattmann's schizophrenia much the same way. She uses it to try and manipulate him, to make him doubt himself enough to come out of hiding where she can kill him, the same way she tries to make Chell doubt herself and turn back when she's escaping the facility back in Portal 1. The ableism she expresses is not a genuinely held belief, but a means to an end that she has no qualms about using.

Whether that makes it better or worse, I have no idea! I'd say worse on account of the intention to cause doubt or hurt to the target. But it's a very unique combination of values, isn't it? You're much more used to seeing the inverse: people being insulting, with no actual malicious intent, as a result of unchecked biases. Like, for instance, friendly little Wheatley unintentionally being super condescending about Chell's brain damage and muteness.