Faux feminism (a.k.a tinhat behavior)

Having commenced my Sunday morning with a healthy doze of cartoons (on Nickelodeon; yes, I see the absurdity in the picture. I'm beyond my teenage years and my knowledge of contemporary Disney, Nickelodeon and to some extent Cartoon Network is probably more diverse, more reliable than yours), I went on to catch up with the happenings around the internet.

Then, I came across Neil Gaiman's (whom I religiously follow on Twitter) new journal post which led to the preceding post where he talks about his unwell cat as well as some minute kerfuffle from the feminists of the internets. (a.k.a self appointed internet police propagating gender equality [read: female superiority] since the beginning of time)

It sparked off with this post where he explains to a fan about the rules of entitlement regarding George R.R. Martin. Basically the crux of his lengthy explanation is that George R.R. Martin is not your bitch.

Of course you can imagine this being the internet, it sent more than a few knickers into a nasty twist.

But let us be honest: The use of "bitch" here is not merely a misogynist slur. To be someone's "bitch" is to be sexually subservient to hir, and the phrase is typically associated with nonconsensual sexual subservience, i.e. rape. (Specifically, it originates with prison rape.)

Source of LAWL

I'm not suggesting that rape isn't wrong - it is. And those who've suffered it, or who have suffered any form of physical abuse, misogynistic or otherwise, have my deepest sympathy. I will never defend rape. Or degrading a woman's dignity - physically or otherwise. So let me just set it straight, in bold fonts, before anyone else gets their panties in a twist. To me, rape is wrong. Degrading a woman's dignity is wrong. Holding chauvanistic and misogynist ideals in this modern era is a sign of sheer uncalculated stupidity.

BUT.

I fail to see what is so misogynistic or degrading about the phrase I am not your bitch. Yes, I agree, that a small portion of the reference can lead to the association with non-con sexual subservience and rape, but then we must ban the use of the word bitch entirely.

I find it to be gross double standards that when a woman says she isn't someone's bitch everyone applauds her liberalism; for standing up for herself. We view it as iconic, a testament to the progress of the modern woman in this generation. However, the second a man is found to have used the same phrase (albeit a POV switch), in a purely non-sexual context, he becomes a misogynist? That it insinuates making a travesty out of the seriousness of rape? DUDE SERIOUSLY?

The way our language has evolved today you can hear most English speaking twelve year olds with the word bitch and sometimes more insulting phrases readily available at the tip of their tongue. So are we to say they are potential misogynists we must take steps to rectify and set straight? That they are making a mockery out of the rape culture?

I use the word bitch very liberally; as does everyone else I know. After a bad day at school, I might come to complain that my teacher, who did nothing short of grinding my nose to the grindstone, is a bitch. Am I implying that she is sexually subservient to me? (The image is frightfully disturbing) Or does that make me a misogynist (though it might be physically impossible to reduce me to a careless, condescending misogynist - I'd require boobjobs. Not the kind you see most women getting for themselves.) My best friend and I freely address each other as bitches. I can tell her at a restaurant in the middle of our meal that, "Dude you are such a bitch!!!" or I can start a Skype conversation with "Hey bitch! What's going on?" I've made very casual posts on forums and journals where I've called so and so (most famous people) a bitch for doing something that wasn't to my liking. I know I'm not entitled to how they carry themselves in public, but if I disagree with something they've done, I'll tell how I see it. No one, not even on the internet has accused me of being insensitive to women with my remarks - because I'm a woman and by default spared any and all misogynistic accusations?

Perhaps if bitch sends everyone's knickers in a twist, we need an entirely new nomenclature that puts forward the same set of intentions and feelings, but that won't drive every other person to cry Misogyny or Chauvanism at their utterance.

I read Neil Gaiman's post (see link above) and from what I understood of it, a misogynist slur did not even cross his mind when he was explaining about fan entitlement to a fan who had written in. (By the way, you should read it: the way he breaks the traditional delusion that writers OWE us is frighteningly awesome) The comments at Shakesville makes me wonder if people actually know the difference between genuine feminist concerns and stirring up pointless shit in the name of feminism. It no longer remains a wonder that feminists are branded with a big LAWL like Hester Pyne on their foreheads.

