Growing up, I always wished that I could relate to the superheroes on TV such as Spiderman, Superman, and Thor. Unfortunately, this was difficult as many of these heroes were men. The women that I did see in superhero comics or movies were often the love interest or the damsel in distress. As a little girl, I remember wishing for a female superhero that I could look up to. A woman who had impressive powers and saved the world. Recently, companies have been using women for superhero roles, and the child in me is thrilled. However, there still aren’t very many, and this needs to change. 

There are so many reasons why female superheroes would benefit society. Confidence is one of these reasons. It allows people to feel empowered and capable which is especially important for women since they are often underestimated. This is due to a confidence gap in our society that needs to be talked about more often. 

For example, “female sci-fi and superhero characters help bridge the confidence gap for girls, making them feel strong, brave, confident, inspired, positive and motivated,” President of Women’s Media Center Julie Burton said. 

Girls of all ages would love to have a role model that they can look up to. 

“I think ultimately the role of a superhero is an expression of power that is very important in shaping boys’ and girls’ ideas of who gets to inhabit the power situation and how,” Sarah Barnett, President of BBC stated. 

If women all over the world “don’t see enough role models or strong and relatable characters of their own gender on screen,” the way that they view themselves will drastically change.

Since superheroes create a sense of confidence and bravery in people, a lack of representation for women in the superhero realm sends the message that women aren’t capable of being superheroes. 

“Wonder Woman and Captain Marvel taught little girls they could do anything a man can do,” said Itxy Lopez. 

The thing is, these big roles for women don’t only influence young girls, but they also have an impact on women in their twenties, thirties, forties, and so on. 

Sometimes I see little girls with figurines of these new female superheroes, and it makes me so happy. I love being able to see these girls have someone to look up to. I’m just disappointed that their options are very limited. 

Especially when I was little, having a female role model was very important to me. I remember wishing that I could see a girl on a TV screen who could lift heavy objects or save the world. I know that I couldn’t have been the only girl in the world who felt that way, which is why it’s so important to create more of these roles for all young girls in the world. 

The only downside to these superhero roles is that the women portraying the hero are often sexualized. They are dressed in revealing costumes or advertised by using their bodies. It feels wrong that companies are objectifying these women to appeal to a wider array of people. So while it’s great that more women are getting these roles, I think it’s important that companies refrain from objectifying them,as it sends yet another message saying that these movies are only valued when the woman is objectified. 

Superheroes such as Scarlet Witch, Natasha Romanoff, Supergirl, and many others are so important in reshaping the way women view themselves. They help women feel strong, brave, and more capable since they have someone to look up to who can accomplish incredible feats. Hopefully, in the future, we will see even more prominent roles for women in the superhero realm as it sends a wonderful message to women everywhere.

Graphic courtesy of FLICKR.COM