The Woman-Child Trope, Explained 

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As an adult u realize all those adult conversations u weren't supposed to interrupt were jus 35 yr olds gossiping

I think it's interesting bc once a woman reaches adulthood or even puberty people want you to immediately take on a maternal/ fix it roll, even without kids.

Man-child: an annoying but ultimately quirky and understandable phase woman-child: you are broken and need therapy, you absolute tragic mess

Success isn’t maturity. But we tend to confuse the two...

Proposed plot: Man-child falls in love with a woman-child and they learn to be mature together

These trope videos actually teach me so much about society in general.

Noticed while watching the clips that the man-child is usually surrounded by other man-children, and they all get to have fun together. In contrast, in the clips at least, the woman-child is usually the odd one out in her group of friends and feels a little bit more alone and alienated. Don't really know if that means anything ... but definitely has a different effect on the audience

As a 25yr old bumming in my messy home, very much single, recently laid off from work due to covid, absolutely confused on what career I should embark on but somehow certain I’m destined for success, I feel personally attacked by this take. My friends call me an Issa but I guess I’m just a woman child.

“Don’t treat me like a 3hr brunch friend” is such a mood this season lol

Quarantine has made women-children of many of us. Unemployed, living in a city I can't afford, binging reality tv, drinking daily, and occasionally practicing a hobby that keeps me fulfilled and hopeful. We've got this, ladies!

Quirky Girl Expectation: Manic Pixie Dream Girl Reality: Woman-Child

My dad just described me as this “woman child” the other day and said he’s afraid of when I move out at the end of the year. Now I have to watch Spongebob in secret :-(

“I don’t associate with people who blame the world for their problems. You are your problem, Annie. You are also your solution.” - Megan Price

Idea for a movie: man child who learns to take care of himself and does not rely on a woman in order to grow up.

Aquafina says “I remind them of Nam.” I cannot breathe.

The man child always finds a way to make or be surrounded by a surplus of money. For some reason he's never broke or starving, the woman child is always teetering on the edge of extreme poverty.

I think a big reason why the trope resonates so much with people today is the representation of the millennial struggle. We aren’t hitting the same milestones or even have the same opportunities to build a future as previous generations. I think it represents part of that grieving process, comedy makes it easier to swallow. Also, as far as the gender aspect, women have always been expected to raise men. That’s why there’s so much distain and uncertainty felt when we see women struggling to find their “place”. It means that the traditional sense of “home structure” is unstable. I would agree that it’s sexist and reductive, but a lot of young women like myself feel stuck between societal expectations to have kids and a husband, and lack of career opportunities.... hence the arrested development. Great video, as usual!

I have related to woman-child characters more than man-child characters. They are usually more complex characters and have more compelling redemptive story arcs. I also think it’s because I struggled with many of the same things the woman-child characters struggle with. Men children usually live at home and I can’t really recall a woman-child character who lives at home. Also the career and soul searching stuff and truly having to consider compromising those things for money or other societal barriers.

I’ve always loved characters that fall into this category, but never noticed the pattern! Ironically, the older I get, the more I feel like a woman-child, which is why I really enjoy their portrayal on screen.

"these hallmarks of the 'woman child' have long been romanticised as the norm for ambitious men" - WOW that's truee

What I learned from this channel: Women make audiences uncomfortable.

You create your own misery by thinking there is a way you're "supposed" to live.

The fact that no one mentioned Rebecca Bunch from Crazy Ex Girlfriend is disappointing. She's the perfect example. She left her whole successful life behind to be near her childhood summer camp boyfriend

I came here to watch you tear societal expectations apart...I’m leaving feeling personally victimized and exposed . Thanks 🥺

I realized that men are not often shown being self conscious on TV, so that’s why the man child can go on without a serious thought in his head, while the woman child has to have these darker moments because it’s more acceptable for her to be self conscious.

Anyone else waiting to hit rock bottom so the getting-her-shit-together montage can start?

I used to love the character Lorelai Gilmore, but now that I'm older I realize she was a woman that had a baby at 16 and never grew out of the romantic feelings she had for the father of her child even though he abandoned her and went to college, then married and had a kid with someone else while she sabotaged every relationship she had for the next 20 years.

I feel attacked. This is literally my life and I’m sure many young women/people can relate?

