Explaining the Bechdel Test and Other Media Representation Tests
In the last episode of The Simpsons , an alternative to Riku and Morty , guest star Alison Bechdel describes her famous Bechdel test for films: Do two female characters have at least one conversation that’s not about a man? Marge immediately calls Homer, triggering Bechdel’s FAIL animation, shown here in an easy-to-use form:
The Bechdel Test, popularized in her comic Dikes to Watch Out for , was never intended to fully define a film as “feminist” or “sexist.” In the end, “Baby Got Back” passes by . Bechdel, along with her friend Liz Wallace, invented the test to set a low bar that many Hollywood films still can’t get past. As one of the characters in the comic book says, “The last movie I could watch was Alien .”
Setting this low bar has many correct uses, which is why it is so popular. On the one hand, as noted by AV Club’s Caroline Seed, it raises basic awareness of massive gender inequality in the media: very few films fail the Bechdel Reverse Test for men.
And this is a strong indicator of the representation of women in the industry. Many organizations maintain a Bechdel scorecard for feature films. One chart from over 7,000 films shows that representation has been slowly improving since the 70s:
This standard is used in industry revenue analysis (showing that films that pass the competition outperform films that fail) and for the annual Academy Awards . This is the basis of the rating stamp in some Swedish cinemas and one of the many criteria to be flagged in the “Blacklist” script database. But the Bechdel test is not the only popular test for portraying women in the media.
Additional tests of female representation
Tumblr user Chaila invented the Mako Mori test after she noticed that the Pacific Rim failed the Bechdel test despite having a strong female character while Thor passed it. A film passes this test if “1) one heroine, 2) gets her own story arc, 3) does not support the male story.” The test is more subjective than the Bechdel test, but of course this is an issue that they both consider.
Writer Roxanne Gay proposed a six-part test : Is there a female central character with minor female characters who doesn’t compromise herself for love and doesn’t live extravagantly without explanation? And at least half the time, is this character a woman of color, transgender, and / or homosexual? Guy’s sixth clause is not a -requirement: Female characters “must not live up to an unrealistic feminist standard.” They may have flaws as long as they feel like real people.
The easiest way to pass is the satirical Sex Lamp Test by comic book writer Kelly Sue DeConnick (co-author of Pretty Deadly and Bitch Planet ): If your female character could be replaced with a sex lamp without breaking the plot, YOU FUCK HACK. Naturally, many films fail. Especially if, as suggested by Tumblr user shitifindon , you are allowed to stick a sticker on a sexy lamp.
The Crystal Gems Test, developed by critic Locuas and named after Steven Universe cartoon characters, combines the above three tests and adds a scale for each – because we deserve to have our standards raised. An example of his 3D results:
The Ellen Willis test requires the story (or pop song) to make sense if genders were reversed. (This is, of course, intended to refer to gender roles, not biological factors.)
Editor and fandom expert Jenn Northington on the Tauriel test simply asks that at least one woman be good at what she does for a given job.
Other media tests
But hey, women are just one of a lovely array of poorly represented people in the media! So there are tests for other marginalized groups as well. Some of the best:
The Bechdel racial test has the same simple rules as the Bechdel test applied to people of color: at least two of them should be talking about a non-white person. ( The native Bechdel test uses a stricter version to show that films and shows with Native American characters still fail frequently.)
Likewise, actor Dylan Marron’s Every Word on YouTube features short compilations of every line spoken by people of color in a famous film. Of the 34 collections, only five are longer than a minute.
Deggans’ Rule (TV critic Eric Deggans) requires a non-race show to have at least two non-white human characters in the main cast.
Morales’ Rule , written by actress Natalie Morales, requires no one to call anyone papi, dance to salsa music, and not use “gratuitous Spanish.”
The Duvernay test , proposed by film critic Manokhla Dargis in honor of director Ava Duvernay, is more abstract. The work passes it if “African Americans and other minorities are fully aware of their lives, and do not serve as a backdrop in white stories.”
Vito Russo’s GLAAD test has three requirements: the film must contain lesbian, gay, bi or transgender characters. This character should not be predominantly determined by his orientation or gender identity – he should be as unique as regular cis characters. And they have to be important enough to influence the plot – they can’t just joke or “paint urban authenticity.”
Test Topside for trans-literature, created the literary editor Riley MacLeod (now working in Kotaku) and Tom Leger, requires that the book included several trans characters, who know each other and talk to each other about something else besides medical transition procedures. The goal is to set a higher bar than, say, Jeffrey Eugenides’ Middlesex , which uses trans characters as a prop for non-trans characters. (The link includes some recommended texts.)
Additional media tests, such as the Finkbeiner test for non-fiction literature and the Laredel test for toys, can be found in this list on the Geek Feminism Wiki . Remember, no verification can replace quality film examination. Not all of them are even seriously recommended. But each test generates critical discussion, challenges and inspires creators, and provides another tool for measuring the industry.