Eye of the Beholder

[qos]

I've been thinking a lot about my own reaction to the statue I posted about last night. The fact is, I have plenty of sexual images in my own collection -- including one small statue of a scantily dressed female pirate -- which many people would find as offensive (if not moreso) as the Mary Jane statue.

So what is is about *this* statue that bugs me? And what does the answer say about me? And why am I disgusted by bent-over MJ when I have far more explicit images that I enjoy?

I'm still working on good answers to these questions, but I intend to post about it when I do. There will be images involved, so it will be posted under my General Sexuality filter.

Just wanted everyone to know this topic is not yet closed for me.

Comments

[crownofviolets.livejournal.com]

I don't think it did. ;) I think you made some very good points. The Comics industry is fantasy.

I don't think it's a bad thing that it doesn't bother you. I mean, it sounds like you keep fantasy in its place. It's meant to entertain and make money. And really, there's nothing wrong with that in of itself.

Funny thing is, I saw this on a Feminist blog I read a lot. What I always kind of wonder though, is while I hands down agree there is a ton of media out there that's degrading to women - which I think their main point about the statue was (which is open to debate) - they focus on pointing out what's messed up, instead of using that energy to portray images and ideas of women that they see and like. I don't think they're going to accomplish what they want by pointing all that's wrong... I think it might be a better strategy to make what they feel is right.

[oakmouse]

What I always kind of wonder though, is while I hands down agree there is a ton of media out there that's degrading to women - which I think their main point about the statue was (which is open to debate) - they focus on pointing out what's messed up, instead of using that energy to portray images and ideas of women that they see and like. I don't think they're going to accomplish what they want by pointing all that's wrong... I think it might be a better strategy to make what they feel is right.

Ooooh... WAY good point. Although pointing out the crap has its virtues, if you don't balance it with some counter-examples of what works or is good, then you just look like you're whining. That accusation (whining) comes all too easily to the lips of the anti-feminist hate-speech types, but sometimes it's not entirely unearned.

Yeah. We need to come up with some good examples to counter the bad.

[crownofviolets.livejournal.com]

I had a really hard time identifying as a feminist, because a lot of what feminism seemed to be about was getting angry about things and pointing fingers. And there really are some things to be angry about. But you can't make people change their minds. If an artist, male or female, truly believes that this is all a woman is, it's up to men and women who believe differently to provide media, jobs, art, entertainment, whatever that says different. We live in a world of choice, and that means taking the good with what we feel is bad. We need options and choices, not more pointing fingers or condemning. And we need to be the ones to provide those options and choices. We can't rely on other people to do it for us. That for me has become what feminism is about. :)

[oakmouse]

You go!

I decided in the mid-80s to stop calling myself a feminist because it seemed to me that feminism had deteriorated from an attempt to right very real wrongs into a "can you top this" contest hellbent on identifying how many elements of special disadvantaged status someone within the feminist community could claim in an attempt to take on maximal status and credibility. ("I'm more disadvantaged than you are because I'm an ethnic minority feminist." "Well, I'm a lesbian feminist." "I top you both, I'm a disabled elderly impoverished feminist former housewife with no job skills who was ditched by my husband for a younger woman.") I also had real problems with the apparently universal blind rage toward all males which had taken over much feminist rhetoric. I decided back then that my credo would be that feminism is the radical notion that women are people, and added to it the equally radical notion that men are people too and that ALL PEOPLE deserve to be treated well regardless of age, sex, race, religion, etc etc etc. Because the only way to ensure that women are treated well is to treat everybody well, people. No point in dethroning one privileged class to set up another. And I felt that the best way to bring this about in reality is to try to live it myself. So that's how I try to be a feminist. *g*

[crownofviolets.livejournal.com]

That is awesome! :) I completely agree with you.

[professor-mom.livejournal.com]

I love this. Count me in. *nods*