Thinking about it, I get that most people relate more to the woman-child because they are characters that are written very well and very realistic and would sometimes even coincide with our own lives, regardless of gender, on the other hand, we laugh at the man-child because they are written like cartoon characters, over the top cliches, and nobody is like them.

when men fail it's hilarious, when women fail it's a tragedy

Something else that isn't commented on in the video, but I've noticed is that the woman-child is usually potrayed as a far more malevolent presence in the lives of those around her. While the man-child's immaturity and obvious stupidity is used as comic relief, he's often potrayed as a benevolent presence in the lives of the more mature people around him. He reminds his friends, family, and even romantic partners not to take themselves too seriously (Big Daddy, The Hangover), to not let societal expectations dictate their lives (School of Rock), and to be true to themselves (Harold and Kumar, Ted). So in an odd way, he's actually vehicle for their growth even if his main storyline is about his personal growth in the form of becoming more mature. Even in stories where the man child has very negative real world effects on those in his life, such as in Step Brothers where the man-child characters harm their parents' relationship and take advantage of them finanically, the man-child is still portrayed as a benevolent presence...he just need his chance to shine and for those around him to finally see the value in his unique approach to life! The woman-child, however, is often portrayed as holding back those in her life or even actively trying to sabatoge them. As the video says, the common storyline is of two very close friends, one of which gets into a new relationship which can be romantic (My Best Friend's Wedding) or a new friendship (Bridesmaids) that makes the other feel threatened, not only of losing her friend, but it's often implied of being surpassed. She sees that her friends might be progressing in life while she's stuck, so she tries to keep them stuck with her or drag them back down to her level. She wants their happiness to come only through her. The worst example is probably Young Adult, where the main character's inability to let go of her teenage years as the Queen Bee leads her to return to her hometown to try to break up her high school boyfriend's marriage after she sees him announce the birth of his first child on Facebook. I'd argue that the potrayal of the woman-child as a toxic person is far more realistic than that of the man-child as just a loveable loser who, actually, made life fun for everyone! There is a definite double-standard there, though. Another big difference is that the man-child character is often portrayed as having inherent, sometimes even preternatural, talents and abilities. Some examples are The Hangover where the character is successfuly able to win thousands of dollars counting cards in a casino, and the Harold and Kumar series where Kumar is portrayed as a spectacularly skilled surgeon in spite of being kicked out of med school twice. The man-child is hiding his light under a bush either due to emotional trauma, or simply because he thinks living like a frat boy is easier and more fun. The woman-child, however, is portrayed as mediocre. As the video discusses, her ambitions are often bigger than her talents, and the dream career she's persuing is seen as an unrealistic pipedream. Where the man-child's immaturity comes from failing to realize his potential, the woman-child's immaturity comes from over-estimating hers! Again, this portrayal might be argued to be more realistic, but there's a very uncomfortable double standard in the fact that the man-child's flaw is his lack of ambition, but the woman-child's flaw is her ambition. Also in how these portrayals give the man-child much more inherent worth than the woman-child, and often portrays better outcomes for the man-child. The man-child has everything he needs. He just needs to focus a little, and everything will fall into place for him. He's often portrayed as, once inspired by the love of a good woman, easily finding a work ethic and with it a successful career, and also seemlessly becoming a good husband and father even if he's never had a successful relationship before. The woman-child, though, has more work to do. She needs to realize that she's not special and find a way to be okay with that. Then she needs to start making improvements to the part of her personality that make her unhappy internally and undesireable to those in her life. Part of this is self-acceptance, but part of it is also, realizing her toxic behaviors and making amends to those she's wronged, as well as fixing her career but in a more realistic way. She needs to go after a job that may not be her dream job, but, again, that's her main growth...realizing that she's not special and destined for greatness, and coming to an acceptance of that. After doing these things she usually gains, not an outstanding, but an acceptable career, and the love of a good man rather than one who simply uses her for sex. Ultimately, the man-child's path to a happy ending is in thinking bigger, but the woman-child's path to a happy ending is in settling.

This is great. I'm at the part of the movie where I either get my big break, meet someone decent, or move to an affordable town. Any of those will do.

Why is not having everything figured/planned out before a certain age deemed childlike? It’s perfectly fine for an adult to go through life without reaching normal milestones and still have their friends accept them and love them.

