Gender-Bending in Princess Knight

Part Three: Challenging Gender Roles

By Sheena McNeil
April 22, 2013

Disclaimer: This article is based on the version published by Vertical, Inc in 2011, translated by Maya Rosewood. This translation is based on the Tezuka Osamu Manga Zenshu edition published by Kodansha in 1977. This article is also spoiler heavy!

This article is the third in a series examining how gender-bending is handled in Princess Knight and focuses on the first five chapters of Part 2. I would encourage you to read my first two articles on Part 1 (see links at the bottom of the page) before delving into this one. Sapphire's struggle to be herself while various forces try to take either her boy or girl heart from her gets more complicated.

This Part opens with Prince Franz Charming on a hunting trip with King Plastic, Sir Nylon, and Duke Duralumin. Sapphire, dressed in her princely attire, calls to him while hidden in the treetops, identifying herself as the flaxen-haired maiden and refusing to show herself. Charming says he's been searching for her "ever since Prince Sapphire stole [her] away." Sapphire sheds tears at this, probably because of the situation she finds herself in. She is still lying to Charming about who she is. She yet again misses an opportunity to clear Sapphire's name by not voicing that Sapphire did not steal her away. While technically that would be possible, since they are one-and-the-same, it's not true; Madame Hell stole Sapphire away.

Blood and his men capture Nylon and Duralumin, and Charming comes to their rescue, fighting Blood. Charming is distracted upon seeing Sapphire, and blames her for the pirate attack. Sapphire turns her back to him and their panel is divided by a tree branch to illustrate the separation between them. Blood intervenes, pointing out that Sapphire is a girl, and Charming says he knows that but won't forgive him for stealing the flaxen-haired maiden. Unsurprisingly, Sapphire remains silent through all of this, turning her face away in shame. Here's where the pronouns begin to get interesting for this Part. Blood refers to Sapphire as "she" and "her" while Charming refers to Sapphire as "he" and "him." This reinforces that Blood has accepted Sapphire for who she is, while Charming finds it easier to hate Sapphire if she's a man.

Blood takes it upon himself to open Charming's eyes, making him realize Sapphire and the flaxen-haired maiden are the same person. I'm not sure why he's doing this, but it comes off like he just wants to point out how foolish everyone is being. He certainly doesn't do it to get Charming and Sapphire closer together since Blood himself wants to marry her. To drive the issue of her identity home, Blood forcefully puts a wig on Sapphire. Sapphire struggles, not wanting to put the wig on, and then she takes it off, covering her face and turning away again in shame, and verbally denies the truth that's been exposed. I'm not sure why she still wants Charming to believe the flaxen-haired maiden is someone different from Sapphire; Charming has laughed at his foolishness and accepted this news easily. He's not mad or upset, and all his hatred has disappeared (which shows that he's rather shallow). Sapphire refuses to look at him even when he tells her he wants to whisk her to his home. Sapphire's shame is very evident, but there seems to be at least a small part of her that's still torn. She loves Charming, but she wants to win back her country and she's a little bit infatuated with Blood (see her daydream from the end of Part 1).

Madame Hell arrives, scatters the group with a storm, and captures Sapphire. In the turmoil, Blood asks "where is everyone?" while Charming calls out for Sapphire. Blood has a responsibility for all the men there with him as well as Sapphire, so his question is fitting for him. It's nice to see Charming use Sapphire's name within this context and to show concern for her as Sapphire. Sapphire attempts to fight back, but Madame Hell's magic is too strong, quickly disarming her and tying her to an altar where a spectral knife cuts out her girl heart. Madame Hell then gloats, "Sorry, but you're no longer a girl, so you can't pledge your love to Prince Franz!" This is an interesting statement and assumption. Sapphire obviously still has a girl's body (the one she was born with), and if she still has a girl's body, there's no reason she can't pledge her love. Perhaps she is solely referring to Sapphire having only a boy's heart and thus being incapable of loving a man as a man (keeping in mind the time period this was written in).

