Lack of relationships or unwillingness to start them - is a cause for disapproval by other heroines.

"-I'm against men, no boyfriends, no boys.

- Well, that is too much.

- Come on, Leila, you can't turn down boyfriends."

" The Winx Club 3x18 "

Heroines in romantic relationships are most often passive. They experience feelings, discuss them with each other, but do not show initiative. They wait for an invitation to date and recognition of feelings from their partner.

Female characters in relationships are portrayed as being more patient, gentle and sympathetic. Even when they are jealous, they are more likely to hold back their feelings and experience them on their own, while male characters show jealousy crudely and impulsively, for example, they may hang up in the middle of a call or raise their voice.

Also, in this cartoon there is a clear division of roles. From the heroines who study in the magic school for girls, in addition to good study is required to strive for order in the rooms. They may be judged for rude or unfeminine behavior. While male characters in their school focus on martial arts studies and strategic thinking, their behavior is not judged by teachers or classmates.

The characters with power are fairly equally distributed between female and male characters. Women's school headmasters are women and men's school headmasters are men. However, men are still positioned as stronger, more goal-oriented and more confident characters, and in case of danger even school headmasters turn to them for help.

In general, we can say that we see a stereotypical female image again, which includes external appeal, softness of character, a tendency to flirt and desire for romantic relationships, lack of ambition.

Stereotypes in the presentation of female heroines

All the heroines are depicted skinny, with unnaturally thin waist, very long legs. Their appearance does not correspond to the real figures of ordinary teenagers and even models. They have no obvious defects. All the heroines, except Tekna, are depicted with long, well-groomed hair and clean skin. There are no characters with figures that are too fat or too skinny.

Also, the image of the characters can be called sexualized. Characters wear open short clothes, often find themselves in situations where parts of their body are exposed, such as falling. Also, during magical transformations, they appear completely naked.

Archetypical images

Next, we will analyze the images of the characters according to the classification of archetypes by Jung and Bolen:

· Bloom. This heroine is best suited to the archetype Huntress by Jung and Artemis archetype by Bolen. Bloom, like Will, is the leader. She leads the team, often shows courage and goal oriented. She is stubborn in achieving her goals and is ready to face any difficulties.

· Flora. This heroine can also be classified as a Jungian Lover. She is quiet, cute and romantic. She may appear to be the embodiment of femininity and tenderness. Flora does not raise her voice and often dreams of a romantic relationship. Among the Bolen classification, Persephone's archetype suits her best, as in the cartoon she acts primarily as a humble daughter and caring sister.

· Tekna. This heroine can be attributed to the archetype Huntress by Jung. She is smart and, in her knowledge, and skills competes with men. Of archetypes Bolen type Athena suits her best, as she is intelligent and rational.

· Stella. This heroine is the closest to the original archetype Lover by Jung. She is soft, gentle, feminine, prone to romantic relationships. Among the archetypes by Bolen her image is the most appropriate for Aphrodite.

· Muse. This heroine is closest to the archetype Princesses by Jung and the archetype of Persephone of Bolen.

Totally Spies

Plot and narrative functions

The cartoon series tells the story of the lives of three high school girls. They study, looking for their first job, building relationships with classmates and boys. An unusual half of the cartoon series is that the heroines are secret agents in a spy organization.

Let us look at the basic functions of the characters. Heroines here do not get magic powers, but still get an unusual offer to become spies. Instead of magic forces they receive various gadgets (analogue of magic artifacts) which help them in performance of work. Heroines confront the criminals, reveal their plans and stop the criminals, and then send them to prison.

That is again we see a set of actions typical of active male actors, as well as an example of emancipated female behavior.

Presentation of gender roles and gender relations

Once again, however, we are faced with significant differences in the narrative functions of female characters and the gender-specific patterns of behavior they reproduce.

For example, for the female gender display everyday attendance of cosmetic procedures and diets pose as normal practice. The animated series broadcasts that the heroine should look good and dress fashionably. Then she will be popular with guys and classmates.

A romantic relationship is a desirable and primary goal for the heroine. In the animated series there are no regular heroes who could be boyfriends throughout the story, but heroine seek a short relationship with occasional characters. Building a romantic relationship for the heroines is more important than all goals, so, they can ignore the study or spy assignment for a handsome guy.

