Heyyy, peoples :)
Hope its warmer wherever you are than it is here, it freaking freezing here. I know theres no rule saying it MUST be warm and sunny and everything once febuary gets over itself and finally leaves....but when you have to cycle to school EVERY SINGLE DAY up a massive hill wearing just a hoodie and jeans....well, i wish they could show some more consideration. Those couple of warm days were just to mess with our minds, i swear....

Anyway, there actually IS a point to this post. It came to me about ten minutes ago, as i was plugging in my laptop charger.
Has anyone else noticed how almost ALL popular songs and books and films aimed at teenager girls ALWAYS end with a romance?
Or a chance of romance- a suggestive comment (no, i said SUGGESTIVE, not creepy or dirty), a wink, a hug, a kiss on the cheek, a long and deep conversation?
Okay, maybe i'm exagerating just a smidge....but seriously, has no one else noticed?

How many (and i mean, email me a list or something, honestly) times does the ending involve the girl and the guy just being friends? Or deciding they don't even like each other that much and giving up?
Or (shock, horror) there not even being a guy at all?

I'm not calling for an exclusion of all males from the world of writing (or music or films), I promise....(EVERYTHING needs guys in as well as girls_with the possible exception of the powerpuff girls, who were DEFINITLY better before they introduced the RowdyRuff boys)

I'm just saying...it would be nice for the female protagonist to not be obligated to find SOME KIND of love interest every time. I mean, this is the 21st centuary! Despite the fairly depressing fact that lots of girls i know will vehemently deny being a feminist, we're surrounded by the benefits of it every day- because the girls who deny being feminists so forcefully would be equally outraged if anyone even hinted that they were not equal to, or should have fewer opportunitys than, men.
Marriage is not the prize anymore, its not the only thing we have to aim for.

And if thats true...why is it constantly reinforced that it is?

Lets look at a few examples here:
Songs: You belong with me, Sk8er boi, love story, single ladies, the truth
Movies: High School Musical, freaky friday, mean girls, a cinderella story, 10 things i hate about you, sisterhood of the travelling pants, juno, bend it like beckham, in her shoes, nick and norahs infinite playlist
(am now just scanning my own shelf of movies, tbh)
Even fantastic books like sugar rush, sisterhood of the travelling pants, being bindy mackenzie, peaches and jane eyre have a guys waiting arms if not as the ending of the plot, then as a prominent sub-plot.

I've made a plan: i am going to write a novel of teenage girls which WON'T end in romance. No guy, except as a friend, no hint of guys to come, no lingering flames of desire. Nada. Nothing.
Guy friends will STAY just friends (as much as i adore juno, i wish bleecker could've stayed her friend) as they are supposed to.
It will be like the book version of Thelma and Loiuse, one of the few girl movies i can think of without a romancey ending (although to be fair, working in a romance along side the movies ending would've been pretty hard).

We are no longer defined by the men in our lives.
Lets see the media acknowlege that too.

Peace and love, Camden children :) xxxxx