KHR and Women
I love KHR, but that hasn't stopped me from noticing what seems to be a horrible case of sexism that runs rampant throughout the entire series. IMO, sexism has always represented one of the worst aspects of shonen, but KHR (in part because of the fact that it thrives on fanservice) seems to have taken it one step further. The ultimate irony (though this is not particularly surprising) is, of course, that the writer of the series is a female.
1. The prevalence of traditional gender roles throughout the entire series is so pronounced that Amano could have just decked the girls in skirts and dresses and confined their usefulness to washing clothes and making sandwiches in the kitchen. Oh wait a second... that's exactly what she did ! Sexism was at its peak during the future arc; when the boys plodded home with scars and bruises from their rough, sweaty, manly battles, the girls decided (aloud) that the best thing they could do, given their clearly inferior physiques and capabilities, was to cook ! And clean ! And do laundry, and take care of the children !
What a joke. Even the likes of Bleach and Naruto can better handle their protagonists' main romantic interests; at least Sakura has kick ass strength and Rukia, an intelligent mind and an infallible dignity. (Of course, this is not to say that they do not have their own set of problems, but to explore them will inadvertently open a new can of worms...)
2. Tsuna's lack of female guardians, and the general lack of females in positions of power throughout the series (think Arcobanelo and Varia) further heightens the gender entrenchment. I was elated for the briefest moment when Chrome finally entered the scene, only to realise that she was half dead, literally dependent on a male for survival, a perpetual potential victim of ~TENTACLE RAEP~ and made up approximately half a guardian (or arguably even less). Out of the seven available slots in a famiglia. To worsen everything, she blushes at the drop of a hat, goes 'mukuro...sama' in her soft whiny voice, and seems to be incapable of finishing most of her battles without Mukuro's eventual interference.
3. Bianchi is a character with tremendous potential in terms of character development; as one of the few adults that appear on a frequent basis, she functions as a voice of maturity and reason for the boys. Yet her abilities are derived primarily from kitchen skills that were initially introduced as a gag in the series, and this only serves to drive home the 'Women Are Defined By Their Domestic Capabilities' message. She hardly does proper fighting, and when she does, she 1. battles with a girl or 2. almost loses, and consequently needs to be saved by the guys.
4. None of the girls seem to be 'on their own', in the sense that their presence has always been, and will probably always be, strongly linked with another male in the series, thereby perpetuating the notion that girls will only ever function mainly as love interests. Kyoko and Haru are essentially useless when they're not being Tsuna's 'pillars of support'/ chef/ cleaner/ babysitter/ maid. Chrome is literally dead without Mukuro. Bianchi is a rabid fangirl of Reborn. Adelheid serves primarily as Enma's babysitter. Let's not even start on MM. Luce, the only girl amongst the Arcobaleno, gets pregnant and dies early. Oh yes, because women are only good at reproduction. I mean, for Gods' sake, we are given wombs for a reason !
Why isn't it the same for the guys, then ? Why is it that Hibari is characterised by his unique traits and personality, and not as a mere Object of Protection/ Romantic Interest to a girl ? Ditto Squalo, and Xanxus, and, well, most of the people blessed with a Y-chromosome ?
5.. I absolutely love Lal, and anyone who is vaguely acquainted with me will know that I ship ColoLal with the very last bit of my lovey dovey obsessive teenage heart. This, however, does not serve to quell the rage of the feminist in me: I was annoyed at how Colonello bore the curse for her (possibly because she's a female; can you imagine Colonello stepping in the way to take the curse from another guy ? You can't ? Well, neither can I \:D/ ) just so that she can be more lady like in the future. And I am quoting this ad verbatim. And for how powerful she's supposed to be, there is also a disturbing lack of fighting scenes for Lal; during the Melone base invasion, she pits herself against a doll, gets knocked out in the process, and consequently spends the rest of the time on Yamamoto's back in a semi-paralysed state.
To conclude: As I said, I love KHR, but that does not make it any less flawed. The hidden, unspoken message behind the series is startlingly clear, and for all its ostensible messages (keep in mind, folks, that this is shonen) about the importance of friendship ! and love ! and determination !, it is also testament to the glaring fact that the depiction of females in shonen is desperately in need of radical changes.
So, my dearest f-list, what is your take on this ?
NOTE: I do not mean to bash any character. This post was not written to character bash. Rather, it was written to highlight the extent of the ludicrous misogyny in KHR, an intrinsic problem inherent in many works of shonen. I cannot stress this enough. Please do not spam me with comments like 'your wrong !!! khr is about LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP and chrome kicks ass, your a meanie !!!!!' because I will ignore you and possibly pity you.