Having said that, here a few things I feel I need to reiterate. Rape is intrinsically bad, and rapists should face the toughest punishment the law can impose on them. To rid a woman (or sometimes a man) of his dignity by forcing her/him into sexual acts, violating their personal space is wrong. Being a chauvinistic pig towards women is wrong too. Using the word bitch in a purely non-misogynist way however is NOT WRONG. Perhaps Neil Gaiman should've exercised a better choice of word; given his popularity, and given the existence of people whose sole purpose in life is to stretch a seemingly harmless comment into ground breaking proportions. Perhaps he should've just stuck to George R. R. Martin is not working for you. throughout the entry.

But my respect for Neil Gaiman still holds (unless he really is a misogynist, which I'm sure he isn't) and I find myself snickering at the general out of proportion perception of his remark.

I have more things to say about rape culture and misogyny in the 21st century; but I'll save that for the next post which, hopefully, shall be composed in a calmer state of mind.

god is my favourite dj

Listening to Leona Lewis early in the morning, on a Sunday, still in bed, with a mug of lukewarm coffee and two lightly toasted bread is my idea of perfection. At least for the time being.

This is my favourite song so far by her:



I think she has an immensely powerful voice - the beauty lies in how soothing it sounds. Loud and soothing; euphonious, something which a lot of singers with higher pitched voices cannot acheive.

Another song I'm obsessed with at the moment is I Dreamed A Dream, sang by Elaine Paige from the Les Miserables stage play. First heard it on YouTube, Susan Boyle's rendition of it on Britain's Got Talent.

I'm also in the middle of reading this:



This was part of my Reading World Text course; however I skipped this book entirely due to 1) Lack of time, and 2) The overwhelming aspect of the other five books I had to read. I am beginning to regret the decision after every page of this book I'm finishing. There's a remarkable veracity in Lamming's writing; it's pure in ways that are inexplicable. It's beautiful and every word, every sentence inspires me to think. To close my eyes, take a deep breath and just think. What is more remarkable is the fact that Lamming was only 23 when he wrote this. I am 20 and my writing is like unpolished turd compared to this. Thanks Mr. Lamming, I feel
inadequate now.

My goal now is to finish reading In The Castle Of My Skin before the 16th. That's when I am going to India. I'm bringing my brand new copy of A Suitable Boy which, I'm determined to finish before the Winter break is over.

wasting away the sunday evening in a mass of literary goodness

Don't you just love it when one minute people are telling you your team sucks and the next instant their own team loses rather pathetically? Football's a goldmine of bragging/taunting opportunities. Either way, Liverpool's on its way to crashing out of the title race; and it's not even Christmas.

Gerard Pique's scoring of own goals would have been invoked some sympathy for me if he played for any other club. I always find it gravely unfortunate when a defender scores an own goal; though, having said that I relish it when they happen to play for Team Clusterfuck and Team Wildrabiesfuck. (Most people refer to them as Barcelona FC and Liverpool FC).

As of now, Barcelona are only a point ahead, Madrid's recovering slowly from the Alcorcon fiasco, Higuain's AWESOME, Benzema's still a bitch - but he did set up the assist for one of the Higuain goals, I'll give him that - Raúl was priceless from the touchline after Albiol was sent off. He was looking to bite off someone's head, with his tiny little fox teeth; I'm sure he snarled. Like RAWWWR, or however foxes snarl. I hope in light of Higuain's performance, Pellegrini will give him the regular place in the starting line up that he deserves. It would be the biggest regret in Real Madrid's history of regrets to let Gonzalo Higuain go. He is the best thing to have happened in a while; dedicated, young, speedy, he is exactly the kind of #7 replacement Real Madrid needs. I hope after Raúl retires, Madrid award Higuain the coveted #7 jersey - I think he has it in him to live up to the legends who have donned it during their careers with Real Madrid. I see him as Raúl's ideal successor.

My insensitivity (towards fans of Liverpool and Barcelona) aside, football was good for me this weekend. The clubs I follow won (OMG DIMITAR BERBATOV - part time Bulgarian mobster and part time Manchester United striker - SCORED); the clubs I have a special compartment reserved for in my loathing bank failed to win, and generally were shitty. Karma's a bitch.

A caveat: There were eight red cards handed out, spanning over the English and the Spanish league this game day. I'm not sure if the exact figure is eight, but it is close enough.