Sapphire fights back, freeing herself too late. Tink also arrives too late. Just by looking at her, Tink realizes she's "become a boy." Again, it's not that she's physically become a boy; Tink is an angel with the ability to see and take the hearts within her, so he can tell. Tink tries to convince Sapphire that she "can be a girl too," encouraging her to "say something cute." Sapphire was not prone to saying "cute" things before, so that shouldn't be how she can express her girl side. It's stereotypical. When her girl heart was temporarily removed (in Part 1), she lost her will (but not ability) to fight and no one was encouraging her to say something strong. Of course, the boy heart was seen as a mistake and removing it a cure for her situation ... even if it endangered her. Sapphire quickly grows angry, loudly protesting that she's a man. Her attitude and way of thinking has changed, but not her body. At this point, she's not aware or thinking about her body; she's just reacting stereotypically. Sapphire, as a girl, has no problem doing "manly" things, but Sapphire as a boy gets outraged at the request to say something "cute." Sapphire is confused by Tink's tearful reaction and, while willing to point him in the direction Madame Hell went, seems uninterested in getting her girl heart back.

After Tink leaves, Charming finds Sapphire and pledges to marry her no matter what anyone else says. Sapphire laughs him off telling him, "You're barking up the wrong tree. I'm a prince." Confused, Charming tells her, "You don't have to keep up the act. You can talk like a girl, you know." Again with the talking "like a girl." Her attitude has changed, but she's not speaking any different. She didn't say "cute" or stereotypically "girly" things before, so why would she start now? And it gets worse. Sapphire replies, "How stupid. Why would I talk like a girl? You say I'm a woman? Do I look like it?" Sapphire obviously has amnesia since she doesn't remember her own past or identity. And yes Sapphire, you look like a woman. Your body and appearance has not changed. Maybe with the heart removal, there was a brainwashing, and she's unaware of her own body (she hasn't looked at it). Charming definitely doesn't help when he tells her, "You're not a man! You're the flaxen-haired maiden!" Seriously? Charming is aware that the flaxen-haired maiden was Sapphire in a wig; she doesn't actually have flaxen-hair, so his reply could be very confusing to Sapphire in her current state. However, Sapphire only latches onto the first part of his reply, and, feeling insulted, prepares to draw her sword (which, by the way, was destroyed by Madame Hell just a few pages ago).

Meanwhile, Madame Hell delivers the girl heart to Hecate, telling her she "turned into a boy" and is "rough, totally unfeminine." There's a difference between becoming a boy and being "unfeminine"; Sapphire's body has not changed. Tezuka is trying to drill home the difference, but even so, it doesn't fit with the story to have Sapphire's physical gender change. Interestingly, Madame Hell uses the pronoun "her" to talk about Sapphire when she talks about taking "her girl heart" and uses "he" when describing Sapphire as unfeminine. Madame Hell also points out that "Prince Franz can't swear love to him anymore." I addressed that a few paragraphs up. Charming can swear his love, but given his previous love / hate relationship with Sapphire, he probably won't, which shows how superficial Charming's love is.

Hecate, ever the trickster and not wanting to steal Sapphire's heart or change herself, dons a beautiful gown and makes her voice "soft and girlish" to fool her mother. To lay it on even thicker, she adds that she wants to "take up cross-stitching and play the piano." These are two activities that were approved for women in the settings and time periods of most European fairy tales, which influenced aspects of this story. They definitely fool Madame Hell, who is hoping for her daughter to turn into this kind of girl. Why she would want that is beyond me. She's a demon, so why should Hecate be sweet, feminine, and beautiful? (Note: Hecate is already beautiful the way she is.) I also wondered why Madame Hell would not be more forward-thinking about women's role in society like other female characters in this series, but this is addressed later.

Sapphire is riding back to her kingdom with Charming following her. She tells him to stop, so he leaves and runs into Blood. Blood asks, "Which do you think Sapphire is -- man or woman?" and "Why did she suddenly become masculine in the forest?" Remember, Blood doesn't have any proof that Sapphire is a girl, but he believes (rightfully so) that she's a girl, yet he also knows something strange happened. Charming threatens Blood to leave Sapphire alone, which is odd since he won't stay by her and two pages back tells her, "your true nature remains a mystery." Charming has no conviction; he simply feels possessive and threatened by another masculine character who obviously knows Sapphire better than he does (at least regarding the gender issue).

