Damsels in Distress

I’m not surprised when people don’t like damsels in distress,
But sometimes the discussion uses language that’s a mess.
In theory, they’re just females who need rescuing by males.
Some speakers add criteria to what the trope entails:
The gal acts helpless even if she’s proven tough before.
She makes no move to save herself but waits for her amour.
She can’t affect the plot except by being a MacGuffin
To motivate the hero while her traits amount to nuffin’.
I see no need to narrow down the meaning of the term,
As regular examples are enough to make me squirm.
What’s more, some folks use “damsel” by itself to mean the sort.
That isn’t what the dictionaries commonly report.
I’d rather use the longer term; let “damsel” mean a lass,
Archaic as it sounds but with an element of class.