Greetings!
I had to write a brief response to “Where the Girls
Are: Growing Up Female with the Mass Media” for a
History class I’m taking and I chose to focus on the
image of superheroes. Hope you like it!
Patty
>
> Patty:
This was an interesting take on the book. I like that
you zeroed in on one topic and did your own cultural
studies reading.
>
> At 12:56 AM 4/3/01 -0700, you wrote:
> >Here’s my response paper, which can easily be
> titled “Confessions of a Grrrl Geek.”
> >
> >Patty Marvel
> >HSTY 354
> >Response to “Where the Girls Are”
> >April 3, 2001
> >
Imagine if you will two little girls – one blonde and
the other her younger, brunette sister – sitting in
front of the television after school but before Dad
came home from work, circa 1970s. Imagine them staring
eagerly at the screen for that ONE image in the
opening credits that will make the unfolding episode
of “Batman” all the more enjoyable. Imagine them
cheering as the image – that of Batgirl zooming across
the screen on her motorcycle – because they now know
the lone female crime fighter in this universe will be
making one of her all too rare appearances. This was
the scene in my living room as my big sister Kim and I
huddled in front of the tube, psyched about the morsel
of estrogen power we – and presumably, other little
girls – were starving for from television.
In her introduction to “Where the Girls Are: Growing
Up Female with the Mass Media,” Susan J. Douglas
points out that pop culture focusing on boys is
cherished, while pop culture focusing on girls
receives less notice (Batgirl didn’t show up in the
“Batman” movie franchise until the forth film). This
seems to be changing, at least in the realm of
television shows, as indicated by the big screen
versions of “Charlie’s Angels” and the
soon-to-be-released “Josie and the Pussycats.” What
I’m interested in – and what I hope Douglas covers in
greater depth if there’s an updated edition of her
book – are the images of female superheroes, the
people we aspire to dress up as for Halloween.
The one female hero who gets any notice in Douglas’
book is Wonder Woman (I don’t count the Bionic Woman
as a “superhero,” because her powers aren’t a part of
her nature but are supplied by man-made gadgets), even
though I can recall watching other female heroes on
TV, including Mighty Isis (her live-action show came
on right after Captain Marvel late Saturday mornings),
Electra Woman and Dyna Girl (brought to you by the
same folks who created “H. R. Puffinstuff” and
“Captain Cool and the Congs”) and the aforementioned
Batgirl. I enjoyed watching Wonder Woman and will even
watch it today since the Sci-Fi Channel keeps
rerunning the twenty-plus-year-old episodes.
Admittedly, I now cringe along with Douglas when the
opening credits for the first season episodes run,
because the opening theme for that year – and that
year only, thank God – included irritating lyrics such
as the following:
“In your satin tights, fighting for your rights… ”
Oh, there was more where that came from, such as“we’re
all so proud of yoooooouu” and other silliness
I’ve never heard directed at Superman or any other
male hero I can think of (can you imagine a similar
lyric treatment for The Man of Steel? “Capturing the
creeps, in your red silk briefs!”). As the Sci-Fi
Channel continues rerunning “Wonder Woman,” I’m
reminded that by season two, the opening theme was
mostly an instrumental with the occasional “Wonder
Womaaaaan” thrown in – bye-bye cheese ball lyrics!
However, I beg to differ with Douglas’ complaints
about the female superhero, largely because they apply
to her male counterparts as well. For example, the
author seems to think it silly that the mild-mannered
Diana Prince, Wonder Woman’s alter ego, only had to
put on glasses and business attire so no one knew who
she really was . May I point out this same cover
worked for Clark Kent? And at least Wonder Woman/
Diana Prince had the added “disguise” of different
hairdos. And contrary to what Douglas writes, Wonder
Woman’s personal issues could also be applied to
Superman and Batman – they too, had to keep their
identities secret from their sweeties (Lois Lane and
Vicki Vale, respectively), and I don’t recall either
of them talking about their goals and ambitions,
except for getting the baddies in jail.
I would slightly amend Douglas’ complaint that “[the
media] would show us women with power, but only in
comic book settings that could never be mistaken for
reality .” Yes, we girls are trailing behind the boys
in real-life power-babes, but judging by her
complaints, the author doesn’t seem to understand that
our female superheroes are no better or worse than the
male ones, we grrl geeks just could use MORE of them.
Question for discussion – Think of some contemporary
female superheroes, like Xena and The Powerpuff Girls.
How do they compare to contemporary boy-oriented
heroes? Are their powers any more or less impressive
than those of their male counterparts? Do any of the
female heroes have attributes that would seem silly on
a male hero? And what would a female superhero of your
own making be like and why?
[One of my fellow students said she thinks Rogue’s
power is silly. - Patty]