1. The prevalence of traditional gender roles throughout the entire series is so pronounced that Amano could have just decked the girls in skirts and dresses and confined their usefulness to washing clothes and making sandwiches in the kitchen. Oh wait a second... that's exactly what she did ! Sexism was at its peak during the future arc; when the boys plodded home with scars and bruises from their rough, sweaty, manly battles, the girls decided (aloud) that the best thing they could do, given their clearly inferior physiques and capabilities, was to cook ! And clean ! And do laundry, and take care of the children !
What a joke. Even the likes of Bleach and Naruto can better handle their protagonists' main romantic interests; at least Sakura has kick ass strength and Rukia, an intelligent mind and an infallible dignity. (Of course, this is not to say that they do not have their own set of problems, but to explore them will inadvertently open a new can of worms...)
2. Tsuna's lack of female guardians, and the general lack of females in positions of power throughout the series (think Arcobanelo and Varia) further heightens the gender entrenchment. I was elated for the briefest moment when Chrome finally entered the scene, only to realise that she was half dead, literally dependent on a male for survival, a perpetual potential victim of ~TENTACLE RAEP~ and made up approximately half a guardian (or arguably even less). Out of the seven available slots in a famiglia. To worsen everything, she blushes at the drop of a hat, goes 'mukuro...sama' in her soft whiny voice, and seems to be incapable of finishing most of her battles without Mukuro's eventual interference.
3. Bianchi is a character with tremendous potential in terms of character development; as one of the few adults that appear on a frequent basis, she functions as a voice of maturity and reason for the boys. Yet her abilities are derived primarily from kitchen skills that were initially introduced as a gag in the series, and this only serves to drive home the 'Women Are Defined By Their Domestic Capabilities' message. She hardly does proper fighting, and when she does, she 1. battles with a girl or 2. almost loses, and consequently needs to be saved by the guys.
4. None of the girls seem to be 'on their own', in the sense that their presence has always been, and will probably always be, strongly linked with another male in the series, thereby perpetuating the notion that girls will only ever function mainly as love interests. Kyoko and Haru are essentially useless when they're not being Tsuna's 'pillars of support'/ chef/ cleaner/ babysitter/ maid. Chrome is literally dead without Mukuro. Bianchi is a rabid fangirl of Reborn. Adelheid serves primarily as Enma's babysitter. Let's not even start on MM. Luce, the only girl amongst the Arcobaleno, gets pregnant and dies early. Oh yes, because women are only good at reproduction. I mean, for Gods' sake, we are given wombs for a reason !
Why isn't it the same for the guys, then ? Why is it that Hibari is characterised by his unique traits and personality, and not as a mere Object of Protection/ Romantic Interest to a girl ? Ditto Squalo, and Xanxus, and, well, most of the people blessed with a Y-chromosome ?
5.. I absolutely love Lal, and anyone who is vaguely acquainted with me will know that I ship ColoLal with the very last bit of my lovey dovey obsessive teenage heart. This, however, does not serve to quell the rage of the feminist in me: I was annoyed at how Colonello bore the curse for her (possibly because she's a female; can you imagine Colonello stepping in the way to take the curse from another guy ? You can't ? Well, neither can I \:D/ ) just so that she can be more lady like in the future. And I am quoting this ad verbatim. And for how powerful she's supposed to be, there is also a disturbing lack of fighting scenes for Lal; during the Melone base invasion, she pits herself against a doll, gets knocked out in the process, and consequently spends the rest of the time on Yamamoto's back in a semi-paralysed state.
To conclude: As I said, I love KHR, but that does not make it any less flawed. The hidden, unspoken message behind the series is startlingly clear, and for all its ostensible messages (keep in mind, folks, that this is shonen) about the importance of friendship ! and love ! and determination !, it is also testament to the glaring fact that the depiction of females in shonen is desperately in need of radical changes.
So, my dearest f-list, what is your take on this ?
NOTE: I do not mean to bash any character. This post was not written to character bash. Rather, it was written to highlight the extent of the ludicrous misogyny in KHR, an intrinsic problem inherent in many works of shonen. I cannot stress this enough. Please do not spam me with comments like 'your wrong !!! khr is about LOVE AND FRIENDSHIP and chrome kicks ass, your a meanie !!!!!' because I will ignore you and possibly pity you.