When the heroines see a handsome guy, they stop thinking about anything else. A frequent plot twist for the cartoon series is that characters fall into a trap, tricked by the external appeal of the guy. However, the experience does not lead to changes in the patterns of their behavior.

If we consider the animated series from the perspective of the distribution of power between male and female characters, we see that the head of the spy secret agency, and the direct chief of the main characters is a man. The heroines themselves only perform his tasks. When they are looking for work, they choose vacancies, such as waiters or cleaners, where there are no prospects for career growth, and the chief over them is a man.

In general, we can say that this cartoon series again presented stereotypical images of female heroines. They are obsessed with their appearance and romantic relationship, have no goals and ambitions for their realization.

Stereotypes in the presentation of women's heroines

The images of the characters again look completely idealized. All characters have perfectly slender and perfectly trim bodies. In general, the cartoon series does not present characters with too thick or thin physique.

Archetypical images

Now we will consider their images within the classifications of Jung and Bolen archetypes:

· Alex. The most suitable for this heroine is the archetype Huntress of the Jung and the archetype Artemis of the Bolen classification. She is stubborn and strong physically, bravely competes with men.

· Samantha. This heroine can be attributed to the archetype Huntress by Jung. Of the Bolen archetypes type Athena best suited her, as she is intelligent and rational.

· Clover. This heroine is an example of the Lover archetype. Of the Bolen archetypes, her image best matches the type of Aphrodite. She is feminine, prone to romantic relationships, often changes partners.

Comparison of cartoon heroines within the period 2000-2006

As it becomes clear from the above written, the heroines of the cartoon series released in 2000-2006 have much in common.

Constructing a gender framework

The heroines in the story are active actors. They perform functions that were previously assigned to male characters. This is an example of emancipated behavior. Their main function is to obtain a magical gift or artifact, and after defeating evil with its help.

However, there is no displacement of gender foundations due to the fact that the heroines are assigned to stereotypical manifestations of female gender. They love fashion and shopping, often gossip, they care about their appearance and seek to look beautiful and attractive to the opposite sex.

Heroines aspire to a romantic relationship; it is their mandatory goal. The unwillingness to enter into a romantic relationship is criticized by others. That is, the heroines do not have such freedom of choice as to enter or not to enter into a romantic relationship.

In general, in everyday life, through their actions, heroines broadcast classical patterns of behavior for women's gender.

Appearance

All heroines are depicted with idealized slender figures. Also, their figures do not correspond to real figures of teenagers of their age and in general to human parameters. Exaggerated long legs, too thin waists, expressively big breasts. Too thin or fat figures are not represented or are represented only for old or comic characters.

Heroines who are positioned as "beautiful" have a common feature - blonde hair (Cornelia, Stella, Clover). They are also associated with negative character traits. And such heroines often change romantic partners. Which makes their image of a stereotypical fatal beauty, for which external beauty justifies all internal flaws.

Heroines are given certain advantages, but interesting is the fact that the ability and dignity are distributed among the heroines. That is, each individual heroine cannot combine the mind, beauty and leadership skills.

Archetypes

The archetypes of the heroines are mainly the Huntress and Lover by Jung, despite the fact that the represented heroines have different cultural and national backgrounds. That is, we can observe the generalized intents and features of female characters that can be unconsciously read and reproduced by the audience. The highlighted two types indicate that the female energy of the heroines is directed on the one hand into the course of the competition with men, but on the other hand is still aimed at seducing men.

Main trend

· To be successful, a heroine has to have a romantic relationship.

· The heroine cannot combine several attributes at the same time. Either beautiful, or smart, or athletic, or creative, and so on.

· Beauty means slim body, clean skin and long hair.

· Clever heroine - unattractive for male characters.

· Against beauty, other attributes are no longer as important, beauty is a strong enough argument to cover up stupidity or other negative traits.

· A common activity of the heroines is shopping and visiting beauty salons.

· The presentation of a naked teenage heroine's body is admissible.

· Heroines in a relationship should take a passive role, do not start or stop the relationship first, deter the manifestation of negative emotions.

· Heroines cannot hold high positions at work.

