Buffy and empowerment...

In 1997, Joss Whedon, feminist, athiest and anglophile, brought Buffy the Vampire Slayer to the small screen. Whedon's

intention was to bring feminism to the masses without drowning his audience in feminist theory. To a certain extent he

succeeded. Buffy makes war on demons and vampires without relying too heavily on the men in her life, and the show's male

protagonists are to a large extent kind spirited and gentle.
Outside of combat situations however, Buffy is a traditionalist. Her biggest worries seem to be going to prom and getting

facials, neither of which is a bad thing, lots of strong women go for spaw treatments and want to go to glitzy parties, but

the problem lies with Whedon's decision to portray such activivities as "normal" and to portray women who aren't

traditionally minded as abnormal.
The most rebelious women on Buffy the Vampire Slayer are the progam's least likable characters. Cordy Chase, a girl who

always says what she thinks, is a bully and a prima donna, Anya, Xander's strong willed girlfriend, is portrayed as a

shrewish six year old, and Faith, perhaps Buffy the Vampire Slayer's strongest female character, is presented a murdrous

sociopath. In this way Joss is asking all women, wheather they can identify with Buffy's character or not, to embrace her as

a feminist icon, and to dismiss all th other women who reject her particular brand of feminity as deeply flawed at best
and unspeakably evil at worst.

Regardless of his intentions, Joss Whedon has given us a show that that demonizes empowered women and presents us with a

very narrow interpretation of feminist thought.