Revisiting the Damsel in Distress

I do not think I need say that there is not a more vilified stereotype in the entire realm of storytelling than the damsel in distress. The mere mention of her will send feminists up in arms, screaming in rage. Storytellers will sneer, dismissing her as the weakest type of character.
But is she?
Here I will look at the types of Damsel in Distress one might come across--and might conceivably use for stories.

1: The Passive Damsel.

The Passive Damsel comes in two forms: the Scream Queen and the Stoic. I shall deal with these separately, since there are some pretty big differences. But what makes them similar is that both wait to be rescued.

The Scream Queen. 

Admittedly, this one deserves the scorn. This is the utter stereotype: the limp dishrag who can't--or won't--do anything for herself but wail and plead and wait. She probably won't even try to help the hero in any way, and not just because she's tied up and can't. This is a truly weak character, and should not be used. 

She doesn't necessarily look it, but I'm willing to bet she's been kidnapped.

The Stoic

While she is willing to wait for her rescuer, the Stoic is a far different sort than the Scream Queen. This type appears in a number of the 'Mars' books by Edgar Rice Burroughs, where women are kidnapped so often they probably come with carrying handles. The Stoic treats her captors with scorn and her captivity with cool indifference. She usually knows She will be rescued, and is willing to wait for him to come...but she will cheer him on if she can do nothing else, and if she can, she will fight to help him out. There is a lot that can be done with a Stoic maiden, and they are fun to work with.

2: The Escape Artist

Not the best picture, but the best I could find.

This type is by no means helpless. While she may be hoping for a rescue (Princess Mabelrose, the example I gave here, prays quite earnestly for a handsome prince to rescue her from the dragon who has kidnapped her), after she realizes that either no one is coming, or that it's nearly impossible for anyone to come, she simply takes matters into her own hands and gets out herself. This type is quite clever, manipulating her situation to enable her escape, and willing to make use of anything lying around that might come in handy. She is a tricky and wise sort, and one that can be a lot of fun to make use of. 

3: The Damsel in Distress from Hell

This is my personal favorite. This gal may have been captured, and she may not be able to escape, but by golly, whoever got her has just bitten off more than he can chew. This is the one who escapes and is recaptured so many times the villain just lets her go. Or she's the one who makes it impossible for anyone to come into her cell because she's always waiting by the door with something heavy. She need not be a feminist, sneering any rescuers to scorn, and she may, in fact, need some help to actually get out of wherever she's being held. But by the time her hero shows up, she will have paved the way for him to get in and get out, because all the soldiers will be so sick of trying to deal with her that they just get out of the way and let them go through. I make use of this character a number of times in my own stories--partly because I hope that I would be this kind of damsel in distress, should the problem ever crop up...and partly just because it's fun to imagine the resulting hijinks.

End conclusion? Don't scorn the girl who's kidnapped and needs rescuing. Play around with her and let her take an active role. Who knows? She might really surprise you!