Welcome to Gaia! ::

I agree with Wolfgang's point in Hollywood's lackluster crusade to make women kick more a** than they really need to to be considered equal to men. Case in point: LotR: RotK, when Eowyn stabs the Witch King in the face while proudly declaring her womanhood. UGH! Please.

Having said this I am in no way put off by women acting out in RPs in time periods where they would otherwise be more,... how to put this,... silent. But I do appreciate female characters that at least understand that how they are acting would be uncomfortable to others in the era and that people would act accordingly. You could go on about how it's an anachronism anyway, why not in women's rights as well, but personally I think everything else about the time period should more-or-less be retained. I mean we love the Victorian Era for a reason, and changing it just doesn't seem right (except for the fantastic inventions we all add). And let's not forget all of the amazing exceptions throughout history of women who kick a**, take names, and were leaders of their times: Catherine the Great in Russia, Queen Victoria in her time of course, not to mention the numerous female pirates operating in the Caribbean.


My point being that women can be just as impressive as men and they don't have to be screaming the fact that they are women, nor commanding those around her to hear them roar (although some of my examples may have in fact done that).

I guess where I was going with the questioning wasn't weather or not women were superior to men or not, but more should we be equal and should we have the right to vote?

not all feminist rights activists are ugly, bitchy and otherwise man hating. A lot of the time I've noticed, women wouldn't mind keeping house and raising children if the men were just nicer about it when we chose not to.

For example my fiance wants me to clean and cook. To which I have no problem with doing when I don't also have to work. I currently am able to cook and clean for him as I am currently unemployed and he is supporting me. But when I start working again (because the 2008 non steampunk economy is crap, I will have to for us to survive) I will expect fair treatment and start making him contribute around the home. Justly if I were working and supporting him (which I think he'd like at first but grow bored of) I would expect him to keep house....

I'm not asking for women to be put above men I'm asking for equality.

Actually, they cut her lines and made her significantly less flashy about it. In the book, she has a whole speech.

"No man am I! You look upon a woman! Éowyn, I am! You stand between me and my lord. And be you living or dark-undead, I will kill you if you touch him!"

Or something to that effect; I don't have the book with me at the moment. All this she does before the Witch-King even gets his mace swinging.

Aside from that, though, most people actually miss the point entirely when it comes to Éowyn. She's not a feminist character. She does what she does at Pelennor because she's desperately depressed and wants to die. She accidentally becomes a hero in the process. In fact, she needs Merry there in order to make it happen at all. In point of fact, she's actually a very weak character, when you get right down to it. Interesting, but weak.

Berz.

I really didn't want to turn this thread into a LotR argument. Although I still disagree with you on key points I DO agree with most of your last statement. I won't tell you what those are to avoid continuing the argument. From now on I'll simply never mention LotR while I'm posting again. Lesson learned.

I believe the only reason someone would insist on treating women as inferior in a steampunk setting is to express any sexism and misogyny they actually posses in real life. There's simply no other reason to insist - they can't be interested in historical accuracy, or steampunk itself would be right out.

Good madame, I am currently reading Extraordinary Engines--The Definitive Steampunk Anthology, and one story therein, Lady Witherspoon's Solution by one Mister James Morrow, treats this subject rather remarkably well. Thoroughly enjoyable it is, even by one of the...er...ahem...testicular persuasion.

Well said!
*tightens corset, polishes gun*