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A "feminine show" doesn't equal "a little girl's show."


Dark Qiviut

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More than a month ago, I replied back in a topic with this comment:

Going into the "feminine" concept, this is a fandom that, whether you like it or not, actively goes against social norms. No, boys/men liking a pro-feminist show isn't just it. (There's a gigantic difference between "boys/men liking a pro-feminist/feminine show" and "boys/men liking a little girls' show"!) The other is how it's a feminine show in the West that is factually good. MLP has a history of embracing or accentuating girly stereotypes that damaged the animation industry. This is the first time that MLP has a generation in which its animation quality can be great and not feel so dated most of the time.

See the bolded part? It's been a trend that I've using lately and stuck with it. Rather than calling FIM a "little girls' show," I called it a "feminine" or pro-feminist show.

 

The reason why is simple: Femininity and masculinity are gender-blind. Millions of girls worldwide openly display a combination of supposedly feminine and masculine qualities. For boys, the very same thing. Unfortunately, like "masculinity," "femininity" has also been used as a very label to publish very sexist products like Puppy in My Pocket, MLP G3, Barbie, and so on. This type of detrimental attitude attaches the gender stereotype by associating masculinity and femininity to one sex.

 

Friendship Is Magic openly challenges the archetypical "feminine" ideal by applying to anyone who watches the show unbeknownst. All six display original feminine personality qualities, blending in archetypes and creating conflicts where all of us can relate to somehow. Shows like this and how their characters are handled send a message about how the two words shouldn't be used to create artificial social and gender constructs.

 

FIM is one such product, but more needs to be done. The more family cartoons openly challenge the social constructs and reveal unique ways to be masculine and feminine without attaching a singular gender and excluding the others, the better.

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Femininity and masculinity are ultimately social constructs. They only carry as much value as society chooses to put in them.

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Another excellent DQ post. *applauds*

 

Femininity and masculinity are ultimately social constructs. They only carry as much value as society chooses to put in them.

Which is, sadly, far too much.

Remember that one word? Humanity? Whatever happened to that? It just seems to have vanished.

Makes me sad. :U

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