Fiction's Five Greatest Women. On Two Kats, Anna, and Jean Louise

Let's be honest with each other. I simply can't remember every movie I've seen, game I've played, or novel I've read. There are just too many of them. Hence, when I title a blog "The Five Greatest" women in fiction, it's a bit of a misnomer. I'm sure that one of my daughters, who will soon be home for Christmas, will quickly remind me of some heroine I've previously touted, yet neglected below. Nevertheless, "Five Greatest" sounds infinitely better than "Sunday's Best," or some such gruel.  So title be damned, here are today's selections.

1. Jean Louise Finch. Humorous, spunky, and determined. A young lady (she's nine years old when the book ends), who breaks social norms without even realizing they are norms. Her attitude is simple, and summed when she stated that she "could do nothing in a dress." A young lady who has inspired millions, and whom my wife's dog is named after. You might recall her nickname better. Scout. The novel is To Kill a Mockingbird.
2. Littlefoot's Mom. You know. In Land Before Time? I couldn't find her name on the Internet, but I still remember what she said to her son in the original movie (there were 47 sequels). "Littlefoot, some things you see with your eyes, others you see with your heart."
3. Anna Bates, Downton Abbey. She started out as Anna Smith, but married Mr. Bates. Anna is kind, wise, and a sympathetic ear for Mary. She is also a tiger in defense of her man. Unwavering in her love and belief in Mr. Bate's innocence. In TV air waves filled with conniving, vicious women (and men, for that matter), it's relaxing to watch someone who embodies good take a starring role.

   

   Katniss. From 7Lisa, Deviant Art.

4. Katniss Everdeen. And maybe not for the reason you think. Yep, she's great with a bow. Her talent, and the fawning of millions of readers, no doubt influenced Hollywood's decision to make movies such as Brave, and feature arrow slingers in The Avengers and Wolverine, to name but a pair. But what I admire is her humanity. Killing bothers her, death bothers her. Those two facts elevate her character, and the believability of The Hunger Games, above the typical action fair.
5. You might have noticed a distinct lack of action heroes, Katniss excepted, in my selections. There's a simple reason--it' too easy, it's too obvious. The natural tendency of a guy, especially a guy who loves comics, science fiction, and larger than life stories, compiling a list of great female fictional heroes is to default to Selene (Underworld), Alice (Resident Evil), and Black Widow (Jeez, does Scarlett Johansson look awesome in that costume, or what?). I wanted to look a bit deeper. I do, however, want to throw in one bad-ass lady. A vampire, she is completely amoral--humans mean no more to her than a hamburger to a meatetarian (sic), Four-hundred years old (she looks about 27), and fluent in more weaponry than SEAL Team Six, she kills without remorse.  Yet she has screwed up. She has fallen in love with an American soldier, Mike Hudson. It's the conflict of remorseless  killing and passionate love that births my favorite fictional woman of all time, Katarina Ubirek, from my novel, World at War: Revelation.

See you tomorrow.