On the Bravery of Women: The Ancient Amazon and Her Modern Counterparts

<p>In a favourite mythological motif of the Greeks, the Amazons fought many of the most celebrated Greek heroes and lived in independent societies on the fringes of the known world. These warrior women appear throughout Greek literature and art of every kind, defined by characteristics which differentiated them from ‘ordinary’ women: heroic capability and skills in battle; an unusual lifestyle, marked out by traditions often the very opposite of those of the Greeks, including unique mothering customs; and a significant independence from men, including systems of gynaecocracy or the wholesale exclusion of men from their society. Yet despite their reputations as fierce and talented combatants, the Amazons were constantly bested by their male counterparts and either killed in battle or abducted for marriage. It seems that whenever they fought against the Greeks, they lost. In an interesting case of the adaptation of myth to the modern world, the archetypal features of the Amazon (as the Greeks imagined her) can also be found in a variety of television and film characters. Through an analysis of both the ancient and ‘modern’ Amazon, I show how this symbol benefits greatly from the vastly different social context of western society in the twentieth century which enables the Amazon to become an affirmative model of female heroism. The case-study approach adopted here examines instances of the ‘modern’ Amazon in Wonder Woman, Xena: Warrior Princess, Alien/Aliens, The Terminator/Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Kill Bill Volume 1 and 2 and notes that, while encompassing many of the same traits as their ancient predecessors, these Amazons are no longer constantly on the losing side of the battle. The successes of feminism and the changing expectations which accompany them transform the Amazon from the defeated warrior into the triumphant victor.</p>

On the Bravery of Women: The Ancient Amazon and Her Modern Counterparts

<p>In a favourite mythological motif of the Greeks, the Amazons fought many of the most celebrated Greek heroes and lived in independent societies on the fringes of the known world. These warrior women appear throughout Greek literature and art of every kind, defined by characteristics which differentiated them from ‘ordinary’ women: heroic capability and skills in battle; an unusual lifestyle, marked out by traditions often the very opposite of those of the Greeks, including unique mothering customs; and a significant independence from men, including systems of gynaecocracy or the wholesale exclusion of men from their society. Yet despite their reputations as fierce and talented combatants, the Amazons were constantly bested by their male counterparts and either killed in battle or abducted for marriage. It seems that whenever they fought against the Greeks, they lost. In an interesting case of the adaptation of myth to the modern world, the archetypal features of the Amazon (as the Greeks imagined her) can also be found in a variety of television and film characters. Through an analysis of both the ancient and ‘modern’ Amazon, I show how this symbol benefits greatly from the vastly different social context of western society in the twentieth century which enables the Amazon to become an affirmative model of female heroism. The case-study approach adopted here examines instances of the ‘modern’ Amazon in Wonder Woman, Xena: Warrior Princess, Alien/Aliens, The Terminator/Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Kill Bill Volume 1 and 2 and notes that, while encompassing many of the same traits as their ancient predecessors, these Amazons are no longer constantly on the losing side of the battle. The successes of feminism and the changing expectations which accompany them transform the Amazon from the defeated warrior into the triumphant victor.</p>

WAI 1909 – The Waitangi Tribunal Gambling Claim

In 2008, I lodged a claim with the Waitangi Tribunal in regard to problem gambling and its negative impacts on Māori people. The Tribunal is tasked with hearing grievances related to Te Tiriti o Waitangi (The Treaty of Waitangi) signed in 1840 between Māori and the British Crown. It is a historical claim focused on the lack of adequate protection of taiohi Māori (young people of Māori descent) and the intergenerational harm caused by problem gambling among their whānau, hapū, iwi (extended families and relatives) and urban Māori communities. However, this begs the question how can a Treaty claim improve the health outcomes of a generation of taiohi Māori who have been exposed to commercial gambling and its aggressive and targeted expansion and marketing? This paper frames the WAI-1909 claim as a Kaupapa Māori (Māori research approach) derived from the research of three wahine toa (warrior women) supporting the claim; and refers to epistemological standpoints of Māori women working in the gambling research space. I demonstrate how the gambling claim challenges the New Zealand government to honour the promises in the articles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and to protect the rights of its citizens, especially taiohi Māori. The WAI-1909 gambling claim concludes that whilst the New Zealand Gambling Act (2003) includes a public health approach to problem gambling, it has not adequately addressed the rights of tangata whenua (Māori, the first people of Aotearoa/New Zealand) under Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

Rewriting Dalit Gender Paradigms through the Viranganas and Femme Fatale Archetypes

The true identity of the Femme Fatale character type has not yet been discovered despite the growing interest of authors and writers in this lethal woman archetype, whose extensive presence was seen in nineteenth and twentieth century literary and cultural texts. The Femme Fatale has acquired numerous forms since her arrival into the literary arena. Although typically villainous, or at least morally confusing, and always associated with a sense of mystification and unease, Femme Fatales have also appeared as an anti-heroine in some stories. Some narratives also end with a repenting Femme Fatale, who regrets her past villainy. Some Femme Fatales also pave way for greater good by ensnaring the villain and reforming him through her lethal treatments. Dalit viranganas are a group of warrior women characters who are comparatively novel portrayals within the arena of literature. These characters refurbish the entire ideologies governing the conventional patriarchy which often put women under the control of these patriarchal figures. She denies fitting into the roles of a dutiful wife and nurturing mother that the mainstream society prescribes for her. In these representations there is a blending of history and present and these women become symbols of pride for the community. They are often dressed in masculine manner and displays physical prowess, which is a quality often ascribed to men. She leaves behind a strong picture of an unremorseful, bold and daring woman who adheres to her own ideals rejecting the rules put forward by society.

Empress Dowagers on Horseback: Yingtian and Chengtian of the Khitan Liao (907–1125)

Unlike their Han Chinese counterparts who were mainly sequestered to the inner quarters, many imperial Khitan women of the Liao 遼 (907–1125) were not only active in state affairs, but they even rode astride and led their own armies to fight on battlefield. This article aims to investigate the lives and political careers of Empress Dowagers Yingtian and Chengtian, who ruled the empire as de facto sovereigns on behalf of their husbands and sons for over fifty years, by focusing particularly on how they proved themselves as capable horsewomen and what strategies have they employed in order to gain access to power and to accomplish their ambitions. Such warrior women, exercising leadership and exhibiting personal bravery, drew their strength from their Inner Asian steppe traditions and therefore established themselves as another type of queenship in Chinese history.