Women In Media - Tumblr Posts
13 days to #TellTheWindAndFire
Theme - Rebellion
“Do the buried really think that they’re going to start a revolution in my name?”
Women hitting people in movies and books.
(This has been bouncing around in my head for a while but it's not like cohesive thoughts, so apologies)
There are the Molly Wesleys (Harry Potter), the Aunt Cass' (Big Hero 6, specifically after they get arrested), Katniss Everdeens (The Hunger Games, especially at the end of the first book), Emma from No Strings Attached, Grey's Anatomy (multiple different occurrences) and I know there are more but that's just off the top off my head.
There are these scenes where the woman gets so upset, usually because she's worried about someone, and hits the person. It never injures them, but she hits them and saying something like "how could you do this!! I was so worried about you!!" And it's played as just a sign of their concern and it's no big deal. But like ??
I haven't really come to a conclusion on where I stand on this, but it feels wrong. Like, it's not violence because they actually love the person??
Also please reblog because I have like 5 followers and I want more opinions 👍👍
Okay also, the woman never injures the other person, which implies women are weak and can't hurt someone whether or not they are trying, and it implies that it's okay to use violence so long as you're a woman and you care about them, which is kind of a mix of sexism and reverse sexism (by which I mean sexism against women vs sexism against men, but obviously everyone is harmed by any form of gender discrimination etc)
And the male version of these scenes is guys shaking the female (imo) because men can't hit women and be good guys, so media loopholes that by using shaking instead of hitting.
Oh and also Grey's anatomy. Multiple occurrences and people.
Women hitting people in movies and books.
(This has been bouncing around in my head for a while but it's not like cohesive thoughts, so apologies)
There are the Molly Wesleys (Harry Potter), the Aunt Cass' (Big Hero 6, specifically after they get arrested), Katniss Everdeens (The Hunger Games, especially at the end of the first book), and I know there are more but that's just off the top off my head.
There are these scenes where the woman gets so upset, usually because she's worried about someone, and hits the person. It never injures them, but she hits them and saying something like "how could you do this!! I was so worried about you!!" And it's played as just a sign of their concern and it's no big deal. But like ??
I haven't really come to a conclusion on where I stand on this, but it feels wrong. Like, it's not violence because they actually love the person??
Also please reblog because I have like 5 followers and I want more opinions 👍👍
It also plays off of the hysterical woman stereotype and it normalizes violence as a form of love
Women hitting people in movies and books.
(This has been bouncing around in my head for a while but it's not like cohesive thoughts, so apologies)
There are the Molly Wesleys (Harry Potter), the Aunt Cass' (Big Hero 6, specifically after they get arrested), Katniss Everdeens (The Hunger Games, especially at the end of the first book), and I know there are more but that's just off the top off my head.
There are these scenes where the woman gets so upset, usually because she's worried about someone, and hits the person. It never injures them, but she hits them and saying something like "how could you do this!! I was so worried about you!!" And it's played as just a sign of their concern and it's no big deal. But like ??
I haven't really come to a conclusion on where I stand on this, but it feels wrong. Like, it's not violence because they actually love the person??
Also please reblog because I have like 5 followers and I want more opinions 👍👍
Also Donna and Rachel in Suits. They're both supposed to be like Independent Strong Women but like ?? They slap male characters who are just, okay with it ?? But to mention s2e16 Rachel slapped Mike 2 times, goes for a third and he stops her, and they're both like yeah he's been lying for as long as you've known but like let's get back together
Women hitting people in movies and books.
(This has been bouncing around in my head for a while but it's not like cohesive thoughts, so apologies)
There are the Molly Wesleys (Harry Potter), the Aunt Cass' (Big Hero 6, specifically after they get arrested), Katniss Everdeens (The Hunger Games, especially at the end of the first book), and I know there are more but that's just off the top off my head.
There are these scenes where the woman gets so upset, usually because she's worried about someone, and hits the person. It never injures them, but she hits them and saying something like "how could you do this!! I was so worried about you!!" And it's played as just a sign of their concern and it's no big deal. But like ??
I haven't really come to a conclusion on where I stand on this, but it feels wrong. Like, it's not violence because they actually love the person??
Also please reblog because I have like 5 followers and I want more opinions 👍👍
Argh the hypocrisy, misogyny and wilful misunderstanding around women as fans is so infuriating!
Matt Rife wants to ‘assure’ people that he doesn’t ‘cater to women’ in his new comedy special. If so that is a fucking *stupid* decision.
Because if you’re an artist then a largely female fan base is a great marker for success.
Some of the most successful global artists right now? Taylor Swift. BTS (and K-pop to a greater extent). Harry Styles. Beyoncé.
The majority of their fanbase? Female.
