I like Susan Douglas. I always enjoy her critiques even if I don’t quite agree. In “Sex ‘R’ Us” she examined the archetype of the “sexpert.” Cosmo epitomizes this girl. Though sexually liberated and knowledgeable, much of this knowledge is devoted to male pleasure. In some ways, I think this can be a positive encouragement to be self-less. The problem is that it is not balanced. As far as I could tell of her analysis of the male-geared equivalent Maxim, men are not so explicitly bombarded with information on how to please women. Furthermore, the more disturbing aspects of Cosmo come out in the articles that do not directly address sexual pleasures where women are encouraged to sacrifice their own concerns for silence and thus appear as the cool, laid-back girlfriend. This translates into women placing their male partner’s needs so far above their own that they ignore problems. I think this particularly is damaging to women and men. Communication is important. Even if the communication goes along the lines of, “I may just be being insecure here but it really bothers me when you do X.” Getting things out in the open can lead to a better understanding of each other and oneself.
Douglas then leads into “Why Black Sexual Politics?” by examining the Hip-Hop industry, particularly its representations of black women. Patricia Hill Collins raised some interesting issues I had never considered. For one, the idea that “Women of African descent have been associated with an animalistic, “whild” sexuality. As she mentions, this can be seen particularly clearly with some of Destiny’s Child’s images. When I look again and apply this new lens, it seems shockingly obvious.
Now these women are far from the time of residing in cages and truly being viewed as animals (thankfully). Therefore, why is their outfit/background choice an issue? White women could wear jungle skins without comment (except maybe by peta), so why when black women do it is attributed to racial stereotypes? I think this brings up the point that history does matter. The historical representations and connotations are important even when society has changed. For this reason, when Destiny’s Child presents itself as above, it dialogues with the historical context of black women’s sexuality and arguably furthers the stereotypes.
I like that April brought up the point that white women also wear animal print or animalistic clothing. Many white females that I know at Colgate own dresses or shoes with these designs, yet I have never thought to relate this to a stereotype of animalistic women. On the other hand, as Collins argues, when black women dress in an animalistic way it may be seen within a historical context. Therefore, she explains that it can work to reinforce a stereotypical view of black women. I find it most concerning that this image still seems to sell. Clearly, groups such as Destiny’s Child work to make money. Thus they dress in this manner because society responded in a favorable and profitable manner. This is an excellent example of how sex sells, even if it reproduces stereotypical or degrading images of women.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter six of Enlightened Sexism, titled “Sex ‘R’ Us,” Susan Douglas talks about the commodification of sex in the media. Specifically, she describes the sexpert persona, in which women achieve true power through sex and sexual display. Here, the common catch phrase “sex sells” comes to mind. In this selection, I found the oversexualization of children, particularly little pageant girls, disturbing. For instance, Douglas depicts six-year-old JonBenet Ramsey as, “…fully sexualized, her blond hair done up like one of Dolly Parton’s wigs, her face heavily and meticulously made up with bright red lipstick, her butt shaking back and forth in her satin pink cowgirl outfit”(Douglas, 159). Is this necessary? These children are being robbed of a childhood and forced to grow up too soon. As a child who was sheltered from these types of experiences, all I have to say is “thank you mom!”
ReplyDeleteToday, a lot of teens are under the misconception that everyone is having sex. With not enough sexual content censored, it is hard to think otherwise. Moreover, with the publication of magazines like Cosmo, shows like Sex and the City and music artists, particularly gangstresses, it is easy to see why young girls like Miley Cyrus have a hard time navigating between the lines of prudery and open displays of sexuality. This goes back to the notion of being “dammed if you do and dammed if you don’t.”
In the article, Why Black Sexual Politics?, the idea of black women being viewed as uncivilized is offsetting. This very notion of being “wild” helps generate racial differences. I found it interesting how the author doesn’t only focus on the sexuality of women, but he talks about the sexuality of men too. The author talks about how African women’s sexuality was in direct correlation to their physical beauty, while African men’s sexuality was perceived as dangerous.
Josephine Baker’s Banana Dance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmw5eGh888Y
Three quotes that I have found interesting:
“Efforts to reclaim words like ‘bitch’ have made virtually no dent in its ongoing pejorative use” (Douglas, 180).
“Whether depicted as ‘freaks’ of nature or as being the essence of nature itself, savage, untamed sexuality characterizes Western representations of women and men of African descent”(27).
“When it comes to ‘hot- blooded‘ Latinas, one might ask which part of their ‘blood’ carries the spice of sexual looseness?” - As a Latina, I’m asking myself “what?”
Main Post 2/22
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed both of these readings very much. The reason that I enjoyed the readings is because they began to tie everything together for me. During both, “Sex ‘R Us” and “Why Black Sexual Politics”, I could not help but continuously think of enlightened sexism. To me, Cosmo magazine is the epitome of enlightened sexism. While women express themselves sexually in television shows and movies, in those, they are simply playing a role. In Cosmo magazine, while women may have male editors and people helping them with ideas for their articles, they are basically given the freedom to write what they want. Some women write about being the best girlfriend they can be while others write about all of the sexual things that someone can do to please their man. While I agree with April that these are different approaches, I do believe that they both represent modern feminism. The variety in Cosmo represents the new generation of women and feminism. Some women find power in expressing themselves sexually and others find power in being the ultimate girlfriend or housewife. The point is, there is nothing wrong with either. Women should be able to be exactly who they want to be without anyone judging them and Cosmo represents a wide variety of these women.
The next chapter, “Why Black Sexual Politics”, also kept making me think of enlightened sexism. Why should enlightened sexism only apply to sex (other than the fact that there is sexism in the name)? Why shouldn’t black people (men or women) be able to express themselves in the media however they please. If black people allow the stereotypes that are associated with them to dictate what they wear, say, and do, they are essentially letting the stereotypes win. Up until now I have not been completely on board with enlightened sexism but it truly seems that it is the only way to gain complete equality. Unless barriers are tested and eventually broken, stereotypes cannot be shattered.
On a side note; a close friend of mine was telling me about a phone interview he had with a sports agency and the person who was interviewing my friend said that Candice Parker (a female basketball player) missed last season because she was pregnant. My friend said that his initial instinct was to break out in laughter. I asked him why this was. He responded with, “imagine if your favorite NBA basketball player had to miss a season because of a pregnancy”. I didn’t quite know what to think about the whole conversation and I think it could make for some very interesting discussion in class.