45 Master Characters (9 page)

• Is instinctual and shows no remorse.
  

• Wants instant gratification and justice.
  

• Is blind with fury and rage.
  

• Creates extremely emotional reactions out of proportion to offense.
  

• Isn't levelheaded.
  

• Acts as a dictator, dispensing justice.
  

• Believes truth and law have no place in the heat of battle.
  

• Will sacrifice herself to get an enemy.
  

• Usually reacts from repressed trauma or years of abuse.
  

• Exhibits reckless behavior.
  

• Is aggressive, erratic and irritable.
  

Diana in Action

Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Gellar) in
Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Xena (Lucy Lawless) in
Xena: Warrior Princess

Dr. Michaela Quinn (Jane Seymour) in
Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman

Nikita (Peta Wilson) in
La Femme Nikita

Rose DeWitt Bukater (Kate Winslet) in
Titanic

Lieutenant Ellen L. Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) in
Alien

Louise Sawyer (Susan Sarandon) in
Thelma & Louise

Karen Silkwood (Meryl Streep) in
Silkwood

Captain Karen Emma Walden (Meg Ryan) in
Courage Under Fire

Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton) in
The Terminator

Gracie Hart (Sandra Bullock) in
Miss Congeniality

Wonder Woman

Joan of Arc

Queen Boudica

Fa Mu Lan in
The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts
by Maxine Hong Kingston

Sal in
The Beach
by Alex Garland

Jo March in
Little Women
by Louisa May Alcott

Helen Schlegel in
Howards End
by E.M. Forster

Scout in
To Kill a Mockingbird
by Harper Lee

Lucy in
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
by C.S. Lewis

Idgie Threadgoode in
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe
by Fannie Flagg

Anne Shirley in
Anne of Green Gables
by Lucy Maud Montgomery

As mysterious as an owl in the dark night air, the goddess Athena hovers proudly over the great library and the victorious battlefield. She will not dirty her hands in battle but will remain at the side of her chosen heroic soldier, helping him to win the war. She offers him strength, power and knowledge as well as her undying loyalty. She carries a shield of armor in one hand and an image of the goddess Nike in the other for Nike is the symbol of victory. Born from her father's head, she has no mother and no room for female companions of any kind. She is smart and takes full control of her emotions.

The Father's Daughter doesn't care much for fighting the good fight for women's causes like the Amazon does. She may argue against the female cause, siding with men to prove she's on their side thereby gaining their admiration. She feels she is the exceptional woman — “Other women can't do this,” she thinks, “but I can because I'm the exception.”

She forms alliances with strong men who can help her achieve her goals. She doesn't sleep with them but instead develops friendships with them as “one of the boys.” She's the type of woman who is eagerly allowed into the male workplace for she is always loyal to the strong men she unites with in the battlefield of business.

She is smart and a very strategic thinker, never allowing her emotions to sway her into making the wrong decision. She hates the wild untamed wilderness, preferring a fast-paced city life. She likes things she can control but also loves the challenge of learning new things, especially those related to the mind and the business world. She uses brains over instinct and can focus on her own goals just like the Amazon. As a goddess she oversees crafts as well as warfare, for both take patience and concentration. She has the strength to be professional and to be a gifted student. She is very inquisitive and resourceful in a crisis but doesn't trust others to get things done for her and often takes on everything herself.

Queen Elizabeth's steel-minded resolve and dedication to her father's causes make her an example of a historical Father's Daughter.

Without the skills or opportunities for business she will rally behind her husband's career as if it were her own. Watch out if he ever tries to leave her. She would be most upset at the loss of being involved with his job more than anything.

Lieutenant Jordan “L.T.” O'Neil (Demi Moore) in
G.I. Jane
is a Father's Daughter, not an Amazon, because she fights to become just like a man and prove she is as good as a man. An Amazon would retain and value her female essence. Jordan tries to fit into the boys' club as a male. Her words, manners, actions and values are very male by the end of the film, and she sacrifices herself for their approval several times. An Amazon like Xena would never care so much about fitting in, and in the film
Courage Under Fire
we see a heroic Amazon woman, Captain Karen Emma Walden (Meg Ryan), who retains her female essence throughout the film. She has no problem with feelings and tears.

What Does the Father's Daughter Care About?

Her name says it all — she cares about aligning herself with powerful men and supporting patriarchy. She wants to be accepted by men as one of their own so she can get ahead in her career. Getting into the old boys' network is a major career stepping-stone for her.

She only cares how men view her. Women can say what they want of her but she feels they usually wind up admiring her for her accomplishments.

She loves to win, or more importantly, to see her team win. She'll go to great lengths to see this happen — she's a real team player.

She wants to study and learn new things, to broaden her mind.

She likes to travel to distant lands but never without staying in a luxury hotel. She never does anything she can hire someone else to do for her. She has a busy schedule.

What Does the Father's Daughter Fear?

The Father's Daughter fears female friendship because it reminds her of her own femaleness, which she tries to suppress. She sees women as the weaker sex and fights everyday to prove she's not weak.

She can handle losing a battle or two but is terrified of losing the war. Such a loss of control is devastating.

She needs to remain in the city. Going out into the wilderness would just starve her desire to learn from books. She needs to see that nature has a lot to teach her as well as books do, but she just doesn't resonate with it.