Female POV

[dreamer_easy]

Just caught a mention of a discussion about whether feminist writers should write from a female POV. I can give one reason straight up, albeit a dated one. You see, I have a guilty pleasure - reading SF short stories from the late fifties / early sixties. In these stories, the female characters are often barely recognisable as human beings. You couldn't get inside their heads, because there's nothing in there. It must have been quite a shock when the New Wave hit, bringing with it fully formed female characters with inner lives and motivations and stuff.

A more up-to-date reason may come from our TV screens. All SF shows are about a white guy and his friends (with the exception of two of the Treks). That's the SF most people consume, and I'll bet most SF readers are also watching the white guys in space. Discuss.

Comments

All SF shows are about a white guy and his friends...

[issi-noho.livejournal.com]

... unless, of course, one looks at children's television. Even then one has to work quite hard (someone else may do better).

The Changes and Luna: in both shows the main protagonist is a teenage girl (although I suppose the former might more properly be called supernatural drama). Dark Season may also fall into this category (two girls & a boy), but I haven't seen it, so I can't say which, if any, character dominates.

Sapphire & Steel: well, it's an equal partnership, innit?

My Parents Are Aliens: (currently) about kids from a variety of ethnic backgrounds and their foster parents. Who are aliens.

Metal Mickey: about a robot of indeterminate ethnicity and his adoptive family.

And last, but most certainly not least, The Clangers: about a bunch of pink aliens things on a distant planet, and their mates. Who happen to include an iron chicken and a soupdragon.

Re: All SF shows are about a white guy and his friends...

[hnpcc]

Children of the Dog Star is another one - very strong lead character who liked science, was fascinated by space and good with mechanical things. Oh and was a girl. I totally wanted to be her for years, and not just so I could meet aliens.