(The casual misogyny in the treatment of parentifed characters)
If a male character adopts or takes care of a child that isn't his, he's depicted by the fandom as a saint, a father, and an amazing person. No one expects a man to take care of a child, especially one he doesn't know, so that relationship is cherished and flaunted. That character will be regarded and referred to as that child's father. You will find hundreds of fans depicting him as such. (Dean Winchester(Supernatural), Joel Miller(TLOU), Etc)
If a woman steps up and raises a child that isn't hers, she's depicted by the fandom as a big sister and just a woman. Her sacrifice, trauma (If parentifed as a child) and bond with the child are ignored and downplayed. The best examples I can think of are Maddie Buckley(911) and Jinx(Arcane). Maddie raised her baby brother Buck. It's stated explicitly in the show, she is his maternal figure. He loves her, looks up to her, and credits her for raising him (She's practically Dean but a woman) and yet her relationship with Buck is minimized by the "fans" to she's just his sister. Her role as his mother figure is literally erased in favor of another woman that Buck met in adult hood who's bossy but not nearly his mother (Athena). I've never watched Arcane but I do end up in it's fandom spaces and Jinx is only seen as Isha's sister despite being an adult woman who chose to adopt a child in every way except legally (Like Joel Miller). The sacrifice of raising a child is expected from a woman and not from a man so if a man raises a child hes a saint and if a woman raises a child she's just a woman. Stop erasing female stories.
