The Used, Abused and Forgotten

I've noticed some frustrating, and sometimes disturbing, trends in the books that I've been reading lately. It's something that is a problem in film, television and gaming. Unfortunately I think it's often overlooked in books (although comics have been getting some attention lately). 

Women are not being written well. They are not being represented equally. They are being presented, at best, as a romantic interest for the male protagonist, at worst, a piece of meat to be flaunted, used and abused for the male protagonist's sake.

I'm going to talk primarily about mainstream fantasy/sci fi/ horror and not young adult. For whatever reason, it seems to be a lot more acceptable to have female protagonists and female authors in the YA genre.

I know I'm a novice when it comes to writing, but I am an experienced reader. I also have twenty-five years experience as a female. I think I'm qualified to discuss this issue in depth.

I grew up loving fantasy. I read Lord of the Rings, the Hobbit, Chronicles of Narnia, and the Sword of Shanara. I watched Willow, Legend, Dragon Slayer and the Magic Sword. I played with plastic swords and bows and arrows.

I told my husband a while ago that when I played imaginary games by myself they often had a reoccurring plot. I was a strong princess who was in love with the white knight and gave my life for him. My purpose was to die dramatically so he could save the world.

That's kind of a messed up ambition. And self-sacrifice was something I clung to in an unhealthy way until I was an adult. 

Because what role do women take in many Fantasy stories? The dutiful wife? The healer? The sacrifice? The romantic interest? The damsel?

Even the women who accomplish something heroic seemed to do it despite their identity as a female. Or by abandoning/concealing that identity.

Arya Stark from Game of Thrones
Photo source: http://gameofthrones.wikia.com

Don't get me wrong - Eowyn, Arya, and Brienne are all great characters, but where are the woman that are just heroic without having to mediate this quality with their gender? I know they exist, but they seem to be the minority. Many people respond with "well it suits the era that the story takes place in" or "it's in keeping with the setting." These can be legitimate arguments, but this is fantasy we're talking about. You are creating a whole new world. Why do most of these worlds have the same patriarchal society as our own?

All I'm asking for are worlds populated by believable characters. Male AND female. Femaleness is not an additional quality tacked onto a character. What I mean is that if one of the defining features of almost all your female characters is that they are female, you are doing it wrong. 

I understand some characteristics are limited to women - having babies, menstruating... and... well... not much else really. Although being raped, leered at, desired and seen as attractive are often "qualities" attributed solely to women. Men can also be raped. They can also be objectified, desired and be romantically involved, but they are rarely defined primarily or exclusively by these plot points.

Want to check if you're writing a world influenced by your gender stereotypes and biases? Try switching the genders of your characters as an experiment. If it works for most, you're probably doing a good job. If not, you might want to examine why.

Females do not exist for the sake of males. They do not die so (typically white and violent) men can avenge them. They do not get kidnapped so men can save them. They do not exist for men to fawn over. They do not exist to be rewards, motivation or inspirations for men. They do not (in normal circumstances) have sex solely for the male's pleasure. They absolutely do not get raped so that men can avenge them and/or fix them and/or show them that men aren't really that bad. So don't write them that way. 

Well how do I write them then? Get inside their heads. Ask "how does this affect the character?" instead of "how does this affect an associated male character?" Think "how would I react or feel if I were this character?" instead of "what reaction or feelings from this character would further my male character's plot or character development?"

Would you write something similar about a male character? Would you write about a man being kidnapped and falling madly in love with his rescuer? Would you write a man that only thinks about finding the right woman to marry despite the chaos in the world around him? Would you write about a man who is constantly surrounded by the threat or reality of sexual abuse? Would you write about a man who would sacrifice his sexual autonomy to accomplish a goal? 

I'm not asking you to dismiss a story because it contains one of these elements. There are books I love that contain damsels, female healers, self-sacrifice and rape. I'm asking that you think critically about what you read and write because it does affect what you think. Look for trends, motivation and believability in all of your characters. Most importantly, try to engage in critical dialogue about the books you read - both those you love and hate.

I'll give an example of a book I love:  Stephen King's The Stand.

Image Source: www.goodreads.com

Here's a list of female characters and their roles in the novel (of course some spoilers are present):

Mother Abigail - leader with visions from God

Frannie - pregnant, threatened to be raped, romantic interest for male protagonist

Dayna - sexual tension for male protagonist, gives up her sexual autonomy by sleeping with the enemy while acting as a spy (note: there are two other male spies and neither resorts to sexual tactics)

Nadine - obsessed with her virginity, seduces protagonist, becomes pregnant with antagonist's child

Lucy - takes over mother role for young male character, is pregnant, romantic interest for protagonist

 Susan - fairly minor character who is raped and later killed

Julie - fairly minor character whose role is primarily to be obsessed with sex and sleep with one of the protagonists

I'm pretty sure that's nearly every named female character of note in the book. All but one are defined by their identity as mothers, or their sexuality. Every other character that acts without reference to rape or pregnancy is male. (Once again, this is a problem because there are plenty of male characters without qualities that make them "necessarily" male and that are therefore not strongly defined by gender.)

Frannie, Lucy and Dayna are strong women, but it does not change the fact that their femaleness is one of the most important aspects of their character.

I have found this trend in many of King's books. Once again, I'm not saying he doesn't write great stories. I'm saying it's important to analyze and discuss these things. A good portion of King's audience is female - what do these characters tell women about their value and identity? What do they tell men about women?

I'm tired of being deterred by boring, offensive and cliche depictions of women. I expect more. For myself. For my daughter. For all men and women. I'm tired of being told I think too much and that it doesn't matter. We are surrounded by rape culture and a society that is still fighting for women's equality. It matters. 

If you get as frustrated as I do, and are looking for some engaging, relatable, believable female characters, here's a short list of book suggestions. Click the images for their Goodreads page including synopsis and reviews: 



Any great female characters you've read lately? Share your suggestions in the comments!