When Sapphire arrives at her kingdom she declares, "I was kicked out as a girl, but now I'm a man!" Her word choice describes more than just gender. She doesn't use "girl" and "boy" or "woman" and "man." She uses one of each, which implies a maturity difference. It's not the first time this discrepancy has come up, but this time it carries great power as she is attempting to regain her crown (and not just assert her gender identity as she has with past examples). Sapphire continues to announce that since her girl heart was taken she has become "fully male." Really? I think everyone including herself would have noticed that kind of change. The soothsayers confirm (using cards, a crystal ball, and Chinese fortune telling) that Sapphire is "100% male." No one's going to actually check her? I know that would be touchy to show in this manga, but the issue of her physical gender was addressed when she was a baby, and they don't try to verify it now?

When Nylon tries to have her killed by assassins, Sapphire fights back, but one against many is exhausting. She is soon overpowered and needs rescuing. Two things are subtly important to note here. First, Sapphire does not become a damsel in distress. Her situation is not dependent upon gender. Second, she is rescued by Hecate, so there's no charming prince to swoop in and save the day.

Hecate offers the girl heart back, but Sapphire turns it down. Sapphire asks why she would "want such a thing," and Hecate wonders why she doesn't want to "go back to being a lovely girl." Sapphire is still a lovely and still a girl, but it's interesting to see that Sapphire is not thinking like her former self. When her boy heart was removed in Part 1, she was aware of her past and what happened to her, so why is it different when the girl heart is removed? Maybe it's because the boy heart was not her intended heart, but that's not addressed and is merely speculation. Sapphire says, "I've finally become a man" when explain why she came back to claim her throne. She was trying to reclaim it before, so it's not really gender specific other than the fact that the law says only a man can be king. Her saying "finally" is way off as well. The only time Sapphire showed any conviction on which gender she would prefer is in Part 1 when she tells Madame Hell "I truly wish to remain a girl."

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Madame Hell arrives, interrupting them, but she's quickly driven off by Tink. Sapphire was knocked out (or killed -- it's hard to tell) during the encounter, and Tink takes the opportunity to remove her boy heart -- without first putting in her girl heart! Sapphire has no heart for a while, but it somehow doesn't kill her. Perhaps the heart is a soul and not a physical heart, but even so, that should be a requirement for life as a human based on the context of the story. The boy heart is stolen and eaten by Plastic. While trying to retrieve it, Tink says, "It's a boy heart! It makes people strong and brave!" He says "people" not "men." Of course, Tink's opinion and belief has been evolving over the course of the manga, so that might be his opinion at this point rather than fact, but it's still interesting to note. Tink replaces Sapphire's girl heart, and she wakes up, puts her hand to her forehead in the overly dramatic "I'm going to faint" pose and says, "I feel strange, like I'm a weak girl." She has felt weaker every time her boy heart is removed, but her reactions are becoming increasingly more stereotypically frail. Tink tells her (in case she was wondering), "it's because you are a girl now."

Duralumin and Nylon catch that statement and move to seize her for execution, but Plastic steps in. Plastic was an un-matured, idiot boy, but upon eating the boy's heart he became "manly" to use the word Tink uses to describe him. Plastic is aware enough to realize he was "just a shell of a man before." Does that mean he had a boy's body and no heart? If so, how was he functioning? At least he was presented as an "idiot" rather than "girly." In his awakening as a man, Plastic vows to help Sapphire by changing the laws of the land and relinquishing the crown to her -- making her queen, not king. He's doing this to get his father's crimes forgiven, but it's still admirable and very forward-thinking.

Elsewhere, Madame Hell sees Charming on his way home and tricks him into following her by transforming herself into an image of the flaxen-haired maiden. To his credit, Charming calls her Sapphire now rather than "flaxen-haired maiden." But Sapphire has no more reason to dress this way, so why would he fall for this? Mainly, he's confused by Sapphire's earlier actions and statements, but he also does not know the full situation of what's going on with Madame Hell, Sapphire's hearts, or any of it.

