Last Updated on September 6, 2024
In a world of Captain America, Superman, and Batman comes a woman who is strong, fast, and courageous; but at the same time, she understands the values of honesty, peace, and more importantly, love. She is Wonder Woman! What began as a superhero that breaks the mold is now a worldwide icon for women empowerment.
What is her story? And what makes her rival her male counterparts?
The Birth of Wonder Woman
By the time that psychologist William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton) was hired to become the educational consultant for what would later be DC Comics, he was already playing around with the idea of a superhero that would ‘break the mold’. Marston wanted someone who wouldn’t just use fists or firepower, but instead, win through honesty and love.
It was his wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, who suggested he make this superhero a woman. She, along with their life partner, Olive Byrne, became the inspiration for Wonder Woman. She debuted on October, 1941, in DC’s All Star Comics No. 8. and was featured in Sensation Comics No. 1 on January, 1942. Wonder Woman was drawn by artist Harry G. Peter.
In order to mix with common folk, Wonder Woman takes on the identity of Diana Prince, a former army nurse. Her real title though, is Princess Diana of Themyscira. Her origin was that she was sculpted by Queen Hippolyta from the clay in the island of Themyscira. This makes her the only warrior woman not born out of man.
Being favored by the gods, she was given all kinds of talents, including strength, speed, and beauty. She also received many gifts, including her Lasso of Truth, indestructible bracelets, and a tiara. Having grown among warrior Amazons, she learns about the importance of diplomacy and peace. What makes her unique is that she fights for love.
The Modern Wonder Woman
The most recent version of Wonder Woman comes alive in the 2017 and 2020 films starring Gal Gadot.
In the 2017 movie, Diana as Wonder Woman, is training as a warrior in the hidden island of Themyscira with her aunt, General Antiope. She is known as the daughter of Hippolyta and Zeus. A previous battle between the gods and Ares has made the women warriors of the island wary about his return, and so they train to protect mankind.
When a US pilot crashes on their shores, Diana is introduced into a world of war. She decides to help stop the war, believing the source to be Ares. She is soon disillusioned when the death of a high-ranking officer does not stop the fighting. Ares finally reveals himself and tells Diana that mankind is innately corrupt.
However, motivated by her experiences with the pilot, Steve Trevor, she uses her powers to kill Ares for good and spare the scientist in charge of the deadly mustard gas. The end sees her recalling her past and believing in the power of love.
The 2020 film on the other hand, focuses on events in 1984, while Wonder Woman (under the guise of Diana) was working at the Smithsonian Institution and doing heroic deeds in secret. Here she battles against Barbara Ann Minerva – who later assumes the form of the villain, Cheetah – and Maxwell ‘Max Lord’ Lorenzano.
Diana, Barbara, and Maxwell get their wishes granted by a dream stone (created by the God of mischief). But as a result, it takes a toll on their physical and emotional states. In order to save the world, Diana must let go of her wish to be with her past lover, Steve Trevor, who was reincarnated into another man’s body.
Both films show Wonder Woman’s greatest strength, which is her belief in love.
Iconic Wonder Woman Quotes
As one of the first female superheroes – and also one of the most well-loved – Wonder Woman remains, to this day, an inspiration to both men and women. She is not only beautiful and highly intelligent, but skilled, honest, and loving. Draw inspiration from Diana’s sense of honor and justice through these Wonder Woman quotes.
