This quarter, thus far.

This quarter will be one of massive production and reading. My proposal is written, accepted and turned in and now the focus has turned to the work. I'm taking two classes to support my research, Feminist Theory and American Women from 1865-Today. Both are extremely engaging. I'll be posting writings and ideas I gather from both classes, as well as updating my blog with work in progress videos.

Exhibit one: The first topic we tackled in Feminist Theory was perhaps that most controversial. What does the word Feminist currently mean and what are it's social implications.

Here is what I wrote as a response to the readings.


The three readings all call into question this illusive and diverse word “feminism;” what it is, who participates within it, whose voices launch and clarify ideas, what the people look like, physically I mean and who it doesn’t look like, and last but never least, what the political agenda is. In essence, who are feminists and what are fighting for?

¬It seems like with every hot topic, we begin by grappling with the definition of the word, for shouldn’t this lead us to some sort of clarity on the direction and intention of the movement? But as the article “Lift and Separate” by Ariel Levy states, politics and feminism have somehow become distanced from each other, leaving a wicked shell that people shy away from. People say “we aren’t feminists” because the word seems, now more then ever, to attach itself to a look and an attitude rather then to politics and activism.

In the seventies, women were vocal. They were active. They rallied. They let their hair grow long on all areas of their body. They went “au natural.” In the eighties working outside the home out of desire instead of necessity became the badge of free women, right along with shoulder pads and by the nineties, women could “have it all” including a healthy sex life. Now, women are running for president; one claiming to be “traditional” and the other claiming a hard façade that would get the job done. Who was more of a feminist? Well, obviously that depends on your definition and your politics.

So has feminism become something like a religion? A doctrine that people are free to pick and choose from, simultaneously denounce and subscribe to? Something to dress up for? Something to talk about in hushed tones, not appropriate for formal dinners parties because no one believes the same thing anyway? Is feminism something that we all believe exists on some level but we aren’t so sure how we fit into it? Is it necessary to say it loud and proud if the zealots are out there doing all the shouting for us? How do we negotiate something that we don’t fully understand? And how do we participate in it while not believing everything the movement has to offer?