Do you think there's such a thing as a female power fantasy in fiction?

Reisiluu · 2021-07-27T09:56:04+00:00

Having the sex appeal to get any man to do your bidding and the power to crush those who oppose you.

Refdin · 2021-07-27T07:55:29+00:00

I think the female power fantasy hasn’t really been fleshed out. In a lot of media, powerful female characters usually emulate male characteristics (e.g. captain marvel). In a sense I think we are only just starting to move beyond the notion that female empowerment involves adopting male roles

mimblezimble · 2021-07-27T07:48:19+00:00

"How to Be a Dominatrix": https://www.wikihow.com/Be-a-Dominatrix

Dominatrix Books: https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/dominatrix

It seems to be an entire industry.

Aware_Leading3791 · 2021-07-27T10:03:25+00:00

There is a whole manhwa industry making stuff like that and it's pretty popular among younger women. Check 'Beware of the Villainess' for example

LeJacquelope · 2021-07-27T08:11:03+00:00

Of course female power fantasy exists - where do you think hatred of men manifests? That's why female power fantasy stories are about women being particularly brutal to men. Like Harley Quinn severely overreacting to a cat-caller by blowing up his car with a bazooka. Or Poison Ivy literally feeding some helpless innocent male chump to her carnivorous plant. Female power fantasies involve jaw-droppingly brutal and disproportionate violence against males that would invoke Congressional censorship crusades if the victims were female.

Pilling_it · 2021-07-27T08:19:07+00:00

I feel like that'd involve making a woman exceptionally good at what they usually do : manipulation, getting hoards of powerful and rich men to be retarded because of her, you name it.

So it's like the average high-school boy that get harems for no reason, and it has the same problem as every romance novel ever aimed at women : it sacrifices the world and character of several of them for the sake of self insert, that we know isn't realistic.

The media actually explores what it's like to have a woman with the male power fantasy, but that's mostly an answer, often with hatred, to be able to "fight back" (Harley Quinn). So while I feel in fiction that'd be a popular and successful trope, I don't think that'd fit the definition of a power fantasy like we defined it.

DarkMindwithReason · 2021-07-27T08:35:15+00:00

A woman's power is all about being able to turn as many men into her resource slaves as possible while simultaneously outshining all other women she has no love for. Whether she can do that through blackmail, sex manipulation, emotional manipulation, whatever.

So maybe write a book story about some narcisstic woman who lives in the Maldives with 5 male servants who kiss her ass all day and fund her lavish lifestyle or something idk lol, like some findom.

I'm tired.

webernicke · 2021-07-27T16:59:28+00:00

The female power fantasy is having supreme, irresistible influence over a powerful man (or several men.) Being the only woman able to "tame" the unconquerable man, not because of what she does, but because of the fundamental essence of who she is (or "pussy power" for the uncultured swine among us.)

E.g. Beauty and the Beast, Fifty Shades of Grey, The Hunger Games, Twilight, Reverse Harem anime/manga and every other piece of romantic media where the unremarkable girl inexplicably wins the heart(s) of a man (or men) that should have a ton of other options.

LowCreddit · 2021-07-27T20:59:06+00:00

Men are more interested in the Hero's Journey than women. Women like stories like Cinderella where the heroine is mistreated by her friends and family, until one day, everyone discovers she has been totally hot and awesome this whole time. She displays this through a makeover, getting the attention of Hot Guy, turning down said Hot Guy, and him being so infatuated with her he crosses mountains to be with her.

Icy_Consideration905 · 2021-07-27T11:01:08+00:00

women actually are living the power fantasy , alot of them have male attention and they select , that's in itself a power , women have the power in relationship,women boss men, society say that women are the morally superior sex, women hate it when they lose power exactly when they feel rejected , women dont approach because of this , women are more powerful than men now and ever!! if i play the submissive role and let men die and work for me it mean that im the superior sex!!

fakingandnotmakingit · 2021-07-27T09:49:23+00:00

No.

I think the current male "power fantasy" is well one dimensional and geared towards straight men who wish they were masculine but aren't. I haven't, for example, seen what a gay male power fantasy might entail. Is it exactly the same as a your generic fantasy but you get hot guys instead? For that matter are we referring to men who wish they were thor as opposed to say tony stark? They both get the girl but thor is straight up power and Tony is more "i use brains instead of brawn"

The problem with female power fantasies in film is that they are either seen as evil (there was a great line from cruella deville about not needing a man), they're carbon copies of men but with boobs (captain marvel), women who are feminine but are powerful because they "fight" (Black widow).

I think that a female power fantasy would probably fit under several categories. To be stereotypical you can either be a sansa-type fantasy (feminine but with female strengths and getting a charming Prince), the arya (fighting and finesse) or the wonder woman (hot, pretty, strong and nurturing). Or alternatively for atla fans: the azula, the katara and the toph.

I personally feel like a nicely done wonder woman (as opposed to the train wreck of the last movie) could be a good example of a female power fantasy but that's just me.

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chingness · 2021-07-27T09:01:58+00:00

There’s a book called the power by Naomi Alderman that’s very much about this and women becoming the dominant gender

AnnoxisTenebraerum · 2021-07-27T10:13:41+00:00

There are essentially two types of narrative: aventure and romance. Considering the higher attraction of women towards the later relative to their male counterpart. Considering so, it would seem that the archetypal romance would give us the answer, and thus the archetypal romance heroine be such a power fantasy. The closest thing that comes to mind for an archetypal romance story would the Beauty and the Beast story and thus its heroine would be the closest thing to a female power fantasy.

