Week 5- Playlist

I chose these songs, not necessarily because they truthfully represent gender, but because they represent gender and sexuality in a way that influences the mainstream population. Both Bitch and I'm a Bitch I'm a Lover describe all the ways that women can be. Women are diverse creatures, and don't always fit the same stereotype nor do women act the same way all the time. Hot N Cold and If I Were a Boy both describe women's perceptions of men. Superwoman describes powerful women, and in a way so does Man I Feel Like a Woman.

I would say that my taste in music has changed a lot through the years. When I was in elementary school I really didn't like to listen to music. Then in middle school I had this strange fascination with rap music. Now I will listen to just about anything- it depends on the mood I am in. I really never like country or hard rock though, and I honestly don't like rap that much more anyway. Lately, I have been really into listening to music. I usually just like to watch TV when I am hanging out at home, but I have been listening to my iPod a lot more.

bell hooks made some interesting points in Ch. 6. I am not sure I wholeheartedly agree with her assessment of female beauty. But maybe this is just because I like make-up and staying fit. While every woman should not try to fit the stereotype of "beauty" created by the media, it is important for women to stay healthy. Healthy weights are different for everyone, but everyone should strive to be the healthiest possible. By saying this I am not saying everyone needs to be a size 4. This view of beauty as anything a woman is is also the thesis of Chapter 1 from "Beauty Myth."

hooks also brings up interesting, relevant points in Ch. 5. I think reproductive rights are something that every woman should fight for. I just finished the course Women in the Military this afternoon. We spent some time examining pregnancy in the military. It seems that military personnel always blame only the woman for becoming pregnant. It takes two people to make a baby... We also examined the extremely high rates for abortion in the military. While I do not think that abortion would ever be used as a method of birth control, for some women that is their only option. Birth control should be more readily available to women and even girls. We cannot deny that young people are having sex. In my opinion it would be much better to help them from the beginning instead of denying it or hiding it.

Until next time,
Madison

Advertisements

1. I found the ad for Tom Ford Beauty particularly degrading to women. It perpetuates the stereotype that women are sex objects and should only be used to quench a man’s desire. Lots of advertisements show near topless women, and while I do not think this is okay, having a near bottomless woman takes too much more than a step too far. The woman looks sweaty, and it comes very close to showing everything. I am not sure if the message is supposed to be that Tom Ford is so great that women want to have sex with it. Also, there is a picture of a woman grabbing a man’s crotch. He is just sitting there like he expects her to do this. It is a vulgar advertisement that degrades women. Why can’t men be in these positions?
2. I really like the advertisement for Keds. It shows a young girl and her mother (I’m assuming) who are wearing matching skirts and red Keds. I think that it is a wholesome message to all women. You can be self-confident and wonderful without wearing stilettos and leather. It also emphasizes the importance of family, and the fun innocent times one can have. The message on the bottom says, “My favorites. My Keds.” It almost sounds like my favorites, my kids, which would be another positive message to parents.

Week 4- Careers with Women's Studies

Well, I actually am a Women's Studies major (Poli Sci currently, but I am changing). But I want to go to law school. There are many classes that interest me, and that I think would help me for my future career (though I'm not exactly sure what that is going to be). Obviously Women and the Law. If the class really studies cases involving women like our guest speaker said, then I think I am going to love it! I really, really enjoy learning about court cases- especially the Supreme Court. Also, Gender, Power, and Leadership in Politics and Administration; Gender, Law and Human Rights and Women Creating Social Change look really interesting. In all honestly, all of them look interesting :). I am in Women in the Military right now, and though I didn't have much previous knowledge about the military, it has turned out to be one of the most interesting classes that I have taken. It really fires me up to know that women still have positions closed to them.

I know I want to go to law school, but I honestly am not sure what I want to do after that. I think that I would really enjoy being a judge, but I know it's not a job that you can just go apply for. I know I need a little experience with the law before I can even run for a judgeship. But I know that I wouldn't enjoy working for a corporate lawfirm. I have thought about being a human rights lawyer or working in some way for women's rights.

My work history is not extensive, and only my current internship applies in any way to what I want to do in the future. I have an internship with the Lt. Gov. I love it, not only because I get to be at the Capitol and meet legislators and sit in committee meetings, but also because I get to work with one of the most powerful women in Oklahoma, who one day soon might be Governor. I do have a very successful mom in the business community in OKC, but it really inspires me to be around women in politics. Especially because women are so underrepresented. Here is an article that my mom wrote for her paper last week:
http://www.journalrecord.com/article.cfm?recID=95918

Only one man works in the Lt. Gov's office (besides her bodyguards). It is cool to see a woman helping women.

