Rainbow Dash's Gender

[StudioUAC 62]

It's called Tom-boy mate, & it's pretty rad

Well the show says she is a female (mare). But she is a tom boy. That's just who she is

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it's pretty rad to see a girl act like a boy so she can be your friend and maybe just maybe a relationship will blossom 

I don't think social constructs matter so much to sex/gender. Social constructs are influences that try to shape a demographic in to something considered "normal" or "right". This is completely disregarding diversity in personalities and general life pursuits and drives of course.

 

Rainbow Dash doesn't mind being a girl at all and her personality shouldn't make her  out to be "more suited to be a boy because she's competitive and athletic". It's silly to think that she can't really "act like a girl" or she "shouldn't be a girl" if she's passionate and talented about said things. I wouldn't see Rainbow Dash as anything else but what she identifies.

she's a girl that acts like a boy. it's pretty clear what she is.

Did you know that having a uterus does not dictate that a person must behave a certain way? You can wear jeans, ride motorcycles and serve in an army, all while lacking a Y chromosome. You can drive a truck, watch superhero movies and listen to Metallica, all while having a set of ovaries. And guess what, you can do all that while still identifying as female, because we have the great luxury (for now) to live in a society where we understand that a person's behaviour shouldn't be chained to things like what set of reproductive organs you have.

 

Ultimately, what you choose to do in life is just that, your choice.

seriously did mankind forget what tomboys were?

[DND 2,355]

It's called Tom-boy mate, & it's pretty rad

it's pretty rad to see a girl act like a boy so she can be your friend and maybe just maybe a relationship will blossom 

she's a girl that acts like a boy. it's pretty clear what she is.

seriously did mankind forget what tomboys were?

 

That wasn't the topic poster's main subject. They feel Rainbow Dash personally and with requested feedback that Dash doesn't fit as a girl, and would much prefer calling her a guy. It's ridiculous. Dashie's a girl, she sees herself as a girl and thinking otherwise would be an inaccurate headcanon.

 

 

 

Although Dashie is technically a female, I don't think of her as being very female at all. Her willingness to compete, do things that are cool, and the natural rejection she has towards things that are "girly" just don't fit the gender given her. I thought of Rainbow as being non-binary before I even knew for sure she was a female. I think Dashie fits in as somewhat male-leaning or just free of gender all together. What do you think?

 

 

We need more female identifying characters like Dash. She is great representation of a character that breaks stereotypes and is influenced by no constructs with said stereotypes. Dashie doesn't see herself "acting like a boy" nor does she want to "like a boy". She sees herself acting like herself, and that means "like a girl". 

Edited September 8, 2015 by IncognitoKiwoy

[StudioUAC 62]

That wasn't the topic poster's main subject. They feel Rainbow Dash personally and with requested feedback that Dash doesn't fit as a girl, and would much prefer calling her a guy. It's ridiculous. Dashie's a girl, she sees herself as a girl and thinking otherwise would be an inaccurate headcanon.

 

 

 

 

 

We need more female identifying characters like Dash. She is great representation of a character that breaks stereotypes and is influenced by no constructs with said stereotypes. Dashie doesn't see herself "acting like a boy" nor does she want to "like a boy". She sees herself acting like herself, and that means "like a girl". 

 

did the world just forget?

Edited September 8, 2015 by StudioUAC

[Durandal 623]

did the world just forget?

 

The problem with most tomboy characters is that they're young. Society still expects them to grow out of it and become a 'proper lady'. Rainbow is, for all intents and purposes, an adult tomboy, a much rarer breed.

 

 

Dashie's a girl, she sees herself as a girl and thinking otherwise would be an inaccurate headcanon.

 

Let's not go dictating what is and isn't proper headcanon, given the fact there are solid justifications for Rainbow Dash not seeing herself as a girl.

 

 

is influenced by no constructs with said stereotypes.

 

Dash at first glance is very much a stereotype, since tomboys are a stereotype. It's almost impossible to escape from social constructs, as they are ingrained into our thinking.