· Heroines are more emotional and vulnerable than heroes, but negative emotions must be contained while men may not.

Cartoons produced between 2007 and 2014

For this time period, I chose two cartoon series that matched all my sample requirements. They are My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic (2010-2019), IMDb - 7.6, and also Monster High (2010-2017), IMDb - 6.8.

These two cartoon series combine not only the broadcast date, but also the fact that they all presented female heroines in unusual dehumanized images.

Monster High

Plot and narrative functions

There are five heroines in the center of the story. They are monsters and study at the high school for monsters. They are approximately 16 years old. Each series of the animated series is a separate story, which reveals some aspects of their lives. For example, friendship with classmates, jealousy, competition or romantic relationships.

Let us look at the functions of the heroines. Frankie Stein discovers unusual abilities, leaves her parents' home and enters a monster school. At school she meets other monsters who also have unusual abilities. Together they study and also investigate mysterious incidents at the school. As a result, they conquer evil together.

Narrative functions again imply an active actor, as in cartoons from the previous period.

Presentation of gender roles and gender relations

The presentation of daily gender practices is still quite stereotypical. Heroines are fond of fashion, often do shopping. They are also often depicted looking in the mirror, for example, correcting makeup or hairstyle. That means, despite the lack of external beauty, the heroines - monsters without attractiveness, there do stereotypical actions: makeup, hair styling, choosing clothes.

Also, the main character, Frankie Stein, is depicted awkward and insecure, while the male characters, on the contrary, are depicted physically strong and emotionally stable.

The heroines are interested in building a romantic relationship. A romantic relationship is a kind of way to realize themselves and stand out from the other heroines. However, the lack of romantic relationships is no longer a reason to judge. So, the desire to build a romantic relationship is no longer the main character for female characters.

The heroines still have almost no goals and ambitions, except for romantic relationships. They do not take their studies seriously, do not seek to build a career or take a significant position in society. School for them is a platform for social interaction, a place to meet friends, not an elevator to build a career.

Stereotypes in the presentation of female heroines

This animated series is an interesting example of the changes that have occurred to the visual images of the heroines. First time ever heroines are not princesses, fairies or ordinary schoolgirls, but monsters. Moreover, monsters targeted at the male audience - the classic characters of horror films. Such as Frankenstein, Count Dracula or the mummy and werewolf. These monsters appear here as female characters.

This cartoon series ruins stereotypical ideas about what a female heroine should look like. Dehumanization is an alternative to the stereotypical representation of female characters and allows viewers not to compare their appearance with the appearance of the main characters.

Archetypical images

The Jung archetypical images:

· Huntress (Claudine Wolf) - heroine werewolf, physically strong, agile and fast. She likes sports competitions and easily competes with men.

· Lover (Draculaura, Cleo De Neil) - these two heroines tend to flirt and change romantic partners. They realize their potential through seduction and building romantic relationships.

· Princess (Frankie Stein) - this heroine has an exceptional origin and has a special place among others.

My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic

Plot and narrative functions

This cartoon is also a striking example of the dehumanization of female characters. The main characters here are ponies, who, however, live in a society close to the human. They have a social hierarchy: the princess, her entourage, the aristocracy, the peasants. Ponies, like people, can occupy various positions, such as farming or working in a library.

In the center of the animated adventure series of six heroines, who together learn to interact with other characters, with siblings, friends and elders.

Let us look at the functions of the heroines. Twilight Sparkle leaves his family and comes to town to learn to be a wizard. In town, she meets five other ponies who become her friends and helpers. Together they defeat the evil princess.

The set of features corresponds to the active actor and is classic for male characters.

Presentation of gender roles and gender relations

The distinctive feature of this animated series is a fundamentally new image of gender practices for female characters.

Heroines do not have and do not seek a romantic relationship. The conflict is built on the interaction of the heroines with each other and the outside world, on the internal complexes and their overcoming, rather than building romantic relationships.

The structure of power is unexpectedly presented here as well. The role of the ruler can only perform a female heroine, a princess. There are no kings and princes in this animated series.

Heroines have ambitions and build careers. For example, Twilight Sparkle graduates, works for the benefit of society, and then becomes a princess. Rarity designs clothes, and Apple Jack develops her own apple farm.

