This blog post is a continuation of the satirical series, Poking Fun at Fantasy Tropes.
So far, we’ve looked at the time-tested, favorite tropes of taverns, heroes, mentors, quests, allies, fantasy worlds, magic swords, dark lords, surprising timely cavalry charges, battles between good and evil, and magic systems. This next one…
Sigh.
This is a classic trope that I personally wish weren’t so classic. So let’s poke some fun at the alarmingly illogical nature of stories that feature damsels in distress… as well as their opposites.
Many well-known fantasy stories and fairy tales seem to feature princesses locked away in tall towers and guarded by fire breathing dragons, just waiting helplessly whilst singing songs about the day their dreamy prince charming will come to rescue them…
Those sorts of stories can be insulting, demeaning, and paint a rather unflattering (and often inaccurate) picture of female protagonists. It’s as if they only exist in the story to be rescued by the “real” protagonist: the knight in shining armor. They’re not actively involved in the plot of the story itself, they’re simply a plot point upon the timeline of the larger narrative. (Excuse me, I just threw up a little.)
Modern fantasy stories and fairy tales seem to be moving away from leaning heavily into this classic trope, I think. And that’s for the best.
However, in avoiding the “damsel in distress” character trope, sometimes storytellers go too far in the other direction. There are two ditches on both sides of the road. Female protagonists become brawny, sword-wielding women who don’t need help from anybody. They certainly don’t need a knight to rescue them, they went ahead and rescued themselves.
Please don’t misunderstand me. That’s not a bad thing!
But both the Damsel in Distress waiting for her prince charming in the tall tower and her opposite (I’m not sure if there is a name for that trope or not) sword-swinging sister are not characters. They’re caricatures. They’re one or two-dimensional at best. And if those are the sorts of characters featured in stories, that’s a problem for storytellers and readers everywhere.
Like I wrote in another one of these posts, people are more well-rounded. We are more than one or two characteristics. We’re multifaceted, three-dimensional beings. When stories reflect that fact, oh man, that’s when you get a story that’s truly special.
We all need help from time to time. Whether the protagonist is male or female, it’s important to present them as accurately as possible (unless the intent of the story is such that the storyteller wants to present the characters as caricatures) … That means everyone at times is distressed, and everyone at times can be self-reliant and brave as well.
For the times when one is scared and distressed, it’s no small thing to have someone else there to lend a helping hand. And for the times when other people are scared and distressed and we’re not? Well, it’s no small thing to lend that helping hand to someone else in need.
Until next time,
Al