Madame Hell captures Charming to make him marry her daughter, Hecate. He refuses until she points out that Sapphire is about to be executed for working with pirates; Madame Hell will save Sapphire if he agrees to marry Hecate. Yes, Charming is saving Sapphire's life, but Sapphire was not reduced to a damsel in distress for him to do so. Her involvement with the pirates should not be enough to warrant this action, but due to the situation and Nylon's plotting, it is. Sapphire goes bravely to the chopping block, head held high. She sheds a tear for her mom and wishes to see Charming again, but her last thought is of her mother. Sapphire's handling of this shows the strength of her character, regardless of gender.

A note on pronouns: all through this Nylon refers to Sapphire with male pronouns despite taking action against Sapphire because she's a girl. She also has just a girl heart right now. Madame Hell is referring to Sapphire with female pronouns currently, but when Sapphire had just a boy heart, she used male pronouns. It makes sense for Madame Hell to switch since she is aware of what Sapphire's current state is. Perhaps Nylon and the guards find it easier to take action against the prince -- even knowing the prince is a girl -- rather than a princess.

Madame Hell does help Sapphire escape the chopping block, and in the confusion Sapphire is able to take shelter in the Court Ladies' Quarters. The guards try to enter but are blocked by a group of women, including many of their wives. The women block the door with their bodies, saying, "Listen up, men. Every last woman in this castle is an ally of Prince Sapphire. Lay even a finger upon Sapphire and we'll claw your eyes out." Dressed in their fancy dresses and hats, the women are weaponless, but they are unafraid and will use whatever means necessary to fight. I love the resolve these women show. The women know that Sapphire is a girl, but they still refer to her as "prince." Perhaps that's because that's all they've ever called her, and they still follow her and accept her as they knew her. The men, urged by Nylon, try to enter and are literally thrown out. One even cries out, "don't hurt me." Even with the threat of jail time from Duralumin the women stand strong, replying, "Be my guest! That means no one will wait on the men or do all the cooking, cleaning, washing, sewing and laundry." The next panel shows the men and guards doing all those tasks with unhappy or angry faces. Sapphire looks on with a look of surprise and possible awe, while other women look on with smiles of mirth and joy. One lady, looking very proud and content, tells her, "A battle of wills between men and women. Sit back, relax and enjoy the show." The women are taking this opportunity to clue the men in on what all they do and earn a little appreciation while protecting Sapphire. These women obviously know they can outlast the men in this since all the work they just mentioned is just that-- hard work. At least this depicts the men as realizing these tasks need to be done as they immediately get to work on them.

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Chapter 20 is called "Warring Women" and the first half of it focuses on this battle of the sexes. It opens with Madame Hell bringing Hecate to Prince Charming's palace. Hecate is dolled up in a fancy gown, but as soon as her mother leaves she strips it off, which shows the hoop-skirt frame. She's then standing around in her bloomers while talking to the prince. The prince is shocked by this behavior, but gets over it quickly -- there are more important matters at hand, including the fact that neither of them want to marry the other. I have to wonder if the original readers of this manga in 1954 realized that Hecate is standing in underwear. Hoop skirts with bloomers is typical of European fairy tales set in a similar time and place as this story, but is a foreign fashion for the Japanese, one that was never worn there.

Shifting back to Sapphire's situation, the Court Ladies announce to her that they rise up and fight the men and will "show these men that the weaker sex is free and proud." I don't buy that any of these women would consider themselves the "weaker sex." The powers between the sexes are just different. Men usually have more upper body strength and women lower. Women aren't prone to punch each other in the face and men are often scared of the pain that comes with the whole labor / giving birth thing. These women are prepared to take the men on in a physical fight, so they can't consider themselves too much weaker. They find the law saying only a man can rule to be misogynistic, which it is. They are preparing to "defend the honor of womankind." Yes, this manga has its own feminist uprising, and it's nice to see.

Sapphire points out that they "can't very well fight in dresses." That's truer than is obvious. The style of outfits these women are wearing (as detailed some by Hecate previously) involve corsets and hoop skirts, both of which make it difficult to breathe and move let alone fight! These women are prepared with "combat uniforms." They look like a long shirt that's belted (thus looking like a short skirt), with pants and boots and little hats (a far cry from their pointed damsel hats). One woman says she feels like Jeanne D'Arc and another says George Sand. I wonder if those were the original references Tezuka used or not; they would fit with the setting though. The women really enjoy these outfits and spend a couple panels showing all the things they can do in unrestrictive clothing.

