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A few weeks back I sent you a post on creating compelling villains. This is a follow up I wrote to that blog. I think this is at least as important and something too many writers donāt pay enough attention to.
I donāt know about you but I am usually disappointed by how female villains are portrayedāāāeven the best of them. I often love seeing how they act with agency and power. I love that more and more are written as complex characters, rather than two-dimensional prop pieces.Ā
What I donāt like is their backstories
Why is it that so many female villainsā stories or backstories still revolve around men? The origin stories of even the best of them are too often based on how some man has wronged them or been taken from them.
Maybe itās laziness. The pathology of male villains is not consistently based on harm done by a woman. Their backstories tend to be more varied with more complexity and nuance. Women are less often given that respect.
Maybe, though, itās more than laziness. Women are still fighting to gain equality in all spheres of life. We still hit the glass ceiling, we still pay pink tax and are often paid less than a man for the same work. Female actors and directors still struggle for equality in the film industry. And men still write most of what gets produced in Hollywood.
Among those men, Joss Whedon is well known for writing strong female characters in general, among them Drusilla from Buffy the Vampire Slayer, however, even he created her with a backstory dominated by a manāāāAngel, who drove her insane before turning her into a vampire.
From comics to novels to television to movies, female villainsā past and present lives tend to be determined by how a man has in some way been the major formative influence in their lives.
Here are just a fewĀ examples
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Harley Quinnāāāmost recently seen in Suicide Squad was the Jokerās psychologist. He made her love him, corrupted her, and turned her into a villain.
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Regina Millsāāāthe evil queen from Once Upon a Time was a sweet girl whose mother killed her lover before they could elope. Why? So she will marry the kingāāāanother man.
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā HelaāāāThor and Lokiās older sister from Thor: Ragnarok was discarded and banished by Odin.
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Maleficentāāāfrom both the first movie by the same name and now Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, was betrayed by King Stefan before he came to the throne.
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā The Brideāāāin Kill Bill I and II sought revenge for Billās murderous rampage at her wedding to another man, including an attempt to kill her.Ā
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Alex Forrestāāāfrom Fatal Attraction is obsessed with Dan Gallagher, a man with whom she had a one-night stand.
Compare to these MaleĀ Villains
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Jack Torranceāāāfrom The Shining was driven mad by evil spirits.
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Voldemortāāāfrom Harry Potter was raised in an orphanage where his unusual abilities made him outcast.
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Thanosāāāfrom the Marvel Universe watched famine kill huge numbers of people on his home world, Titan.
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Lokiāāāfrom Thor and other Marvel Universe films (and comics) was the least valued son of Odin, growing up jealous of his brother, Thor. The nail in his coffin was finding out he was adopted and was actually a Frost Giant.
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Sarumanāāāfrom The Lord of the Rings, in his arrogance, believed he could spy on Sauron from afar. Sauron seduced and corrupted him.
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Darth Vader and Kylo Renāāāfrom Star Wars were both seduced by the dark side of the force.
There is a very strong pattern of creating rich and complex backstories for male villains and falling back on the old trope of, āA man done me wrongā with female villains, even when those who write them otherwise make them strong, compelling characters.
There are notable exceptions to this reliance on using men to justify womenāsĀ villainy
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Miranda Priestlyāāāfrom The Devil Wears Prada is motivated by power, success, and the need for control. This is a product of the cutthroat fashion industry in which she has made her career. The book was written by Lauren Weisberger.
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Alma Coināāāfrom The Hunger Games is a power-hungry woman who shares many of the same traits as President Snow. This series was written by Suzanne Collins.
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Jeanine Matthewsāāāfrom Divergent, penned by Veronica Roth, knows the truth about the factions and is motivated by the belief she must prevent a return to the outside world.
Note that these books are all written by women. For the most part women write women better. That just makes sense, given that we write with a deep understanding of a womanās inner life. Men not having that advantage does not excuse their relying on the outdated idea that womenās backstories must revolve around a man.
Having said that, I am not implying that they never should do so. It happens in the real world, so it should happen in our stories. Just not most of the time.Ā
We see storylines in which a male villainās pathology was triggered by a woman asĀ well
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Norman Batesāāāfrom Psycho, who was emotionally abused by his mother
Ā·Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Ā Magnetoāāāfrom X-Men, whose mother was killed by Sebastian Shaw. However, this is richer than a simple murder, with it really being about Shaw using brutal methods to bring out his powers. Iāll still count it.
These kinds of stories are valid and should be be written for both sexes. They reflect something that happens in real life. But they are only a small part of the myriad of reasons someone goes wrong in life. There are so many other possibilities to draw on. Writers do so for male characters, they should do so for female characters as well.
All villains need complex, rich backstoriesĀ
I wrote about this in a previous post. You can read about it by following the link below. Everything I wrote in that post applies equally to both sexes.Ā
How to Create Compelling Villains
If you want to write female villains well, write them as people first and women second. I donāt mean this in the sense of giving their female aspect second class status. Women are as complex as men. Both sexes have complex motivations and their backstories should reflect that.