Something that's been bugging me for awhile...

[sweettalkeress]

 So, a few years ago now I was having a conversation with a friend about women in anime, and he pointed me to Nausicaa (of Nausicaa of the Valley of Four Winds fame) as a good example of a feminist heroine because according to him, she actually felt like a real woman and not just a stereotype or a man in a woman's body.

Now, I'm not about to deny

Comments

[aikaterini]

Apologies for the really late comment.

/it implies that all men and women inherently act in certain ways, and that if a female character doesn't have enough "womanly" qualities she automatically fails to be a good female character because she doesn't count as a woman, just as a macho man in a woman's body./

I feel the same way when people criticize a male character for being 'too girly and effeminate'. I know that there are writing guides on how to differentiate male voices from female voices, but I don't really pay attention to that sort of thing while I'm reading. If a female character's a tomboy, she's a tomboy; if a male character likes fashion and jewelry, he likes fashion and jewelry. Instead of trying to broaden gender roles, as authors try to do by making their male romantic leads sensitive or giving their female leads a gun, I think that what the 'man with breasts' criticism really does is restrict them.