To start, as the Fantastic is typically only written and read by the open minded, strong female protagonists attack sexism directly – showing women/girls as every bit as strong and brave as their male counterparts; and often wiser, being largely free of the masculine need to prove one's strength. Often, and when not they have something to prove indeed: their strength to the men who are determined that a woman's place is at hearth and home.
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Lady of the Shield-arm |
Yet even with Éowyn therein still lies the fact that, however noble her arm and heart, she still falls into the princess category – and most readers, while they love and admire her, are not royals. Luckily, finding royal female Fantasy characters is more of a challenge these days and the next great heroine to lead the charge against the chauvinist male chimera bore not a sword but a wand.
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"Yes, Miss Granger?" |
Ron: "Because that's what Hermione does. When in doubt, go to the library."
I guess talking about the relevance/importance of Hermione Granger is next of kin to preaching to the converted here in Fantasyland, but how can I ignore the brightest witch of her age? To start, Hermione is the opposite in royalty in the Wizarding World – the daughter of muggles and thus sometimes called "Mudblood" (a racial slur) by people like the Malfoys. Well, blood clearly has little relevance to brains and ability which is Miss Granger's claim to Hogwarts fame. There has always been an idiotic notion that women are not supposed to be as smart as men and should only speak when spoken to. Making Hermione a direct and brilliant attack upon the idea because, as the above quote implies, she can think and thus usually spellcast circles around her pureblood friends (such as Ron) and enemies (like Malfoy). Crucial points because, unlike Éowyn, Hermione does not live in a male dominated world and thus she has nothing to prove in that regard. Called a "know-it-all" who raises her hand in class as if trying to catch the sun, she is a strong, brave, loving girl who is easily the smartest character after Professor Dumbledore (and even that is an unfair comparison because he is an ancient sage with a full life of reading and experience behind him). All this may sound a tad disjointed compared to Éowyn, and this is because what made Hermione Granger a brilliant Fantasy female was not directly connected to the battle against Lord Voldemort. It was just her personality, a compulsive bookworm wise in matters of the heart who blasted sexist notions with a barrage of spells many of which are beyond the ability of her agemates. Hence, unlike the justly admired White Lady of Rohan, Miss Granger is someone who ordinary girls (and boys too, for that matter) can look up to without craning their necks quite so high. She shows that smart girls who care about and do well in school are as worthy or admiration as warrior princesses for, though I am loathe to quote GRRM, "A book can be as dangerous as a sword in the right hands." Or, in Hermione's case, a wand. (Not to say that Hermione is not a warrior but, in battle against sexism, it is not what makes her really special. And yes, I know that she is hardly the only inspirational female in the Harry Potter series, but Pottermore beat me to the punch on that one.)
Horace Slughorn: "Oho! 'One of my best friends is Muggle-born, and she's the best in our year!' I'm assuming this is the very friend of whom you spoke, Harry?"
Harry Potter: "Yes, sir."
Horace Slughorn: "Well, well, take 20 well-earned points for Gryffindor, Miss Granger."
— After Hermione impresses Slughorn with her potion knowledge
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Lyra and her leopard-formed dæmon Pantalaimon |
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Lyra (& mouse-Pan) and Iorek Byrnison |
Lyra Belacqua. Lyra Silvertongue. Lyra and her dæmon Pantalaimon (Pan). I have journeyed with countless people in my Fantasy readings and, even compared to Tolkien's Gandalf and Bilbo, Lyra has a earned a very special, almost sacred place in my heart. She, unlike Éowyn and in many ways Hermione, is just an ordinary girl. Rambunctious, hardly studious (despite growing up at a College), and with a brave heart the size of the sun and just as warm. Neither royal nor bookish yet feisty and clever, Lyra is arguably one of the most fascinating uses of a female protagonist because she is fighting against powers that want to teach her to hate her body and deny an essential part of her soul; the feminine/maternal soul. Like Miss Granger she has nothing to prove yet, unlike her, Lyra has no racial prejudice to contend with. Rather, Lyra is the simple and clever person who resists the notion that adults have all the power and that anyone can tell another how to think or behave. Her loyalty is simply to her friends and the truth; to common decency/morality: swearing she will rescue her friend Roger and fighting ice and church and death itself to do so, all the while mastering the Alethiometer to cut through the web of deceptions entangling her world. "You said I was a warrior. You told me that was my nature, and I shouldn’t argue with it. Father, you were wrong. I fought because I had to. I can’t choose my nature, but I can choose what I do. And I will choose, because now I’m free." I said of Hermione that, unlike Éowyn, Miss Granger is someone who ordinary girls (and boys too, for that matter) can look up to without craning their necks quite so high. This is even more true for Lyra because while Hermione's level of smarts is rare, Lyras are by Pullman's own admission quite common. Lyra is truly a normal girl thrust into an extraordinary/cosmic conflict and people can look up to her yet remain at eye-level. "Wow, I am a lot like her and look what she did!" That is what makes her special and so, so dear to her readers. I would say more, about how the end of her story reshaped my heart and helped define the principles of good writing I still cherish, but to do so would reveal a spoiler so vast as to transcend the Multiverse.
