Two Gender Yargs

[mrissa]

So here I am looking through children's market listings, making notes, and I came upon this statement, quoted verbatim from the publisher in question: "We want nonfiction specfiically targeted to girls. If the approach would appeal to boys as well as girls, it is not right for American Girl Library."

This reflects a view of both boys and girls that is so alien to me that I can hardly even count how many fundamentla disagreements I have with this mindset. It's a very good thing I have no intention of writing for American Girl Library nor ever have, or my dream would be hereby crushed.

And then, the Victoria's Secret holiday catalog arrived. They always send this ridiculous thing, where you can order two sweaters, five pairs of panties, and a safari, or something stupid like that. This time, on page four, it reads, "No matter what role you play, underneath it all, every woman is an angel."

What freakin' year is this? 1886? Honestly!!! Every woman is an angel my lily-white angelic ASS!

Comments

Re: Bras, Angels and Prostitutes

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Halloween is a "safe" holiday for a lot of things. You don't have to be particularly attached to a specific fantasy to give it a go once on Halloween. It's -- well, look, have you ever run into someone who was acting much drunker than he/she was? It's because alcohol can be an excuse to discard inhibitions. So can holidays like Halloween and Mardi Gras. Also, I think wearing a slinky Elvira-esque dress on Halloween is much less of a coded signal than it would be on some other day. And other signals have shifted even within my memory; certainly over the last hundred years.

I was concerned about the 13-year-old who came to my door in a Playboy bunny costume. I really think that that many inhibitions, at least, could have been maintained. If nothing else, she was freezing her fluffy little tail off. I was not convinced that she could have handled any male attention that came her way.

This slut/nice girl dichotomy is coming awfully close to the angel/whore thing for my comfort, I have to say. It seems awfully one dimensional as a way to judge whether a woman is "nice." But in any case, I wouldn't worry about being attracted to a "nice" girl; as an old married person, I can tell you that scruffy horrible clothes can start to look awfully cuddly on the right person.

Re: Bras, Angels and Prostitutes

[markgritter.livejournal.com]

Does this mean there is an end in sight to your campaign against my horrible yellow T-shirts?

Re: Bras, Angels and Prostitutes

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

Those shirts were horrible before they were scruffy. Becoming scruffy does not make them look cuddly.

Kind of like the dress-shopping mantra, really: you look fine. The shirts look wretched, but you look fine.

Re: Bras, Angels and Prostitutes

[mackatlaw.livejournal.com]

I don't think I've ever seen Halloween as a safe holiday. (But then, I have other issues about it which are not relevant.) I do understand what you're saying, though I don't think I've ever seen quite as many discardedinhibitions in one place as around campus the previous night. Perhaps it's just that my inhibitions are in place for a reason, and so I'm no longer comfortable being around people who are uninhibited.

Playboy bunny costumes at thirteen seem awfully close to the "bought into the dominant paradigm" problem, and I agree that it's not an appropriate costume for that age.

The dichotomy comes too close to my own comfort levels, for that matter. I agree with you intellectually about it being one-dimensional and simplistic thinking; I'm just not sure my emotional age has matured to that level. Appearances tend to be confusing. All in all, I probably worry about this far too much. Apologies.

Mack

Re: Bras, Angels and Prostitutes

[mrissa.livejournal.com]

I feel about the same way about inhibitions: those I have are there for a reason, and if I discard them in a specific situation, it will be deliberately and consciously, not with some trumped-up excuse.

No need to apologize. Thinking at it all from different angles is allowed.