Linguistics and Literature Studies 3(2): 41-45, 2015 http://www.hrpub.org DOI: 10.13189/lls.2015.030201 The Discussion on Female Heroes in Respect of Gender Socialisation of Girls: Retelling Myths of Psyche, Artemis and Katniss Leni Marlina * , S.S., M.A. State University of Padang, Indonesia Copyright © 2015 Horizon Research Publishing All rights reserved. Abstract Myths, tales and other related stories for children have significant role in all cultures since they can render the multiplicity of experiences; explain the behaviour of the physical universe; and describe human nature and society. These stories are ‘the most potent means by which perceptions, values and attitudes are transmitted from one generation to the next’ (Hourigan 1997, p.1). One genre of such stories is hero story. The hero story is very popular in children’s literature and young adult literature since they are considered to be ‘unequivocally good for children morally and mentally’ (Hourigan 1997, p.3). To see how the heroic archetype has changed over time, we can explore and compare the journey of traditional female heroes with a contemporary female superhero. This research paper shows how to do an alternative activity for EFL (English as Foreign Language) college students in doing literary analysis by discussing the journey of three female heroes from ancient Greek myths and a recently young adult (YA) text. The heroines of the ancient myths are Psyche in Apuleius’s Cupid and Psyche (1855); and Artemis in Callimachus’s Artemis (1988). The heroine of the YA literature is Katniss in Collin’s The Hunger Games (2008), a contemporary young adult’s dystopian literature. By patterning the quests of the heroes in question onto Campbell’s monomyth, the author tries to demonstrate that these female heroes (Psyche, Artemis and Katniss) qualify as male heroes. Then, the author compares and contrasts the female heroes in respect of contemporary gender theory and the socialisation of girls. Keywords Myths, Female Heroes, Gender Socialisation 1. Introduction In nearly all societies, boys and girls, have different statuses and play different roles. Boys and girls behave differently, dress differently, have different attitudes and interests, and have different leisure activities. Contrary to traditionally held beliefs that these differences between male and female behaviour are biologically or genetically determined, recent research has revealed that they are, to a large extent, socially constructed, or based on the concept of gender (Guez and Allen 2000, p.1). Humans are born into a ‘web of stories pertaining to our gender’ which is formed by ‘a collective discourse comprising prohibitions, commands, roles and value judgements’ (Van Boheemen 1987, p.14). Gender is ‘the changeable roles, behaviours, activities, and personality traits that a society views’ as ideal standard for men and women (Miller 2012, p.150). Culturally gender defines rights and responsibilities and what is ‘appropriate’ behaviour for women and men; like culture, gender is fluid and enduring (Reeves & Baden 2000, p.4). In relation with this, Connell stressed that masculinity and femininity are situational, relational concepts that change over time in response to political, economic and social influences (Connell 1995, pp. 68-71). Thus, gender identities and associated expectations of roles and responsibilities are therefore changeable between and within cultures. We can analyse how the construction of gender is socialized through literature particularly hero stories. Through this research paper, the writer will show an example of the literary analysis which can inspire university students at EFL classroom. Therefore, the discussion in this paper will focus on the literary analysis instead of the teaching model of literature. 2. Gender Socialization of Girls through the Journey of Female Heroes I argue that the female heroes are equals to the tasks and tests of the archetypical male heros. The criteria for “heroism” I will draw on come from Joseph Campbell’s 1973 critical text The Hero with a Thousand Faces. In that book, Campbell defines the quest of the hero by analysing heroic myths and legends from around the world. He identifies an archetypical ‘monomyth’ as a universal heroic pattern to which all hero stories can be loosely linked.