Images of romance in Sailor Moon
When asked the question, "What do you like
about Sailor Moon" one girl replied:
"I first watched it because I thought it
a little
romantic too. :)"
Another girl said:
"I love the story line and I think the Darein/Serena
love story is so
romantic"
I agree that the story between Darien and Serina
is romantic but I have a few concerns about this subplot. First of all,
Serina (Usagi) is portrayed as being a lovesick ditz who is entirely obsessed
with Darien. One girl commented:
"they[women] are all very strong willed and independent.Sometimes they [women] seem to
depend too much on the men in their lives
(ahem...Usagi!)"
Another girl mentioned that the most of the
girls seem to be a bit boy crazy. When asked about what roles women play in the show one guy answered:
"the girls check the guys out.."
And the point of view can tend to be a little
one sided at times:
"Usually it's only when they're talking
about love or crushes or something.
This is rather annoying to me because it
doesn't show much about men's
problems, just about girl problems."
And:
"Well the men are always playing hard to
ger and the women seem to be
always after them..."
One might say that it is understandable that
romance is seen from a female perspective in Sailor Moon because
it is mostly girls that watch the show. Well, I must say that many of the
people who answered our questionnaire were male. Now, the point I am getting
at is not that males are being left out (because there are many shows for
young people that see things from a male perspective) but that the stereotypes
of the silly, lovesick female are reinforced in Sailor Moon. What does that have to do with how many males watch the show? Well, as the show portrayes women as strong in every area exceptin that of romance young men might get the idea that girls are strong in every area except romance. Thus they might be more likely to either consciously or unconsciously subjugate or take advantage of women(who are weak-willed in their minds).
In his book about films targeted at young
people, The Road to Romance and Ruin: Teen Films and Youth Culture(1995),
Jon Lewis writes:
"Romance novel heroines are often 'stopped
in their tracks'. While they are at
the center of attention-while it is their
questi that is at stake-it is never altogether
clear whether the heroine is an object or
not, a consumer or a thing to be consumed.
In many of the novels, the girls know what
they want but haven't the slightest idea
how to get it (which may be realistic, but
is it liberating)"
By portraying the woman's role in romance as
desparate and dependant and maybe a little obsessive while the man's role
is to be distant and emotionally responsible, Sailor Moon may be
perpetuating the kind of stereotypes that keep women in a submissive state
as far as romance is concerned. Many girls look to Sailor Moon as a role
model and seeing this kind of dependent relationship Serina has with Darien,
might unconsciously reassure girls that any feelings of (false)
security and dependence on males is perfectly natural, romantic and healthy.
Thus, rather than seeking for more balanced, healty, and mutual relationships
with men, young women might feel satisfied with unhealthy, dependent relationships
that do not really empower them as women in their own right.
In conclusion, although the romanic stories are a favourite of the young girls and guys that we interviewed, I believe that they portray women as vulnerable and weak in the area of romanc. Furthermore, I believe that young guys watching this show are likely to see women as silly dependent creatures and thus treat them as such. And finally, I feel that young girls will be reassured that it is O.K to be weak-willed and emotionally dependent on men (which is probably their natural tendency during their teen years).
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