 

[Unlikeable Pony 2,698]

To be honest, the first time I saw a clip from FIM (Dash doing her sonic rainboom) I thought dash was the token boy character in the show. After more than a few minutes it was blindingly obvious she was a girl, but I thought I'd share that XD


As for dash not being a girl because she likes sports and exemplifies traditionally masculine traits like brashness and being outgoing... WUT. All of my WUT.

[DND 2,355]

 

 

Let's not go dictating what is and isn't proper headcanon, given the fact there are solid justifications for Rainbow Dash not seeing herself as a girl.

Dash at first glance is very much a stereotype, since tomboys are a stereotype. It's almost impossible to escape from social constructs, as they are ingrained into our thinking.

 

Hey, I never said it was "improper". The headcanon is just very little tied with canon- it's inaccurate because very little details tie within the show. 

 

Dash is a stereotype of a tomboy, but that stereotype is actually a bit straying from the topic at hand. The poster did not view her stereotype fit for a girl, but her stereotype best suited for a boy, and thus gave examples of some cases where they identified her as a separate gender. 

[Sidral Mundet 1,666]

Rainbow Dash doesn't have a gender. Rainbow Dash is a series of colors and light patterns assembled in a shape our minds interpret as a pony and therefore is an inanimate object which is without a gender distinction.  Got to love technical/literal answer 

[Grepper 3,192]

She's just a tomboy. Girls can be athletic, too.

[Varrack 1,080]

I probably should have worded this differently with all the negative responses it got. I get that she's a girl in the show, but if I were designing the show I'd probably make her a guy. Just sayin'

[Durandal 623]

Rainbow Dash doesn't have a gender. Rainbow Dash is a series of colors and light patterns assembled in a shape our minds interpret as a pony and therefore is an inanimate object which is without a gender distinction.  Got to love technical/literal answer 

 

 

Hey, I never said it was "improper". The headcanon is just very little tied with canon- it's inaccurate because very little details tie within the show. 

 

Even if Rainbow Dash outwardly identifies as a girl, this might be complicated by social expectations and consequences. She might say yes if asked if she were a girl due to a social stigma against a- or transgender ponies rather than because she actually agreed. The show doesn't touch on what Rainbow's identity is or what Equestrian society makes of gender identity issues, so anything goes really.

 

I probably should have worded this differently with all the negative responses it got. I get that she's a girl in the show, but if I were designing the show I'd probably make her a guy. Just sayin'

 

If you're going to present a view to be debated, expect criticism. If you're just going to state personal feelings, it's probably not topic-material.

 

Anyways, making her a boy undermines some of the core elements of the show. MLP is very much a trendsetter by objecting to a division between boys and girls shows. It suggests that girls are three dimensional characters that are allowed to have as much depth as boy characters. And most importantly, it objects to the fact that girls' media should be so one-dimensional.

 

This goes down to the very color of her fur - by making Rainbow Dash cyan, you're taking a stab at the gender roles behind pink and blue. Rainbow Dash as a toy very much breaks the stereotypical 'girl's toys are pink, boy's toys are blue'. However nuanced it is, it's a very calculated decision.

 

The simple act of making Dash a boy suggests that there are certain things girls can't be. It'd be a contradictory element to a typically very progressive show.

Edited September 8, 2015 by Durandal

[cider float 2,537]

She's rejected girly things more than once. There was that time in Equestria Girls where Rarity gave her a dress to out on and she really disliked it. I agree there have been some masculine/feminine instances with her but her character is focused on flying, being athletic, and trying to impress the Wonderbolts. It may just be my personal experience, but I don't think I've ever met a female who acts like her and the ways she does things does not fit my interpretation of what gender is. I mean, gender roles don't have to determine identity, but there's really not enough of a feminine side for me to think of her as very female. In contrast with the other five, if seems apparent to me.

 

The way I think of it is that if a character displays characteristics of gender X, there's no need to assign them as gender Y at all.

 

So you mean agender? Asexual is a lack of attraction to others.

I think you're getting confused. Her sex is female and she can't change that. But whether being a man or a woman can be a different story

 

Also how do you explain women that are playing sports for a living?

Edited September 8, 2015 by cider float

[PROJECT: Simon 3,953]

She's just a strong female. ^^;;

[Caliboom 219]

She's female, but she's like a tom-boy, kind of.