“I freak out old people I remind them of ‘Nam”

That “You don’t really feel like an adult yet” hit hard af, wow 🤦🏾‍♀️

“Your 20s are for wild shenanigans” “but aren’t you 30” I think I just had a realization

All of the following refers to representation in media, not real life: Most woman-children, however immature, don't still live with their parents (--> the big-city-trope). Most man-children are (--> chill-suburbs-trope). Most man-children don't have any ambitions (and are pestered about it by their peers & families), whereas woman-children have high-reaching dreams of success, albeit unrealistic ones. Most man-children are perfectly happy with being themselves and playing video-games all day or whatever, and don't want to change, don't even think there's something wrong with them (until s.o. points it out blatantly); whereas most woman-children have inherited self-loathing and sense of wrongness and want to change their lives, feeling that they're not functioning as well as they wanted / ought to, whereas man-children are mostly fine with themselves as they are (until s.o comes along). Woman-Children often have bad/distant/complicated relationships with their families, whereas man-children often do fine, except from the occasional annoyed parent, because he won't move out. Many parents, especially mothers, don't mind or even welcome a man-child living in the house again, to pamper and care for. A woman-child, as stated in the video, is rarely transformed for the better by a "good man" or a job, but the man-child mostly is. (By a "good woman", that is, or a "real job".) She has to redeem herself, better herself, have a revelation and change her ways actively. Whereas a man-child often just has to make the promise to do better, at the end of the movie, and that's enough - we often don't get to see wheather he actually does.

This was actually really comforting as someone who sees herself as a woman-child.

I can’t get enough of these trope explained videos. You point out tropes I hadn’t even noticed and then do a great job contextualizing them. Thanks!!!

These Trope videos are always so on point. This one raised some especially good points, and I honestly needed this in my life!

I wish there was a woman child character that actually succeeds without changing, unless there is but i haven’t seen or heard of the film or tv. Just like Andy Dwyer in Parks and Recreation. He is a great example of the man child, throughout the series he continues this same child like behavior but he also starts getting better jobs, he’s married and incredibly happy. He even becomes a successful tv character/Johnny Karate. But I think that’s due to many other characters in the series accepting him for who he is, motivating him to follow him dreams without changing his own personality! I would love to see a woman do the same on screen, because I know there are real woman and girls out there who would relate to this kind of character, and probably don’t enjoy being told they’ll never find real happiness unless they mature and give up their cartoonish personality.

I'm a woman child according to society. I see myself as someone who's doing the best they can with what they have. I will not force myself to be anything but myself. I know how far I have come and I'm proud of myself. I'm basically just a struggling independent woman.

There is no such thing as a mature man and woman. We are children in bigger bodies who have been shaped by trauma trying to navigate a hostile environment and do our best

I honestly think a very underrated example of the woman-child is Amy Duncan from Good luck Charlie. she literally embodies it throughout the entire series

On tv Women child normaly have an arc about "growing up" as a rule, for man-child ,maturing seems to be more of an option

Movies _The Take_ is obsessed with: *1. Bride Maids* *2. Mean Girls*

you guys should really attach a list with all the movies you referred to in every episode and again, thanks for the great content :)

We don't have to rush into being Mothers or Wives. We can focus on creating stability and building higher self-esteem first. 👸🏾

I just came to watch the Take and now I feel called out and attacked lmao 😂 😂 😭

I think Fleabag would perfectly fit this trope. But except showing the woman-child once she has lost that best friend. Edit: Fleabag is a brilliant show, and I really recommend it!

I feel like a woman-child But I'm only 23 so it's kind of okay lol

I’ve been following your videos since screenprism era and they are so underrated! Really love your film analysis, keep up the great work!!!

Sooo I am 23 years old, just finished college, still living with my parents, have no romantic life whatsoever and have no idea what I am going to do (which kind of job I should apply to) due to the fact that I just realized I studied something I am not really interested in and I'm just overall immature and don't take anything seriously, it feels like I'm a woman-child...

I think we expect more from women child films than man child films because we expect more from women in general. So that extends to multimedia too. Maybe it's a stereotype but women are seen as the rock a stabilizing force, once a man gets his stuff together it's because of a woman (I assume that's where "behind every good man is a good(or better) woman" came from) . If a woman gets her stuff together it's because she's matured and/or its because of her female support group. Not because of a man. At least that's what I get from films and tv.

this was just 17 minutes of therapy that i needed to hear

I love this video! Very interesting when put in this context. I feel like it explains so much about why a lot of men don’t think these types of movies are funny/relatable. The man child can be so lovable but the woman child is “exhausting” to watch. Thanks so much for bringing attention to this!

