This episode dives into one of the most widely-used character archetypes in myth, literature, and cinema: the damsel in distress. The story of the beautiful damsel, who always finds herself in need of rescuing, goes back thousands of years and can be found in cultures all over the world. Why is the damsel in distress such a universal character type, and why has it persisted to this day?

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Sources:

• • Black, Valeria. “All You Need to Know About the Classic Damsel in Distress.” Medium, The Writing Cooperative, 28 June 2017, writingcooperative.com/all-you-need-to-know-about-the-classic-damsel-in-distress-bc54047516db.
  • Campbell, Kit. “Character Archetypes: The Damsel in Distress.” Where Landsquid Fear to Tread, 9 June 2015, landsquidattack.wordpress.com/2015/06/09/character-archetypes-the-damsel-in-distress/.
  • “Damsel in Distress Aka: Distressed Damsel.” TV Tropes, 9 Nov. 2019, tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DamselInDistress?from=Main.DistressedDamsel.
  • “Damsel in Distress  .” Damsel in Distress, The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia, 24 Apr. 2011, http://www.artandpopularculture.com/Damsel_in_distress.
  • Farah, Troy. “Dystropia: How The Damsel in Distress Has Evolved.” LitReactor, 31 Oct. 2013, litreactor.com/columns/dystropia-how-the-damsel-in-distress-has-evolved.
  • Kwan, Trixie. “Damsel in Distress.” The Star Online, ANN, 11 Feb. 2006, http://www.thestar.com.my/lifestyle/archive/2006/02/11/damsel-in-distress.
  • “Mythology and Archetypes: ‘A Damsel in Distress.’” Owlcation, Owlcation, 7 Oct. 2016, owlcation.com/humanities/Mythology-and-Archetypes-A-Damsel-in-Distress.
  • Solis, Michael A. “The Damsel in Distress.” Rutgers University, Rutgers University, 2017, doi.org/doi:10.7282/T37M0BD0.

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