Sidetracks - Episode VI
Aug. 25th, 2011 01:41 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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ladybusinessSidetracks is a collaborative project featuring various essays, videos, reviews, or other Internet content that has caught our attention that we want to share with each other. All past and current links for the Sidetracks project can be found in our Sidetracks tag.
➝ Winnie the Pooh: Slayer of Feminist Fantasies.
➝ Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are: A Call to Queer-Identified Book Bloggers
➝ DC Comics San Diego Comic Con Panels: Uncomfortable Questions About Female Creators/Characters
➝ More from Comic Con: Feminist Fatale on a panel titled Oh, You Sexy Geek!
➝ Anatomy of a genre: A deconstruction of the exoticisation behind a "typically Indian" book cover.
➝ I never said I didn't have a one track mind! The Problem With Having Only 1% Female Creators at DC Comics
While these individual efforts to better understand and represent the human condition are pretty essential both on a creative and socially responsible level, if you have a staff whose makeup is totally disproportionate to its characters, this kind of imbalance is going to have consequences, both in subtle terms of aesthetics and characterization, and more dramatic terms of straight up exploitation and stereotyping. It's worth saying again: Women are half of the world, and a significant percentage of the DC Comics character stable, and yet only 1% of their creators.
And the way that you treat and represent half of the people in your world -- and by extension, half of the people in the real world who might potentially buy your books -- should be more than a marginal concern.
➝ Last but not least, an interview with the person who started this conversation: the Batgirl from SDCC:
I’ve been called a ‘bully’ and ‘rude’ by people who weren’t even at SDCC. When I stepped up to the mic, the room was already prepared to shout me down. Didio was ready to deflect me any way he could, instead of attempting to answer my question. Why is there this active hostility toward questions about female creators, both from the audience and from Didio?
➝ BBC article on the subtle messages that put women off science.
➝ Author Zoë Mariott writes about how "how damaging and unfair the term Mary-Sue is when used indiscriminately and incorrectly to denigrate female characters".
➝ We're All Mad Here: Race, Gender, and Mental Illness in Pop Culture.
➝ Ana reviews 'The Myth of Mars and Venus' by Deborah Cameron. Her review sound like a feminist war cry to me and I kind of think we need it right now.
➝ I'm not really going to talk about The Guardian's coverage of 'Olympics 2012: One Year to Go', I just really want to talk about the gender balance what took place on that program and we'll lose any iPlayer coverage after a week, so a link to an article explaining what I'm talking about will have to do. So, there was a lot of good gender balance activity done by the BBC, as there should have been because the Olympics is for everyone and any non-sporting coverage should represent that. They had one male sports presenter and one female news presenter (not really sure why they didn't use a female sports presenter, but I don't know the machinations of BBC employment stuff, so let's assume they were all unavailable). A bunch of young British gymnasts were present and they'd brought an equal representation of boys and girls (look young male gymnasts, cool beans). Some well known athletes turned up to participate in a parade. Male and female ex-professional athletes entered a fun race to christen the new Olympic swimming pool. While there were only three female athletes present in the parade and roughly eight or nine male athletes, let me assume that scheduling clashes or something dictated who could attend and an equal number of women and men were invited, because I lack the knowledge to analyse otherwise.
But the international representatives who came to accept the official invitation to compete, the British Olympic representatives (including Seb Coe, the Mayor of London and our Prime Minister) and the president of the International Olympic Committee? All are male (and as far as I can see white), apart from Princess Anne. Positions of authority, complete with responsibility and rather decent salaries - not for girls. Those damn societal systems of power again.
➝ I found this article via Shakesville about why celebrities clothes always fit so well and I pretty much think every woman needs to read it, because it is at once a 'well duh' and an 'oh shit moment'
'I thought about all of that, and then I thought that in elementary school, there should be a class for girls where they sit you down and tell you this stuff before you waste years of your life feeling like someone put you together wrong.'
Can we have this now? Purleeease?
➝ And again from Shakesville (in love with) a quick note about telling people to smile. This happens to me all. the. time and it is wearying and if it happens in a bar can potentially throw my whole night out if I am feeling too tired to combat it. To see that one commentor had to stop going to bars because of this makes me sad, because no lady should have to stop going somewhere and bars are where people make your drinks for you. Making a mojito yourself is not the same.
