click to visit larger image Epic of Sally Robertson, page 43 From the Fenworks |
Sometimes I wonder if this comic is turning out to be more about Carl than about Sally. Or maybe it seems that way in the beginning. I know from the plot I’ve developed that the comic could be about no one else but Sally. It’s her journey. Then I remember, you could ask the same thing about so many other stories. Is He-Man more about He-Man or Skeletor? Beowulf more about Beowulf or Grendel? Is Scooby Doo more about the dog or the ghosts? Is Calvin and Hobbes… Or, right.
More specifically, I’m curious to see how it will stand up to the Bechdel test. So far, I think it has failed, but there’s a lot more comic to go! Wait, no, there’s one page at least. I don’t count Mrs. Berkeley’s conversation with Sally about revenge, because Carl is sort of at the center of that one.
Recently, though, a friend of mine pointed me to a more detailed analysis of movies inspired by the Bechdel test. It examines not just how a movie depicts two women talking, and whether or not they’re talking about something other than men, which is still an excellent baseline, but also how men are depicted talking about women in comparison to how they are talking about other men, and all sorts of other metrics. It’s really fascinating, actually. And initially depressing until you learn how to read the graphs, because it kind of looks like things are getting worse, but they’re not, really. But even if things aren’t getting worse and worse, there’s still a lot of work to do, and another story that at least passes the test is certainly in order. Especially if it’s a story with the name of a girl as the hero in the title…
Anyway, pardon me for wandering down this road for a post. Some people just want to read the comic and not concern themselves with political things, and I respect that enough. (You should be able to internalize the story without overtly thinking, “ah, this is feminist”, even if it is feminist. That’s sort of the point of stories, to make hard things fun and easier to listen to.) And you should know by now that I love to analyze all sorts of things. It may seem like I over analyze certain issues, but I’m not worrying, I’m having fun! But, to me, this is also an important subject. For a number of reasons, not the least of which because it is an important subject. And part of the whole reason I’ve chosen to write this comic specifically is to try to treat this subject well.
So, if this prompts you to join in the conversation about it, I don’t need accolades or reassurances here, unless it is to say, “don’t stop doing the right thing.” But rather, a refinement of the metrics for measuring this stuff, and maybe a curious eye out to how I seem to be crafting the story as we go. I’d love to hear about how it’s coming across! Thank you!
Epic of Sally Robertson: The Origin of Carl originally appeared on Drawing Contraption on 2013/07/18.