Can you do one for The Chosen One trope? A character chosen by fate and destiny or by the people to either protect the world or possibly to destroy it. Buffy Summers. Neo. Or The Keanu Reeves. Sam and Dean Winchester. John Connor. Katniss Everdeen. Harry Potter. Anakin Skywalker.

I was just thinking “Fleabag didn’t have a best friend” but she did. 😞

Great vid! I always enjoy well-constructed explanations of tropes.

I’m new here and I have to say this is one of my favorite videos I have ever seen on this topic! Very well done and thank you for putting this out there!

I am 100% the woman child and I love it. I’m an artist living in New York with my best friends, no boyfriend, barely making money but I wouldn’t want my 20s any other way. Life is up and down and the woman child isn’t always “out of control” but more enjoying her life and not in a rush to become a standard “adult”. I think we forget sometimes that memories are made with friends and having fun. I think Frances Ha is a perfect movie that shows that you can take your time to become your best self.

Movies and tv shows mentioned in this video: Broad City, Girls, New Girl, Insecure, Bridesmaids, Trainwreck, Knocked Up, Bad Teacher, Frances Ha, Girlfriends, Hangover 1, 2, Obvious Child Billy Madison, Gilmore Girls, Young Adult, Mary Tyler Moore Show, Walking and Talking, Reality Bites, Pineapple Express, The Simpsons, Working Girl, Ass Backwards, Brittany Runs a Marathon, 30 Rock, Romy and Michel, Sex and the City, Nora from Queens, The Wedding Planner, Ally McBeal, High Fidelity, Smiley Face, Back to School, I Love Lucy, That Girl, Pursuit of Happyness, Preggoland, It's Always Sunny, Laggies P. S. I wish they also mentioned Unicorn Store, Fleabag, Girls Trip, Kimmy Schmidt, Killing Eve

This is one of y’all’s best yet. Seriously. I watch all of these. And this, by far, is one of the best and most interesting yet. Seriously, I even paused and discussed it with my husband!

Just wanted to say that I love all your videos, thanks for doing what you do

This all goes back to the whole concept that girls mature faster than boys. No many societies require a lot more from girls at a early age, while a lot of time boys will be boys is a fine expectation of men. Which is why woman child is important because the woman just gets to be herself.

its so true, i dont want to be some juvenile guy's mom

I love these videos. Such a thorough analysis. You should include the movie titles in a description.

At 20 years old I am the woman child and ever so often I have a life crisis saying I need to change and I do kinda of but always go back to my way before.

I don’t know how but you always analyze this things perfectly, honestly I’m looking forward a video of Barney from how I met your mother and how they ruined his whole arc in the end like robin

The difference between the man-child and woman-child boils down to this. Man-children are only guys being the dopy children we all love and adore until the "right woman" comes and makes him an adult. Society demands that women are the backbone, the moral center, the fixer, the engine that keeps everything running. We are supposed to be calm, cool and collected in a skirt and pearls. Woman-children don't do this, so like all women who don't follow societal expectations and demands, they are viewed with suspicion.

This was such a good watch. I love all your videos but this one is especially good.

I am on the Autism Spectrum, a writer, and a fantasy and SF geek so I am sometimes perceived as an oddly sexualized woman-child by people (usually other women who want a "best friend") who try to "train" me to be more childlike and dependant and to engage in activities like sports, dancing, dressing up, obsessing about my weight, being "tidy" and socializing with other women even if they don't share my interests and I simply don't give a damn about theirs, et cetera...all in the name of making me more "socially acceptable" to other women. The funny thing is that I prefer the company of men largely because men don't really care about these things.

Growing up is hard and usually one does feel like he/she fails and is unworthy of fun, blessings and dreams, when in truth it's mostly about hardships, accepting one's limitations and grounding.This was something that somehow I needed to see. Thank you

I just hate the fact that the majority of women or men-child references in pop coulture end up with them starting to become more "grown up" in some sort of way... maybe in the way they dress or the way they act... as if it is basically impossibile to be successful unless you become a quieter person, or someone that wears neutral colors, or talks in a low volume or whatever. As if to become an "adult" has something to do with becoming boring in some sort of way.. i hate that; what is even being an adult anyway?

This channel is SO much more than a take on movies and shows. It's a whole philosophy ❤

thank you so so much for making this video. it feels like getting the several past years of my life explained to me.

I think I can finally relate to one of these tropes as a minority, a Latin woman-child trying to live abroad and thinking I might do it all....living in an Italian city too expensive for me to pay but trying hard not to take the traditional path to see if it leads me to places I have never seeing before....

