Thanks to Dmitriy T.M. for sending this speech by Joss Whedon (responsible for Buffy the Vampire Slayer) at an Equality Now event. His comments begin at 2:00 (after an introduction by Meryl Streep):
Could we get a transcript? Not all of us can hear…
You star!
Just a head’s up – this speech lead to a global fundraising effort by Joss fans for Equality Now. Can’t Stop The Serenity is in its fourth year now and still going strong. More info & list of participating cities: http://cantstoptheserenity.com.
(I’m the organizer for Pittsburgh, so I couldn’t resist a plug!)
I love Joss Whedon. I don’t consider his female characters in “Dollhouse” as strong, but then again I haven’t watched much of the show. From what I watched the main character has her brain wiped cleaned every episode and she takes on a different persona each time. Before taking that persona she’s in a doll-like state (think “nothing behind the eyes”; empty; malleable; childlike).
I never watched Buffy.
nonfictions, I watched the whole season of Dollhouse and though what you say is true, they also let elements of her real personality bleed through from time to time (it’s one of the main plot elements) and it becomes very clear then that she IS a strong woman.
nonfiction,
It also has to be noted that although the main character in Dollhouse is a woman who’s mind has been erased, she’s not the only one that this has been done to. There are men as well as women who’ve been mind-wiped in the Dollhouse. Many people talk about the show’s exploitation of women, but if you watch, the men are just as exploited. And besides, examining that exploitation is kind of the point. It’s not like they are saying it’s a good thing.
In The Dollhouse, it is a women who fights back against the system.
Love this man. What a fucking excellent thing.