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Tarma (sitting), Kethry (standing), Warrl (the wolf thing) |
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Kerowyn (Kethry's granddaughter & Tarma's prize student) |
Now it is time to get simultaneously darker and brighter. A contradiction? Not where female mercenaries are concerned and doubly not so for Mercedes Lackey and her Valdemar books. These three ladies come from the school of hard knocks. Tarma shena Tale'sedrin is the sole survivor of the slaughter of her entire clan. After being gang-raped and strangled by the offending bandits she is left for dead. Fleeing to the neighboring Clan Liha'irden, she clings to life and sanity by harboring her desire for revenge. Meanwhile Kethryveris of House Pheregrul was, at age twelve, sold by her brother in marriage to a pedophile who preyed upon young girls. She was rescued by her old nurse, who took her to a White Winds school of sorcery where she was given the magic sword Need by one of her teachers who thought that she might have need of it in her wanderings (Worry not, for this is background knowledge, not spoilers). Not exactly the safe upbringings seen thus far and, indeed, Mercedes Lackey makes a point of showing the extremely gritty elements in the world as well as the bright. Oathsisters and with no other desirable options before them, Kethry and Tarma (and soon Warrl, who is male-minded and another story) take up a merc's life – selling their swords for money yet without cashing in their souls to make ends meet. Yes they go hungry at times, but the point to them is that no matter what one suffers one can get up again and push forward. "No disaster without some benefit" as the Shin'a'in proverb goes, as well as "Every scar is a lesson remembered" and "Just because you feel certain an enemy is lurking behind every bush, it doesn’t follow that you are wrong." Yet these two Oathsisters are anything but cynical, knowing, despite all endured, that there is much good in the world and in humanity at the large and that, all in all, the good and bad balance each other out. Theirs is a relatively uncommon Female-in-Fantasy role as the mercenary element puts a degree of separation between them and other warrior maids who are often (generally speaking) lady knights. Kethry is a devastatingly attractive sorceress, Tarma a hawk-faced celibate swordsworn. They know that men often look down on women (partially because men focus overmuch on a woman's looks), take the issue to heart and use it along with their wide-ranging talents to put such mentally blind/base males at a disadvantage. As to Kerowyn, I will leave her story a surprise, saying only that she is like to Éowyn save that she was not so honored and became a mercenary because she was, for all intents and purposes, an outcast.
"You can put a hawk in a songbirds cage, but it’s still a hawk."
— Tarma to Kero
These gals are three of my favorite women in literature period, for they show that only those who do not try with all their might to get up stay down, along with the fact that outcasts (and mercs) always find a home so long their as hearts are open and pure. A violated body does NOT equal a soiled/cynical mind.
Female mercenary, warrior princess, bookworm, ordinary girl. Naturally I listed my favorite examples of these tropes here, but rest assured that all four archetypes can be found in many other worlds; though they naturally differ in accordance with character and the author's philosophy.
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Crown Princess Cassandra |
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Kirra Danalustrous |
Now I must mention the warrior-princess-diplomat Female in Fantasy archetype. I shall not do a full entry here for, as the name implies, they effectively combine the courtier-diplomat with the warrior princess; hence possessing all the traits of Kirra and/or Cassandra with the exception that they are trained in bladecraft. Or, if one prefers, a more political Éowyn. A perfect example is Herald-Princess Elspeth from Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar books.
