A Dragon Lady is usually a stereotype of East Asian women as strong, deceitful, domineering or mysterious. The term's origin and usage is Western, not Chinese. Inspired by the characters played by actress Anna May Wong, the term was coined from the villain in the comic strip Terry and the Pirates. The term has been applied to powerful Asian women and to a number of racially Asian film actresses. The stereotype has generated a large quantity of sociological literature. Today, "Dragon Lady" is often applied anachronistically to refer to persons who lived before the term became part of American slang in the 1930s. It has also been used to refer to any powerful but prickly woman, usually in a derogatory fashion.
Read more about Dragon Lady: Background, Terry and The Pirates, Usage, "Dragon Lady" in Chinese Culture
Famous quotes containing the words dragon and/or lady:
“Sir Eglamour, that worthy knight,
He took his sword and went to fight;
And as he rode both hill and dale,
Armed upon his shirt of mail,
A dragon came out of his den,
Had slain, God knows how many men!”
—Samuel Rowlands (1570?–1630?)
“I have a lot of respect for that dame [Delilah]. There’s one lady barber that made good.”
—Alexander Hall. Cleo Borden (Mae West)