All of you who follow my blog know that author Devorah Fox is one of my faves–not only in terms of storytellers, but also as a guest blogger. She brings to light so many interesting concepts regarding the way we read and the way we think. I’d like to welcome her once more with this guest post on women in fantasy stories. This is a must-read!
WOMEN IN FANTASY STORIES
by Devorah Fox
As a child, longer ago than I care to admit, my fairy-tale and fantasy reading didn’t offer much variety for the roles played by women. Even though the stories were set in invented worlds during invented times, the characterization followed modern-day conventions. Females appeared as sweet fairies or elegant queens, and they were beautiful and kind, beautiful and graceful, beautiful and … well, sometimes, “beautiful” was all, that was enough. Lots of emphasis on what were considered to be feminine virtues, especially their physical attributes.
Fantasy females were victims, or prizes. Rescuing or conquering them gave the main character, the hero, a chance to demonstrate his manliness. Fantasy women rarely had power. If they did, it was an endowment. They came by it by virtue of being bewitched, or royalty. Even if their enchantment or noble blood was secret, it was still their source of power. Women who did have personal power were usually witches, and for the most part used the power for malevolent purposes.
My reading selections didn’t offer much in the way of warrior women, whom I found in mythology: the Greek goddess Athena, amazons, heroines like Deborah and Judith in the Bible, and Joan of Arc.
Not much in the way of role models there for a young girl who was, according to her classmates, “too smart” and “too independent,” and who was in her own mind, not beautiful.
As my reading skills advanced, I was able to tackle more sophisticated material. Science fiction offered more options for females. They could be professors, doctors, scientists, even adventurers. They were all still beautiful, but now they could also be intelligent, brave, even strong.
The Mystery/Thriller/Suspense genre offered yet more variety. Women could be savvy crime-solvers who used their wits but sometimes threw a punch or fired off a weapon. Throughout my teens, twenties, and thirties, I read detective novels and spy stories. There I found the type of woman to which I could aspire. OK, they were beautiful, desirable, but they had moxie. They were intelligent and independent and that was a good thing.
In the 1990s I became reinterested in Fantasy and ScFi. For me, Buffy, the vampire slayer, ushered in the “kickass heroine.” Yes, Buffy was pretty, an athlete, the cheerleader that I never was, but she was also daring and a leader.
Along with Buffy there was James Cameron’s Dark Angel, Max Guevara and Roswell’s Isabel Evans. They were beautiful, but they were gusty. Yes, their physical abilities were mystical endowments, but their gumption was all their own. They had actual power which they employed to right wrongs. Seeing these kung-fu-fightin’ size-00 ladies fling some big brute across the room was a treat. For me, these portrayals of modern warrior women were pioneering.
Lately, however, I find myself thinking it’s gone too far. Today’s Fantasy/SciFi heroines are blood-thirsty, and they’re not even vampires. Samantha “Root” Groves and Sameen Shaw of Person of Interest are brilliant, brave, and committed to the cause at great personal cost, but they’re far too eager to blast the bad guys with assault weapons, as are some of the superheroines of the Marvel and DC Comics franchises. Even one of the Avenger superheroes remarked that Natasha Romanov was supposed to be a spy, not a soldier.
I’m reminded of a blog post, Understanding the “Strong Heroine” by author Alesha Escobar. Escobar remarked that in avoiding stereotypes for women and crafting portrayals of powerful females we should not “put masculinity in a dress and think the job is done.” (I’m going to add that I don’t define masculinity in terms of how many bullets per minute a man can fire.) Escobar challenges us to define strength and power in terms of standing up for one’s beliefs. When they holster their weapons, we can see that today’s Fantasy and SciFi heroines do exhibit these qualities. I think that all that gunfire is overkill, no pun intended.
I was so disturbed by the escalation of the violence quotient for fictional heroines, I recently charged myself with creating a one who doesn’t go ballistic in a literal sense. I wanted her to be strong-willed, brave, and willing to use her talents and superpower to further just causes. That power, however, would have little to do with weaponry. I’ve completed the first episode and based on beta-reader reaction, I achieved my goal. As I take Lady Blackwing through further adventures, I believe that I can craft a heroine who is determined, courageous, and effective without firing a shot.
October 3 through 16, 2016, Virtual FantasyCon 2016, an online celebration and exploration of the Fantasy and Science Fiction genres, will offer many opportunities to discover a wide variety of strong, powerful female characters. As a reader, I’ll be looking for the ones who aren’t armed to the teeth. As an author, I’ll host a booth on Epic Sunday. I invited you to get acquainted with King Bewilliam, a respected ruler and dragon slayer of renown. His kingdom features several strong women. While Dame Deidre and Empress Alexandra are skilled with the sword and the lance, I believe it is their moral fiber that makes them strong.
About Devorah Fox
“What if?” Those two words all too easily send Devorah Fox spinning into flights of fancy. Best-selling author of The Bewildering Adventures of King Bewilliam epic historical fantasy series including “The Redoubt,” voted one of 50 Self-Published Books Worth Reading 2016, and ”The Lost King,” awarded the All Authors Certificate of Excellence.
She also co-authored the contemporary thriller, “Naked Came the Sharks,” with Jed Donellie, contributed to “Masters of Time: a SciFi/Fantasy Time Travel Anthology,” and “Magic Unveiled: An Anthology,” and has several Mystery Mini Short Reads to her name. Born in Brooklyn, New York, she now lives in The Barefoot Palace on the Texas Gulf Coast with rescued tabby cats … and a dragon named Inky. Visit the “Dee-Scoveries” blog at http://devorahfox.com
Alesha and Devorah, you’re my new best friends! Your fantasy series sound amazing and I will be looking them up. As a first time author of a new book, “The Neon Houses”, out in December, ’16, I tried to fashion a female heroine who is strong, powerful (psychic), and doesn’t rely solely on weapons. This was a very interesting post! I thank Chris The Story Reading Ape for the reblog and introduction to you!
Linda! Hello, my dear! I’m so glad you stopped by. I LOVE the sound of your heroine, we should do a feature soon at my blog (just send me the info via my contact page). Have a great day!