McAnally's (The Community Pub) > Author Craft
Hero vs. Heroine
jeno:
--- Quote from: Snowleopard on January 22, 2011, 07:10:24 PM ---A GiGS female warrior would charge blindly at a foe way bigger than she was and, because she's the heroine, manage to defeat said warrior without getting her ass kicked. A true female warrior would be way more wary of a bigger foe because she knows she can't take him on in brute strength - she has to use her head and any other resources.
--- End quote ---
Isn't this a bit of a double standard? (and by 'a bit,' I mean huge.)
Male action heroes routinely charge foes who are taller, more muscled, and just plan bigger than they are. Then the male hero wins and the audience goes along with it every time, despite the fact that said foe is always taller, bigger, stronger, etc. On a very base level, the audience expects the hero to bash through all obstacles, no matter how over matched he is.
But when a female hero charges a foe who is equally stronger than her as the male hero's opponent was to him... then it's completely unbelievable because she's not acting like a female. What?
You say the female warrior should step back and evaluate the situation and use it to her advantage. Sure, of course. But so should the male warrior. As a rule, heroes don't take on people who are smaller and weaker than they are - they take on people who are bigger and stronger, no matter their sex. The smarter ones win through resourcefulness, but there are countless male heroes who do it just by charging the larger opponent and winning anyway.
To break it down:
Male Warrior + Charge + Much Larger Opponent = A Win = Standard Procedure
versus
Female Warrior + Charge + Much Larger Opponent = A Win = Unbelievable Because There's No Way A Charge Against A Much Larger Opponent Could Work, And Anyway, She's Not Acting Like A Girl.
Brashness is not an exclusively male trait. Neither is the urge to fight. Trust me on this.
Paynesgrey:
I'm reminded of a wretched pirate movie in which Gina Davis was a Touch Chick Pirate Princess Sort. I recall watching her run up to a big muscley tough pirate guy, grab his head between her hands and just snap his neck using only the strength of her chicken wing arms. That would be a movie example of Girl In A Guy Suit. (Not so much in the mental/psychological areas, rather the physical.) But it still turned the movie from "Bad Enough As It Is" to "Lord, They Just Made It Worse." On the average, men are larger and stronger. Sure, there's odd exception, like the nice Samoan girl in college who used giggle as she tossed my 6 foot 2 self around like a raggedy andy doll on the judo mat, but most women I outmass and outmuscle, and most couldn't take or deliver the hits I can. Physics is just generally unkind to the Smaller Object, unless that smaller object is smarter and gets the hell out of the wya. It's a tangible difference between the sexes. One of the things I love about Murphy is that she's written in a way that she doesn't try to be Gina Davis Neck Snapping Girl. She trains like hell, and in martial arts which don't try match her weaknesses against an enemy's strength. It's believable to read about her bending some thug in unnatural and amusing directions with akido, jiu-jistu and judo, rather than seeing her muscle up to a toe to to slugging match with Mike Tyson a la muay thai.
Snowleopard:
^
What he said. Thanks PG. I never saw the Gina Davis movie so didn't know about that scene. But oh so unbelievable. ::)
jeno:
--- Quote from: Paynesgrey on January 26, 2011, 04:07:30 AM ---I'm reminded of a wretched pirate movie in which Gina Davis was a Touch Chick Pirate Princess Sort. I recall watching her run up to a big muscley tough pirate guy, grab his head between her hands and just snap his neck using only the strength of her chicken wing arms. That would be a movie example of Girl In A Guy Suit. (Not so much in the mental/psychological areas, rather the physical.) But it still turned the movie from "Bad Enough As It Is" to "Lord, They Just Made It Worse."
--- End quote ---
Uh huh. And it's not unbelievable when James Bond/Indiana Jones/whatever action hero you care to name takes on a mook twice as large as he is and wins? The point isn't that the smaller person easily taking down the larger person is unbelievable. The point is that it's a double standard.
--- Quote from: Paynesgrey on January 26, 2011, 04:07:30 AM ---Physics is just generally unkind to the Smaller Object, unless that smaller object is smarter and gets the hell out of the wya.
--- End quote ---
See above about Double Standards with larger opponents. It's never realistic, but male characters constantly get a free pass while female characters get "they're not acting like women."
Snowleopard:
--- Quote from: jeno on January 26, 2011, 04:23:20 AM ---Uh huh. And it's not unbelievable when James Bond/Indiana Jones/whatever action hero you care to name takes on a mook twice as large as he is and wins? The point isn't that the smaller person easily taking down the larger person is unbelievable. The point is that it's a double standard.
See above about Double Standards with larger opponents. It's never realistic, but male characters constantly get a free pass while female characters get "they're not acting like women."
--- End quote ---
No it's not particularly believable when a male hero takes on a ginormous opponent and beats them. However the audience is usually rooting so much for the good guy that they don't care.
Unfortunately the double standard exists in movies too.
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