The heroines' choice of life trajectories is limited only by their ambitions and social position, since, for example, becoming a princess is an option only for those who have not only the necessary skills and abilities, but also a noble origin.

Such rethinking of gender characters is a new and revolutionary trend for cartoons.

Stereotypes in the presentation of female heroines

The appearance of the heroines in this animated series is dehumanized, so, the stereotypes that the heroine must be young, have a slender figure and long blond hair cannot be applied to the characters. And this is both a pros and cons of the animated series, as on the one hand the audience does not have an idealized example to follow, but on the other - the audience is more difficult to associate with non-humanoid creatures. This means that the process of learning the patterns of behavior and role models can be complicated.

Archetypical images

If we look at the archetypes of the heroines by Jung, we will notice that the presented archetypes and their combinations are very similar to those that I highlighted in the analysis of previous cartoons. We also have the archetype Princess (Twilight Sparkle), Huntress (Rainbow Dash, Apple Jack) and Lover (Rarity).

Comparison of cartoon heroines within the period 2007-2010

An obvious common feature of the heroines of the animated series of this period is a shift from the images of characters in the classic canons of female beauty. However, the creators of cartoon series of this time, as well as the public, have not yet been ready to take a non-standard female appearance for the protagonists of cartoons, because the element of appearance was removed by complete dehumanization of the characters.

Beauty and appearance in connection with the non-human-like image of the characters lose their relevance. However, there are still practices associated with female appearance. For example, shopping, makeup or hair styling.

There is also a slight expansion of the heroines' agency in terms of romantic relationships. Presented heroines who do not seek a romantic relationship. Heroines who do not have a romantic relationship are not judged.

For the first time female heroines have ambitions, such as the desire to successfully complete their education and build a career. Heroines also get opportunities for career growth.

There is also remain the stereotype that female characters are physically weaker and more emotional than male characters.

General trends

· The idea of strength in unity, the team of friends or the help of male characters is the best way to solve the problem

· The heroine may not have a romantic relationship and may not be judged for it.

· Heroines can hold high positions at work

· Heroines can have goals and ambitions not only in the field of romantic relationships.

Cartoons produced between 2015 and 2020

For the last period I chose two cartoon series for girls, which are very popular among girls around the world. Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir, (2015-2020), IMDb rating - 7.8 and Star vs. the Forces of Evil, (2015-2019), IMDb rating - 8.0.

These two cartoons, like the previous ones within their time periods have many similarities, which obviously highlight certain trends and directions.

Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir

Plot and narrative functions

Two teenagers studying at a Paris private school are at the center of the cartoon. They are approximately 13 to 14 years old. The main part of the plot is built on the combination of their usual teenage life and secret life, in which they superheroes, who save the city.

In their ordinary life, they face such difficulties as making friends, making moral choices, dealing with parents, classmates and teachers, combining school and personal hobbies.

Marinette's narrative functions include such functions as acquiring a magic artifact, and with it a magic gift, fighting evil, defeating evil. In other words, she is an active actor.

Presentation of gender roles and gender relations

The main protagonists are two characters: Marinette and Adrian. However, it is Marinette who receives more attention from the viewer and screen time. The viewer most often looks at the situation through the prism of her views, it is she who gets into difficult and embarrassing situations, and she is looking for ways to solve them.

The male character Adrian stays in the background, serves only as a friend, a partner and a romantic interest. Despite the fact that he, like her, is a superhero, he only plays the role of Marinette's assistant. He listens to her, help her in dangerous situations. While she acts as the main protagonist. Marinette thinks and makes plans, she saves the city.

Marinette is a serious and ambitious character. She wants to become a designer and is working on it, creating sketches and participating in creative competitions. She also prepares diligently for classes at school and demonstrates her skills and knowledge if necessary.

Marinette has a romantic interest in Adrian, but he is only the second after her main goal - to become a designer. She also takes the initiative, being the first to invite him on dates and give him gifts. She clearly defines her personal boundaries and does not let them be broken.

If we look at power relations, however, we can still see the skewness towards men. The mayor, the headmaster, the head fashion designer are men. Women are their helpers.

