In comics, female superheroes are depicted as sex toys

Comics and graphic novels have been described as the only form of popular culture art capable of persuading, informing, and molding attitudes and behaviors; they provide an art-related pleasure unavailable in any other medium. Despite the fact that most academics overlook the importance of comics, they can send powerful messages about lifestyles and cultures. In the early 1900s, these comics depicted male superheroes as dominant characters with the ability to solve complex problems, while female superheroes were depicted as supporting characters whose role was to push the plot of the story forward. It has evolved over time: women are now portrayed as superheroes who save the world. Unfortunately, this comes with making these heroines as sexual objects who satisfy the male fantasies. Comic book artists tend to argue that depicting women voluptuously and provocatively is attributed to giving the strength to the characters, but commonly it portrays sex objects. Most comical literature and books have been representing female superheroes with large busts, slim figure and half-naked appearance referred to “headlight comic books,” which is a rude way of referring to the female anatomy. Sexist undertones have been evident in most of the comic literature in the way these superheroes have the abilities ranging from gymnastics to the mind controlling (Pitcher).

The ability to control fellow actors and opponents, especially men by female superheroes and use of their beauty to manipulate men is deemed sexist. The escalating amount of violence and sex lead to the establishment of a written code in 1954 to control the content displayed in graphic novels, manga and comic books (Putstz 204).

Artists tend to draw women who are anatomically impossible with overemphasizing on sexuality. Their scanty outfits are attention-seeking as it fulfills the sexual fantasies of the male-dominated comic industry, which stimulates erotic fantasies. It is evident that these outfits do not provide protection whatsoever in cases such as dangerous working places, for example, cold areas. It beats logic that the outfit cannot help protect from the attacks by the enemy. Comic literature has articulated that most female superheroes use these skimp dresses to distract male enemies as the latter tend to be gazing at the bare skin, giving the female an opportunity to overpower them. It can be argued that clothes do less to the power of the heroes since they are so powerful and cannot be harmed by the extreme environment, but this argument is not sufficient. It cannot be ignored that the attitudes and the expectations of gender roles are shaped by the entertainment industry, thus the female superheroes are failing to show decency by being sexualized. Scholars have argued that comic book publishers create such characters to boost sells. There is a high chance that the male customers would easily choose a book with a good-looking sexualized female rather than a book with the cover page illustrating anything other.

Figure 1. Provocative Dress Code

The male gaze can be defined as the act of male heterosexual’s letting the camera linger on the curves of a female body, which denies women decency and promotes objectifying women (Osha 196). These characters are presented in a way that the men would want to observe them. It implies that women should aspire to behave in such a manner when they are with their men. The female prompts the male to act as they are the drivers of the plot. However, when keenly examined, it becomes obvious that the man is on the forefront, which puts the woman in a second position for just advancing the plot of the story. The powers bestowed on these characters are exploited by their sexual nature since they cannot be taken seriously from their appearance. The problem appears when the female is considered only from the point of view of this sex appeal rather than from her abilities to fight crime and protect the society.

Figure 2. The Male Gaze

Figure 3.Provocative Poses

Despite the strength displayed by female superheroes, they are portrayed in the certain sexual pose, which has caused the falling into gender stereotyping. Attractive bodies and the suggestive lingerie advertisements in the comic literature sexualize the female characters. Their actions are promoted as sexual-related as it depicts them posing in the indecent manner, not like the male counterparts who are muscular and ready to take actions to solve problems. During lifesaving fights, female heroes have been displayed pretty much from the behind with the emphasis on the posterior, beasts as well as voluminous hair. It is the typical fantasy of most teenage boys who love watching this kind of comics. One of the famous characters, the spider girl in the first volume of the comic books’ series, has been shown in a sexy pose as she crawls on the floor leaving too much skin to be seen. Thus, it could be accepted as being a pornographic content rather than a comic one. The male counterpart is depicted with a strong superpower and is ready to face his opponents and the enemy at any time. His strength in climbing walls and breaking obstacles of any kind is clearly recognized in this comic book while the female heroine can be said to be flaunting her body and likely to be less prepared to fight crime at all times (Kim 324).

The ability to control the less physical–power such as empathy, intellect and telepathy has been linked to female heroines. It allows them to win more battles and forms long-lasting ties and complex relationship with other characters. Such an ability has been used by these female heroines as a weapon to control the male characters. For example, one of the popular female comic characters has been articulated to take advantage of this ability together with her sexuality to persuade one of the male characters to give her wealth. This form of manipulation has only been linked to the female characters since they show the high ability to control the minds of the various characters in the set comic and graphic novels. Adversaries can easily be duped by this female character as they can easily be fooled into believing that she means no harm while, in the real sense, these females are ready to pounce on them at the proper opportunity. Mind reading has been prescribed to female heroines, which is this advantageous to them since they can be able to avoid attacks from their enemies (Busiek).

Figure 4. Female Superhero’s Actions



To conclude, it is evident that the female character has evolved. Previously, they have been depicted as supporting characters whose task was only to drive the plot of the comic stories. Currently, they are illustrated as superheroes with significant abilities to overpower the enemy. The female played fewer roles in the earlier comic series, but this has changed in the recent past with an introduction of the concept of the female superhero. These heroines tend to have the same powers as their male counterparts. Unfortunately, this comes with sexual exploitation in line with the fulfillment of the male fantasize who dominate the industry. The sexual appeal is created by focusing on unattainable bodies such as large busts, slim waists, and voluminous hair. It creates the illusions that these females use their sexuality to attain their goals, thus reducing their significance as the superheroes.



Works Cited

Busiek, Kurt. Avengers vol. 3. New York: Marvel World Wide inc, 1998.

Kim, Lane S. "Sex and the Single Girl." Sage Journals, 2001, pp. 319-334.

Osha, Sanya. "Venues and White Desires". Transition, no. 99, 2008, pp. 80-92.

Pitcher, Karen. "The Staging of Agency in "Girls Gone Wild." Critical Studies in Media Communication, vol. 23, no. 3, 2006, pp. 200-18.

Pustz, Mathew J. Comic Book Cultue: Fanboys and True Believers . Jackson: Univerity Press of Mississipi, 1999.