The Princess Bride

Goldman's portrayal of women in The Princess Bride is very interesting. His portrayal of women suggests a feeling of dislike. For example Buttercup is beautiful, yet very naive and unintelligent. Buttercup constantly needs to be rescued, and in that sense she is the typical fairytale princess. The other women in the novel are also depicted in a negative tone for example, Prince Humperdink's stepmother, Queen Bella. Queen Bella's character is nice but she is also manipulative. When Prince Humperdink's father is dying Queen Bella translates for him. The reader is told that the king is mumbling, therefore it isn't really known what he wants from his son, but Queen Bella speaks for him telling Humperdink it is his fathers wish for him to marry. She manipulates him by saying he must marry a specific princess, she is puppeteering Humperdink. Another woman who is shown in a negative light is Fezzik's mother. She is portrayed as a horrible mother who is trying to make her son a famous fighter. She is very mean to Fezzik and un-motherly. Fezzik tells her he wants to stop fighting and she tells him he better continue or she and her father will leave him alone. Which is Fezziks greatest fear.
Goldman portrays most of the women in this novel in a negative aspect. Some of the woman are shown as beautiful yet stupid, manipulative and mean. It seems as though Goldman thinks very little of women to depict all his female characters in such a way. However in Goldman's defense, his relationship with his own wife Helen, may be the reason why he portrays women in such a way. She is portrayed as domineering, a good psychologist but a cold wife.