"Strong female character". For some people, it's a buzzword that indicates that a story is progressive, forward-thinking, and not sexist.
For others, it's symptomatic of a problem with writing female characters that has changed shape, but certainly hasn't gone away.
Personally, I like some strong female characters, and it's always nice to see the (often vastly outnumbered) women in the story holding their own.
But truly good storytelling demands more, and as this excellent article by Sophia McDougall makes clear, sometimes the pursuit of the Strong Female Character actually undermines the quality of not just the story, but our expectations of female characters themselves.
I especially liked her comments about the problem with some Strong Female Characters' exaggerated shows of "strength", and I definitely recommend that you click the button below and check it out!
For others, it's symptomatic of a problem with writing female characters that has changed shape, but certainly hasn't gone away.
Personally, I like some strong female characters, and it's always nice to see the (often vastly outnumbered) women in the story holding their own.
But truly good storytelling demands more, and as this excellent article by Sophia McDougall makes clear, sometimes the pursuit of the Strong Female Character actually undermines the quality of not just the story, but our expectations of female characters themselves.
I especially liked her comments about the problem with some Strong Female Characters' exaggerated shows of "strength", and I definitely recommend that you click the button below and check it out!
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