Free to be not a role model
Jan. 15th, 2019 01:22 pmDiscororoboros (@discoroboros) recently made a post about how nobody wrings their hands about if Harry Potter or Iron Man are Good Role Models for boys, but every last female character has to be empowered, tough, and never a victim to get the stamp of approval.
And honestly, this is a lot of what bores me about "strong female characters", or really, just female characters period these days. The man can make mistakes, be wrong, be victimized, have a breakdown, choose to prioritize family over career and still be the lead, still be a person who's story is worth telling.
But Female Characters? Female Characters must be Strong. They can't have flaws, can't make mistakes, can't be weak. And because female characters can't be wrong, can't be weak, female characters can't grow; a Strong Female Character is a static character.
A male character can model enduring suffering, or learning from his errors, or growing up. A Strong Female Character can't.
And honestly, this is a lot of what bores me about "strong female characters", or really, just female characters period these days. The man can make mistakes, be wrong, be victimized, have a breakdown, choose to prioritize family over career and still be the lead, still be a person who's story is worth telling.
But Female Characters? Female Characters must be Strong. They can't have flaws, can't make mistakes, can't be weak. And because female characters can't be wrong, can't be weak, female characters can't grow; a Strong Female Character is a static character.
A male character can model enduring suffering, or learning from his errors, or growing up. A Strong Female Character can't.