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I just hate...
I just hate it when books or stories have weak heroines. You know, like when the pretty girl is in trouble, she waits for someone to save her, a handsome boy comes along and helps, blah, blah, blah. It drives me insane! I like strong heroines, not those Disney-ish princessy girls.
submitted by Bookbug
(December 1, 2014 - 3:08 pm)
(December 1, 2014 - 3:08 pm)
I will forever love the character Hermione Granger for her I-am-going-to-be-the-best-dang-witch-ever-and-nobody-is-going-to-stop-me-because-I-have-enough-smarts-to-do-it-on-my-own attitude.
(December 6, 2014 - 8:13 pm)
Ugh, tell me about it! I hate it when the boy is portrayed as strong and powerful but the girl is frail and stupid and weak and a TOTAL PUSHOVER. Usually Miyazaki stars girls in his movies though! However in my movie, a dude which I fall in love with named Ashitaka stars, but I'm not portrayed as weak and vulnerable.
DISCLAIMER: IN NO WAY DO I TAKE CREDIT FOR MIYAZAKI'S WORK. REAL WORLD, I AM SIMPLY USING ONE OF HIS CHARACTERS AS A NAME ONLINE. I MADE UP A FEW THINGS ABOUT PRINCESS MONONOKE TOO.
Also, I love Hermione cause she is really cool, and even though Harry is main character she can take care of herself. Did you know J.K. Rowling uses her initials to avoid people thinking "oh this was written by a girl so I don't wanna read it?" Even now there is pretty much discrimination among the genders!
(March 2, 2015 - 11:08 pm)
I cannot stand weak female characters either. And I unfortunately run into them a lot, being a fantasy fan--a genre somewhat dominated by misogynistic male authors (Christopher Paolini being the most insufferable; Arya is strong but she is demeaned by Eragon's pathetic mooning). Same with old classic novels by people like Alexander Dumas who apparently consider women only as...love interests, to put it mildly.
Luckily, though, I grew up on a fare of books by women like L.M. Montgomery, Louisa May Alcott, and Laura Ingalls Wilder, which proved quite forcibly the power in ordinary girls. And that's also why I love Robin McKinley, who writes about strong female characters that, unlike Tamora Pierce's Alanna, retain their femininity while being the fierce heroine the fantasy story requires.
(December 6, 2014 - 8:29 pm)
@ Bookbug: I KNOW. I don't understand why boys are constantly viewed as being more capable than girls. Even in a day and age where girls are allowed to do far more than our ancestors were, we still aren't given the respect and we aren't truly thought to be able to do it. I think it's fantastic if you want to be a doctor! Go for it!
@ SaVVY44x: Exactly! I get so tired of people defining others by stereotypes. If I'm blonde, I'm not weak or unintelligent. The color of your hair makes no difference as to what you're like or what you think or say or do. It's soley up to you.
@ Everinne: I know, it's infuriating to be bombarded with the idea that women are only there to tend the home or only there to promote the romance of the story. I can't stand it. Like you though, I grew up on Anne Shirley and Jo March characters that helped to round out the poor female characters.
(December 6, 2014 - 10:56 pm)
Thanks. BHR!
(December 8, 2014 - 1:05 pm)
More girls these days should read those old "girl" classics! There are not enough "girl power" books written nowadays that can put across the point of feminine strength with such...I don't know...Jo and Anne are ordinary girls, but they have so much personality, talent and independence. I feel if more girls modeled themselves on characters like that, there would be more strong women in the world.
(December 9, 2014 - 9:12 pm)
The thing is, Jo is by far the strongest female character in the book, but she is also somewhat a tomboy.
(March 28, 2015 - 2:43 pm)
I agree with you all, but I also don't enjoy books in which all the female characters act SO strong and independent that it makes them hateful and cold toward the other characters. Jo March, Caddie Woodlawn, and Anne Shirley are strong and face situations with a can-do, I've-got-this attitude, but are capable of being loving to and dependent upon their family and friends as well. One such kind-but-capable character is Honey Lemon from Disney's Big Hero 6. She is smart and strong, but is still there to support Hiro as he makes his way through grief. She retains feminity without being, well, like Barbie.
So, in conclusion, I believe that all humans are inately interdependent.
(December 10, 2014 - 11:38 am)
It's not that I like girl characters to be so strong and independent. It's just that I hate it when people make girl characters simply as a girlfriend or puppet or something. Lots of movies give the mentality that a girl's only purpose is to make herself look good for boys. Why can't a girl accomplish just as much as a boy?
(December 11, 2014 - 1:27 pm)
If you have ever read (or watched) Percy Jackson or Harry Potter, you will know that there are ACTUALLY movies with strong girls. *gasp*
(January 5, 2015 - 6:19 pm)
I was reading Old Yeller and all the men in the neighborhood went on a tough trip leaving one man behind to "protect the womanfolk." Come on!!!!!! Also when Burn claims Yeller, he says "Why don't you keep the dog to protect your family while your man is gone, and I'll come get him later." What???? No!!!! Later, he agrees to let them keep Yeller if Mama cooks "a real jam-up meal of woman-cooked grub." SERIOUSLY? WOMAN-COOKED??
How sexist.
(January 5, 2015 - 7:53 pm)
I KNOW!! I also hate it when people think women are supposed to cook and clean, nothing else. Why can't men cook and take care of the house, too?
(January 7, 2015 - 1:21 pm)
I like to cook and sew, but I'm not great at the latter... However, girls are not meant to ONLY cook and sew and clean. I go to gymnastics and do archery and Taekwondo and my dad teaches me kickboxing. I'm not blonde, but you still do NOT wanna mess with me!
(March 2, 2015 - 11:13 pm)
For those who are looking for a fictional (though, I admit, nowhere near sci-fi) with a strong, believable female lead; try The Kronos Chronicles by Marie Rutkoski. I remember it being a fantastic book, but it's been a very long time since I read it, so . . . I'd say it's good for 8-10 age-wise. o-)
(That was supposed to be a cyclopse smiley face, but . . .)
(January 6, 2015 - 11:46 pm)
The thing I hate is, generally, if there is a strong female lead -- in movies or books -- it is; 1. their main focus to "get a man" or 2. not at first and then a man miraculouslly comes and saves her behind. This is ridiculous, considering that there are plenty of strong females out there who are pretty much good on their own.
Ther is something called the Bechdel Test. It has three criteria. Try and look out for them while you are looking for movies;
1. Is there more than one female character in the book?
2. Do these two women/girls ever meet?
3. When they do, do they talk about anything other than the MALE LEAD (or character)?
You'd really be surprised how many Disney movies that test excludes. :-/
(January 7, 2015 - 3:48 pm)