The women also have a strategy for how to take on the men; it's nice to see them using their brains while they prepare to use their brawn. Sapphire, rather than supporting these women, tells them to hold back saying, "Not all the men are evil. Don't go crazy." The women know that; they will be fighting some of their own husbands as they text points out more than once. The women counter Sapphire by saying, "We're gonna take this opportunity to show them girl power!" while brandishing brooms, pans, and rolling pins. These "weapons" are the tools the women are used to using and are the typical weapon of choice for women in early cartoons and comics, so it's not surprising to see here. However, I would like to point out that they are valid weapons, and using tools as weapons is a common practice. During the days of the samurai, Okinawans were not allowed to carry katana, so they implemented using their farm tools (bo, sai, tonfa, kama, etc.) to defend themselves.

When the fighting starts, Sapphire challenges Nylon to fight "mano a mano," which is weird as Sapphire is not a man, and doesn't even have a boy heart in her at this point. Nylon points out, "You're no longer a man, so you can barely last a full match." Sapphire was never a man, but within this story, she was recently in possession of only a boy heart, which made her a "man." Sapphire has fought Nylon before when she was without her boy heart, and he gained an advantage till it was returned. At that time, her boy heart was removed in the midst of battle. This time, Sapphire has had time to adjust and she easily fends Nylon off, despite his cheap tricks, telling him, "Even as a woman, I'd never lose to the likes of you." Sapphire is inadvertently acknowledging that being a woman is at a disadvantage, but her actions back up that gender doesn't matter.

Charming arrives in the midst of the battle to tell Sapphire he's engaged to Hecate. He rides off just as suddenly, and Sapphire runs from the field of battle sobbing and throwing herself on a column for support. Sapphire may be slightly more prone to this emotional barrage (and distraction) because she only has a girl heart at the moment, but it would have affected her when she had both hearts. Also, Charming delivers the news with forced laughter and a brave face, but we have seen him shed tears over this before, and he does so again after this declaration.

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The next section is very interesting to read when looking at it while focused on gender issues. Charming has met Madame Hell on Mount Resin. She summons her husband, King Satan, to meet her daughter's fianc�. As soon as Satan appears, Madame Hell is groveling, curtseying, and brown-nosing. She tells him of her plan to marry Charming and Hecate to gain Charming's kingdom and asks for his help in turning the people in that castle to stone. I'm not sure why she needs his help. She's already turned two people to stone herself. Perhaps it's a scale beyond her powers? Satan appears pleased, saying, "great idea!" but while he says that, he strikes his wife on the head with his fist, crumping her hat and pushing it over her eyes, and knocking her over. He then grabs her around the shoulders, telling her he'll help if she brings him "the most beautiful and gentle girl in all the land as a human sacrifice." There is sweat on her face and her speech balloon is done with a wavy line to indicate fear as she asks what he'll do to the girl. He replies and releases her so that she falls to her knees, supporting herself with one hand, sweating and replying to him with a stammer. This is obviously an abusive relationship, and she is obviously afraid of him. One could argue that it's because he's evil, but Hecate has already pointed out that demons have hearts too, and both Hecate and Madame Hell show love and compassion sometimes. Also, while Madame Hell refers to him as her husband, she calls him "king" to his face, and Satan refers to her as Madame Hell rather than his wife.

Blood locates Sapphire after sneaking past the battle. Sapphire is upset about Charming's announcement and takes it out on Blood. Blood tells her to "stop acting like a tough guy," and asks, "If I make you wear that blonde wig, will you turn gentle again?" Keep in mind that Sapphire just has a girl heart at the moment. Blood knows she's a girl and wants Sapphire to accept that side of herself. His comment is harsh, but is not a statement about her gender-- just her attitude towards gender and her specific situation. She curses him for being a pirate, and he tells her of his past, how his father, a king, didn't like Blood and sent him away in favour of raising Blood's younger brother to be the heir. (Blood is Charming's older brother, though Blood doesn't know that and Charming only recently learned it.) Sapphire draws ever closer to him as he relates this story until she takes comfort in his arms at the fact that they are both "battling a star-crossed destiny." And Blood confesses his love for her. He has told her before that he wants to marry her, but now his statement has matured as he wishes to make her happy.

