female characters - very long and very opinionated

[Schlobin at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 3466

I fear that I will be shot for this post, but here goes anyway.

Someone wrote that they didn't understand critics suggestion that
there wasn't a strong female character, after all, there is Hermione.

And, by the way, unlike some others, I really like Hermione. She's absolutely 
smart. She has ethics. She's cool.

Now, remember, I love JKR. I adore these books. I talk about them
constantly.

But I must suggest that JKR is male-identified. That is, she sees Hermione 
(and probably herself) as the exception. Hermione is not like the other 
girls. She  doesn't giggle, run in packs, or do a lot of the other 
traditionally girl behavior that JKR doesn't  particularly like. She's 
brilliant, hard working, and takes things seriously. She is NOT just the girl 
who helps the boy slay the dragon (as someone suggests). Who helped
save Sirius Black? She's adventurous; she's inventive. But she is the 
EXCEPTION.
Just as many strong, intelligent women, she survives/flourishes by hanging 
out with men and bonding with men. She demonstrates that she can be feminine 
and attract men by attracting
a GoF champion, and looking beautiful at the Yule Ball. She can do it all if 
she wants, but she has nothing in common with the vast majority of 
women/girls.

There are NO strong female/female bonds in the book. No women supporting 
women to fight injustice. Just mostly male bonding. (not as bad as it would 
have been 50 years ago)

The vast majority of the cool, powerful, efficacious characters are men/boys. 
James Potter, Sirius
Black, Lupin, Dumbledore, Voldemort, Snape, Malfoy, Barty Crouch, Senior, 
Barty Crouch, Junior, Harry, Ron, Fred, George, Bill, Percy, Hagrid, 
Wormtail. Quirrell. Arthur Weasley. 
The departments in the M of M are all headed by men. Even all of the Death 
Eaters (except Madame Lestrange) are men. Even the majority of the ghosts are 
men!

Almost all of the women are defined as mothers/partners, yet few of the men 
are defined that way. Molly Weasley (I love her) is defined that way. (Let me 
be crystal clear. Mothering is essential; women who work in the home are 
incredible. But there are no men who are defined merely as fathers/partners). 
And in fact, Molly is one of the strongest female influences in the books. 
Yet someone on the list defined her as angry and menopausal, and obviously 
not the erotic partner of Arthur Weasley. I disagree.  So  Lily Potter is 
also defined as the mother who sacrificed all for her son. Yet she is still 
an enigma.  We know a bunch about James and his friends, but almost nothing 
about Lily. Cho is described as a strong girl, Quidditch player, but her 
major role is as Cedric's date and Harry's crush. The Ravenclaw prefect 
(Penelope?) is there as Percy's
amour. The three slimy Slytherins are boys - the only female Slytherins are 
an enigma - Millicent unpleasant, and the girl who accompanies Malfoy to the 
ball. Is it Bertha Jorgenson who is the space cadet who is wandering around 
Albania and becomes the pawn of Voldemort?  Another stereotypical portrayal…. 
 Even Mrs. Dursley doesn't work outside the home. Vernon makes the decisions 
and rules the roost. The Divination Professor is an ass. The healer is sweet 
but functions in the old female stereotype of nurse. Wasn't Neville's mother 
only tortured to see if she knew anything about what Neville's father was 
doing - he was the actor; she was the supporter?
Moaning Myrtle might have the most female characterization, but again, it 
harks back to an unpleasant, unpopular girl.

Then we have the Sirens ---- whoops the Veela - who enslave men with their 
erotic attraction
only to turn into monsters (the old toothed vagina stuff)..sexy women as 
dangerous ones who
will rob Samson of his…..okay maybe I'm going off here….

Then, we have the four houses. We know the most about Gryffindor, then 
Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. Is it any coincidence that Godric and 
Salazar were men but Helga and what's her name are women? 

Now for the women with the most potential. I'm afraid Minerva McGonagall 
tends to function as an aide or administrative assistant to Albus Dumbledore. 
I myself was furious at her for not standing up to Cornelius Fudge and 
letting the Dementor give the kiss to BC, Jr. Otherwise, I 
really like her. I love the fact that she's an animaga (okay, my Latin is 
rusty but she wouldn't be an animagus would she?) and that Dumbledore has 
never seen a cat so severe…I love that
she wants to win the Quidditch match and lets Harry have a broomstick first 
year. I love her Scottish accent, and how she changes her desk into a pig. 
But I'm afraid that she's not that strong a character, certainly not if you 
contrast her with Sirius or Lupin or Crouch. 

Ginny Weasley has potential as does Madame Maxine. 

I'd love to see this trend change.

susan (bracing herself for the fury of the list unleashed)