Modern Examples of the Damsel in Distress

The third wave of feminism has impacted the damsel in distress archetype in mostly subtle ways. What the archetype is has not changed, but how it is presented has been altered. The damsels in distress we see today still require saving, but they are often less passive than their counterparts from the past.
 Here we have Lois Lane from the newest Superman origins movie "Man of Steel" Like any traditional damsel in distress, she requires a hero, in this case Superman to save her from the antagonist. What isn't traditional about her is her intelligence and natural curiosity. This leads her to be a much less passive damsel in distress. She attempts to change her fate by actively seeking to save herself and Superman. She marks a newer, more modern damsel in distress who is not always so keen on sitting around and waiting for a savior to come to her.

 Sansa Stark is another outcome of the Third Wave of Feminism. She represents a more dynamic character and damsel in distress in that she is never solely one archetype. Does she play the princess who romanticizes her fate? Of course, but during the Book and show "Game of Thrones" she also portrays the damsel in distress, and the survivor. As her character evolves, so too, does her archetype.

This more dynamic version of the damsel in distress is not limited to Sansa Stark, or even to the American and European cultures. The above picture represents Momoko and Ichigo the main protagonists of the 2003 Japanese novel "Kamikaze Girls". In the book Momoko is written as a frail young women who prefers to wear frilly Lolita, or dolly clothes. She wants nothing more than to be a French aristocrat and live an idyllic Rococo life. Ichigo on the other hand is a traditional Japanese yanki, or gangster. She starts out as very much the tough girl archetype. She's tough, she fights, and she doesn't take crap from anybody. That being said it is the tough chick Ichigo who requires saving from frail Momoko at the hands of her cruel gang, thus showing that the need to transcend archetypes is not limited to just one culture.
And finally, Peeta Mellark from "The Hunger Games" trilogy represents a new age damsel in distress that is becoming more frequently seen in modern day pop-culture. What this means is that he ends up in some situation that requires him to be saved by the hero. Often, in cases like this the hero is female, resulting in a gender-bent take on the older archetypes where masculinity and femininity are not necessarily limited to any one gender.