angry feminist time!
Do I really have to explain why a flowchart labeling all the ways female characters can be unacceptable and inadequate does not belong on a feminist blog? Really?
Okay, I guess I will. It'll be short because it's pretty early for me.
One of the stars around which sexism orbits is the madonna/whore complex. Women are either Good Women or Bad Women; they cannot be evaluated simply as people. In "traditional" sexism, sexuality is the major tool used to divide women into Good and Bad, hence the name "madonna/whore complex." However, in fandom and other treatment of media, other standards can be used.
But ultimately, there is no way to win. No matter what someone does as a woman, and no matter how a character is written as a woman, there is always some way to measure her up against impossible standards and find her wanting. And that is how sexism thrives.
Take a third option. Evaluate both fictional characters (for practice) and real women (for the real deal) as people in the same way you would evaluate men and male characters. Don't force them into categories simply because they're female.
It's not that hard.
Okay, I guess I will. It'll be short because it's pretty early for me.
One of the stars around which sexism orbits is the madonna/whore complex. Women are either Good Women or Bad Women; they cannot be evaluated simply as people. In "traditional" sexism, sexuality is the major tool used to divide women into Good and Bad, hence the name "madonna/whore complex." However, in fandom and other treatment of media, other standards can be used.
But ultimately, there is no way to win. No matter what someone does as a woman, and no matter how a character is written as a woman, there is always some way to measure her up against impossible standards and find her wanting. And that is how sexism thrives.
Take a third option. Evaluate both fictional characters (for practice) and real women (for the real deal) as people in the same way you would evaluate men and male characters. Don't force them into categories simply because they're female.
It's not that hard.