Why Did Cloud Dress Up as a Girl in Final Fantasy 7? An In-Depth Character Analysis

ByJames Dorn Last Update on

Greetings fellow FF7 expert! If you‘ve played the groundbreaking Final Fantasy 7, you undoubtedly remember the shocking scene where protagonist Cloud Strife dresses up as a woman to infiltrate the mansion of lecherous crime boss Don Corneo. But why did Cloud go to such extremes? As a veteran gamer and FF7 specialist, let me provide some deeper context.

An Essential Plot Device Drives a Crucial Mission

Cloud‘s crossdressing stems from a necessary scheme to advance the main Avalanche group‘s mission. His ally Aeris concocts the idea after they discover their friend Tifa has been brought to Corneo‘s mansion. Corneo only allows women to enter his lair for his own nefarious purposes. So Aeris deduces that Cloud can disguise himself in women‘s garb to sneak inside undetected so they can find and rescue Tifa.

Though initially reticent, Cloud agrees to the mortifying proposal, showing his ironclad dedication both to the mission‘s completion and to saving his childhood friend Tifa. This bizarre scenario drives home Cloud‘s uncompromising commitment to his duties and friends (more on his connections later). The scene moves the main plot forward in an unexpected yet cunning way.

Key Story Purpose: Enable Cloud‘s party to access Don Corneo‘s mansion and progress the game‘s central mission arc

The Crossdressing Holds Deeper Meaning for Cloud‘s Fractured Identity

On the surface, Cloud‘s crossdressing escapade utilizes the well-worn trope of men disguising themselves as women for plot convenience. However, given protagonist Cloud‘s complex psychological history, the scene manifests deeper meaning regarding Cloud‘s unstable identity and sense of self.

Throughout FF7‘s epic story, Cloud wrestles with past trauma and his confusion over his role in life and who he truly is as a person. The dress here symbolizes the fluid, transient, and fragile nature of not just Cloud‘s public persona but his inner gender identity and self-concept.

Let‘s analyze examples of Cloud‘s identity issues:

  • False Identity Creation: After his heroic mentor Zack dies, the psychologically damaged Cloud partially merges his own identity with Zack‘s as a coping mechanism
  • Forgotten Past: Trauma-induced amnesia causes Cloud to forget his real history as just an ordinary Shinra guard
  • Unstable Personality: Cloud‘s persona oscillates between aloof indifference and emotional vulnerability

Thus the crossdressing represents Cloud‘s malleable presentation of self to the world. But even more profoundly, it reflects his fragile grasp internally on who he believes he is at his core after psychic trauma fractures his very sense of self.

Key Character Development Meaning: Highlights Cloud‘s unstable personal identity and fluid sense of self

Cloud‘s Backstory Is Complex with Severe Trauma

To truly comprehend the context of Cloud‘s gender-bending ruse, one must understand his tremendously complex backstory marred by intense emotional wounds. As an FF7 expert, let me analyze key details in Cloud‘s traumatic past that drive his dressing up as a woman in the game‘s present story.

Childhood Emotional Neglect

We learn Cloud grew up a lonely and taciturn child lacking close bonds, especially after his mother‘s death. His only personal relationship was Tifa, his neighbor and childhood crush. But she seemed unaware of his affections. This childhood neglect and emotional isolation prime the pump for Cloud‘s later mental collapse.

Failure to Become a SOLDIER Hero

In a bid both to escape his lonely home life and impress Tifa with heroic deeds, Cloud joins Shinra‘s elite SOLDIER program. But he fails to make the cut due to physical deficiencies. He only becomes an ordinary Shinra guard. However, he hides this failure from Tifa out of shame.

Hero Worship of His Mentor Zack

In SOLDIER training, Cloud develops an intense admiration for Zack Fair, a first-class SOLDIER prodigy who becomes his friend and mentor. The charismatic Zack gives Cloud‘s life meaning and a sense of self-worth.

Captivity and Psychological Destruction

Cloud and Zack later endure 4 years of brutal captivity and human experimentation by Shinra scientists. The experiments combined with long-term isolation systematically destroy Cloud psychologically.

Devastation and Trauma After Zack‘s Death

Zack eventually helps a severely traumatized Cloud escape, but later dies heroically defending Cloud from Shinra troops. Cloud is so emotionally devastated by Zack‘s sacrifice that his psyche shatters.

Key Backstory Trauma: Childhood neglect, personal failures, identity destruction from experiments, survivor‘s guilt after Zack‘s death

This cascading series of traumatic events in Cloud‘s backstory utterly decimates his mental state and fractures his personality, directly setting the stage for his crossdressing and larger identity issues.

