Female Characters in YA Historical Fiction

By Melissa L.

I recently came across a discussion about female characters in YA historical fiction on one of the boards I belong to. The general consensus was this: If you are a female main character in a YA historical novel, and you are not overly spunky and ahead of your time, then, clearly, you are in the wrong book.

Okay, so maybe this isn’t true for every work of YA historical fiction. But as a whole, the female protagonists in these books are a remarkably progressive bunch. I can’t tell you how many books I’ve read set in medieval Europe in which a girl wants to be educated just like the boys—or, even more frequently, to choose her own husband. Not that I disagree with these sentiments…but when you consider the social norms of the time, they just aren’t very accurate.

I understand that if historical fiction portrayed the lives of ordinary women as they were throughout much of history, a lot of those books would be pretty boring. (Who really wants to read about a medieval girl who spends all her time learning to manage a household?) I also understand that there have always been at least a few women who actually were ahead of their times, and that these are just the sorts of people today’s kids want to read about.

But I can’t help but think that we aren’t doing modern children and teens a favor by creating this skewed view of young women throughout history. Until recently, most women weren’t expected to be well-educated or to have a say in who they married. Maybe portraying that reality in our books would help modern teens to understand how the young women of the past really lived—and to realize how far we’ve come.

Discussion:

Do you think female characters in historical fiction are too progressive to be historically accurate?

Is this really a problem, or does just it make otherwise dull books more interesting?

Melissa L. is the YA Editorial Assistant for Wonders and Marvels. You can read more about her here: Editorial Staff.

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Vicky Alvear Shecter

Melissa, this is an excellent topic. I understand your point but, as your second question suggests, nobody would read a novel about a girl who was cowed or happily spent her time sewing and cooking. I spent a number of my early years in a foreign, very traditional country and can remember the hurt of discovering (at 4 or 5) that my brothers would go to the American (i.e., better) school while my sister and I would go to the traditional one, and why: because they were boys and deserved better. I do believe there is a moment of awakening for children, when they suddenly “see” that they are different–and aren’t happy about it (I could be projecting, tho!). Of course, somebody could write a book about a girl who shadows her mom cooking and cleaning and taking care of younger siblings but where’s the drama, the tension, the conflict? Fiction demands those and a girl (or boy) who doesn’t fight against the constraints of her times is a very dull main character. Nonfiction articles and books, I think, are the place to delve into that reality. Or, even the newspaper, if one reads what’s happening to the lives of girls in Afghanistan and the like!
http://aartichapati.blogspot.com/ Aarti

I wrote about this on my blog, too! I specifically focused on the Victorians, but I agree it’s pervasive across historical fiction and really lessens the REAL work and progress women often made. Not all of them were spunky rebels who loved reading and gallivanting around the city on their own- many worked within the system and were successful with it. I wish people would stop thinking that girls always spent their time “happily sewing and cooking.” I don’t think the women’s movement would ever have existed if they all WERE happy with that.

Here’s my post on that, if you’re interested:
http://aartichapati.blogspot.com/2010/01/rant-against-victorian-women.html
librarypat

There may be a problem with posting. I submitted a comment the other day and it is not here.
http://www.wondersandmarvels.com Editor

Sorry your having problems posting comments librarypat; we are checking into these issues now. Thanks for letting us know.
http://jeannecharters.com Jeanne Charters

A critique partner told me about your site, and it’s really helping me. My novel is about a thirteen-year-old named Mary Boland who, in 1849, sneaks aboard a coffin ship out of Ireland and lands in Boston. She’s spunky all right. Survives illiteracy, rape, and near starvation in her quest for self reliance.

In her case, she has no choice. She must educate herself in order to survive. In the process, she meets some wonderful people who help her along the way.

Mary’s is a journey that requires guts and savvy. I’d like to think that today’s young women would be just as resourceful if they had the need to survive.

I’m just trying to decide if the book should be Y.A. or historical fiction. I’m leaning toward Y.A. since it’s a teenage protagonist and is written first person, present. I’m almost finished with first draft, am leaving for Ireland in July, and will start my edit when I return. Wish me luck!
http://musingreader.blogspot.com Greta Marlow

I came across your post tonight and found it very interesting, as I’ve wondered the same thing myself. The issue really irked me when I read The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate, which seemed to me not only to make Calpurnia ahead of her time but to make the ordinary lives of women look unbearably dull and restricting. I know sewing and cooking aren’t as exciting as fighting or going on a quest, but they are necessary for life.

I’m working on my first novel in which the main character is a young woman who I hope reflects the reality of women’s lives on the frontier of the early 19th century. Her father and then her husband constrain her choices, she carries a huge load of drudge housework, and she can’t read or write. Although she is pushed into some non-feminine behavior by the plot, in the end she is content to put herself back into the role of wife. I’ve wondered if editors and readers will think I’m throwing the women’s movement back about 70 years (ha ha). But I agree with you – how can we appreciate the freedom girls have now without seeing the limited choices girls across the centuries were given?

I’ve thought of writing a book in which the main character is a girl whose father/brother want to teach her to fight and be educated, but what she really wants to do is sew!