But overall, we see a fundamentally new image of the heroine. She is not brightly beautiful and has no romantic partner, but it is not considered a lack of success. She is smart, strong, confident, able to achieve goals and go to her dream. She can choose place of study and future career. Romantic interest is only one and not the main part of her life. Shopping and visiting beauty salons are also not her central interest. She can spend her free time doing sports, visiting cinemas and exhibitions, and exercising her hobby. Marinette's trajectory choices are limited only by her age, financial situation and the laws of the country in which she lives.

Stereotypes in the presentation of female heroines

If we talk about the visual part of this cartoon series, we see that teenagers are depicted here as diverse as possible. There are different types of figures: from skinny to fat, or athletically folded bodies. The main character Marinette cannot be called the most beautiful among others. She is skinny and has medium-length hair. Also, her appearance is not entirely European, as one of her parents is Chinese.

What is interesting is that her friend and partner Adrian plays the role of a beautiful object. He has blonde hair, which, as we have already found out above, is always used to visualize the characters whose beauty they want to emphasize. He works as a model, which is most often a job for women. He is also a character whose beauty is often accentuated by others.

Archetypical images

If we look at the archetypes of Jung and Bolen, we will not be able to give an unequivocal answer. Marinette, as a new generation heroine, combines many strengths and weaknesses. There is no one defining trait that relates her to one particular archetype.

Star vs. the Forces of Evil

Plot and narrative functions

In the center of the story is an American city, where the main character Marco lives and studies. Princess Star, who is sent to earth for reformation, get to him from the magical world.

Narrative functions of Star are leaving home, getting a magical artifact, fighting evil, defeating evil.

Presentation of gender roles and gender relations

As in the cartoon Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir, you can see a shift in gender roles. The main character, Princess Star, is a brave, strong and adventurous girl, while Marco is a quiet and calm boy, who tends to avoid conflicts. He loves cleanliness, he cares about his relationship with his parents and has no big ambitions.

In adventures, Star is the main character. She uses magic, starts adventures and saves her friend Marco. She shows impulsiveness, uses brute physical force, while Marco tends to analyze the situation more and make plans.

Star has big ambitions. She wants to be queen, use magic and defeat all enemies of her kingdom. But Marco has not yet fully defined his goals and ambitions.

A romantic relationship is not Star's goal. On the contrary, she wants to avoid what is associated with a romantic relationship and further marriage. She likes to communicate with guys as friends, and adventure is more interesting to her than romance.

Star is given all the traits stereotypically portrayed for men. She can burp, be rough, use force, laugh loudly and so on. She is not inclined to flirt or choose outfits and styling her hair.

When it comes to power relations, there is a bias towards women. Only women have magic and can be queens. Women show leadership and organizational skills. Men are portrayed as stupid, cowardly or just comically ridiculous.

If we generalize, we have a heroine, which is more like a stereotypical image of a male hero in the set of gender functions. She is capable of solving problems on her own. Her goals and ambitions are not related to romantic relationships with men. She is not obsessed with her appearance and the appearance of other creatures does not matter to her.

Stereotypes in the presentation of female heroines

If we talk about the visual part, this animated series, as well as in Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir presents realistic images of teenagers with different types of figures. The main character Star is not beautiful, her appearance is not a topic for discussion, while the cute appearance of Marco, on the contrary, causes a lot of compliments. Once he even dresses up in a woman's dress, as he is so cute that he can go for a girl.

Archetypical images

As with Marinette, it is not possible to determine the archetype of Star. She has many male and female traits.

Comparison of cartoon heroines within the period 2015-2020

The narrative functions of active male actors for heroines are now combined with daily gender practices, in which heroines are no longer constrained by stereotypical views of what practices and patterns of behavior include female and male gender displays.

Heroines are strong, intelligent, talented and ambitious. They no longer need friends or romantic partners to solve their problems.

Heroines can have a lot of talents and combine many strengths.

Heroines strive to achieve their goals: success in career, sports and so on. A romantic relationship is no longer the only desired goal.

Heroines can take the lead in romantic relationships.

Heroines can show not only positive emotions. They can be angry, jealous, or aggressive, just like male heroes.

Instead of romantic relationships, heroines look for harmony and balance in their relationships with themselves. They learn to accept themselves and their defects.

