Moving Forward

As we move forward in feminist studies I think it is important to recognize the multitude of changes in girls and women that will take place at the collective level. While each of us has an individual experience, collectivity is a vital element of developing identity in a shifting society. With increasing feminist awareness and freedoms for women, there is also more responsibility for those of us invested in the progressive movement to commit to making sure we do not regress into comfortable practices from the past. Progress can be scary and if we are not careful we can lose the great gains we have made. One of the ways I see this manifesting itself was in today’s reading that “emergent codes of sexual freedom and hedonism associated with new femininities should be understood as new technologies of the self rather than celebratory expressions of changing female subjectivity” (60). While I don’t necessarily disagree with the statement, I see this as a way in which collective ideas can be construed in a way that constructs sexuality and femininity and feminism out of the control of girls and women and puts it in the hands of others outside of the experience. If we are able to reject societal and collective representations, we can embrace and control the “greater degree of fluidity about what femininity means and how exactly it is anchored in social reality” (55) ourselves and on our own terms. Thus creating a collective reality of our making, one that is truly representative of our reality.

Thoughts on Girlhood Studies

Some thoughts …

I wonder how long the Pink Think mentality will persist in our culture.  Despite women’s advancements since the 1960, Pink Think is still going strong – just flip through the pages of a girls’ magazine or stroll down the girl aisle at your local Toys R Us, and you will be inundated with pink and with toys focusing on girls’ appearance or their role at nurturer.  I don’t necessarily think this is pernicious, but I believe it does set them up to be more passive as adults.  But what will it take to change -- anmd will it *ever* change?  I am reminded of some Laurie Anderson lyrics (from the 80s, so the figures have changed I am sure): “For every dollar a man makes, a woman makes 63 cents.  Now, fifty years ago it was 62 cents.  So, with that kind of luck, it will be the year 3,888 before we make a buck.”  Pink Think maintains the status quo.  I wonder, in my lifetime, how Pink Think will evolve and where it will lead.

I am also interested in the psychology of Pink Think, and the psychology of Western girlhood in general.  Girls are taught to be passive, but at the same time extroversion is preferred in our culture over introversion (interestingly, in the East, the opposite tends to be true.  As you can tell, I am pretty fascinated by the introversion-extraversion spectrum).  So, girls have to walk a fine line – they have to be extroverted, but not *too* extroverted or they might be perceived as aggressive / abrasive.  Interestingly, when I look back on my grade school and high school experience, I think the girls who were bullied / ostracized tended to be introverts.  I guess this speaks to a larger phenomenon: it seems the further a girl falls from the traditional, “girly girl” definition of girlhood, the more likely she is to be ostracized by her peers.  I guess this is true of boys, too – children have an acute sense of normalcy and tend to punish any form of eccentricity.  Not that Pink Think is responsible for every ill that girls experience – I mean, some girls will *always* be ostracized, it’s just an inescapable social dynamic – but … Pink Think is not entirely innocuous, either.

Also, I would like to do more research on the experience of minority girls, particularly, African American girls.  Generally speaking, they are not taught passivity to the same degree as Caucasian girls.  (I remember reading somewhere that black women experience abuse at the hands of their mates at the same rates as white women, however, black women are twice as likely to fight back.)  How does Pink Think affect these girls? They are given conflicting messages from their culture and from society at large.  Also, I would like to look at body image issues among African American girls, and how they resist (or not) the stereotypical white ideal of beauty.

So I guess I am most concerned in how Pink Think affects girls as they mature into adults, and I would be interested in studying this in greater depth, especially from a psychological angle.

