So, is this a show with only men?


Just realised there was almost no women in the show. Only 1 when I come to think of it. ... booring. zzz

I haven't read the book yet, so maybe someone can tell me if it will go on in the same style.

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There are two main female characters.

GoonGirl for Hire

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VAGUE SPOILERS (I guess... Not really spoilers)

The book's main characters are men and it's mainly written from upper class white male imperial British POV (not in the sense of characters, in the sense of the omniscient third person)- but that's kind of the point. The whole story can be seen as a deconstruction of the British empire values and the (destructive) "Englishness" (known for disregarding everyone who do not belong to the upper class white male group).

So, to answer your question, the story is told from this precise POV for a reason, and while there are women, people of colour and lower-class people in the story, the focus is on the upper class white men... But the end of the story (and the whole point, imo) is a deconstruction and criticism of these values.

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Looks like Deconstructing is still smarting from the Labour's crushing defeat in the general election - or he/she is Australian

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You are projecting your own imagined themes into this work to the point of being delusional

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You ramble about "deconstruction of the British empire values and the (destructive) "Englishness" (known for disregarding everyone who do not belong to the upper class white male group" is complete rubbish. The series is set in England, has nothing to do with Empire, and Englishness is an entirely positive, inclusive and constructive thing. The English are notoriously tolerant. You obviously are not English.

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Uhhh.. if you watch the show, it ENTIRELY deconstructs the whole "respectable english" *beep* All Jonathan Strange (debate-ably the main protagonist) is counter the "respectable english magic". I think OP got it right here.

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Plus it is the "gentleman magician" Norvelle who unwittingly makes the bargain that brings the ruin and devestation which follow, all while he talks about "respectable magic" and sits in judgement of Strange's dabbling in what he considers unsafe magic.

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There are two main female characters, as already mentioned, and they are very present and very central to the story, indeed their fate is pivotal to the whole thing. More female characters appear later, and even if their roles are not as extensive as the men's, they are, again, key.

Hopefully tonight's episode has had enough feminine presence to keep your interest up.

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There are two main female characters, as already mentioned, and they are very present and very central to the story, indeed their fate is pivotal to the whole thing. More female characters appear later, and even if their roles are not as extensive as the men's, they are, again, key.

Meh.....the two main female characters are traditional victims who must be saved by men. Flora in Venice instigates a bit more independent action, though in the end she merely does what Mr. Strange tells her to. She's essentially reduced to being a servant.

Nothing new to see here.

One problem I have with projects like this that are 90% male oriented is....the discrepancy in jobs and pay.

Let's say each cast member got $1,000 (just to make this easy.) You would have a group of men making $100,000 and a group of women making maybe $10,000.

Fab.

.

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I watch Vera, Call the Midwife, and Home Fires, because they like Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell are actually done well, male or female body count's are not a part of my decision, give the show a chance.

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Thanks all of you for your answers. Tonights episode picked up just a bit actually with Jonathan's wife present. :)

Of course some series needs to be focused on men/women, and that doesn't matter to me. I just think that when you do a series of a certain time or period it makes no sense in only portraying men. I mean, women lived on the planet during this period as well.

And it's tiredsome to only watch one gender all the time. Men or women, even if it usually is men, men and some more men.

From my point of view anyway. :)

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Women did indeed exist then, but as wives, widows, mothers and sisters.
You didn't get female politicians, lawyers, clergy, doctors, sailors, professors.

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Thank you for the clarification ...

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Unfortunately, there have been few female magicians since the aureate age of Catherine of Winchester.

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while generally true ......... Madame Blavatsky
also several Golden Dawn, Rosicrucian, and A.*.A members

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"women lived on the planet during this period as well." So did Indians, Chinese, Nigerians, Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists....does it also make no sense that none of them appear in this TV drama? If anything is lacking in sense here, it is your comment...

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.. haha, no. Maybe you didn't understand what I meant. I spoke about gender here, nothing else. As a woman I often react to the lack of women in movies or tv series. If a woman is portrayed she is most often "just" a wife, an assistant, a minor or supporting character. Most main characters are men.

I am a woman and want the world to be an equal place for both men and women.

See? Not so strange?

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So?
Complaining about a show that is based on a book that is set in the 19th century is not the way to achieve what you want.
Besides, in this particular show - and in the book - a huge part of the conflict revolves around two women. Hell, Strange is defined almost entirely by his love for Arabella - and Arabella is a great character herself.




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Complaining about a show that is based on a book that is set in the 19th century is not the way to achieve what you want.

I think raising discussions of imbalance in society is an EXCELLENT way to bring attention to a deficit. This story may be set in the 19th Century...but obviously it's being consumed by a modern audience.

The implication with stories like this is that (pretty much) only men's lives are worthy of attention. Sure, we get some wives thrown in there...but they're pretty much solely defined by the romantic value the male characters place on them.

