Ruthless Mentor, Bladeless Talisman

While heroes almost always receive a sword (wand, lightsaber…) from their kindly old mentor, girls walk away with household objects. One message this supplies is that girls are not supposed to fight. All of the heroines accomplish their quests without violence, needing cleverness and fortitude more than Excalibur. Perhaps in the days of tales by the fireside, the girls looked on wistfully as their brothers rode off to war. “There’s magic in our lives, too,” their grandmothers would say. “We can disguise ourselves as men and pick up swords, be warrior queens like Mab and Atalanta, or we can follow our own path.” Actions in the so-called “women’s domain” frequently save the men and allow the heroines to accomplish their goals.

Read Henry Potty and the Pet Rock: The Unauthorized Harry Potter Parody