Thoughts on “Taking Center Stage"

In her essay, “Taking Center Stage?: Girlhood and the contradictions of femininity across three generations.” Mary Jane Kehily summarizes the different ways of feminism well. She writes this important sentence “Women appear to take center stage in the reconfiguration of labor patterns, consumption practices and gender roles.” This rang true with me. Within my generation I see girls who are keenly aware of their portrayal to those around them. But they also have a strong sense of self portrayal and many have a confidence and a strong sense of identity. Not only that, I think several feel they have an obligation to share their “reconfigured”selves and philosophies within their own communities so as to educate those around them about what girlhood means to them. Some of these things may be; acknowledging self-acceptance; accepting one's sexuality without worrying about the repercussions of the male gaze; exercising the right to enjoy yourself socially even if this means being a “laddette” and drinking too much; setting high goals for yourself in the workplace (perhaps there is a girl out there who would like to be the head of Apple one day, for example). In this way they become active producers of their own culture. In the future I see this type of active production only increasing. I think for sure an e-zine could be launched online for example. In any case the Internet will be the key to this wave of positive mass production in the name of girlhood. Without a doubt, technology will be the key to spreading new notions of girlhood. This is one reason the girlhood remixed camp was such a breath of fresh air; these young women present at camp are starting to think in this type of empowering way now.

"The Best of Times"

I always revert back to Charles Dickens and “A Tale of Two Cities.” His quote, “it was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” reverberates in the many conversations that were opened in this discussion board. It also reverberates in the many research studies that I have plowed through for my final proposal. The consistent theme of binary, dichotomy, either/or thinking always shows through. This comes through once again in the stories of three generations of women. What was interesting was the fact that Nancy lived a life of privilege until she married. The story does not tell us much about Nancy’s personality but it does tell us that she married a man strong and controlling. Why did Nancy let this man take her children?

Gillian is brought up during 2^nd wave feminism but it seems that both gender and social class interfere with what is defined as having agency. Where did this agency come from? Was it self- defined? I did not see any kind of subjectivity except her eating disorder (an attempt to have some control over her life in some small sense?).

Kim’s “taken for granted notion” of feminism also suggests that she too has agency. What is missing from these stories are the essence of subjectivity and agency.  These girls grew up with the skeletal idea of feminism and tagged onto the “ideal” of what feminism might mean. However, unless this notion of “being all that one can be” is actually taught and girls are socialized into a culture of equality, subjectivity and agency will always be illusive. Possibly that is the consequence of social movements, the skeletal framework is put into place but it isn’t enacted upon until there is more meaning, understanding, and dialogue to build upon the framework. What is missing perhaps is the “resistance” that was mentioned in yesterday’s blog. These women resisted in a sense some of what was told to them but in a sad defense, they acted as culture dictated to them. Definitely, the consequences of difference also comes into play. Social class affects gender. Gender affects social class. It is intersectional and important not to dichotomize the two.  “According to what Walkerdine et al. suggest, working-class and middle-class girls become ‘each other’s Other’ (2001) existing as cautionary examples of what you could become by transgressing the regulatory framework” (55).

Therefore what I read from this is that there continues to be that sinister regulatory mechanism regardless of time.  For instance McRobbie mentions “that there is a “new sexual contract” taking shape in which women conform to the regulatory powers of the fashion and beauty industry while simultaneously renouncing any critique of patriarchy. Has the experience of being a girl seemingly changed while the regulation of femininity takes on newly pernicious guises or has feminist scholarship come full circle” (61)? This is a strong statement and I can’t agree with it more. Are we in “the best of times?” Yet once again there is the stranglehold that overcomes or subdues even the strongest of personas. I firmly believe that girlhood is on a positive path, but it needs to defy or resist objectification by consumerism and introduce agency in the form of understanding economic power and be willing to accept the responsibility of that power. Unfortunately, I have to end with this question. Can we teach our girls that responsibility? "The best of times" are still to come, I think.

The Future of Girlhood Studies

Girlhood studies and identities will be more focused on education and technology.  Educational researchers who subscribe to postmodern feminist theories stress that the female’s position, in reference to culture and class identities, is not homogeneous.  Feminist educational theorists believe that education’s role is to provide an individual with the skills and habits necessary for participating within patriarchal society.  Socialization through education is the way social and cultural identity is attained.  Accordingly, the concept of cultural transmission (how culture communicates values) shows how culture, and in particular expectations of the genders, can be transmitted from one generation to the next.  Student cultures act as they have been taught.  Schools are instrumental in solidifying this identity formation, and resistance to school is a resistance to oppression and restricted life opportunities.  For the some girls, education is seen as a means to save them from the lower class lifestyles.   

