Bewitched Again: Supernaturally Powerful Women on Television, 1996-2011

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Starting in 1996, U.S. television saw an influx of super human female characters who could materialise objects like Sabrina the Teenage Witch, defeat evil like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and have premonitions like Charmed Phoebe. The extraordinary abilities of these women showed resistance to traditional gender roles–while the super women experienced infringements on their abilities in ways super powered men did not.

Supernatural heroines have remained on television, including the heavenly connected Grace (of Saving Grace), telepathic Sookie (of True Blood), and magical Cassie (of The Secret Circle). These more recent characters also face numerous constraints on their powers. As a result, superpowers become a narrative technique to diminish these characters, a technique that began with television’s first super powered woman, Samantha (of Bewitched). They all illustrate a paradox of women’s power: are these characters ever truly powerful, much less super powerful, if they cannot use their abilities fully? The television superwomen have endured as a metaphor for women trying to

have it all,

as their travails parallel those of their off-screen counterparts.