In FIFE Ch. 16, it seems to be that hooks is saying the best life is a life without men. Though our other reading was about boys, and how she writes boys childrens books. Anyway, I'm not sure if that is exactly what she meant, but what I took from it is that Feminists do have to be anti-men. This honestly makes me angry. It is true that we live in a patriarchy, and that it should change. But to make equality work, we need to work with the men not against them.

hooks said some things in her other piece that I am not sure I agree with either. On p. 43, she likens raising boys to terrorists. She calls isolation a weapon of psychological terror. While I do not have any brothers so I did not see the raising of a boy in person, I know plently of young men who are not scared to show emotion and who were not emotionally or otherwise isolated from their families when they were growing up. She also says that all boys are being raised to be killers. In Women in the Military, we have looked at this. Are men warriors because they were raised to be warriors? And there is no doubt that the aggression is a learned behavior because of gender socialization and gender separation in young children, but I think she takes it a bit too far to say that all boys are raised to be killers. I also do not agree with her assessment of boys relationships with their fathers. Now, obviously I am not a boy and could not relate much to this piece, but I have a father, and I honestly believe that he would not be in competition with his son. My cousin lived with us for six months, and while he was an older teenager, they did not compete. They did relate to each other in a much different way than I relate to my mom or to him, it was just that they were relating. Also, her criticism of Harry Potter was taking it too far. If we want to examine the sexism/racism/_____ism in everything, we could find it in everything, but then we wouldn't be able to simply enjoy something for what it is. Harry Potter has strong female characters, and I honestly do not believe that it is only appealing to boys or that only boys can relate to Harry.

I think I could relate and understand the Raising Ophelia piece much more. Though I did not (I even talked to my mom about it) go through a big stage of rebellion or moodiness, I know what it's like to be an adolescent girl. I would say that I have always been more like Lori. I always cared about school first, but still had many friends. People liked me, though I never considered myself to be "popular." I always liked who I was, and was never embarrassed to be seen with my parents. In fact, I often preferred to spend time with them. I do think that Pipher raises some very relevant issues though. It shocked me to read that 40% of girls in her town had considered suicide and that the suicide rate rose 75% in ten years (and that was only to the late 80s!). I honestly don't know if any of the girls I knew ever considered suicide. The all got along with their parents most of the time, and were more like me- school first and no partying. I'm sure it was out there; I was just lucky enough not to experience it.

Until next time,
Madison

Iron Jawed Angels- Week 3

Iron Jawed Angels is probably one of my favorite movies. I saw it for the first time last summer during N.E.W. Leadership, and I have watched it at least 3 times since. The first time I saw it I was absolutely floored by how Alice Paul was treated. I knew that the suffrage movement wasn't easy, but I had no idea that they were treated as enemies against the state.

I think this film is inspirational, not only to women, but to all people who are facing a seemingly impossible obstacle. If those women could do what they did in the time period and social situation in which they lived, I believe that just about anything is possible.

I also found it very interesting how they chose to portray the sexuality. The screenwriter and director really made the movie about what it was like as a woman of the time, and they showed it from every side.

One of my favorite parts of the film is actually when the women are in prison. I get goosebumps every time when Emily Leighton is escorted in. And I cry every time I hear all the women sing together. When Emily finally gave up trying to fit her husband's perfect mold, and truly embraced who she really was, was obviously when the tensions were erased completely. By doing something that would get her arrested, she let the other women know that she was not better than them, and that she cared.

It is sad that America had to see such a dark day before they saw the light. But American women (and men) can be thankful to Alice Paul for improving the equality in this country and for also providing us with such an inspiring story.

Chapter 4 from The F Word was very interesting. The first thing that stuck out was the high response of women who said they cared about reproductive rights. I am currently in Politics in America where my professor is teaching that America is not divided over abortion, nor do people really care about it. I knew he was wrong, but this provides evidence. Also, the statistics on rape and sexual assault absolutely blew my mind. How can America, which is supposed to be the greatest nation in the world, the most progressive, where everyone is living the American dream, allow statistics like this to occur. Why is this not on the news every night? Why isn't everyone screaming that 1.5 million women a year is too many?

I have always known that I was a feminist, but reading these books and listening to the debates in class, just affirms it.

Until next time,
Madison