As a little girl, I have always wanted to wield the red, white and blue recognizable costume of a famous heroine. I wanted to wear the tiara with silver metal bracelets and run around, playing with a rope that I would call my “lasso of truth” and immediately state that I was invincible. I, like many other girls, wanted to become the comic book heroine known as Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman is a figure that is considerable recognizable. She was created in 1941 by a psychologist named William Moulton Marston or Charles Moulton as his pen name (who studied the psychological effects of mass media and the developer of the lie-detector test) . Wonder Woman is known as Princess Diana, the Amazonian warrior from Themyscira . She acquired her powers when Military officer Steve Trevor landed on the island and she had won the title to return him back to the United States . It is noted in all representations of her, that Wonder Woman acts as an ambassador to Themyscira, wearing the colors of the American flag as a pledge to protect Democracy and adopt America as her new homeland . Significantly, Wonder Woman is the first female hero created in the comic book world . Not only does she represents America, she is recognizable iconic through her representations that originated from her origins. For example, this heroine is World War II Veteran, is modeled after feminism and is seen as a sexual icon. Originally intended to bring in a female audience into the comic book world, she seems to bring artist and narrative elements that seems to satisfy all spectators. The first depiction of the heroine had been debuted in 1941 in All Stars Comic #8, during which the first launch of all comics (Such of Superman and Batman) had been known as the Golden ... ... middle of paper ... ...ited States: Triage Entertainment, 2004. DVD. Emad, Mitra C. “Reading Wonder Woman's Body: Mythologies of Gender and Nation”. The Journal of Popular Culture (2006), 954-976. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1540-5931.2006.00329.x/abstract (accessed October 18, 2011). Bellafaire, Judith A. “The Women’s Army Corps: A Commemoration of World War II Series,” Central of Military History, last modified February 17, 2005, http://www.history.army.mil/brochures/wac/wac.htm (accessed October 24, 2011). Dunne, MaryJane. The Representation of Women in Comic Books, Post WWII through the Radical 60's. McNair Online Journal (2009). http://www.mcnair-program.pdx.edu/MaryjaneDunne_Journal%20Aritcle.pdf (accessed October 18, 2011) "An Amazon Princess Is Reborn." Animation Magazine 23, no. 3 (March 2009): 18-19. Art Full Text, WilsonWeb (accessed October 25, 2011).
“There was much more to women’s work during World War Two than make, do, and mend. Women built tanks, worked with rescue teams, and operated behind enemy lines” (Carol Harris). Have you ever thought that women could have such an important role during a war? In 1939 to 1945 for many women, World War II brought not only sacrifices, but also a new style of life including more jobs, opportunities and the development of new skills. They were considered as America’s “secret weapon” by the government. Women allowed getting over every challenge that was imposed by a devastating war. It is necessary to recognize that women during this period brought a legacy that produced major changes in social norms and work in America.
Women in the US Military - Civil War Era. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2017.
Henke, Jill, Diane Umble, and Nancy Smith. “Construction of the Female Self: Feminist Readings of the Disney Heroine." Women’s Studies in Communication 19 (Summer 1996): 229-49.
“Born of clay, Galatae-like, to the Amazon Queen Hippolyta and given life by Aphrodite, the Amazon Princess abandons the all woman “Paradise Island” in her debut story, in order to become the savior of ‘Man’s World’” (Stanley 144). Among the popular American culture, Wonder Woman has changed more frequently then any other comic book character. Her ever changing figure comes from the the root of society, cultural, and economic circumstances of the time period but she has always held her position of being an Inspiration to women young and old.
My interviewee went through a lot during World War II and sharing her amazing story left me evaluating her words for a long time, rethinking and still not willing to imagine the pain. She was one of the 150,000 American woman served in the Women’s Army Corps during the war years. They were one of the first ones to serve in the ranks of the United States Army. She recalls being teased a lot about being a young woman in a uniform but was very proud of it. Women finally were given the opportunity to make a major contribution to the national affair, especially a world war. It started with a meeting in1941 of Congresswoman Edith Nourse Rogers and General George Marshall, who was the Army’s Chief of Staff. Rogers asked General to introduce a bill to establish an Army women’s corps, where my interviewee, Elizabeth Plancher, was really hoping to get the benefits after the World War II along with other women. ( Since after World War I women came back from war and were not entitled to protection or any medical benefits. )
Throughout most of literature and history, the notion of ‘the woman’ has been little more than a caricature of the actual female identity. Most works of literature rely on only a handful of tropes for their female characters and often use women to prop up the male characters: female characters are sacrificed for plot development. It may be that the author actually sacrifices a female character by killing her off, like Mary Shelly did in Frankenstein in order to get Victor Frankenstein to confront the monster he had created, or by reducing a character to just a childish girl who only fulfills a trope, as Oscar Wilde did with Cecily and Gwendolen in The Importance of Being Earnest. Using female characters in order to further the male characters’
"From Home Front to Front Line." Women in War. Ed. Cecilia Lee and Paul Edward Strong. N.p.: n.p., n.d. N. pag. The Churchill Centre. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.
Williams, Rudi. "United States Department of Defense." Defense.gov News Article: Civilian Women Played Major Role in World War II Victory. 30 May 2004. Web. 20 Mar. 2012. .
Berlatsky, Noah. Wonder Woman: Bondage and Feminism in the Marston/Peter Comics, 1941-1948. January 2015. Print.
Emerson, David. “Innocence as a super-power: little girls on the hero’s journey.” Mythlore 28.1-2 (2009): 13lt. Literature resource center.web.17oct.2013
Ruby, J. (2005, November 1). Women in Combat Roles: Is That the Question?. Off Our Backs,35, 36.
William Moulton Marston also known by his stage name, Charles Mouton, was a scientist, lawyer, inventor, and psychologist but he was most famous for being the creator of the comic book character, Wonder Woman. The superhero genre is one that has enhanced tremendously over the last decade. Mouton played a major role in changing this genre by introducing this unconquerable warrior and feminist into the comic book industry. He believed that female authority was vital in a world that was as of now suffocating in manly loathe and brutality "Frankly, Wonder Woman is psychological propaganda for the new type of woman who should, I believe, rule the world", William Marston. This inventor created a female character that would change the lives of others and role model that teenage girls can look up to, 'Wonder Woman’ was conceived by Dr. Marston to set up a standard among children and young people of strong, free, courageous womanhood; to combat the idea that women are inferior to men, and to inspire girls to self-confidence and
In “The Accidental Supermom: Superheroines and Maternal Performativity, 1963–1980” by Laura Mattoon D’Amore, the idea of the supermom came from the emergence of the superheroine, whose characteristics involved strength and independence. Wonder Woman was adopted as a symbol for American feminists and eventually American mothers. After the introduction of Wonder Woman in the Ms. Magazine, the rhetoric surrounding women during their movement began to shift. Superheroines were considered a fantasy. Comic books were used to maintain the social order within a family, especially when it came to gender roles. Superheroines were seen as maternal because she was protective and nurturing yet there were only a few superheroines, one being Invisible Girl,
Ross, D. (2004). Proquest. “Escape from wonderland: Disney and the female imagination”. Marvels & Tales, 18(1), 53-66,141.
[6] Suter, Rebecca. “Gender Bending and Exoticism in Japanese Girls’ Comics.” In Asian Studies Review, vol. 37 Issue 4 (2013), pp. 546-558.