Bonnie And Sam Gender Analysis

The Bonnie and Sam series offers a contested space in terms of gender representation as, whilst, the representations are multifaceted, they are also problematic. The protagonists, in the Bonnie and Sam series, are dualistic in their gendered characterisation. The series was functions within a “range of contradictory notions about what it means[s] to be a girl” (Forman-Brunell and Eaton, 2009, 358). The Bonnie and Sam series seeks to absorb a range of gendered ideals to present a coherent version of gendered identity. This is achieved through attempting to reconcile with “conflicts and contradictions inherent in contemporary girlhood” (Forman-Brunell and Eaton, 2009, 359).

The Bonnie and Sam series comprises of four books: The Shadow Brumby (2007), The Circus Pony (2007), Racing the Tide (2008) and Saving Mr. Pinto (2008). …show more content…
The Bonnie and Sam series seeks to offer female characters that embarked on dangerous adventures or quests. All its female characters are adventurous, or at the very least, desire adventure, rather than keep within passive pursuits (Diekman and Murnen, 2004, 383). This is made evident when Bonnie, in The Circus Pony, shows restlessness and irritation when she is confined to the domestic space. The series employs adventure narratives which allows for characters to have the potential to push against physical, social and cultural boundaries (Stratemeyer in Singleton, 2013, 94) because it allows for female characters to “seek [as] an alternative social system in