➝ Related are some thoughts on not being harassed and how, in this messed up world that we live in that can make you feel bad too. Ari's post about 'Hey Shorty', being a teenager and harassment brought back a lot of 'not pretty enough to get honked at' memories for me and made me think again about the whole guilt cycle a simple thing like a van driver honking can bring on (am feminist, but feel validated, but hate that, BAD FEMINIST SMASH THINGS).
➝ Bookslut linked to a video essay by Masha Tupitsyn called 'Pretty in Pink' which discusses the fashion theory behind the costuming of several 80s teen movies, the author dressing like Philip Micheal Thomas in Miami Vice, the defining boundaries we may now be missing and the whole world as a commodity. It sounds kind of dense and maybe even dangerously nostalgic, but the author doesn't seem to be advocating a return to some glorious past of defined boundaries that keep something out. Instead (I think) they want dividers that will allow rebellion and innovation to take place. It seems to be a more sophisticated version of the idea that if there's nothing to rebel against and we feel for everyone, take parts of images from everything, even those who we wish to stand against how can we stand against anyone. If everything is for sale on a t-shirt, how do we establish authentic protest movements against the mainstream? And mixed in is the undercurrent idea that if everyone can be everything, how do cultural groups define themselves (idk I might be making a weak link there).
➝ Which leads nicely onto threadbared's post about punk pants and punk culture's tussles with authenticity and racism 'On Punk Pants: Duration, Devotion and Distinction' which I post without laying any claim to being punk myself (hahahaha, may you never find the teenage pictures internet).
➝ And also interesting from threadbared are two posts about preppiness and race. 'The Racial Construction of Preppiness' deconstructs the thinking behind a Guardian article about Mexican people wearing Ralph Lauren clothes. Minh-ha t pham looks at the way the article's author constructs American identity to draw incorrect, racist assumptions about a drug trafficker and then uses her incorrect assumptions to expand on a racist train of thought about Mexicans. Lots of interesting reminders about the origins of Ralph Lauren's brand in here. 'Part II' looks at another Guardian article about a gang called the Lo-Lifes and 'the ideological and aspirational convergences of the Lo-Lifes and Ralph Lauren (the man and the company).' .
➝ I'm not a comics girl, but I do like superhero films, cartoons and tv programs (oh Heroes, you went so wrong, why, why?). So damn right Superheroes are for girls, too. Now, can you convince me that I don't want to start collecting 'Smallville' series from the beginning?
➝ Continuing the trend of superhero links Martyn Pedler's 'Superman for Everyone' talks a little about what would happen if superheroes were put into the public domain:
'Think of all the Sherlock Holmes stories since Arthur Conan Doyle finished writing his adventures. He’s faced Lovecraftian gods and become a bare-knuckle boxer and teamed up with Batman. Has it made Holmes any less of a genius today? Any more forgettable? If Superman was in the public domain, you wouldn’t need to be the Mad Hatter or the Purple Man to make him do anything you’d like. Some actions would feel wrong; even if they did, it wouldn’t matter. Superman wouldn’t even notice. He’ll soon be the real Superman, again and always. Your stories couldn’t change that. Catwoman and Power Girl? They’re just fine, too.'
His arguments seem to have some parallels with defenses of fan-fiction, although I think he takes a more negative view of what could be created around the canon, before concluding that a lot of things would feel better in the end.
➝ Neesha Meminger talks about 'The Politics of Story'. She makes excellent points about how every story is making a political choice and addresses the writerly wish to be able to just focus on craft. She also re-frames the critical phrase 'it's a message book', showing the potential unconscious political bias behind its use. I think all of this essay is interesting, but the use of one quote particularly caught my eye:
'In an interview with Al-Jazeera English, Hammad stated, "I think it’s a political decision to leave politics out of your work."'
That's an interesting view (which Meminger expands on) when you consider that Jane Austen's work is sometimes criticised as apolitical doesn't mention the war ongoing in the background. Pshaw to her being an apolitical writer, because she writes so much about the personal politics of women's lives and as Meminger says later, but it is interesting to think about what other decisions she made about other areas of political writing.
