The Dichotic Woman

[matril]

This morning my son was watching Disney's Hercules, a movie which could foster all sorts of interesting discussion. It wasn't nearly as well-received as the films that preceded it, probably because it attempted a peculiar blend of humor that only adults would appreciate and, simultaneously, a high level of sheer silliness. Then, of course, you have its appalling deviations from the original Greek myths, but Disney is famous for taking massive liberties with its source material, so that shouldn't have come as such a surprise. In any case, I think one of its most problematic elements is the heroine - and perhaps at times anti-heroine, Meg.


Meg was clearly written to be the polar opposite of the stereotypical Disney princess. This deliberate contrast is pretty much addressed directly when she responds to some cute woodland creatures, the usual sidekicks of sweet, singing heroines, with unapologetic snark - and then it turns out they're not really adorable animals anyway, deconstructing the trope entirely. She's sarcastic, cynical, and most shockingly, works for the bad guy. While that allegiance is, in fact, against her will, she's bound to Hades because of a rash decision she made to sell her soul for someone else. And here's where it gets really interesting. That someone was her boyfriend.

Because Meg is the first sexual Disney love interest. Oh, it's pretty mild, nothing explicit enough to move beyond a G-rating, but for a Disney movie, wow. There's mention of curves, there's innuendo. Meg uses her physical attractiveness as a tool - almost a weapon - to try to draw Hercules's secrets out of him. Pretty shocking for a company that seldom gives us more than chaste kisses. Yes, other heroines have had more skin exposed (Ariel got away with wearing nothing more than a bikini top!) but the girls themselves were innocent, with only a child-like level of bodily awareness. Meg is experienced.

Why? I find it interesting, maybe a little troubling, that when creating a morally ambiguous woman the movie-makers ended up adding a sexual element. I see in this the age-old virgin/whore dichotomy. Either a woman is pure and chaste and inspires men to be virtuous, or she is a licentious trollop who brings men down into sin and degradation. Dichotomies are dangerous because they're limiting. There are not only two types of women in the world. Each is an individual, with her own personal circumstances. In Meg I see the false notion that a sexual woman and a morally unsettled woman are one and the same. Now, that's not to say that I'm an enthusiastic fan of promiscuity. Quite the contrary. I don't believe a woman who sleeps around is happy and fulfilled any more than I believe a man who does so is happy and fulfilled. Personally, I'm for monogamy. :) But my point is that moral alignment and sensuality are not equivalents. There are many morally ambiguous male figures without a sexualized element to their characters. I can't say that I can think of so many females in the same vein.

Is it because men find the bad girl inherently sexier? Possibly. I've also seen that in some venues, moral alignment is pretty much irrelevant, as long as a woman is sensually attractive. Her allegiances bounce back and forth apparently at random, and it doesn't seem to bother people that there's no logic behind it, because in all cases she's, you know, really hot. So I guess I should be glad that Meg's allegiances are in fact important, that she sees a reason for optimism again and experiences actual character growth. Once she's free of Hades, she's loyal to Hercules....but then, arguably, becomes a little less interesting. Certainly less sarcastic and snarky. I have to say, I do enjoy the snark. It provides a nice balance to Hercules being kind of bland. Does his fresh-faced optimism cure her of her world-weary cynicism? That trope shows up so often with the girl as the innocent and the boy as the cynic, so it's kind of fun to see the roles reversed. Still, I'm not sure what to take away from the character of Meg. She can't be easily categorized, and perhaps for that reason people are too uncomfortable to find much enjoyment in her role or the movie as a whole.

Comments

[sonetka.livejournal.com]

Now I'm trying to think of morally ambiguous female characters with no sexual element and am completely scraped -- of course, the fact that it's 12.30 AM might have something to do with that :). On the plus side, it sounds like Meg's character doesn't have to redeem herself via death! (At least, I'm guessing not, I've never seen Hercules). Of course, it's easy to think of an obvious reason -- not just virgin/whore but the fact that for most of history, women's sexual lives have been much harder for them to keep separated from their public image. A man could have a respectable public life as, say, a respectable gentleman author and eat his backstairs cake with a secret mistress as well (Dickens did something like this for a decent part of his life). A woman, well ... there was almost always a risk that this would catch up with her in the form of a pregnancy. Sex, or lack thereof, contributed to her public persona in a way that it simply didn't and doesn't for men. Though somehow I'm guessing the issue didn't come up in the movie :).

[matril.livejournal.com]

Funny you should say that....because Meg does sacrifice herself to save Hercules, oh so nobly, when he temporarily doesn't have his powers. And...Hercules makes a deal with Hades to save her soul from the underworld, which will make him die in the process, but this noble deed gains him full godhood, making him immortal. Yeah, as far as adapting the original myth, it wanders all over the place.

Yes, living a promiscuous lifestyle has always had more obvious detrimental consequences to women. I'm sure that's a big part of the unfair gender divide that's developed over time. Unfortunately, it seems to have given rise to the notion that this divide can simply be closed by providing women with more birth control/safe sex options. This is all going on the assumption that whatever men possess and have been keeping from women must be desirable. And, as far as I can see, that lifestyle isn't, for either gender.

[sonetka.livejournal.com]

Do they get together in the afterlife? If so, maybe she's only partially redeemed :). The scenario I was thinking of was one where the fallen woman dies/disappears and the hero is left on earth to suffer nobly awhile and then get married to someone who doesn't have A Past.

[matril.livejournal.com]

He brings her back to life, and he turns immortal himself before he can quite die - but then chooses not to live in Olympus so he can stay with her on Earth. Disney doesn't do nobly tragic endings. (Actually, I was quite impressed for that reason when they had an honest-to-goodness funeral at the end of The Princess and the Frog, even if the character himself had been rather annoying.)