I really appreciated this documentary. Yes, I've heard about most if not all of these issues, but I am constantly becoming more aware of how it all plays out in the world. For example, all of the sexist comments that males have made on news stations are cringe-worthy to hear, especially knowing that it is still happening. Rachel Maddow spoke about all of the received support from females throughout her career and it reinforced the fact that females are supportive of other females taking lead in things.
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This week, we watched 'Bride and Prejudice', which was a rendition of 'Pride and Prejudice'. I have never or read 'Pride in Prejudice', so I had no idea what to expect. I was sort of confused when Darcy said that Wickham got his sister, Georgie, pregnant. As I am writing this, I am realizing that she probably gave up the child for adoption or had an abortion. I was originally confused because I did not ever see Georgie with a child.
I was not expecting for an animated movie to be so mature and powerful. Seeing the perspective of a child growing up in the heart of the Islamic Revolution was very enlightening. I had not really learned much about such a dangerous environment that Marjane grew up in. When she left to go to Vienna to live a safer life, it must have been very difficult to leave her parents there. I would have been incredibly worried and unnerving if I knew that my family could have died at any moment while I was in another country.
Watching The Bachelor for the first time was an interesting experience for me. It wasn't that I did not want to watch it or was against the idea, but rather that I would always prefer to watch something else over The Bachelor. I am curious to see how The Bachelorette would be with the gender roles reversed. I noticed that the female contestants seem to think of the bachelor as some sort of king and I would imagine that they are sort of a "slave" in whatever the bachelor wants. When there are male contestants all competing for a bachelorette, I wonder if there is much of a difference in the way that contestants act in the competition.
In class, we watched Born into Brothels. This film is about a group of children in a red district in India. A photographer that has been documenting the red district has started to teach the children of the district photography. Some of the children are able to wander around and practice taking pictures. I noticed that there is a brother and sister taking the class, where the brother is allowed to wander the streets while the sister must stay at home and clean. There are definite differences in how the boys and girls are treated in the red light district.
Discussion Question: Do you think women are given less freedom to prepare them to be submissive to men? It was interesting seeing the movie, Like Water for Chocolate, especially since I read the book during my senior year in high school. I did not remember much from the book, other than the strong connection with food that Tita has. Ever since Tita was born, her grandmother immersed her with cooking and the feelings that come with each dish that is made. After not being allowed to marry Pedro, Tita manages to share her feelings through her cooking. The rose pedals that Pedro got Tita were used in the dish that Tita made for dinner. It was evident in the movie that everyone who ate this dish was moved by the feelings that Tita put into the dish. It seemed to be one of the only ways Tita could express her love to Pedro, even if it was indirect. The power that Tita and Pedro's love held was strong enough to last for over 20 years. When Tita and Pedro were finally able to be together, their love was so powerful that it killed Pedro and then Tita "ignited" herself by swallowing matches.
This week's film was Blue is the Warmest Color, which took place in France. It is about a French high school girl named Adèle, who discovers herself and what her desires are. She meets a girl named Emma and they form a relationship. Seeing Adèle discover herself, especially in a different culture than what I am used to, was very eye-opening. Except for Adèle's friend from high school, I did not see much negativity towards Adèle's sexuality. Her parents automatically assumed Emma was heterosexual, but that was also related to them not being informed of their relationship or Adèle's sexuality. I noticed that everyone for the most part seemed very accepting of Adèle's sexuality. There was one scene where Emma and Adèle were more affectionate than I have noticed in a public restaurant, where there were people in. It could just be that this was because it was an exaggerated movie or possibly that it was a different culture's filming norms.
How do popular culture and media perpetuate normative notions of gender, race, and sexuality?
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