- “Which will hold greater rule over you? Your fear or your curiosity?” – Wonder Woman
- “Death is necessary. It is part of life, and if we say life is a blessing, we must say that death is a blessing, as well.” – Wonder Woman
- “It’s…it’s not about deserve. Maybe, maybe we don’t. But it’s not about that, it’s about what you believe. You don’t think I get it, after what I’ve seen out there? You don’t think I wish I could tell you that it was one bad guy to blame? It’s not! We’re all to blame!” – Steve Trevor
- “The gods made the Amazons to restore peace to the world, and it’s what I’m going to do.” – Diana Prince
- “If you choose to leave, you may never return.” – Queen Hippolyta
- “You have been my greatest love. Today you become my greatest sorrow. Be careful, Diana. They do not deserve you.” – Queen Hippolyta
- “If no one else will defend the world from Ares, then I must. I have to go.” – Diana Prince
- “Though I love Paradise, I yearn for more from my life…I yearn for purpose!” – Wonder Woman
- “Kal looks to the future, Batman looks to the past…and I reside in the present, securely bridging the two.” – Wonder Woman
- “Of all people you know who I am. Who the world needs me to be, I’m Wonder Woman.” – Wonder Woman
- “Everyone’s fighting their own battles, just as you are fighting yours.” – Wonder Woman
- “No — we are doing something. We are! We just…we can’t save everyone in this war. This is not what we came here to do.” – Steve Trevor
- “Never let your guard down. You expect the battle to be fair.” – General Antiope
- “If you need to stop an asteroid, you call Superman. If you need to solve a mystery, you call Batman. But if you need to end a war, you call Wonder Woman.”- Gail Simone
- “I used to want to save the world. To end war and bring peace to mankind. But then, I glimpsed the darkness that lives within their light. And I learned that inside every one of them, there will always be both. A choice each must make for themselves. Something no hero will ever defeat. And now I know, that only love can truly save the world. So I stay, I fight, and I give, for the world I know can be.” – Wonder Woman
- “I love fire, don’t you? It is like a living act of entropy. The ultimate weapon of destruction. Reminding us that in the end everything eventually returns to the ash it came from.” – Steve Trevor
- “She was right. My mother was right. She said the world of men do not deserve you. They don’t deserve our help.” – Diana Prince
- “I don’t know which one of us has been more blind…you, in your refusal to adapt to a changing world… or me for following you this far down your well-intentioned path.” – Wonder Woman
- “Feeding people is a just and dignified occupation.” – Wonder Woman
- “Bonds of love never make the wearer weaker — they give him greater strength!” – Wonder Woman
- “A deal is a promise and a promise is unbreakable.” – Wonder Woman
- “Diana, fighting does not make you a hero.” – Queen Hippolyta
- “I cannot stand by while innocent lives are lost.” – Wonder Woman
- “Fight? We use our principles. Although I am not opposed to engaging in a bit of fisticuffs should the occasion rise.” – Etta Candy
- “You will train her harder than any Amazon before her, five times harder, ten times harder, until she is better than even you. But she must never know the truth about what she is.” – Queen Hippolyta
- “Bullets never solved a human problem yet!” – Wonder Woman
- “Everyone’s fighting their own battles, just as you are fighting yours.” – Wonder Woman
- “I came here to parley. But do not mistake a desire to avoid violence for the inability to deal it.” – Wonder Woman
- “Get strong! Earn your living and fight for your country!” – Wonder Woman
- “Where I come from generals don’t hide in their offices. They stand beside their soldiers. They die with their soldiers.” – Diana Prince
- “It is our sacred duty to defend the world.” – Wonder Woman
- “I used to want to save the world, this beautiful place. But I knew so little then. It is a land of magic and wonder, worth cherishing in every way.” – Wonder Woman
- “Power without self-control tears a girl to pieces!” – Wonder Woman
- “Peace is a virtue. A state of mind, a disposition for benevolence, confidence and justice. It is not simply the absence of war.” – Wonder Woman
- “I’d like to keep the illusion that there is a shade of moral difference between us and those we fight.” – Wonder Woman
- “It’s about what you believe. And I believe in love. Only love will truly save the world.” – Wonder Woman
- “What one does with the truth is more difficult than you think. I learned this the hard way, a long, long time ago. And now, my life will never be the same. – Diana
- “Women seem like sissies because you don’t know their true strength.” – Wonder Woman
- “You are stronger than you believe.” – Antiope
- “And between my prayers, I made a vow that I would always be aware of my strength. And that of my opponents, my friends, and my victims…”- Wonder Woman
- “I’m willing to fight for those who cannot fight for themselves.” – Diana
- “This war is a great big mess, and there’s not a whole lot you and I can do about that. I mean, we can get back to London and try to get to the men who can.” – Steve Trevor
- “I am the man who can.” – Diana
- “Only the fiercest among us even could, and that is not you, Diana.” – Queen Hippolyta
- “I can save today, you can save the world.” – Steve Trevor