The ideology that identity is formed within schools is the culmination of what is happening to adolescents who find themselves racially and ethnically marginalized.  It is very possible that in the future, girl studies’ will investigate adolescents and how they assert their voices in resistance to cultural and ethnic social categories. 

Adolescence and Girls Resilience

To understand “the dangers of adolescence,” as Kristen Schilt calls them, is imperative to be aware of what puberty in essence represents: a change. It is the transformation from childhood to adulthood through physical and mental modifications. The changes are so radical that teens –and the adults around them— don’t know if they are still kids or have finally become adults. In addition to the physical and mental changes, adolescents have to face peer pressure, sexual harassment –or something worse—, racial stereotypes, and gender expectations. In other words, they are forced to face adulthood reality through the eyes of a child. A dangerous place? Absolutely. 

In spite of the circumstances, It is here where adult attributes are allegedly defined, hence the importance of girls resilience through creation. Creating to survive has become a powerful method of resistance among teenage girls. “I start to feel free telling more and more people,” is what one zine maker has to say about writing. Zine editors have found a way to cope with the dangers of the teenage years; they have found a support system that provides them with “emotional validation.” The video “A Girl Like Me” is also an admirable example of girls trying to understand the racial stereotypes that they are subjected to. The video questions the labels society has given to black girls based on their skin color and, interestingly, their hair. It is evident that instead of supporting, society confuses them. Like Schilt’s zines, the video puts aside the perceptions of scientists –most likely white male scientists— about clinical studies done primarily through observations, allowing us to see the world of African-American girls through their own eyes. Girls’ resistance by means of creation inspires young ladies not only to express their ideas, but –first and foremost— to hold on to their own voice.

Nora

Just the Beginning

In the future, I see the dichotomy between self-expression and commodification in girlhood increasing.  Technology will play a role on both sides of the continuum. With premeditated acts of marketing as evidenced by AM&M, the materialism and identity by consumption will increase further commodifying girlhood. I can foresee personalized targeted advertisements being sent to one's smart phone. Women as a market force will also increase.  The increase in households headed by a woman and more women enrolled in college than men giving them increased incomes in the future are some of the factors that make women a lucrative market. Sites like she-conomy have done their research and corporations will target women's interpretation of femininity in order to sell their products. The perception of need to create identity will continue to be generated by corporations.

Opportunities for self-expression and production will also increase. SNS, blogs, and other formats we haven't imagined yet will give girls opportunities to broadcast their unique brand of femininity.  More counter-culture groups will spring up adding diverse voices to participate in defining girlhood.  Beauty, while still being a focus of identity, will allow for more more variances encompassing individual and ethnic differences. Furthermore, globalism, migration, and multiculturalism will enhance diversity. After watching the Olympics and seeing diverse beauty as well as diverse cultural traits, for example, the diva-hood of the Russians, the stoicism of the Chinese, society will  accept more interpretations of normal female expression making it less west-centric. Additionally, appearance as being a conscious choice instead of mainstream consumerism will flourish with counter-culture groups. A downside to the individualism and counter-culture groups is that they may further increase the  exclusionary behavior of girls towards one another, de facto creating a greater variety of cliques instead of bringing women and girls together as a community.

As in the case of Nancy, Gillian, and Kim, the choice of sexual partners will continue to shape identity reflecting family dynamics and socio-cultural positioning.  Early or unplanned pregnancy curtails educational and employment opportunities. Also divorce, often shrinks the resources available to a woman. These situations have a psychological as well as an economic cost. I believe the ratio of at-risk girls will increase. As more women come out as lesbians, diverse sexual identities will also become more commonplace and continue to play a role in girlhood.

While political feminism is cited as not a priority, hopefully a woman president is a reality. A woman who is able to employ new medias may be able to unify diverse groups. Girlhood studies will have a fertile future as girlhood is exhibited through both self-expression and commodification.