This is probably more relatable to female millennials than other generations who were expected to grow up faster.

33 yr old woman child here🙋‍♀️ I didnt realize this was a trope I just thought I loved these characters because I connected with them more than the "successful got her shit together" woman. Funny enough I'm apparently living in a movie with the "more mature" best friend, messy failed relationships, and "unrealistic" dreams of owning my own business selling my art and jewlery (which I currently am working on to make sucessful) while working a unfulfilling side job to barely get by 😅 I'm happy for the life I have and I think everyone's journey is different and i think the main difference between men and women children is that the men child we see on screen is a charecture of that kind of man in real life whereas the woman child is an accurate representation of the lives some women actually lead and it makes it extremely relatable and makes me at least feel less like I'm alone in the struggle

@13:55 I was like YES this I was seeing a theme throughout in the female-child tropes that is really similar to several successful-business-male characters in films

This is so me. I'm embarrassed for myself.

Excellent explanation of the double standards applied to men and women.

I'm sad because now i realize that i unconsciously based my personality in this trope by watching movies and tv shows damn

You are nailing these videos so hard

I feel like one is the “secret” side of the other. Guys do suffer from depression even if they seem carefree, and women have those sparks of creativity through their internal darkness because the spirit of fun is still there.

Diablo Cody wrote Young Adult cuz she wanted to see more complex women who were both relatable and questionable

Im a 25 year old female, have ADHD (inattentive type), and an introvert. I didn’t start taking meds till this year, and am finally moving on from depression that I’ve had since 8th grade. The main thing I’ve learned: Do what makes you happy, not just career or school, or hobbies, whatever. If Listening to Disney music, watching cartoons, or playing with legos, etc. makes you happy- do it. Own it, and let yourself be happy in whatever phase of life your in. Honestly, people will respect you more for being yourself and owning it, and if they don’t- you probably don’t want to be their friend anyway.

You guys are doing a really job in assessing the society! These videos helps for us women to understand each other, better!

Oh boy, this is going to be so relatable. "She had intense friendships..." Lol nope.

This remind me of the british girl from Arrested developmet, she actually had the mind of a little girl but Michael dates her thinking she was just spontaneous and fun.

My ex lived with his parents in his thirties and while I did not judge that circumstance in and of itself, I did judge that his mom clearly viewed me as the woman being groomed to remove her son from her care and lead him to a more mature life.

As a 41 year old, these videos are like classes for my out of touch ass. Thank you. And good job. Y'all rock.

I feel called out.

we realised that being a girl is def better than being a woman

I love your videos and thank you so much for what you do! Really amazing work!

Childishness brings relief and balance to excessive responsibilities. While waitressing and getting laid off and studying law and scrubbing pet stains out of carpets and searching for any job available in a dry market in my area, as an unsupported single mother, I think I act a bit like Lorelai Gilmore and I don't hesitate to tie my kid's hands behind their backs so they can eat spaghetti without utensils. They laugh and they love it! I've been single for 5 years because I'm uncomfortable with how unequal the financial situation is in a town where all the jobs are for men in the oilfield and I can barely afford to pay my own way on dates. I just want to be more financially independent so that money isn't a motivator. I admitted to a town clerk that I hardly check my mailbox and she snarled at me saying "You have to check your mail." Yeah Karen, I know, but if there's no money to pay the bills then I'd rather not check the mail until I have a solution to the chest-crushing problems my ex left for me. I also have high standards for sincere good character and am quick to disqualify men before they enter my children's lives. When I walk to the park the kids and I will be balancing water bottles on top of our heads. Anything to make life happy. I think for all the childishness that you see there is always a weariness that you don't see, and we're just trying to survive and figure out how to survive better.

I like this trope because you have the comedy and outrageousness of their struggles which keeps things interesting to watch but like you said they also usually have a dream or a secret drive. Plus they're pretty emotionally nuanced and usually are written have been through quite unique conditioning or harsh situations, which I think checks out with what happens in reality (either a bit spoiled & out of touch or secretly earnest and sensitive, maybe both). Also, great (if overly intense) female friendships are so interesting to me, I always enjoy them a lot.

Im surprised 'Laverne and Shirley' wasn't mentioned when talking about pre-cursors to woman-child characters. I tend to ID better with the woman-child than the man-child. Maybe partly because man-child characters tend to be kind of stupid/unintelligent and one-note.

Add ADHD into the mix and you've got a bottle full of fuuuuuun.