Page 84 - South Mississippi Living - September, 2017

With a Wonder
Woman Mindset
story by Kelsey Sunderman-Foster photo courtesy of Rachel Hoyt
Wonder Woman, DC Comic’s Amazonian superhero, is the embodiment of the
ideals of feminism. Diana Prince, princess of the Amazons, is a strong warrior and leader who breaks the traditional molds of womanhood as portrayed by many heroines before her. Prince is not a damsel in distress and consistently denies being told that battles and adventure are “no place for a woman.”
In the beginning of the 2017 Wonder Woman movie, Prince reflects on the darkness of humankind as she faces her
first glimpse of war outside the Amazonian island of Themyscira. Rather than despairing over the hatred she sees, Prince’s mindset shifts, allowing her to become the Wonder Woman we know and love.
“I used to want to save the world,” said Prince, played by Gal Gadot. “To end war and bring peace to mankind; but then I glimpsed the darkness that lives within their light. I learnt that inside every one
of them there will always be both. The choice each must make for themselves — something no hero will ever defeat. And now I know that only love can truly save the world. So now I stay, I fight and I give– for the world I know can be. This is my mission now. Forever.”
In the real world, women are frequently faced with struggles of their own, from juggling a job and family to simply being a woman in a male-dominated workplace. Making the decision to have a Wonder Woman mindset is the first step toward changing the world by changing the way you see it. It means never letting fear keep you from making a change for the better while always having a heart for others.
“I think Wonder Woman is so inspirational to women because, yes, she can beat up the bad guys, but her ideology is so steeped
in love,” said Rachel Hoyt, bookseller at Barnes & Noble in Gulfport. “She fights and makes sacrifices for those who can’t. When people tell her no, she says yes. She forges ahead, doing the right thing, no matter the cost. She doesn’t write off things for their flaws, but sees what they could be. I think in a culture so steeped with anti-heroes and dark interpretations of superheroes, we need someone to stand up for unadulterated good.”
It is these qualities that make Diana Prince a world-changer. Her mindset to change the world comes not from brute strength, but from her compassion, and in that way, we can all be a Wonder Woman in our own lives and inspire others to do the same.
Rachel Hoyt
84 SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living • September 2017
FOR MORE REFLECTIONS OF THE GULF COAST >> www.smliving.net