In literature, you never have to look far for a girl. They are everywhere. They have pearl earrings, dragon tattoos, and no shadows. They are on trains, in bands, or in the ominous cabin 13. They are pretty, good, painted. They are lost, missing, or gone.
And often they are not girls. A lot of women protagonists are stuck in novels with “girl” in the title. So what is behind this publishing trend? I will look at three famous adult girls and attempt to get to the bottom of this.
1.
Blunt plays Rachel, a commuter who passes by a house on her daily route. She sees a young couple inside and becomes concerned about the other woman after she seems to go missing. If you’ve seen Rear Window or its many knockoffs, you know what comes next. The police find nothing amiss and begin to suspect Rachel may be up to something. This is not helped when — spoiler alert — it is revealed that the house Rachel is gazing into was once hers. Rachel is a depressed, alcoholic divorcee pining for her previous life.
So why exactly is a thirty-something protagonist referred to as a girl? Is it meant to convey that Rachel’s unhealthy attachment to her ex is rooted in childhood trauma? Or that her current dependence on him makes her childlike? Either way, Rachel’s central dilemma is about her man. Not exactly empowering.
2.
Here is another story about an urban professional woman who is somehow a “girl.” Jess is a makeup artist who is drawn into a peculiar psychological experiment that is not what it appears to be. A therapist hires her to answer questions and take directives. What Jess doesn’t realize is that the therapist has nefarious ulterior motives.
By falling into this trap, Jess has presumably had the proverbial loss of innocence. Or does the title refer not to Jess but to the other central character, the unstable therapist who is obsessed with keeping her man faithful? Either way, we are again seeing dependent women linked to men.
3.
All roads lead back to Gillian Flynn. The girls being interrupted before 2003, the year this seminal work launched, usually were underage. This is an early example of an adult protagonist defined by peculiar terminology.
The story starts with Nick narrating the morning that his wife Amy went missing. He becomes the central suspect. Interspersed with his narration are excerpts from Amy’s diary, chronicling their sweet courtship and slow decline into domestic abuse. And then — spoiler alert – we learn that Amy isn’t missing. She has staged her abduction, and forged her diary, to frame Nick.
By crafting a woman-in-peril persona, Amy uses gender roles to gain power over Nick. The use of girl is ironic. It’s unfortunate that the legions of copycats don’t seem to understand that.
All of that being said, I am getting tired of the girl trend. For my first read of the new year, I am moving on…
Books Smitten 