After talking about heroes last week (a favourite pastime) I thought in the interests of equality this week I should talk about heroines…
While it was easy to come up with great heroes and understand what makes them great – I found it a lot harder with heroines.
The first thing I realised was that there are far few female superheroes – and even then, they are likely to be reflections of a male superhero – Supergirl and Batwoman spring to mind. There’s even a She-Hulk. There are female X-men superheroes – but they all take a back seat to Wolverine (see last week’s blog!)
And they get far fewer films…
My first two characteristics for a heroine were – and this surprised me – negative…
It’s not all about you!
I really dislike egotistical self-obsessed heroines. These are the girls/women whose every thought is about their appearance or how something is going to impact on them. They don’t seem to care about the world around them or anyone else. OK – so they may fall in love, but I am left thinking it’s mostly because of the advantages to themselves.
The two that spring to mind are Scarlett O’Hara and Cathy Earnshaw. Strangely enough, both books are favourites of mine – despite the irritating heroines. Possibly because they deal with much deeper themes.
Don’t be a victim.
I dislike heroines who are victims.
That’s not to say I don’t want them to have a hard time. I do. I want my heroines to face the worst life can throw at them… and then get back on their feet. I don’t like a heroine who allows herself to get pushed around. She may start off being a victim – but I want her to push back.
In this category I put Daphne du Maurier’s young Mrs De Winter. She is such a mouse – pushed around for pretty much the whole book. She’s very passive- yet again Rebecca is one of my favourite books.
I think it’s obvious where this is going.
Be strong girl!
I want a heroine who can save herself, not wait around batting her eyelids prettily until some man comes and does it for her. I don’t want her to swoon at the sight of blood – rather have her willing to spill it if necessary – her own or better still someone else’s. When these heroines fall in love – it’s with a man as strong as or even stronger than them and the partnership is equal.
I will confess to loving Peter O’Donnell’s Modesty Blaise books. They are terribly dated, not very PC and more than a touch sexist – but she’s my kind of heroine. I’d give Buffy some points here too. I can ignore some of her failings – she is a teenager after all.
Be smart.
I like an intelligent heroine as much as an intelligent hero. Elizabeth Bennet is one of the most enduring heroines in English literature. She is the bookish one – the smartest of the sisters.
I don’t want my heroine to watch in awe as some man solves the mystery. I want her to be part of the solution. Hermoine Grainger – you’re my sort of girl.
Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable.
For all the strength in my favourite heroines – there is always some vulnerability too. This makes them human.
This is what makes us want them as our BFF. Because then we can sit around late at night with them, eating icecream and sympathising.
In this category – I put Sister Luke, in the Nun’s Story – a fabulous book and even better film. She has strength and intelligence. But…
Wait. No spoilers here.
If you haven’t read it/seen the film – I recommend it.
It’s all about empowerment.
I want my heroines to feel empowered. Not power over others – although that can be good too – but to have control over their own lives. That control might be lost during the course of the book – but ultimately I want them to get it back as a result of their own efforts.
The ultimate expression of this is found in some of the great historical women – Eleanor of Aquitaine, Elizabeth the first and others written about by the likes of Elizabeth Chadwick and Philippa Gregory. I love these books because I love the powerful women.
And it’s got nothing to do with looks…
I like a handsome hero, but I really don’t care what my heroine looks like. In fact, if she is too gorgeous, as well as having all these other attributes, I might have to hate her.
It’s all about depth and growth. I want my heroine to struggle. She has to deal with things more important than whether her bum looks big in this. I never liked Bridget Jones – give me Daenerys Targaryen any time. Sold by her brother as a powerless child bride – she comes back as a conquering queen.
Can you imagine sharing a late night tub of ice-cream with her?
