On strong female characters at the expense of women by Chally at Zero at the Bone — “Leslie is a pretty amazing character, thoughtful and kind and imaginative as well as physically strong. I think Jesse learns to perceive her that way, however, because she doesn’t present as feminine. He is frustrated with and contemptuous of what he understands as a frivolity that governs the doings of feminine girls, and he routinely leaves his analysis of such girls’ thoughts, actions, and worth there. Jesse doesn’t consider how, having befriended one girl, he might want to re-examine his behaviours towards more conventionally feminine girls in his life.”
A Day In the Life of an Empowered Female Heroine by Mallory Ortberg at The Toast — ‘She woke up like she did every day: slowly pulling her motorcycle helmet off, then shaking her head slowly back and forth to reveal a long, blonde ponytail. Everyone gasped. “That’s right,” she said, kicking the winning football goal before sliding into a sheer, sexy camisole under a blazer and playing as hard as she worked, “I’ve been a girl this whole time.”’
Think of the Children! Tuesday: Lilo and Stitch by Deborah Pless at Kiss My Wonder Woman [note for some language that may stigmatize mental illness] — ” Which is why I find it really weird that we have so little regard as a culture for kids’ movies and media in general. I mean, these are the films and TV shows and books that are going to shape how the next generation views the world. Shouldn’t we, maybe, pay attention to that? It seems kind of important.
We’re full circle here. It is important, and that’s why, for the next however long it takes for me to run out of things to talk about we’re going to take one day a week and discuss children’s media. Because it really does matter, and I’ve been doing you all a disservice by pretending it doesn’t.”
Antidotes To Twilight: Y. A. Romances Done Right by Regina Peters at Positively Smitten — “Before I continue, I must admit that, yes, there is such a thing as an intelligent Twilight fan. I’ve read many of their stories on Fanfiction.net, often clever, funny, well-written and insightful. Stephenie Meyer’s world can be quite compelling in its emotional intensity, its twists on the old myths (Sparkling vampires? You’ve got to admit that’s original!), and its seductive images of eternal love and youth. As a teenager, I could easily see myself in the heroine. However, the series’ charm is also one of its biggest problems. Is Bella Swan really the role model we want our daughters and sisters to live up to?”
