Analysis on Mulan and the Twilight Saga Through a Feminist Point of View

Mulan
The society is sexist.
Women are to be beautiful, curvy, delicate, poised, graceful, refined, thin, curvy, quiet, demure and polite.
Men are portrayed as the leaders of society, whereas women are only there to give birth to children.
Mulan is graceful, calm, and unique she is also beautiful and curvy, just like society wants. But that is where it stops. Unlike society’s wishes, she is not quiet, demure, or delicate. Instead she is intelligent, strong, and independent and is not afraid to be what she wants to be. And therefore, when the time came when she did not want her father to lose his life in battle, she goes against society’s standards when it comes to women on the battlefield and disguises herself as a man to be able to join the army. She proves that she is just as capable as a man by joining the army and doing the same things the men do at training camp, if not more. But by the end of the movie, she saves the country.
Feminists hope that people’s outlook on female roles and equality will change for the better, and in some ways the hope lies with the media. Books, movies, poems, songs, TV shows and any other types of influences on the public are their hope in delivering their message. Mulan is an animated movie that many kids watch and enjoy from a young age. At a young age they start to develop opinions about everything they interact with. Therefore, developing a movie like Mulan will influence the children to treat females as equals. The treatment of females will be improved through the next generation. This will help the feminists with their cause.

Twilight
Throughout the story, Bella Swan does not have trouble coming to a decision as all her decisions are based on the fact if a decision will bring her closer to Edward or help him. Her choices are not based on her benefits or what will help her, which portrays the sexist outlook of women – weak, obedient, and not equal – which has been shown throughout history. In New Moon, when Edward leaves Bella, she does everything in her power to be able to see Edward, from riding a motorcycle recklessly to jumping off a cliff into stormy waves. This also shows that women are nothing without men, which is not what the feminist movement wants. Yes the love they had for each other and the devotion that was expressed in the novel was well-played, but the weakness of the female lead does not push society to accept woman as equals economically, politically, or socially. This book does not promote female equality but instead female inequality. Furthermore, Bella relies on Edward for her to live and on Jacob in New Moon.