➝ In related links Cora Buhlert mentions her response to hearing about WWII time travel narratives, including Connie Willis' 'Black Out':
'And I always think, "You know what would be really daring? To tell that same story, time travelers landing in WWII, trying to avoid the bombings and interacting with people who might or will die, and set it in Dresden or Hamburg rather than London. Or maybe in Stalingrad, for that matter? Or Rotterdam? Or Warsaw? Or Hiroshima?"'
Again, I think that link addresses interesting questions about dominant narratives and political decisions.
➝ There was recently an essay published at Tiger Beatdown titled What Do You Mean When You Say You Want 'Strong Female Characters'?. It caught my eye because I thought I knew what that phrase meant, but as I read through the post I realized what a loaded gun the words actually were. We discussed it a little back when Feminist Frequency critiqued the character of Mattie Ross in True Grit and I agreed and we had a small discussion about it, where masculine traits are assigned to female characters to make them "strong" but this takes the discussion in the opposite direction. The comparison was pretty startling because I had never thought of it in the framework of sexuality and race (boo on me). Fascinating and educational!
➝ Aja reviews Winter's Bone! I still, even now, have a huge crush on Winter's Bone and want everyone to see it. It's not just me and the Academy and Robert Ebert, see! It is such a well-done film and all the reasons Aja loves it are reasons I love it, too.
➝ I try not to aim my rocket launcher at anything these days as I am trying to be Kind on the Internet (Ana, see, you wear off on people in positive ways!), but I was really disappointed to see this post, Why I’m Not A Fan of FanFic, come across SF Signal. It's nothing new, honestly, seen one pro author assert they're better than fanfiction writers, you've seen them all, which is what these things always boil down to. Beyond the fact that comments are closed (which I find distasteful when it comes to the type of link roundup I perceive SF Signal to be) it's just really, really tired and old and adds zero substance to the debate and the best use for the entire thing is for a nice addition to Fanlore's page on the pro-author stance on fanwork. Dude's about two years late to this party and all the cake is eaten and the punch has gone all warm and a little slimy but hell, he's going to grab a cup, anyway, and give us his thoughts on yaoi. Pretty much every argument in the post has been thoroughly trounced and I actually had a moment of gut-clenching embarrassment when I read what basically amounted to "but I have friends that write fanfic!"
Really? Really? We're still at this point? Okay.
I had to go read I'm done explaining why fanfic is okay a few times, but I have pretty much added yet another author to my will-not-buy/will-not-read list. I don't like it when this happens even if it doesn't happen so often anymore. For big writers it means I will be outside the conversation when that book goes supernova. For smaller authors who mostly coast under the radar it makes it harder and harder to buy anthologies and magazines because I will be That Person who avoids the entire anthology/magazine to avoid the one or two authors who have taken time out of their day to tell me that my pastime (that they've never taken part in) and my community (which they're not a part of) and the thing that helped keep me connected to the world during my rough times a few years ago, is, you know, reprehensible. Also, I'm a terrible writer and me writing fanfic is basically pollution (GREAT ARGUMENT, BRO). I've gotten better at letting it slide, but it can really sock me when I am not prepared to read yet one more outline of how people like me are doing something harmful that doesn't enrich the world at all (which I know is wrong, but it still sucks to be told that). But I'm not a terrible writer or a thief; it's fair use, what I'm doing. I'm a writer, who writes something controversial (I guess, it doesn't seem very controversial to me considering how long it's been going on and the fact I did it before I even knew what it was). I deserve the same amount of respect as anyone else who writes, regardless of what they're writing, whether it be romance or military science fiction or fairytale retellings or theoretical physics textbooks. No one would dare write anything talking about how all [GENRE HERE] was just flat out awful and compare people writing there to pissing in a pool, but fanfiction still gets yanked through the muck. I'm a writer. Right now I write fanfiction, which is just as respectful as anything else. If I have to stand on the mountain of shattered hopes and dreams to scream and demand respect from people, if I have to add name after name after name to the list of authors I will not support, I guess I'll just keep doing it.
I make my life harder and get to read less things by authors I might like when these people do get published in anthologies and magazines. I'm okay with this. They may be silly principles, but they're mine! *clings* Okay, I'm sorry, I'll put the soapbox away, but first I will just leave this link to the Legal Advocacy section of the official blog of The Organization of Transformative Works. After all, time bends toward justice.