IMPORTANT: I’m NOT saying men don’t love/support/consume these artists, or that they shouldn’t. Huge numbers of men love and support these artists, and they should continue to do so. I’m stating that the majority of these fanbases are made up of women.
And women show up for you as an artist, on every metric which currently tracks ‘success’. They stream your songs/interviews/skits; they buy your album/record/dvd; they fight over tickets and pay astronomical fees to see you live; they tune into your award shows/guest stars; they watch your movies/documentaries; they post about you and your activities; and they go to bat for you in arenas you aren’t even aware of.
The colleague at work who heard a BTS song on the radio? Oh yeah, it can be intimidating if you don’t know who they are, here let me help you understand more and show you their best attributes and why you might like to learn more.
The family member who doesn’t ‘get’ why this singer is all over their TV? No worries, let me explain their songs and why they resonate, how they connect with their fans and why they’re incredibly talented.
And when ‘real’ artists are brought up to compare them against, not only do they pick an artist who’s peak years were decades ago, they try to rewrite history.
‘Yeah they might be successful but they’re not the Beatles!’ Okay so you see the Beatles as legitimate, successful, global artists with talent. Shall we look at Beatle Mania? A huge part of their success was the women who supported them, who bought their records, showed up to their performances, who funded their financial success and drove their pop culture relevance.
‘Yes they’re a good singer but they’re not Elvis!’. Oh are you referring to ‘The Hips’ who’s gyrating style of dancing ‘drove women wild’? Who’s success in music meant he was *able* to make movies and tour the country. The women who consumed his music, came to his shows, followed his personal life in the news, who watched his movies - they’re the ones who financed his life. Guys wanted to be Elvis, to dress like him, because women loved him.
Why is having a majority female audience seen to delegitimise you as an artist? When they are the ones who got you to where you are now, why are they suddenly not good enough?
It’s not a fully fleshed out thought but I’ve grasped it now and so here’s what I’ve got dangling…
It’s so interesting to me that of the many issues and annoyances I have with Rory’s character her decisions around Yale are so tied to men.
Though the show we have a general sense that Rory (and by extension Loralai who raised her) have a distain or disappointment when women make choices due to men. Mainly when these choices are not mainly or solely things that a woman wants, and take another persons (usually a man’s) wants into account we see Rory scoff or roll her eyes or frown intensely and question it. When someone else makes a decision due to a man they want to like them or respect them, Rory seems to like and respect them less (at least in that moment).
But when a man, one who’s good opinion and respect SHE wants, says something hard and hurtful Rory abandons everything she (and by extension he mother) have worked for since she was a child. At the very least she gives up the main goal that’s dominated the last 3 years of her life. A man doesn’t think she’s good enough, so she gives up trying.
And though everyone tries to understand and support her, to change her mind and make her want to go back to Yale and to reignite her goals for her future, it is once again a man (who Rory wants to respect her and have a good opinion of her) who says a hard and hurtful thing which makes her go back to Yale.
And in the middle of all of that it’s another man (her grandfather) who has so much influence on her ‘choices’. Firstly in his support of her leaving, and in his 180 in the face of the reality of her life Rory’s grandfathers support plays a huge role in her confidence in her decisions and path.
I just find it fascinating that the writers chose to remove so much of Rory’s agency in these ‘choices’. They don’t write that Rory struggles at college, having reached the pinnacle she was working for and realising it isn’t as fulfilling as she had hoped; that she struggles (like she first did at Chiltern) now she is among other gifted people and she is once again less exceptional; that the courses she takes feel uninteresting and she languishes without drive or a purpose.
No they choose to write her story as a man says something mean and so she runs away.
And again, they don’t write her return to Yale as Rory being revitalised by her time away and once again motivated to aim higher; they don’t have her realise that she does thrive surrounded by other intellectuals and though it’s tough she CAN rise to the challenge like she did before; they don’t have her realise her dream career or degree is actually different than she thought so she goes back and changes major or her classes.
No once again, the writers have a man say something mean and so she runs away. Only this time she runs away back to where she was before.
So in the face of disappointment or dislike, at least from men she wants to like her, the only ‘choice’ Rory is allowed to make is to run.
Gosh I love emotionally dysregulated disaster women in media. Even if they're incredibly capable otherwise, I love it when they just Can't in the feelings department. Women who are disgruntled wet cats. Women who don't smile when they're supposed to. Women who break stuff when they're angry. Women who cannot ever talk about the thing that happened to them. Women who care deeply but don't know how to be nurturing. Women who are rough and sharp and always too loud or too quiet and don't know the right things to say. Women with ugly, ungraceful feelings that come out in ways they don't mean. Women who wipe blood from their mouths and say something rude and keep getting up.