They’re good for more than just the cheesy romance
It feels like a familiar and commonly-shared experience for college students to stay up reading until eyes grow tired and brains simply cannot process more information. For most, this is a dreaded feeling, surrounded by the stress and exhaustion that comes with school. However, this parallels how many of us used to choose to spend the late nights of our middle school years. But instead of reading Rousseau and Sophocles, we were picking up Rick Riordan and J.K. Rowling, Susan Collins and Kiera Cass. Looking back, it’s impressive how much time some of us spent wrapped up in dystopian and fantasy worlds at a young age. I’d argue, however, that many of the young adult (YA) fiction books that were popular in our youth actually shaped some of us for the better through themes of female independence and empowerment, as well as complex struggles with class and power.
A main characteristic shared by many of these novels was the female lead at the center of the story. It could be argued that young girls are exposed to this by other forms of entertainment, including the copious amount of Disney princess movies. But whereas in Disney movies the female characters were often in distress, needing the help of a prince to save them, YA novels portrayed female characters that could fend for themselves. In The Hunger Games, Katniss wasn’t portrayed as a damsel in distress, head-over-heels for either love interest; she routinely put her family above Gale, and I think we can all agree Peeta wouldn’t be alive without her clever thinking and skills. Similarly, in both the Harry Potter and Percy Jackson series, Hermione and Annabeth are portrayed as strong-willed, intelligent characters who refuse to let men walk over them. Characters like these challenge the stereotype that men are more clever and rational; in fact, in Harry Potter, Ron’s character is the one who lacks common sense and is often more emotional than Hermoine.
The abundance of strong, female characters in YA novels is bound to have had an impact on young girls with developing brains. In my own experience, it was significant that characters I looked up to had strong opinions and outspoken voices, and took action because of it. It combated the common view that women who speak their mind or aren’t traditionally “sweet” are just cold and bitter. Instead, these characteristics were portrayed in a positive light, as they were integral to positive outcomes and progress in the novels’ plots.
Beyond portraying positive female leads who challenge stereotypes, many dystopian YA novels addressed complex themes of class in their stories. The Hunger Games is an obvious but important example of this, with hard-hitting class-divides: people are born into class conditions they cannot change, as the wealthiest part of the population creates the rules of society to make sure they stay there. In addition, the imagery of the Capitol and it’s citizens sitting back in their wealth while completely disregarding the value of anyone in poverty highlights the sharp divide between the rich and poor that we see in America today. Any reader can see that these conditions are not the fault of those in poverty, and a complete dismantling of the system was needed in order to overcome the power structure keeping their status stagnant. The Selection series portrays similar themes, with characters born into a caste system ruled by a monarchy. The main character, named America, clashes with the oppressive King when she decides to speak out against the caste system, despite originally being brought to the castle to just sit there and look pretty for the prince. Both of these series, and many more, contain power struggles as a central theme that closely parallel real-world structures widely seen today.
Being exposed to themes of class and power struggles as a middle schooler may seem premature, but I would argue that presenting these themes in an entertaining and easy-to-understand form is actually incredibly valuable to young minds. It introduces critical thinking about these struggles without focusing on the heavy realities of our actual world. However, I like to believe that these novels set many of us up to think about current issues in the same critical way.
As a preteen, these YA novels were simply a form of entertainment used to “get away” from everyday life. But looking back, it is apparent that they held significant themes that likely had a great influence on many while growing up. Strong-willed, outspoken female characters had a significant role in contrasting gender stereotypes and norms that can be highly damaging to young girls, and exposure to struggles of class and power were critical for a generation inheriting some of the highest levels of inequality in history. While it is ambitious to say YA novels are the main reason, I do believe they had some impact on many girls who are now part of a generation that is far more outspoken, politically aware and passionate about current issues than those before us, and we should never underestimate the power books can hold.