veronica_rich | rescue fantasies and men

One thing about feminism is it sure brings up all kinds of questions even about the arts, that might not normally be considered. One of the things I see a LOT is the desire for "stronger" female characters - whatever the hell that means. I suspect it's a backlash to the oft-cited tendency of women to harbor "rescue" fantasies.

We're told this is a big reason there are so many male superheroes: Superman, Spider-Man, Iron Man, Batman, I could go on and on but you get the point. Not to mention literary heroes who seem larger than life in their exploits, such as Will Laurence in the Temeraire series by Naomi Novik. Even Mary Shelley's Frankenstein's Monster seems heroic - not only super strength, but his ability to force out unpleasant truths about his creator and others around him. Even my friend Dee believes that Edward of Twilight (created by a woman) is popular because female readers are seeking a hero/protector.

When a boy or a man writes or draws a heroic male character, it's said that it's a wish-fulfillment in the form of an extension of the creator - the ultimate Gary Stu, if you will. When a woman writes or draws a heroic male character, she's said to be seeking a hero or indulging in rescue fantasy.

What I want to know is this: Is there a male rescue fantasy? I've never seen it discussed. Personally, I think the superhero/hero thing explains just as much for boys and men as it does for girls and women - and, just as it can be a "rescue" for males, I think it can be an "extension" for females. For my part, I prefer writing male characters. I like looking at men, plus I like trying to figure them out. I figure I know about as much as I need to about being a woman already (this is not to say I don't do female characters at all, but they're just not as challenging for me personally) - for me, the only mystery of femininity is the aging process. Perhaps there are other female artists and writers who feel the same? (Or have other reasons altogether?) And, maybe there are males who want to be rescued and create these characters who are capable of doing it?

And if the superhero/hero thing isn't the male rescue fantasy - well, what is? (Personally, I don't concentrate on if a rescue is male-female or female-male - I think whichever would do the rescuing, DOES it. My own rescue fantasies usually involve some well-to-do person giving me a no-interest long-term loan to pay off my credit cards. Seriously.)