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In which fandom annoys me sometimes
On a list of things that annoy me without exception, near the top of the list has to be the statement 'I'm not sexist/misogynist/whatever, I just don't like female characters/most female characters/whatever'.
B.U.L.L.S.H.I.T
Especially when this is framed as some sort of feminist thing. 'Oh, I would like female characters, but they're all so poorly written! It's not my fault, it's the sexist writers' fault!'
B.U.L.L.S.H.I.T
Which is not to say that there is nothing wrong with the current State Of The Female CHaracter As A Whole, because there is and I do think it's important to recognize that. Female characters do get ignored and screwed over in favor of male ones. It happens. A lot. And it sucks.
But. Do they seriously mean to suggest that because of this trend, that there are no female characters they can get interested in? Or very few, compared with the male ones? Or, more infuriating still, that that allows them to make sweeping generalizations of quality (for example "anime girls suck")? I say again:
B.U.L.L.S.H.I.T
I could go into detail about exactly why this is bullshit but I'm reasonably certain that most everybody who reads my journal agrees with me on this point, so it would be largely pointless. So I'll just summarize it quickly: When there is an obvious trend in your tastes (ie preferring male characters over female ones), those trends exist for a reason. And you should really ask yourself: does this trend exist because of external factors (ie the quality of the works or characters)? Or do they exist BECAUSE OF MY OWN INTERNALIZED BIASES, WHICH AFFECT THE WAY I READ THE TEXT.
I suspect they would find the answer enlightening.
Especially when this is framed as some sort of feminist thing. 'Oh, I would like female characters, but they're all so poorly written! It's not my fault, it's the sexist writers' fault!'
Which is not to say that there is nothing wrong with the current State Of The Female CHaracter As A Whole, because there is and I do think it's important to recognize that. Female characters do get ignored and screwed over in favor of male ones. It happens. A lot. And it sucks.
But. Do they seriously mean to suggest that because of this trend, that there are no female characters they can get interested in? Or very few, compared with the male ones? Or, more infuriating still, that that allows them to make sweeping generalizations of quality (for example "anime girls suck")? I say again:
I could go into detail about exactly why this is bullshit but I'm reasonably certain that most everybody who reads my journal agrees with me on this point, so it would be largely pointless. So I'll just summarize it quickly: When there is an obvious trend in your tastes (ie preferring male characters over female ones), those trends exist for a reason. And you should really ask yourself: does this trend exist because of external factors (ie the quality of the works or characters)? Or do they exist BECAUSE OF MY OWN INTERNALIZED BIASES, WHICH AFFECT THE WAY I READ THE TEXT.
I suspect they would find the answer enlightening.
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