Hoopy223 · 2021-07-27T13:41:45+00:00

Of course there is. Usually centered around having total control over everything and acting brutally towards male characters (because “all men are BASTARDS” lol). Most recent scifi and fantasy books have this trope.

Phoenix9061210 · 2021-07-27T13:42:55+00:00

I personally think their real fantasies are just so bad they wouldn't allow them to be published. I have known girls that got REALLY hot from cheating. There are a lot of people that just get off on cheating.

I also think that is the real female power play because womens power is emotional. I think a woman that fantasises about being a dom in the physical sense is "rare". They fantasize about having many men on the go and being worshipped by all of them like a queen.

(Later Edit): I have a really strong humiliation fantasy and I am writing erotic fiction. It's not the kind of thing they like because it is too nasty but is not the kind of thing men like either. Anyway, I hope I hit the spot with some girls (and guys obvs.)

superlurkage · 2021-07-27T15:18:26+00:00

You guys really don’t know what the female power fantasy is? It’s having a man wrapped around your finger through the power of pussy and/or twoo wub

Come on; it is so obvious. That’s what Twilight was about, as was 50 shades

cloudydays84 · 2021-07-27T15:28:45+00:00

Yeah it exists, less so in mainstream fiction but inching it's way bit by bit. Power fantasy as a concept is pretty broad, that realistically speaking any form of fiction can be considered a "power fantasy" if it checks off two boxes:

Is this character "powerful"?
Would I (the reader) like to be this character or have this "power"?

You're gonna get conflict over what does and doesn't constitute a power fantasy mainly because people are different and have different ideas of what constitutes "power".

It's debatable and subject to opinion. Some women say Ripley from Aliens is a female power fantasy others say she isn't. Some women say Anastasia from 50 shades of gray is a female power fantasy others say she isn't. Some women say Harley Quinn is a female power fantasy others say she isn't (this example can even be seen in this thread).

PlayfulLawyer · 2021-07-27T15:37:39+00:00

Yep, mainly because a lot of women have penis envy so a lot of the female power fantasy involves just a lot of what you would call male characteristics with the more modern Touch of actually removing the femininity / sexuality / Grace , so the main thing they try to do is take an existing property and just replace the male characters with female ones, that's why Rey was basically a worse version of Luke, that's why Kevin Smith has been all this recent stuff with Teela and He-Man, that's why there's always a new window and talk of a female James Bond, etc.,

gimpgirl555 · 2021-07-27T17:13:41+00:00

No. Women have submission fantasies or revenge fantasies. Female power fantasies are just feminist tryhard.

IcarusKiki · 2021-07-27T20:23:34+00:00

Women don’t really care about power. Maybe Carrie Bradshaw but she’s not exactly “powerful”

AidsVictim · 2021-07-28T00:13:14+00:00

Female power fantasies are usually expressed in forms of political/cultural/social power. The most popular recent example, Game of Thrones, has several of these (Daenerys, Cersei) although a literal gender swapped power fantasy (Brienne) also exists.

classicslayer · 2021-07-28T00:38:04+00:00

There tons of them some involve being a villain and getting away with it and others involved making a dreamy guy change for them like every other girl failed to do.

YoungBooski · 2021-07-28T01:19:32+00:00

Women don’t aspire to have power. They aspire to benefit from an association with a man who has power. Whereas men dream of becoming brave knights and strong kings; women wish to become fair maidens and beautiful princesses. Not Queens, that’s too much responsibility and not enough fun.

Superfluous_Toast · 2021-07-28T01:31:03+00:00

Yes, there is, it's called being a Mary-sue. We too would like to save the world with our awesome abilities, have everyone praise and respect us, and have that one person we have a crush on realize how amazing and wonderful we are and fall madly in love with us. Though maybe with less skimpy outfits. Honestly, I'd be Captain Marvel with slightly longer hair, if I could.

billsull_02842 · 2021-07-28T07:00:48+00:00

my power fantasy is a woman who can support herself and doesnt wear a meter.

WilliamWyattD · 2021-07-28T11:13:52+00:00

I think that a lot of female power fantasy is actually revenge fantasy.

Pure female power fantasy--something that would be symmetrical with male power fantasy--is rare simply because the genders are not symmetrical. Sexually, a desire for some type of male dominance is more typical. Female dominance and male submission is more of a kink.

In male intrasexual competition it is a straightforward play for dominance. Women play a more complex game where being clearly out to dominate loses the contest. Everyone pretends to defer to the group and consensus while maneuvering for more subtle influence.

So one would expect that any type of really popular female power fantasy would manifest more along the lines drawn by female sexual fantasy and group dynamics.

Estenar · 2021-07-29T19:18:52+00:00

Good that you asked, I have been reading Japanese and Korean comics for nearly a decade now and yes, it exist and it is pretty refreshing. It is not that common tho and not always it is in josei style. Strong, calculative, cold when necessary but still feminine. I can not really give you specific titles, because I forgot those, but when you to look little bit, you might find few of them.

DuncanIdaho88 · 2021-07-31T20:22:08+00:00

Being "Miss Popularity" is a female power fantasy.

Title	Do you think there's such a thing as a female power fantasy in fiction?
Author	MyrganGyrgan
Upvotes	2
Comments	45
Date	July 27, 2021 7:42 AM UTC (4 years ago)
Subreddit	Posted in /r/PurplePillDebate
Original Link	https://old.reddit.com/r/PurplePillDebate/comments/osiakx/do_you_think_theres_such_a_thing_as_a_female/
Archive Link	https://theredarchive.com/r/PurplePillDebate/do-you-think-theres-such-a-thing-as-a-female-power.794878 https://theredarchive.com/post/794878

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