[Sectus 246]

The aforementioned character identifies as female and doesn't require any further complication. There has been no prior mention of gender fluidity to suggest this statement being accurate. Attitude and personal hobbies / recreational activities have no sway on the character's gender identity.

 

Also, it's a children's show. I think that gender fluidity discussion is taking it just a tiny bit too seriously.

[GuyNamedEarl 1,332]

She's female, but doesn't follow the stereotype of girls liking fancy and cute things.

[Black Sabbath 2,486]

I probably should have worded this differently with all the negative responses it got. I get that she's a girl in the show, but if I were designing the show I'd probably make her a guy. Just sayin'

Why would you have made Rainbow a guy? It's great to have a female character that doesn't act like a stereotypical girl.

 

 Her willingness to compete, do things that are cool, and the natural rejection she has towards things that are "girly" just don't fit the gender given her.

Also, this post is more than a little sexist. 

Edited September 8, 2015 by Yamet

[Skygunner 352]

I probably should have worded this differently with all the negative responses it got. I get that she's a girl in the show, but if I were designing the show I'd probably make her a guy. Just sayin'

 

Umm,  no you're not "just saying you'd of made her a guy"

 

Although Dashie is technically a female, I don't think of her as being very female at all. Her willingness to compete, do things that are cool, and the natural rejection she has towards things that are "girly" just don't fit the gender given her. I thought of Rainbow as being non-binary before I even knew for sure she was a female. I think Dashie fits in as somewhat male-leaning or just free of gender all together. What do you think?

 

 

You're saying that girls behave one way, and only one way. Namely the gender stereotype of "girl"  And that since dash isn't that,  she shouldn't be a "girl"

 

That's why this is kinda blowing up in your face.  

 

You're using stereotypes.  That's the bottom line,  and because something doesn't fit into the stereotype, you express that it is incorrect.  Girls don't have to be fru fru,  guys don't need to be be beefsteaks,  worry less about gender and more about...anything else.  How about Akula Class submarines?  Those are very scary.

[chirox the pony 1,336]

There is no such thing as female characteristics. Women aren't some kind of uni-mind that all like the same thing (same for men). And I highly doubt the creators of this show even care about such concepts as the gender spectrum. 

[LHfunk 422]

I probably should have worded this differently with all the negative responses it got. I get that she's a girl in the show, but if I were designing the show I'd probably make her a guy. Just sayin'

From a show design point of view, that would be very weird. She has very clearly been defined as a tomboy as she acts boyishly but does act girly occasionally. She is part of a group of six females that all act differently. I may not know any Tom boys that are as steoryotypical as Dash, but I don't know anyone like Pinkie. Or AJ. Or really any of the mane six. My point is that just because a character acts a certain way shouldn't define what gender they should have. If I was a character on a show, i could probably be either a boy or a girl, since my personality and characteristics could work for both genders. But if I was say, female, on the show, and someone thought I should be male because of how I acted, that doesn't mean I really should be male. Dash is a tom boy, and just because she is shouldn't mean she should be a boy.

[Unikitty 1,212]

She identifies as a cartoon-character. And until she is canonically identified as anything else, she's currently "non-descript". As in she's given no indication as to what her gender is. There are plenty of men and women who primarily enjoy content characterised by the opposite sex, whilst still identifying as their birth gender. Being a tom-boy is no determining factor over her gender.

[Aleh 481]

Psh. Pretty stupid to assume that she's transgender because she's a tomboy >.<

"Idk I just assume every slightly masculine girl I meet is a guy tbh"



 

[Guest]

I think just because Dash isn't feminine doesn't mean she doesn't identify as a female, that is more or less saying that if you don't follow gender roles or stereotypes you MUST be transgender or something. Dash has shown no signs of being uncomfortable, of questioning of her gender in the slightest, she is just not very stereotypical female.

[ThePiDay 340]

Gender really has nothing to do with personality.
And I have proof Dash is 100% female.

 

She screams like a girl.

 

 

[Commissar Alexer 763]

Just lift her tail and see for yourself.

[Varrack 1,080]

I GET IT. End with the "wow, it's pretty stupid to think that" remarks. I think it's been posted a few too many times, and I get the point of every reply made so far.