 |
| Wonder Woman |
Wonder Woman was the first strong, female, comic-book character. William Moulton Marston created the Wonder Woman character in 1941, under the pen name of Charles Moulton.
Wonder Woman provides storytellers with an opportunity to tell about a powerful female protagonist and to make a connection to strong female characters of folklore and history.
Examples of other such characters are the Irish mythic figure Scathach, the woman warrior who trained the Irish heroes; the Irish-woman Grace O’Malley of the sixteenth century, the warrior pirate who battled and won against the English forces of Queen Elizabeth I; and the Amazons, the mythic warrior women of ancient Greece.
 |
| warrior women |
Wonder Woman was an Amazon princess whose real name was Diana. The goddess Aphrodite had created the Amazon women, who were women of superior strength, in her fight against Mars, the god of war.
Mars set Hercules upon the Amazonian women and Aphrodite intervened to save them from enslavement. The women were banished from Greece to reside on Paradise Island, where no man set foot.
Eventually, a man, Steve Trevor, crashed on the shores of Paradise Island. A contest was held among the Amazons to determine who would go with Trevor as ambassador to the world of men. Diana entered the contest and won.
 |
| deflect bullets |
She was given special powers, an invisible jet, bracelets that could deflect bullets, and a magic lasso forged from the girdle of Gaea, which would cause people ensnared in it to tell the truth.
So armed, she went forth into the world of men, obtaining a position in the military. Going by the name of Diana Prince, she battled villains of all types. Wonder Woman frequently battled Mars and other foes that he sent to harm her. Norse gods such as Odin and Loki also made appearances in the comic books as villains.
In the 1970s, the American actress Lynda Carter brought Wonder Woman to life on television. The character has also appeared in several animated cartoons. Wonder Woman still remains an icon for young girls who are learning to combine strength with femininity.
 |
| femininity |