That aside I WENT TO SEE NEIL GAIMAN TODAY. To be truthful, I have never met as charming as him; he was absolutely mind blowing, with his effervescent stage personality and adorable curls; shame the moderator was an ass with his stupid Singlish which put a heavy damper on the whole event. Otherwise the crowd (of about 900 people packing up the Victoria Concert Hall) were fantastic - they cheered, they clapped and they (most) asked intelligent questions when questioning was opened to the floor. Neil recounted his Bee growing experiment - I sympathize with his PA! He talked at lengths about Alan Moore - absolutely adore him; said that he is, I quote, "a big hairy writer". He talked about the anecdote, courtesy of Moore, of scary trousers and how he came to be given than title. Let's see....hmmm, he talked about his project in China, which was interesting to hear, but I wish he'd have talked more about himself as a writer, as an artist, as the author the 900 of us gathered there today have grown to love. He did expound on the Sandman, but absolutely no mentions of Mirrormask. I love Mirrormask. I should have asked him a question but they opened a limited number of questions to be permitted from the floor due to time constrain.

Overall, it was a fantastic experience. But it was too hot to queue up outside the Arts House for his book signing. Besides I didn't bring any of the copies I own with me. I'm going to dig through the national library and re-read American Gods.

FAIL OF THE DAY: Yesterday, as a Halloween treat, AMANDA PALMER (Neil Gaiman's girlfriend from the Dresden Dolls fame) PERFORMED A FREE CONCERT OUTSIDE THE ARTS HOUSE. A FREE CONCERT WHICH I SHOULD HAVE GONE FOR IF I HAD KNOW BECAUSE I ABSOLUTE LOVE HER AND HAVE HAD OBSESSIVE PHASES WITH HER ALBUM Who killed Amanda Palmer. I don't know what I'm more upset at; my ignorance, or the fact that the concert was you know free.

...lilies that fester smell far worse than weeds...

How Plagiarism Software Found a New Shakespeare. I strongly believe that my twitter dashboard is a maze of wonderful things (at a 99% confidence interval rate) waiting to be unearthed. This was one of them. I find the concept truly fascinating - precisely so because of the (over)emphasis the academia places on Plagiarism and plagiarism detecting softwares. I've heard my Professors harp on the seriousness and consequences of plagiarism for over a year. While it doesn't apply to me directly (at least not at this point in time), I have always wondered the depths to which students will venture to, in order to get that perfect A+ without doing an ounce of work. Finding Shakespeare while trying to catch cheats, is a delightful composition of irony which I hope will assist to further expound on this chance discovery.

ETA: I take back what I said about my twitter dashboard - I now reduce the confidence interval to a 95% after a this post about Why Jews are liberals came up. I clicked with the hope of reading a (adequate) explanation to this direct, slightly controversial question asked by none other than The Gaggle (Newsweek). Duly disappointed and would like to claim back the 5 minutes of life wasted on reading it. Thank you very much.

biblophilia...it's inherent.

Fired from the canon - a list of books you should (apparently) avoid.

Clearly someone had a little too much time on their hands (which they could've loaned out to me; I need MORE TIME!)

I find it offensive, or close to offensive that One Hundred Years of Solitude has been added to that list. I've had to defend the book from my friends - my brilliant English Literature major friends doing Post Modernism - carefully defend every argument they brought up against Marquez and then tactfully pitch in, and promote Love in the Time of Cholera. (The book can be tricky, as are all of his work, but upon finishing it, I can definitely assure you the overwhelming feeling of completion, fulfillment, satiation; take your pick. You shouldn't avoid the film either - Javier Bardem instantly ups the rating by a few stars in my books, then again, I am a biased little (shallow) fangirl)

Personally, my preference of Marquez over Rushdie centers around Midnight's Children. We did the text last semester for Reading British and World Texts and I went to take the exam without touching the book. I wasn't sure if it was coincidence or not, but the two weeks Midnight's Children was covered in lecture and tutorials, I was away conducting serious diplomacy (Model United Nations) at the Hague. I still keep the book. Guess you can call it a memento - I do have every intention of giving it another go. But I have relegated it further down the pecking list. The Great Indian Novel by Shashi Tharoor takes precedence above all. Except, I NEED MORE TIME DAMMIT.

Lastly,



♥