Feeling guilty about being disinterested in or disliking Rowling's female characters

[torchedsong.livejournal.com]

The title is self-explanatory. After rereading HP, I realized how let down I was about the dearth of interesting and/or likable female characters. As someone who has a long list of favorite female characters from various books, movies, TV shows, and video games, the women in the Harry Potter books leave me cold or bored.

Now, granted, the male characters aren’t spectacular either. Harry is passive, Ron is average, Draco is a waste, Snape is a mess, Dumbledore is also a mess, Voldemort is a standard villain, and plenty of other male characters are either boring or obnoxious.

And yet, as disappointing as some of the guys are, I can still find something about them interesting or engaging. I can see their potential or humanity, no matter how static, simplistic, or irritating their characterization is (well, maybe with the exception of James; I can’t stand him no matter how hard I try - and I’ve tried.)

Maybe I’m being sexist and judging the women too harshly. Maybe I’m not giving Rowling enough acclaim for trying to write a variety of female characters in a story revolving around a young boy. Maybe I’m excusing the poor characterization and lack of depth in the male characters when they’re far from complex either.

Whatever the reason is - it is what it is. Even as a young girl who enjoyed the books, I only gravitated towards Hermione and Luna. McGonagall was the sole female authority figure I found respectable. The rest?

Umbridge and Bellatrix are stereotypical images of evil. Narcissa is all about her son. Lavender and her friends are silly girly girls. Pansy is a mean girl. Millicent is an ugly mean girl. Fleur is French and beautiful. Katie and the other Quidditch gals are just there. Tonks is bubbly until she falls for Lupin. Cho is the first love interest. Molly is Harry’s overbearing surrogate mother. Petunia is Lily’s awful sister. Rita is the “pushy” career woman. Trelawney is an oddball. Sprout might as well be nonexistent. Merope is the birther of Evil Incarnate.

And then there’s the two female characters that I dislike the most: Ginny and Lily. They’re depicted as wonderful young women we’re meant to admire and adore. And yet, I’d take rude Pansy and crazy Bellatrix over them any day. Even Harry, who is portrayed as “amazing” at times, is given some flaws and criticisms within the narrative. Not everyone adores Harry and he’s called out by other characters (including his friends) for his behavior. But Ginny and Lily are overwhelmingly worshiped to the point where I can feel Rowling hitting me over the head on how I must approve of their superiority awesome personalities.

Writing this post is not doing any favors for the feminist in me. Strange thing is, from what I’ve read, JKR considers herself a feminist. But her female characters are not compelling or well written enough. Her male characters fall flat as well, but at least with the boys and men, it seems like she tried to give them depth. With the exception of Hermione, I get the sense that JKR didn’t bother to go any deeper with the girls and women. (And it’s telling how Hermione is an Author Avatar and the female character JKR put the most effort into.)

Well, this bitter rambling post has gone long enough, so I’ll end it here. Am I being too harsh and unfair or is there something off about the way JKR writes women? Or is it no different than the way she writes men? I know this topic is far from new, but I'm forevermore late to the party.

Comments

[chantaldormand]

I'll say this: never let anybody guilt trip you for not liking a character who happens to be woman/black/gay/etc. A character has to be able to stand on it's own, no matter if we are speaking about a Cosmic Pink Teapot or representative of minority. If character ends up being flat or Marry Sue or plainly uninteresting then it's fault of author and/or editor.

As for what is wrong with female characters in HPverse? Well the problem is two-folded.

We are exploring HPverse through Harry's eyes, but because JKR cannot comprehend being attracted to women, Harry ends up looking completely uninterested in them. Most girls end up being described by a trope Jo assigned them and Harry interacts with them only when plot calls for it. Men on the other hand get elaborate descriptions of their clothing or expressions.
It's no wonder that this fandom ended up being full of m/m ffs :P

The other level of the problem isn't exclusive to JKR, but rather common in story telling.
Age old problem of Marry Sue vs. Garry Stu.
A few months back I discussed this over drinks with one of my writer friends. We ended up creating this elaborated table comparing Marry Sues to Garry Stus. Our conclusion was something like this: Garry Stu is special because ofwhat they do, Marry Sue is special because of what they are. That is why it's easier to like/respect/admire a character like James Bond than let's say Bella Swan.
That being said Marry Sue is not always female and Gary Stu is not always male ;P

[torchedsong.livejournal.com]

A character has to be able to stand on it's own, no matter if we are speaking about a Cosmic Pink Teapot or representative of minority.

I agree. Representation is important, but it's better when it's supported by well written characters.

We are exploring HPverse through Harry's eyes, but because JKR cannot comprehend being attracted to women, Harry ends up looking completely uninterested in them.

JKR being a heterosexual woman would influence the way she writes Harry and his perception of girls. This is probably the main reason why the romances involving Harry are so lackluster. Cho is pretty and athletic, and that's pretty much it. Ginny is pretty and athletic and ignites the chest monster within, so obviously she's Harry's soulmate (but only after she gets an upgrade; when she was a bashful background damsel, Harry hardly spared her a single thought beyond her being taken in COS).

Also, I think the prevalence of m/m slash goes back to the male characters having more potential again. The influential interactions in the series involves male characters. The major players on stage are male. Harry, the Marauders, Snape, Voldemort, Dumbledore, and even Draco... all of them have more presence in the overall story than the women. Maybe this is why Hermione is commonly shipped with many characters as well; she's the exceptional female player who's on somewhat of an equal playing field with the males.

And yes, there's a stronger focus on the appearance of male characters. Their faces, body language, eyes, and clothing are given more attention. On the other hand, The female characters seem to have one or two defining features, such as Hermione's bushy brown hair or Ginny's flaming red hair or Lily's ultra extraordinary green eyes, etc.

Our conclusion was something like this: Garry Stu is special because of what they do, Marry Sue is special because of what they are. That is why it's easier to like/respect/admire a character like James Bond than let's say Bella Swan.

That's a great way of summarizing it. It goes back to the way men and women are judged in reality as well. Men pursue, women are pursued. Men act, women are acted upon, etc. It's not something I agree with obviously, but the mentality can influence how male and female characters are treated in stories.

I tend to hesitate using the term "Mary Sue" because I know it can be thrown around without consideration. Sometimes a woman simply being competent and skilled in a story is enough for people to brand her as a Mary Sue. But that's not the requirement for a character being a Mary Sue. A Mary Sue, as you've said, is someone who is special on the merit of their existence alone. They're perfect with little to no flaws and are beloved by nearly everyone, even the bad guys. They are rarely called out for making any mistakes (if they make any in the first place).

Ginny and Lily seem like Mary Sues to me, especially Lily. She's extra beautiful, extra smart, extra popular, extra kind, and her presence alone is enough to make James into a better person. Plus, she's the center of the universe for one of the most spiteful and morally ambiguous characters in the series. Snape hates everyone - except for Lily. She's special enough to be worshiped by him for the rest of his life. And she's never criticized by Harry. James is (briefly) knocked down from his pedestal when Harry sees what a bully he was, but Lily remains an idealized figure in Harry's life. Petunia says some mean words about her, but no one likes or cares about Petunia. It's another way for Lily to look good in comparison. No one is ever portrayed as being better than her.

The more a character's perfect existence is shoved down my throat, the less I care about them. That's why I'd take irrevocably evil Bellatrix over lovely Lily; at least Bellatrix is fun in her messed up way.

I know the story is meant to be all about Harry, so it makes sense that other characters are going to come second, especially if they're not related to him. But it's frustrating nonetheless to have such an abysmal quality and quantity of women in Harry's world.