Category Week 4

Semiotics of the Kitchen

Martha Rosler demonstrates the function of multiple kitchen implements (sometimes in rather violent ways) like an anti-Julia Child in her darkly humorous 1975 video, Semiotics of the Kitchen.

” … First of all, it took on television … and that’s why it’s preferentially shown in a monitor, a little box. And it is about a kind of framing of women as the creature in the kitchen. And so the box serves that function of the frame, or the cage, again. And it is … I purposely went for only hand tools, because I wanted it very much to be the idea of the tool as the extension of the person. So it was the woman’s hand, and then it becomes the woman’s body in a number of gestures.”

Laverne Cox on Totally Biased

So I’m not sure if anyone else has watched the new netflix show Orange is the New Black, but it’s a great show that is based on Piper Kerman’s memoirs from her time in a women’s prison. The show also stars Laverne Cox and she is the first African American transgender woman to star in a TV series. This is a really interesting interview that she did on Totally Biased where she talks about her role models and her life experiences as she went through the transition to becoming biologically female. I thought it fit is really well with our readings for this week on the social constructions of gender and is definitely worth watching.

Switched Roles

Switched Roles

I was scrolling through Tumblr and came across these images that are what I’m assuming to be advertising clothing.. I found it interesting that instead of having half naked women drawing attention to the advertisement, it was switched to the men. If these types of photos were found in magazines all of the time, not necessarily fully naked as these men were but close to it, I’m sure there would cause a huge uproar. We don’t bat an eye when we have half naked women in advertisements, well not all of us do, because we’re so accustomed to it but if it were the other way around it would probably be a huge problem. There are a few more photos but I don’t know how to attach them all.. so the link is http://chloesky.tumblr.com/post/62065178646/fuckyeahsexpositivity-yellow-dress if you’re interested.

Iron Jawed Angels Trailer

This is the video I plan on doing for show and tell this week. I watched this movie in my Women’s Studies class my junior year of high school. It’s a movie I think every woman should see; therefore, I figured seeing the trailer might motivate some of my classmates to see the movie. It’s based in the 1910s during the Women’s Suffrage Movement. Hilary Swanks plays a political activist, Alice Paul, as she works to grant women the right to vote. It’s an outstanding film that sends a great message. I was left feeling inspired to fight for what’s right and thankful for the women in my past who worked so hard for the rights I have now.

Women in the military.

Women in the military.

If any of you get the chance, this is an article containing pros/cons about the growing role of women in the military. This is one very touchy subject we haven’t talked about yet that I’ve been itching to bring up in class! It’s a very controversial issue that even includes some of the biological issues we’ve touched on more recently. It’s also very interesting to hear about from a guy’s perspective (I may or may not have interrogated my boyfriend about his thoughts)! So excited to bring this up for discussion!

Dressing Up

Now I’m not one for dressing up usually, as I can be very lazy when it comes to my appearance, but after being in college, I’m starting to think I should take my appearance more seriously. Not to attract the opposite sex, but to fit in to the social norms; the social norms that girls have a bunch of clothes and shoes, are supposed to be very fashionable, are practically professionals at doing their makeup. None of the above apply to me, and every moment that I’m around all these other girls, I start to not like what I have more and more. As a girl with only jeans, shorts, and one dress but no shoes to wear with it, I feel inadequate. I want to “change my ways.” But I don’t know how, and I’m too scared of being rejected to ask for help. (Also, I don’t want to waste all my money on clothes when I could and should be spending it on food, dorm & hygiene necessities, etc.)

Distorted Self Perception

Distorted Self Perception

So this weekend was my little sister’s homecoming dance. I went home to be there with her, help her primp, offer advice, and take the customary homecoming photos with her. However once she saw pictures of herself, all she could say was; “I look hideous! I look so fat and ugly!” So I decided to post this photo of us together in the hopes of getting more unbiased feedback. Because when I look at this picture I see myself, with a beautiful young woman (and I don’t know if I’m biased as her sister?) But I do know for a fact that she is NOT fat nor hideous. I guess what I’m trying to say is how sad it makes me when girls compare themselves to each other, or worse to celebrities, or when all they see when they look at themselves are their percieved flaws. I know I’m guilty of all those things. I just wish that the pressures and influences of society were less appearance based. I wish the media would use their influence to inspire people to be hard workers, good people, and to spread positivity instead of convincing us that there is always something wrong with us, and we should strive to fit an impossible standard of perfect physical womanhood.