➝ To get rid of the gross taste in my mouth, though, this lovely post about fandom is really heart-warming. Old (2006!) but I have never seen it before. Never stop surprising me, fandom!
➝ A poem by Taylor Mali, done with interesting typography. (I like this poem. I am so guilty of all of these things.)
➝ (To Anyone Annoyed By A Woman: An Open Letter) is brilliant! I want to quote the whole thing.
➝ Subterranean Online did a special YA issue. I haven't read it yet, but it looks pretty awesome. Malinda Lo has a short story here, Jodie, I thought you might be interested in it. ♥
➝ KJ posted some interesting entries about the The NPR list of Top 100 SF/F Books in her entry The NPR List: Let's do the numbers. She breaks it down with math (MY NEMESIS) and some comparisons to other lists of the same type. That list also became a meme, which I find a bit problematic since none of the critical commentary seems to go with it, but oh well! The end result is: not so great for the ladies! If you're surprised, please take shots until you can no longer remove yourself from the floor. There's no drinking game, just a full on march toward inebriation and then unconsciousness so you don't really have to think about it anymore, and when you wake up you won't want to. Awesome Life Choice #962380
➝ Movies I want to see: Hysteria. I'll just leave this here. :D
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Date: 2011-08-25 12:44 pm (UTC)Also wow 'I'm Done Explaining Why Fan-Fic is Ok' contains a lot more examples than when I first read it!:D My favourite bit is the quote about how fan-fic means no one is forgetting about your characters.
I'm so annoyed that the other link pushed all those feelings on you. Good for you sticking to your principles, because obviously authors are not getting it.
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Date: 2011-08-25 07:21 pm (UTC)And yes! Aja updated the post itself awhile back. I love how it keeps growing and changing and we get more and more examples of how awesome and transformative what we're doing is.
FEELINGS, JODIE, I HAVE THEM. They may be flawed, I may be one no-name book fan in a sea of fans who don't care, but I don't have to spend my dollars on dead-end narratives, worlds that begin and end in the author's head, held hostage to their ~vision~. Get out of my imagination, authors! You wrote the story, you can have it back over my cold, dear brain.
Where's the fun in that? NOWHERE, THAT'S WHERE.
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Date: 2011-08-25 04:05 pm (UTC)Anyway I always wish we had more stories about the Asian Pacific part of the war and took more responsibility in said stories.
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Date: 2011-08-31 03:48 pm (UTC)Fanfic
Date: 2011-08-25 05:56 pm (UTC)Bryan Thomas Schmidt
Re: Fanfic
Date: 2011-08-25 07:14 pm (UTC)Fanfic is not illegal. There has never been a case that says it is and until there is that means you're propagating a falsehood, which, wow, congratulations on that, I hope that technique works out for you in the future.
Generally if an author doesn't allow fanfic, I'm not going to read/watch their work, anyway. If I've read/watched it in the past, there's a 95% chance I'll stop doing so when I discover they've were/became anti-fan-interpretation, and also I will stop recommending those authors. I don't have to worry about not respecting what I see as a very flawed idea of textual interaction, the desire to completely control the narrative surrounding a work after that work has been released. If those people aren't going to respect my art — which it is, you know, one of those pesky opinions — where do they get off demanding, well...anything, from me?
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Date: 2011-08-27 05:52 am (UTC)I found this article via Shakesville about why celebrities clothes always fit so well and I pretty much think every woman needs to read it,
I want to read it! Link, however, goes to a Tumblr's whole first page, and I can find no article at all there, much less one about clothing. Messed up link, or my chronic failure to grasp new forms of social media? Help? *bewildered*
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Date: 2011-08-28 07:00 am (UTC)That article on Shakesville would be here (in case you like reading comments) and the quote comes from here which is what I thought was in the post, but for some reason it was all "blargh!!!". Anyway, it's a great post and a nice reminder for us random folks that we're not broken, the system is broken. :)
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Date: 2011-08-29 04:49 pm (UTC)And I agree SO HARD with the idea of that elementary class... :P
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Date: 2011-10-11 10:38 am (UTC)