The appearance of the heroines is diverse and corresponds to the real figures of teenage girls. We do not meet idealized beautiful heroines or heroines with emphasized femininity and sexuality.

General trends

· The appearance of the heroine does not affect her success in any way.

· The heroine can be ambitious and achieve her goals on her own, she does not need the help of a team or a man.

· The interests of the heroine can be anything from sports to the film industry, there are no "female" and "male" hobbies.

· Heroine can be assertive and impulsive; her character traits do not necessarily include softness and kindness.

· The heroine may have no romantic interest or take the initiative in a relationship.

· The teenage body of the heroine is not a subject of sexual objectification.

· The heroine can combine many different strengths and talents and be both beautiful, smart, athletic and so on

Overall findings based on the analysis of cartoons from 2000 to 2020

Now that we have analyzed each cartoon separately, compared them within the time periods and highlighted the main trends, we can move on to the main task of this study. In particular, to analyze the dynamics of gender characters in cartoons produced from 2000 to 2020.

Appearances

First of all, let us consider the dynamics of external character changes. At the beginning of the period we have an idealized appearance of the main characters. They have slender body type. Their appearance does not correspond to the appearance of real teenage girls. Characters that are positioned as especially beautiful are depicted with blond hair and clear skin.

In the middle of this time phase, we have a complete rejection of the use of female appearance for the characters. Heroines are depicted as dehumanized, for example, as monsters or animals.

At the end of the period we see a fundamentally new look at the appearance of female characters. There is a wide variety of female figures, the main characters do not look perfect and they are not the most beautiful cartoon characters. Also disappears the use of sexualized images, the heroines are more like children or adolescents than women.

It is obvious in this dynamic that there is a transition from the characters that men may like (sexualized images, slender figures with underlined breasts and waist) to characters that women like. In other words, the power to decide what a beautiful girl should be and what is "female beauty" has passed from men to women. This is a serious step towards changing gender power relations.

The narrative functions of the characters

Narrative functions of characters do not undergo significant changes, as from the very beginning of the period female characters are already implementing the archetypical male functions. For example, the acquisition of a magical talent or artifact, the fight against evil and victory over it.

Constructing a gender framework

We can see more significant changes in the way cartoons shape and represent female gender displays or sets of behavior patterns. We will look at this through a framework of romantic relationships, goals and ambitions, and opportunities for realization.

Romantic relationships

At the beginning of the period, a romantic relationship for the heroines was a necessary condition for success. Heroines who do not have a romantic relationship are judged or considered unattractive. At the same time, in a romantic relationship heroine remain passive. They do not offer to start or interrupt the relationship, do not show initiative, and do not show negative emotions towards their romantic partner.

In the middle of the period, we observe some uncertainty. On the one hand, a romantic relationship is still a desirable goal and the heroines realize themselves by entering into a relationship. On the other hand, however, heroines who do not have a romantic relationship are no longer openly judged by others. They only may feel that they need a romantic partner on their own. There are also heroines who are not interested in a romantic relationship at all, and this is normal. They are not stigmatized by society.

At the end of the period, we see a situation where heroines decide for themselves what kind of relationship they want to have with the heroes. They may be friends with heroes and not see them as romantic partners. If they want to, they take the initiative, may suggest starting or ending a romantic relationship. They may also evaluate their romantic partner soberly and not build a relationship with someone who is rude, jealous.

We are seeing a significant shift from the classic "dream of the prince" to a fundamentally new horizon of opportunity for female characters.

Aims and ambitions

Heroines at the beginning of the period have no goals other than to build a romantic relationship. They study at school and save the world, but this is not the goal they want to achieve, it is just part of their daily life. They do not want to get a profession or develop their existing talents, school is a place for them to communicate with friends, not a significant social elevator.

In the middle of a period, heroines get certain ambitions. For example, they may strive to complete their studies, to move to a new level of development, to gain new knowledge. Also, their goal is to successfully build communication with others.

At the end of the period, the goals and ambitions of the heroines are defined and made clear. They know exactly what they want and take steps to achieve these goals. For example, in order to master a profession or get the desired position. Their goal is also harmony with themselves and their bodies. They learn to accept themselves, their character, their strengths and weaknesses.

