During my presentation, I referenced an interview with Anne Marie Slaughter. Unfortunately, I did not have time to play it; so here it is if any of you are interested in watching it. The interview provided me with further insight into Slaughter’s perspective and I found it really useful while interpreting Slaughter’s article, “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All.”
My roommate had an assignment for her Spanish class this weekend in which she came across the film, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (Almodovar, 1988). As I was doing homework next to her, I heard her shout, “Oh my god, this film is so sexist!” I looked at IMDb’s description of the film, and it seems to center around a women trying to contact a man to figure out why he has left her. I have never seen the film, but I think it would make a great addition to our class discussions. Even just the title of the film seems to be a clear indication of gender discrimination. Do you think it is ethical for directors to make such films? I think one could argue that film is art, and people should not easily take offensive to the comedic gender stereotypes that films like these play on. However, where does one draw the line? Clearly, my roommate, who is not even in this feminism and film class, noticed that this film was an ethical issue.
I am disappointed I missed class today due to illness. I am sure people had a lot to say about “The World Before Her.” I really enjoyed this film because I think it fairly showed both arguments on how Indian women should act and be portrayed. For example, in the beginning of the film we hear Indian women state two contrasting views: “our past is our roots, we cannot leave our roots…” and “[a]s much as a love and respect my culture, I think of myself as a really modern young girl.” These statements set the stage for the rest of the film, which takes a look at women in both pageant and fundamentalist camp life.
After watching the film, I thought back to the former two quotes and wondered why only the pageant beauty life was considered “modern.” Many of the speakers in the film discussed how Indian women either should or should not join the modern Western world. It is interesting to note that both the pageant and camp women talked about things like “making their parents really proud.” I was surprised to hear that the pageant world was not just about individual success and beauty. Instead, many of the women related their pageant success to core family values.
It was really powerful to see all of the upbeat pageant scenes in contrast to the more serious scenes of the women in camp. One of the women talked about how if the condition came, she would do anything to defend her religion. This woman was stated to have gone to the camp for about twenty-one years. Her father described her as “trained” and “mature.” It was clear that she too was making her family proud.
Personally, I believe the “modern” girl should be allowed to do as she pleases, as long as she is not hurting anyone. I could see why Hindu fundamentalists are worried about the objectification of women in their culture, but I do not think women should ever be restricted in their opportunities. If Indian women want to be in pageants, they should be allowed to. Furthermore, if Indian women want to join fundamentalist camps, they should also be allowed to. I would like to think that the “modern girl” anywhere in the world is the girl who has freedom of choice and abundance of opportunity.
A few nights ago, my roommates and I watched the thriller Hard Candy (David Slade, 2005) and I could not believe how much the film tied into our class discussions. The film stars Ellen Page, the girl from Juno, as a young girl who goes on a date with a older man. I do not want to give too much away, but the girl suspects the man is a pedophile. The film puts an interesting twist on female stereotypes, feminism and sexual objectification in film. I would definitely recommend everyone in the class to watch it. It is not like anything I have ever seen before…
Like many of you, I was interested in finding out the true story of Brandon Teena after watching “Boys Don’t Cry.” The ending was terrifying and knowing the plot was based on a true story made me really upset. I had so many questions after watching the film… how did the community react to Brandon’s death? Did the real Brandon have other girlfriends prior to Lana? Did they know he was really a girl? Was Brandon always this way?
Luckily for me, my Netflix recommended me to watch, “The Brandon Teena Story,” a documentary on the real Brandon Teena. It was fascinating to see real interviews of Brandon’s friends and family. I was completely blown away by the police recording of Brandon’s phone call after being raped. The officer seemed so insensitive to Brandon’s gender identity crisis and it made me feel terrible for him. Furthermore, an interview revealed that Brandon’s worst fear was being touched by a man.
On a more positive note, the documentary revealed a side of Brandon that I loved. Everyone described Brandon as being a total flirt but a gentleman. He was described as being the perfect boyfriend because, being a girl himself, he knew what girls wanted. I never considered this perspective and it interested me. It was quite clear that Brandon was a likable person; he never would do anything to harm anyone.
I would definitely recommend the class to watch this film. I am curious if people think “Boys Don’t Cry” was an accurate representation of the real story. Watching the documentary made me appreciate the casting of “Boys Don’t Cry.” Not only were the actors good at acting, but they looked like the real people they were playing. I also liked how all of the small things, like Lana’s love for cows, were replicated in “Boys Don’t Cry.”
Hi everyone! I wanted to post an outline of the Projansky Article before we discuss it in class tomorrow. It is a pretty dense article and I am sure a lot of people will have stuff to say about it.
Watching Rape: Film & Television in Post Feminist Culture
By: Sarah Projansky
Overview:
Previous Discussion:
o Analysis of news coverage of famous trials
o Doesn’t consider the shift in representation of rape in post feminism
Why?
Ellen Goodman- Pro feminist Post Feminist
Naomi Wolf- Pro Sex Post Feminist
Katie Roiphe- Anti-Feminist Post Feminist
Projansky argues that parts of feminism are embedded in post-feminist culture that redefines rape using a narrow scope. Rape narratives are dependent on the fact that feminism has been successful but women are still responsible for using laws to end sexual assault. Rape narratives suggest that there is no need for continued feminist activism.
To make this argument, Projansky emphasizes using the accumulation of a variety of texts to make her points.
Links Between Aspects of Post Feminism and Rape Narratives
o Definition of women as being sexually victimized
o “The Accused” – violence against women- pleasure in viewing rape scenes
o Double reading of rape representations (an assault on women, an expression of horror)
o Rape narratives seek to absorb and transform feminism
o Rape leading to a transformation – “Trial by Jury”- more feminist aspects are replaced by post feminist concern
o Response to particular kind of feminism – “Beauty and the Beast”
o Military Films- “Opposing Force”
o This feminism is not a straight forward emasculation
o “The Rape of Richard Beck”
o “Women of Brewster Place”
o “Regular guys” more likely to rape – representing a culture – frat jackets
o Shower scenes
o Private > Political Outrage
o Women are responsible for social change
o Men teaching women how to use the law
o Those who watch rape in film = the spectator?
o Texts undermine feminist potential by providing more comfortable positions for viewing rape
Discussion Questions:
In class, we talked a lot about how Bridget flipped stereotypes of women and how this impacted our viewing of the film. The majority of the class seemed to agree that if Bridget were a man the character would simply be a malicious jerk. As a man, Bridget would lose her cunning charm. However, I think it is important to also consider the role of Mike and how he flips the male stereotype. How would he be seen if he were a female character being tricked by a male Bridget? Mike’s character is constantly being tested and he often appears as being weak and insecure. He begs for Bridget’s real attention and fears she is using him for sex. In the end, he seems to be willing to do anything for his love for Bridget. Bridget seems to represent this unobtainable goal for Mike of breaking out of his small town. In this way, I would say that Mike explicitly demonstrates female stereotypes in a relationship. Women are constantly being criticized for being too clingy after sex and using men as a source of self identification. By having Mike, a male character, play this role John Dahl, the director, is able to flip stereotypes in a way that force the viewer to see how ridiculous they actually are.