good reads. shared.
“Having it all” recasts a righteous struggle for greater political, economic, social, sexual and political parity as a piggy and acquisitive project.
It is a trap, a setup for inevitable feminist short-fall. Irresponsibly conflating liberation with satisfaction, the “have it all” formulation sets an impossible bar for female success and then ensures that when women fail to clear it, it’s feminism – as opposed to persistent gender inequity – that’s to blame.
Neda Ulaby, NPR: Branding 'Brave': The Cultural Capital of Princesses
Sarafian says Pixar actually experimented with making Brave's main character, Merida, not a princess at all.
"We tried making her the blacksmith's daughter and the milkmaid in various things," she says. "There [are] no stakes in the story for us that way. We wanted to show real stakes in the story where, you know, the peace of the kingdom and the traditions are all at stake."
Now, you'd think someone could find stakes in the story of a blacksmith's daughter or milkmaid, but apparently not Pixar (which is owned, of course, by Disney). Still, Pixar didn't seem to have the same problem with ordinary civilian boy heroes in movies such as Up.
Although I don't necessarily consider myself an attachment parent, our values mirror most of its principles, and as a feminist, I've shaken fists more than once at the way the media likes to pit one against the other. In light of a new study turning the popular narrative on its heels, Annie at PhD in Parenting responds artfully to critics with Why Humanism, Feminism & Attachment Parenting Are Compatible.
Did you know that servicewomen are not permitted to breastfeed in uniform? (Salty language in that one, so you know.)
I'd be remiss not to mention the female Michigan lawmakers barred from House debate--and the ensuing performance of The Vagina Monologues on capitol steps in protest.
Lastly, something from Sarah Bessey, that beautiful and unrivaled wordsmith. I don't even want to give any of it away, but fair warning: you may succumb to the ugly cry. Lesser folks have failed. In which my daughter wants to lose weight.
Tell us, what are you reading...or writing? Happy Friday, friends.
{image: MorBCN}
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