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Sabriel by Garth Nix |
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Alphabet of Thorn by Patricia A. McKillip |
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Melian the Maia |
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Lady Galadriel |
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Angela the Herbalist and her werecat companion Solembum |
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Eretria (she holds a flower here, but is better with a knife.) |
In all honestly I could go on and on, for while these are undoubtedly the most famed females of the Fantastic, they
are far from the only ones. Indeed, Fantasy literature now has more
woman/girl protagonists than otherwise and does its absolute best to
skewer sexism. Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings may have center male protagonist but they are now the exceptions to the
rule. Maerad, and Seraphina. Karigan, Calwyn and Alanna. Talia, Nepenthe, Katsa & Fire & Bitterblue, Morning Star & Echo and so many others. And this does this even touch the realm of TV, for how many unforgettable
females are there in Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra?! Nor
gaming, as I can name many book-worthy video games featuring women and
girls no less developed and amazing than those in many works of
literature; Lucina from Fire Emblem: Awakening, for example, is a hero I rank alongside Aragorn, and another (one of many) who has a strong place in my heart (albeit not as much as Lucina) is Chrodechild from the game Suikoden Tierkreis. Most, however, generally fit into the to character-types listed above. Generally. Not all by any means! Take Eretria here from Terry Brooks' Original Shannara Trilogy: she grew up in a highly sexist society, yet is both physically and mentally a very capable woman,
showing aptitude in horsemanship and knife fighting, seduction and
thievery, being as determinedly loving as she is clever and just plain
determined. In my mind she blends Éowyn and the female merc archetype. While my other friend Senneth from Sharon Shinn's The Twelve House series combines the female sage and mercenary with a bit of Lyra and Éowyn thrown in, and many other dear friends are practically categories unto themselves. This list covers the spectrum of archetypes, not laws, because Females in Fantasy are as varied as humanity at large.
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Avatar Korra |
Finally, it must now be understood that male protagonists are far from gone (just ask Will), yet they always have strong female companions whereas the female do not always have strong male ones. In fact, there is a good argument that the trend has been flipped: rather than a female being introduced to serve as the male's love-interest, now the male drops in (usually in an unflattering fashion) to serve as the female's. Granted this last is a bit of an oversimplification but, in general, it is near enough to the mark.
Also and on a side note, did anybody notice that Fantasy is filled with Dark Lords and generally lacking in Dark Ladies? If not, then rest assured that the great Diana Wynne Jones (Mistress of the Multiverse and Lady of Endless Surprises) did. Indeed, the fact only came to my attention upon reading her The Tough Guide to Fantasyland. Her books – each as different as night and day from each other as well as every other book you will ever read – are filled with female chief villains.
Anyway, I shall end with the words of Actress Anna Graves, who flawlessly articulates why female representation in Fantasy and beyond matters: “Fictional characters have the ability to make the impossible seem possible, and for young women who lack strong female role models in their life, it’s important to see a girl or woman in a situation where their character is problem-solving, fighting for good and can survive situations that are difficult. All young women need female heroes to look up to and female villains that can teach them what they shouldn’t be.”
"Kerowyn Kerowyn, where are you going?
Dressed in men's clothing, a sword by your side
Your face pale as death, and your eyes full of fury
Kerowyn Kerowyn, where do you ride?
Last night in the darkness black raiders attacked us
Our Hold lays in ruins below
They've stolen our treasure and the bride of my brother
And to her aid now I must go,
To her side now I must go
Kerowyn Kerowyn, where is your father?
And where is your brother? This task should be theirs
It is not seemly for maids to be warriors
Go back to your valley, and to woman's cares
My father lies dead at the hands of their leader
My brother lies raving in pain
The raiders left no man unwounded to free her
But in their hands she'll not remain,
I vow she'll not with them remain
Kerowyn Kerowyn, where are your senses?
What can you hope to accomplish alone
You have no knowledge of war or of weapons
Why loose your life, for a girl you scarce known
This is for more than a matter of honor
And more than a matter of pride
She's but a child, all alone and unaided
And someone at least should've tried,
So now to her rescue I ride
Grandmother, grandmother I need a weapon
I'm one against many, and I am afraid
The raiders have bought them a dark wizard's power
I cannot help Dierna without magic aid
Kerowyn, grand-daughter, into your keeping
I'll give you this sword I once wore
Need us her name now ride fearless to battle
She'll aid as she did me before, her magic is strong as before
Grandmother, grandmother, why turn so willing
Why did you try to persuade me to stay
Whence came this weapon of steel and of magic
And why do you choose now to give it away
Kerowyn, not for the weak or the fearful
Is the path of a warrior maid
You've passed all my tests, now ride out with my blessings
And trust in the spell of the blade, right now and go unafraid."
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