Happy International Women’s Day! Today is a celebration of women’s achievements and gender equality. To celebrate, I’m reblogging my post on “Strong Female Characters” in media–on what it means to be strong as a woman or man, as well as the modern popularity of this archetype and what it all means. Enjoy, and please add your own opinions in the comments!
One article has captivated the entire literary community since its publication last week: “I Hate Strong Female Characters,” by Sophia McDougall. For modern readers and writers, that’s just about as offensive a statement as you can get. And written by a WOMAN? How dare she, right? That’s definitely what made me click, although I almost didn’t want to, on the sheer concept of it.
It was a smart publicity move, and beginning the article with a photo of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, this author clearly knew what she was doing. Pairing an unpopular statement with a popular picture, the author ensured readers from every angle of the issue would be invested.
Before I get too far into this article, let me promise you I am not going to devolve into man-bashing. That’s not what this is about.
Not today, Emma Stone.
This article identifies—and participates in, IMHO—a…
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