The Heroine: Understanding An Archetype | Alternative Scriptwriting for Women

The Heroine: Understanding An Archetype
Alternative Scriptwriting For Women

Heroines are not brave because they are indestructible. Rather, they
are brave because they are vulnerable. It is through this inherent
vulnerability that the heroine's womanhood is tested in terms of its
strengths and weaknesses. Thus, I find it problematic when heroines
begin to act like heroes.

When a woman takes in male qualities, does this make the woman
strong? When a woman assumes the male role, does this make the woman
tough? This is the common mistake, we often assign male qualities to
our heroines to emphasize that they are tough. Tough enough to defeat
any man. But does this make the heroine special in her own right?
Are we saying that in order for a girl to become a hero, she must
first acquire male characterizations?

Defining a heroine using the hero's template is never a good idea.
Men have their own tenets regarding a hero. The same is true for
women with regards to the heroine. Thus, these are two archetypes
that have different forms and functions.

The heroine as a form, in general, moves towards self-worth rather
than self-meaning which is always the direction of the hero. Thus,
the heroine constantly struggles to validate herself in the midst of
crisis. Weakness or strength is validated by the heroine's attitude
towards her vulnerability. The function, therefore, pertains to the
heroine as an irresistible force rather than an immovable object.

But there are exceptions to the rules. If assigning male qualities to
a heroine has a fundamental purpose in the material, then it is
essential. But if it is just for the sake of "beefing up" the female
character, I find it a flawed device. This is often the problem of
materials that tackles issues that affects women. They often portray
the heroine as if they are trying to transform a female character
into a male character in order for the heroine to overcome the
obstacles. So what we have is a woman pretending to be a man in order
to overcome the challenges. So, is this the triumph of womanhood or
is this a validation that a woman needs to become a man in order to
succeed?

People may say that it insensitive to distinguish issues related to
women and issues related to lesbians. But as writers, we need to
distinguish the differences between the two. When we construct
characters, we must be definite in terms of identifying motivations
and intentions. Thus, I think it is problematic if we do not
acknowledge the diversity of female sex and sexuality as well as
female sense and sensibility.

I mean, it is a grave injustice if we put all women in one category.
To say that mothers and single women share an absolute and universal
need and want. The same is true for straight women and lesbians.
Even within the lesbian community, we can find diversity in terms of
intentions and motivations. Not all lesbians are liberal and not all
mothers are conservative. Thus, the more we are able to identify this
diverse gender, the more we are able to understand the richness of
the female collective psyche.

The heroine is a character that confronts fear despite of her
inherent vulnerability. This vulnerability defines her sense and
sensibility as well as her sex and sexuality. Thus, sensitivity
towards character construction of a heroine relies on understanding
the diversity within the female gender within the parameters of a
collective psyche.

ALTERNATIVE SCRIPTWRITING FOR WOMEN MODULE ONE
SHORT & FEATURE NARRATIVE APPLICATION
FEBRUARY 2007 WORKSHOP

The workshop is a specialized form of writing that uses genre
deconstruction as the primary method in developing a material. The
February 2007 Workshop will focus on Screwball Comedy as a genre in
deploying issues that affects the lives of women.

Screwball Comedies are entertaining but at the same time sensitive in
terms of the prevailing socio-political and economic conditions.
Often, this genre tackles inherent gaps, inequalities and inequities
in gender, race, age and socio-economic class using humor as an
abstract value in terms of deployment.

DAY 01 : GENRE
1 Screwball Comedy
A. Feature
B. Structure

2 Devices in Comedy
A. Feature
B. Structure

DAY 02 : IDEA & PREMISE CONSTRUCTION
3 Constructing Ideas
A. Ideology
B. Concepts Regarding The Quality of Life

4 Premise
A. Problem
B. Process
C. Solution

DAY 03 : CHARACTER & STORY
5 Character
A. Features
B. Structure

6 Story
A. Components
B. Structure
C. Pattern

DAY 04 : STORY OUTLINE & SEQUENCE TREATMENT
7 Story Outline
A. The Hunter Method
B. Feature
C. Structure

8 Sequence Treatment
A. Format
B. Structure

DAY 05 : SCREENPLAY & PROJECT DEVELOPMENT
9 Screenplay
A. Format
B. Feature
C. Structure

10 Project Development
A. Feature
B. Structure

The tuition fee for the series is 5,500 pesos. The fee will cover 5
sessions, 3 hours per session. And at the end of the series, a
participant will get a certificate of attendance.

Those who are interested, you can send an email to this address:
irish_patatas_entertainment@yahoo.com. Do not forget to indicate
your full name and contact number (mobile or landline). Or you can
send an sms message to this number : 09215081060. We will send a
complete lecture series outline to individuals who will inquire. So,
if you are sending a sms message, pls. include your full name and e-
mail address.