Feminism: chat
Heroines
shakeitoffshakeacocktail · 17/12/2021 21:57
Re watched one of my favourite films of one of my favourite books Little women. Also I have read and watched gone with the wind.
It's interesting to me how they are set in the same era of American civil war. And are similar ages and class. Scarlett overcomes many more struggles and survives in one of the only ways women could by using her marriages and husbands wealth to her advantage and her wits and whiles to achieve that. She does this at her sisters expense and without love.
Little women much more sentimental and marry for love in literary 'compliance' whilst supporting their sisters.
So few options for women at this time but both have majorly influenced my life
Try to be 'good' like Beth
Be true to oneself like Jo
Practical and reasoned like Amy
Love family and spouse like Meg
And
Inner strength like Scarlett
One of my many mantras is
I'll think of that tomorrow, tomorrow is another day.
Denial yes, but when overwhelmed survival is key!
Long post but other than Reddit (that I'm new on) couldn't think where to post
If anyone else has any literary or real heroines or a love of little women and gone with the wind
There are better feminist role models but these ones affected me at a young teen age and have stayed with me
shakeitoffshakeacocktail · 17/12/2021 22:06
Also found it interesting how in the recent film of little women the editor was encouraging women within a novel marry/ repent or die at the end and how many novels may have been affected by this in that era for morality. Which Scarlett does not ✊
mdh2020 · 02/01/2022 14:10
As a young girl I very much identified with Jo in Little Women and with Cassandra in I Capture the Castle. I’m afraid I can’t see Scarlett O’Hara as a heroine. She ran a slave plantation and supported the Confederate side in the Civil War. She didn’t treat any one well, especially not the Black house servants. Having watched 12 Years a Slave I vowed never to re-watch Gone with the Wind and to not show it to my GC.
I admire Ruth Bader Ginsberg who overcame sexism and racism in her own life and virtually established the issue of equal opportunities as a legal concept on her own. She was only the second woman to be appointed to the Supreme Court and always expressed her own opinion.
I’ve just read Light of Days about the young Jewish women who travelled around Poland in disguise, smuggling papers, arms and children , always in danger of capture, torture and death. Would any of us have such courage today?
CheeseMmmm · 04/01/2022 00:59
I have to admit I've not read little women, or seen gone with the wind apart from clips!
Also not good on USA history at all tbh!
Just thinking though, when it comes to older Hollywood films, golden age etc. I've recently developed a real looking for them and when on telly watching with kids (who enjoy them which I didn't expect) and so naturally they get my feminist type comments!).....
I've really noticed how different the female leads are to the popular output for last what 30+ years.
The women are proper actual people. Backstories, actual personalities, range of emotions, talents, flaws etc.
Not 2D stereotypes there to simply go through one of a handful of set piece lead ups to getting off with male lead.
It's really striking but I suspect goes unnoticed a lot due to yes generally films about meeting complications love end. And of course the immense glamour. And preconceptions about years gone by (which always assume stuff like that sexist and much better now..).
CheeseMmmm · 04/01/2022 01:06
If you watch with feminist hat on-
The glamour is everyone, men v glamorous as well. Not just women.
All around boy meets girl. But not lead man whose often a bastard/ meant to be very unattractive for some reason etc. But both their own people iyswim.
They are often involved in some kind of situation they need to sort out together.
They work together both important. They are essentially equal partners in doing the thing.
The women just realised are often more independent than the men.
CheeseMmmm · 04/01/2022 01:24
Women I thought were great growing up-
Ripley
Leia in fiesty mode eg rubbish tank thing, looking back Leia Han so awful
Servalan in Blake's 7
Cagney and Lacey
...
Hard to remember.
Music easier-
Siouxie Sioux
Toyah
Kate bush
Cindy lauper before she got toned down for drove all night
Annie Lennox
MarieIVanArkleStinks · 05/01/2022 23:35
Cassandra Mortmain and Sarah Connor rock. Great choices above!
I always had a liking for Rose Red from the Katy books, even though she wasn't very credible. From the Brontes I prefer Lucy Snowe, and Helen Graham is pretty stoic as well.
The undersung Jean Paget from A Town Like Alice is a wonderful character. She's an ordinary, unremarkable woman doing some boring secretarial job, but over the course of her life makes two extraordinary journeys that save lives. That's aside from her founding a new town in the outback just from building a well. Pretty cool.
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