This is a big change within gender roles. Heroines have not only abandoned the stereotypical "dreams of the prince", but also gained new goals and ambitions. This development indicates the transition of gender contracts to a fundamentally new level, where female and male characters no longer share spheres of influence but compete for power.

Skills and talents

At the beginning and middle of the period we see the same pattern: talents and strengths are equally distributed among the heroines. One heroine cannot combine several talents and skills.

At the end of the period, we see a fundamentally new situation. Heroines are given many talents and are able to use them without anybody's help. They are strong, intelligent, talented and ambitious, which helps them to realize themselves in any field.

The Jung and Bolen archetypes

At the beginning and middle of the period, we see a similar picture of archetypical images. The heroines appear as Jungian Princesses, Lovers and Hunters. That is, we can observe the generalized intents and features of female characters that can be unconsciously read and reproduced by the audience. Archetype Mother more suitable for cartoon characters of the first Disney era and other early cartoons until 2000. Since modern heroines no longer seek marriage and the preservation of the family home. The female energy of the heroines is directed on the one hand into the course of the competition with men, but on the other hand is still aimed at seducing men.

At the end of the period, the heroines are not suitable for any clean archetype Jung or Bolen. They are versatile individuals, with different talents, both male and female. To define their archetype is to limit them. They are something definitely new that cannot be put into any classification. Perhaps the reason why it is impossible to determine the archetype for the characters of new cartoons lies in the fact that the root of their images now lie male archetypes. However, this issue requires further research.

Analyzing all the identified trends, we can say that female gender images have undergone significant changes during the selected period. These changes concern the external representation of heroines, as well as gender roles and expectations prescribed by gender roles. The gender contracts characteristic of classical fairy tales and cartoon plots have changed to new, modernized ones. The archetypical images of new generation heroines cannot be considered in the classical categories that Jung has defined for women.

Conclusion

After analysis, it can be said that the dynamics of gender characters of cartoon released between 2000-2020 actually have occurred.

With the help of narrative analysis and assessment of narrative functions, content analysis and archetype analysis, we were able to identify not only the dynamics itself, but also its main trends and directions.

We also managed to conduct multilayer analysis of female characters' images on three levels. Narrative: what heroines do, what functions they perform. Social: how heroines behave within society, what behavioral practices are typical for heroines, what expectations they fulfill. And archetypical: what subconscious intentions are embedded in the heroines.

This approach made it possible to describe changes in the images of female heroines in a comprehensive and versatile way and to assess the dynamics of change in female images.

During the analysis of female cartoon characters were confirmed all three suggestions made at the beginning of the study. First of all, that the changes in female images were not as rapid and obvious, because a certain emancipation has already occurred before 2000, and the female characters in studied cartoons were already more emancipated than the classic Disney princesses. However, the changes have affected the deeper inner aspects of the characters.

The appearance of the heroines has undergone significant changes during this period. From completely stereotypical female sexualized images to fundamentally new images of female bodies. The attitude towards the appearance of female heroines has also changed.

The goals and ambitions of the heroines have also shifted from seeking a romantic partner to seeking inner harmony, as well as the desire to realize themselves through careers.

That is, all the goals of my work were fulfilled, and the assumptions were confirmed.

A restriction in my case could be that despite the attempts to select cartoons, not based on existing stereotypes, and choosing them so that they could fully reflect the reality of female images, I still could allow the sample to shift and not take into account something.

Discussion

In the process of the analysis, several new questions emerged that may become the basis for further research. The first of them concerns the fact that female characters at the beginning of the period looked older than girls of their age and looked more like women than adolescents. At the end of the period, by contrast, female characters began to look younger than girls of their age and their images became closer to the images of children. It would be particularly interesting to examine these changes in the context of the consequences for the socialization of children through cartoons.

The second question concerns specifically gender relations, in particular the balance of power and authority within gender contracts. From the analysis of cartoons 2015-2020, it becomes clear that female characters are not only replacing male characters, taking on their roles, but also acquire behavioral practices and traits inherent in male gender. Such changes in female images lead to the fact that men's images are also forced to change in order to maintain balance. Exploring these changes and new masculine images could also be a topic for research.

References

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