Women in Fantasy
Women in Fantasy and Speculative Fiction
The portrayal of women in fantasy has been plagued with discrimination, objectification, stereotyping, and even sexual violence in spite of the fact that female characters are often critical to the storytelling narrative. It has only been recently that this has begun to change. It is still problematic that "strong women" are still frequently interpreted and written as men that also happen to have breasts. This category is specifically dedicated to women in fantasy and speculative fiction. This will address the portrayal of women in fantasy, female fantasy tropes, and characters in significant works of fantasy and speculative fiction. As fantasy often reflects modern society, female characters often experience the same problems as women face today. These topics include gender discrimination, sex role stereotypes, the objectification of women, and sexual violence. My goal is to bring awareness of the role of women in fantasy without being obnoxiously social justice preachy.Women in Fantasy Tropes
In some ways, the fantasy genre is the last bastion of outdated gender roles and sex role stereotypes. While this is beginning to change with authors like Brandon Sanderson and Ian C. Esslemont, female characters are still more likely to be written as a caricature and stereotyped as either the helpless damsel in distress, the whore with a heart of gold, or the "strong female" which is often written more like a male with breasts or as a scantily clad barbarian. Here, we'll explore the continuing evolution of the female character in fantasy and speculative fiction, including the growth and development of female characters. We'll also discuss female fantasy authors, their journey as an author, and the obstacles they overcame to become published fantasy authors.-
Kill The Girl! Women In Science Fiction And Fantasy
Women In Fantasy and Science Fiction – Why are women treated so differently than men? Updated April 2018—Over the last couple of weeks, I read several articles about gender disparity in SF/F. It all started with the article “I Hate Strong Female Characters” by Sophia McDougall published in The Statesmen. Pretty soon, I had also come across articles like “Sleeps With Monsters: Reading, Writing, Radicalisation” a two part article from blogger Liz Burke over at Tor.com and then “Gender Bias in SF/F Round Table” a two part article from blogger Matt Gilliard at 52Reviews.com All three of these bloggers had a lot to say about gender disparity in science fiction…
