Bechdel test

English

Alternative forms

• Bechdel Test

Etymology

After cartoonist Alison Bechdel, author of a 1985 Dykes to Watch Out For comic strip that popularized the test. Reportedly first used in 2007.

Proper noun

the Bechdel test

1. (film, literature, feminism) A feminist test used to evaluate the representation of women in fiction, especially in films, TV shows, and other media.

   Synonym: Bechdel-Wallace test

   • 2019 April 26, Melena Ryzik, “Screenplay Software Adds Tool to Assess a Script’s Inclusiveness”, in The New York Times‎^[1], →ISSN, archived from the original on 26 November 2021:

     It also will enable users to determine if a project passes the Bechdel Test, measuring whether two female characters speak to each other about anything other than a man.

   • 2019 September 5, Jessica Sternfeld, Elizabeth L. Wollman, The Routledge Companion to the Contemporary Musical, Routledge, →ISBN:

     Finally, the percentage of musicals that pass the Bechdel test but not the jobs test has also remained consistent―at under 10% for the entire 75 years studied. These results imply that it is far more likely for a musical to pass the Bechdel test if a female character is employed in it; perhaps having a focus other than men for a character aids in more progressive portrayals.

See also

• Mako Mori test
• Smurfette principle
• Vito Russo test

Further reading

• Bechdel test on Wikipedia.Wikipedia