God help you once your tits begin to sag...! There's seemingly little more about you to celebrate.
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"Maybe you didn't understand what I meant" - my understanding was based entirely on what you wrote. If you meant something other than what you wrote, then I don't see how I could possibly have understood.

"I am a woman and want the world to be an equal place for both men and women." I share the sentiment. Indeed, I would expand it to state: I am a person and I want the world to be an equal place for all people. But this is ancillary to your previous post, which was about representation in TV shows and movies, not about equality in the world at large. You may find shows without major female characters boring, others may find shows without major male characters boring (there are fewer, I know, but there are some) - but this is a question of personal preference. Not every single TV show or movie should, or indeed could, have an equal split of main characters by gender (or a representative split by sexual preference, ethnic origin etc.) Surely what matters is that the media as a whole has a fair representation? That might mean more male than female presenters on Top Gear, and more female then male presenters on Loose Women. Or, more likely, only middle-aged men presenting Top Gear and only middle-aged women presenting Loose Women. It may also mean some fictional shows with an emphasis on female characters and others with an emphasis on male, while others have a mix of both, such as Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell.

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If a woman is portrayed she is most often "just" a wife, an assistant, a minor or supporting character. Most main characters are men.
I am a woman and want the world to be an equal place for both men and women.
See? Not so strange?


You set up a logical falsehood. Wanting the world to be a equal place for men and women and rewriting history to make it appear they were, are different things.

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Maybe you didn't understand what I meant. I spoke about gender here, nothing else. As a woman I often react to the lack of women in movies or tv series. If a woman is portrayed she is most often "just" a wife, an assistant, a minor or supporting character. Most main characters are men.

I am a woman and want the world to be an equal place for both men and women.


You have a legitimate viewpoint, of course, but things cut more than one way nowadays. Are you ever irked by the fact that in almost every action movie and television production that depicts a physical fight between a man and a woman, the woman usually kicks his ass? Even if he is a trained soldier or killer, and she is not. Does your desire for equality notice such blatant pandering and tokenism?

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That don't bother me at all. That a woman can kick a man's *ss? Why would it. That is just details!

I have a hang up regarding men and women now in this post only. Nothing else.

Men has been quoted/chosen before women in to positions for hundreds of years now, so why can't we equal the balance a bit? Think about that.

I understand the series picked up a bit from what I am told. I did stop after 2 episodes, because I found it boring. I was just amazed that in the first episode it was men, men, men, men and some more men. And wrote this post.

:)

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For what it's worth, it was remarkably well done, and really did justice to its source material.

You mention not having got round to reading the novel. I think, if you found the miniseries too dry, the novel would really not be your thing.

If you must have a female protagonist, though, have you looked at Vanity Fair, Pride and Prejudice, or Sense and Sensibility?

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I hope you've finished the series by now. There are two women who feature significantly in it, who, given the limitations of the time period of the story, come off as intelligent and capable characters.

I do think it is interesting that you've complained about the lack of women, but don't seem to have a notable problem with the idea that the only significant woman in the first two episodes demands her suitor to get a career, but doesn't seem to have one herself...

(Again, that is a product of the setting, but you seem to have disregarded that in your initial inquiry, so it's odd you didn't take note of this as well.)

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When you've finished the series do yourself a favor and read the book, I think you'll love it! There are female characters that don't appear in the series and at least one that played a much larger role in the book than she did in the series.

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This always bothered me from the book, not gonna lie. It was written by a woman yet almost everything is around men and women are mostly the victims; although Arabella is amazing but I really wish there was like some really important female wizards or at least one that humiliates Norrell and his misogyny 

Also the writer never explained why there was no female wizards in this universe. That's lame as *beep* .


The book is really good, though.





Died Tragically Rescuing His Family From The Wreckage Of A Destroyed Sinking Battleship

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The author does have women with magical ability, however while a fantasy it is based on early 19 century Europe so women's roles will be limited.

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There are female wizards in the world that is depicted in the book, but the book is not centered around them. I don't know if you have read "The Ladies of Grace Adieu", but if you haven't, I recommend you to do yourself a favor and find it and read it. It is an anthology of short stories, set in the same world, and some of them are centered around women in magic. The title story in this anthology is about three female magicians that manage to humiliate Strange - the events that are depicted in it are mentioned as a footnote in the book.




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I probably need to reread it because I cant remember a single one. About that title, no, I haven't but it sounds interesting, thanks.




Died Tragically Rescuing His Family From The Wreckage Of A Destroyed Sinking Battleship

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Yes, male characters dominated the book for sure, but since the book was written by a woman, when I read the book (5 times so far!), in my head all of the narration is in a woman's voice, so it balances out for me.

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the book is written by a Woman.



XOXO JAG

Just a Gurl from Seattle, living in Sweden

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Congratulations for actually managing to turn the television on. That you cannot discriminate between a fascinating and witty drama, beautifully realised in every way, and trash, is no surprise.

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*sigh*

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