1EQQ8ZzGD

Evidence that The Hunger Games is not pro-girl
If The Hunger Games was to be judged only on Katniss, I think
it would be easy to characterize it as pro-girl. However, The
Hunger Games exists in a post-apocalyptic universe in which
other female characters exist. Basically all of these characters
fall into gendered stereotypes. Katniss’s mother, for instance,
has a mental breakdown when her husband dies. effie is overly
cheery, materialistic and is constantly concerned about Katniss’s
lack of lady-like qualities. Rue seems to only be female as a contrast
to Katniss’s younger sister. Foxface, while being extremely
important to the plot (she finishes fourth in the Games, losing
to Katniss, Peeta, and Cato), never receives a real name. Thus,
the only other strong female character in the book is accused of
being manipulative and sly like a fox and is given a corresponding
nickname.
First, let’s draw a distinction between settings. The Hunger
Games’ dystopia is penned in heavy ink, yet gender issues must
compete on each page with myriad other social critiques. It is
more pessimistic, but also broader in its pessimism.
The world of Brave is foremost a patriarchy. This is clear
from the beginning. Merida’s incompatibility with the patriarchy,
too, is more a premise than a plot. Brave’s critique is
often understated. If you don’t recognize patriarchies in the
real world, you might not in Brave either. Just skim a few
movie reviews and you’ll find many critics thought Brave was
too safe a story for Pixar and featured a conflict driven principally
by teenage angst. As is often the case with criticism,
Brave is told using a language in which we’re all variably fluent.
That is certainly a weakness, but I would argue it’s also
a strength. A muted message is more true to the experiences
of women living under patriarchy, who are often told that the
oppression they encounter is imagined. Dramatizing those experiences
into a dystopia that everyone can see misrepresents
the many women living in covert dystopias across the globe.
Their plots can be distinguished using similar logic. In
both stories, the protagonists are the only female characters
who challenge gender norms in any serious way. In Brave, this
is necessary. It is a story about a young girl defying patriarchy.
The patriarchy is a character. It needs to exist onscreen. And
131