Cloud Has Severe Mental Health Issues From Past Traumas

The immense psychological traumas Cloud endures ultimately leave him with crippling mental health problems that directly tie into his gender disguise in Don Corneo‘s mansion. Let‘s analyze them:

Dissociative Amnesia

The pinnacle of Cloud‘s mental collapse is dissociative amnesia – his mind represses actual events and memories so he can functionally cope. After Zack dies defending him, Cloud‘s longing for Zack manifests in fully merging parts of Zack‘s personal history and personality traits into his own fractured identity.

Key Symptoms:

  • Believing he was an elite SOLDIER (he never made it in)
  • Erasing Zack‘s existence from his memories
  • Fabulating false shared memories with others

This amnesia protects his shattered mind from past pains but further undermines his grasp of reality.

PTSD and Survivor‘s Guilt

Cloud suffers immense PTSD and survivor‘s guilt tied to Zack‘s death and his helplessness when Zack needed him most. His weakness haunts him. This leaves him disconnected, tormented by his past, and wracked with shame and self-loathing.

Key Data & Statistics:

  • Up to 80% of those with dissociative amnesia also have PTSD (International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies)
  • 75-90% of combat veterans with PTSD feel guilt over surviving when others died (US Department of Veterans Affairs)

Depersonalization Issues

Trauma makes Cloud feel detached from his sense of self and reality in public. This feeds an ongoing depersonalized identity disconnect central to FF7‘s plot. Donning his jarring female garb exacerbates Cloud‘s public experience of unreality regarding his persona.

Clearly, Cloud‘s severe mental illnesses intrinsically fuel the crossdressing scene‘s symbolic meaning regarding Cloud‘s fluid, fragmented identity.

Key Mental Health Problems: Dissociative amnesia, PTSD, survivor‘s guilt, depersonalization

Why Fans So Identify With Complex, Emotional Cloud

Given the grave trauma and mental instability Cloud endures, one may ask why FF7 fans so passionately identify with such a psychologically damaged protagonist. As a game specialist, let me share professional insights into Cloud‘s allure.

Cloud initially appears to embody the "strong, silent type" archetype – an aloof, indifferent loner hiding inner suffering. But over time, glimpses of Cloud‘s sensitive emotional core emerge through interactions with allies like Tifa and Aeris.

These connections let Cloud slowly heal and reconnect with supressed elements of his past self. This gradual self-rediscovery allows fans to resonate with Cloud‘s humanity despite his prior aloof facade.

Cloud powerfully models the journey of processing one‘s pain to integrate fractured pieces of oneself into a coherent, acceptance-grounded whole. This integration enables Cloud to construct more authentic interpersonal bonds.

Fans profoundly identify with Cloud‘s path from dissociated, broken loner to emotionally grounded, empathetic friend and leader who accepts the totality of his past while still moving forward. This universally relatable arc of overcoming one‘s baggage to relate to others allows fans to feel personally linked to Cloud‘s psychological growth even if they‘ve never endured horrific experiments!

In summary, Cloud‘s initial concealment yet ultimate revelation of his hidden sensitivity makes him such an unusually emotive, compelling fan favorite that deeply resonates with admirers on an intimate level rarely achieved by other game protagonists.

Let me know if you have any other Final Fantasy questions I can shed expert insight on!

James K. Dorn, a passionate gamer deeply immersed in the world of video gaming. My journey in gaming is not just about playing; it's about exploring every facet of the games I love. I am particularly fascinated by the intricate worlds of role-playing games like "The Witcher" series and "Elder Scrolls: Skyrim," where every decision shapes the story.

As a strategy game enthusiast, I spend hours devising tactics in games like "Civilization VI" and "StarCraft II," always eager to share my strategies with fellow gamers. I'm also an ardent follower of the ever-evolving landscape of indie games, finding gems like "Hollow Knight" and "Celeste" that offer unique, compelling experiences.

My content isn't just reviews; it's about deep dives into game mechanics, storytelling, and the art of game design. I love dissecting the narratives of games like "The Last of Us" and discussing the innovative gameplay of titles like "Death Stranding."

Being at the forefront of gaming news, I eagerly anticipate and share insights on upcoming releases like the next big open-world adventure or the latest in the "Final Fantasy" series. My goal is to build a community where we not only play games but also appreciate the artistry and effort behind them. Join me in this gaming journey, where every session is an adventure, and every game is a story waiting to be told.

Similar Posts