Plastic is trying to change the law so that Sapphire can rule. He tells his father, Duke Duralumin, that the law is misogynistic. That's the first time in this manga that a male has voiced that. As an aside, Duralumin compares his situation to Shakespeare's King Lear, betrayed by his daughters. It provides an insight into Duralumin's twisted perspective as he was the puppet master behind his idiot son's ruling, and now that his son has a boy heart and can truly think and act as a king, Plastic wishes to relinquish that power. Plastic then tells the elder council (all men) that many laws need to change, "including laws that do not recognize women's rights." Kudos to Tezuka for getting this theme in the manga; however, it takes a man to get other men to listen. The council votes to support these changes, but not all are happy about it. One even comments, "Our wives will never stop nagging us now." That's an unfortunate attitude, but not unexpected. An official proclamation is made decreeing, "All women have the right to vote, to divorce and to beat up the menfolk." Obviously this is a bit tongue-in-cheek; it touches on the real women's rights movements, including voting ... even though kings are not voted for. It continues, "All men must surrender unconditionally to women and coexist peacefully." Now the pendulum has swung to the other extreme. Feminism is not about women being superior to me but about being equal to men. The men and women stop fighting and embrace, both sides happy, but the men immediately pass the laundry and children back to the women as well. So, the law's changed but the status quo hasn't really.

Blood asks Sapphire to go with him, but also admits he knows she wants to rule her country and that she loves Charming. Sapphire is still crying about Charming's engagement to Hecate, and she finally tells Blood this news just as Madame Hell appears to invite Sapphire to the wedding (without telling her she'll be the sacrifice to King Hell). Sapphire sobs in Blood's arms before righting herself to accept the invitation. I know she's emotionally torn up about all this, but she's definitely sending mixed messages to Blood.

Plastic enters to hand the crown off to Sapphire. Outside, Nylon is taking aim with a bow and arrow to assassinate Sapphire. He ends up shooting Plastic by accident, but hits Sapphire with his second shot. Blood injures Nylon, who runs away. Blood immediately goes to Sapphire and calls for the doctors. He agrees to undertake a very dangerous quest to save her life, but he only has three days. Setting sail, Blood says, "I told you I'd do anything for you, Sapphire. Please take this as a token of my affection." Blood is definitely a hero to admire, and Sapphire should appreciate everything he's done for her. Yet, in her unconscious state, she calls out "Franz." She loves him despite how he's treated her.

The nurse and doctor are arguing by her bedside about if it would have been better to raise her as just a prince or a princess rather than a prince but secretly a princess. Raising her as just a prince would have led to many of these same problems. Raising her as just a princess would still have created issues since Sapphire had a boy's heart inside her as well as a girl's. She probably would still have done (or tried to do) many things considered "manly" like swordfighting. The nurse argues that being a princess would have meant peace, but that's not true; it would have meant living under Duralumin's rule through Plastic, which was not good for many. When they address Sapphire, the nurse calls her princess and the doctor calls her prince. The way she's been raised, both are correct.

Madame Hell arrives and, seeing Sapphire near death, steals Sapphire's girl heart. That leaves Sapphire once again with no heart whatsoever. Last time was for a few moments until Tink revived her with the girl heart. This time, there's no Tink around to rescue her. The first time, Sapphire was either dead or unconscious. Here, she is unconscious and near-death, but does not die when the heart is removed. I'm curious: if she were conscious, would she be an idiot like Plastic was without a boy's heart in him?

Sapphire's life is in danger, but that's not all. Her gender-identify is also a point of confusion. Check back next week as I look the conclusion of Part 2, where Sapphire loses her memory and is proposed to by another warrior princess while Charming fights for her against the charms of the goddess Venus herself!

Gender-Bending in Princess Knight Part 1
Gender-Bending in Princess Knight Part 2