I might be late to the party on this one, but I've only just become aware of the Bechdel Test.  If you're like me and haven't heard of it before, below are some basics. 

The Bechdel Test is a simple measure of how significant the portrayal of women are in film. I believe it's a sad commentary that there is a need to come up with a test to determine if women are valued in our popular stories.  But what's even more alarming is how little the Bechdel Test demands from writers, directors, and story tellers. This same test can - and should - be applied to books. 

The test asks three things: 
1. does the film (or book) have at least two women in it  
2. do they speak to one another
3.  do they speak to each other about something besides a man. 

I've come across several bloggers who have created lists of YA books that pass the Bechdel Test such as Random Buzzers and Another Novel Read, so I won't do that here.  

So why am I writing about it? 

The Bechdel Test really struck a chord with me because so much of Daughter of Camelot is about women's stories being left out of history.  While writing, I felt that there was a lack of strong female protagonists in today's YA books and I wanted to address that in the Deirdre's story. At the same time, I needed to acknowledge that what she (and the other women in the story accomplished) would not be celebrated because of the historical attitudes toward gender in her time. 

Reading about the Bechdel Test, I can't help but question how far have we really come from the world I imagined for Deirdre.  Why do girls and women still have to battle for their place in the stories celebrated today?  It's a problem that I hope will be rectified as more strong female characters step to the forefront of the stories yet to be told and are given the space to share their journeys.

Slate magazine recently posted an article questioning why strong, battle savvy heroines are also portrayed as sexually alluring or in other words “hot”.  I think the article is worth a read, but it’s a kind of tired argument that gets hashed out every few years.  Yes, she's speaking to an actress who appeared on Xena Warrior Princess, a show that hasn't been on for years.  But has anything really changed in that time?  Nope, we won’t see Kevin James as Hercules or Melissa McCarthy as Xena Warrior Princess. 

What are really enjoyable, are the comments. 

So the question to ponder is, can we accept fictional action heroes who are not attractive? 

When researching Daughter of Camelot, I came across surprising fact. Current scholars in Medieval and Dark Age history were asked what film most accurately portrays life in the middle ages? 

It was unanimous. 

The best medieval movie is Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

For those uninitiated – run, don’t walk – and watch one of the funniest movies ever made.  Filled with great quotes and ridiculous humor, it is a lot of fun to watch.

For those who have seen it, you can see their point.  The Dark Ages were, well, for lack of a better word, dark. 

Roving bands of marauders and romantic heroes are great material for stories, but the reality was one of trying to stay alive.  Leadership belonged to whoever claimed it and for the most part, people were too busy trying to feed themselves to worry too much about politics. That said, what people did worry about hit much closer to home. Superstition ran rampant as people tried to explain why life was filled with hardship.

Here are a few of my favorite clips from Monty Python and the Holy Grail on youtube:

She's a Witch!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrzMhU_4m-g

Arriving at Camelot
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfGpVcdqeS0

The Bridge of Death
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0D7hFHfLEyk