people ALWAYS reply with “you’ll change your mind eventually” when I tell them I do not want to have children.
No, I’m sorry, but I won’t.
THIS
Vertically challenged student of French, Chinese, and Linguistics at Salford University, feminist, vegetarian, 18, lover of pancakes and an ENFP! • Ask me anything! :)
froovyjosie
I need feminism because
PLEASE REMEMBER
I am discussing the portrayal of women in the TELEVISION SERIES, not the book. I haven’t read the books. I don’t have a clue what happens in the books. I don’t know shit about the books.
Television and film adaptations of books usually have differences. If the female characters are well-rounded and do feminist shit in the books, then that is fantastic. But if they’re not doing that feminist shit in the television adaptation, then I am going to take issue with it and I am going to criticise the hell out of it.
But like I said, aside from the crap happening to women in the show…… Game of Thrones is pretty good and I’m enjoying it so far! :D
froovyjosie: So I watched Game of Thrones
I watched the first episode. It was good (entertainment-wise) and I intend to watch more.
BUT
Why is there so much shit happening to the women? The first episode had about 4295028502395230952 male characters and LITERALLY 5 female characters. Don’t think it passed Beschdel, not entirely sure…
You need to understand that Game of Thrones is set in what is roughly equivalent to medieval Europe. Women simply did not have the same power as men then, and were often essentially sold for alliances and married off young. Many could hope for little more than securing a decent husband. A lot, if not most fantasy has issues with the portrayal of women. A lot of fantasy presents female characters who are just… female characters. With few or no other defining characteristics.
What is remarkable about GOT is that it really doesn’t do this. It presents a cast of women who break gender barriers AND don’t, seize power, use what power they have as wives and mothers and queens to influence, and become equally strong and capable players in the quest for the throne. Yet, it still shows many of the hardships that face women in this world (which reflect many of the hardships that face women in our own). Rape, domestic abuse, a lack of power, a lack of status after the death of a husband… these are all addressed, frankly and without apology.
But the female characters still maintain strength and drive and are just as well rounded as the male characters (something seriously lacking in a lot of fiction).
This is much more obvious in the books than in the television series (which is still good, but I don’t think I would have enjoyed it as much without reading the book first). The author doesn’t beat around the bush with the sexism and gender inequality—he acknowledges it, both consciously and unconsciously. It’s a part of the world he has created, but he never glorifies it.
If you keep watching (or, even better, start reading) I think you’ll find that the female characters really come into their own.
If it’s a fantasy then why make it misogynistic? Just because fantasy OFTEN has problems with the portrayal of women, it doesn’t mean this one also has to fit in with that.
Also it seems that Daenerys is falling in love with the Dothraki guy… sorry but no-one would actually fall in love with someone who bought and raped her. Just no.
I don’t know about the rest of your points, I mean I’m only three episodes in so I couldn’t know ha, but I really hope I do agree and find well rounded characters. So far I’ve been disappointed from a feminist perspective because everything the women do seem to be in line with what MEN allow them or make them do. I want to see a character that struts around doing whatever the fuck she wants without the consequence being rape or another form of gender-based domination. Arya Stark for example - awesome!! But I’m hoping that instead of having a token ‘feminist’ character we can see more awesome shit from all of the other women in the series.
Obviously I’m pretty disappointed thus far but the show itself for entertainment value is GOOOOD! I’m enjoying it :) Thanks for your comments.
Anonymous asked: Well Game of Thrones is set in a Medieval world, if you remember your history at all, women in that time were not as "valued" as they are today, and it did happen rather frequently that 13 year olds were married away to get more power. And if you didn't get it then it's a shame, really. If you keep watching, though, you'll see that GoT has some of the strongest female characters in TV. Not saying it meanly, but you should give it more time until you judge the series, you should keep watching :)
oh absolutely I do understand that and I know my history BUT Game Of Thrones is a fantasy… so why fill it with misogyny? You can’t exactly pin it to being realistic to medieval times when Daenerys has dragon eggs in her room lol. Why are there only 5 female characters? From a feminist perspective GoT is shit.
But from the perspective of entertainment… I liiiike.
So I watched Game of Thrones
I watched the first episode. It was good (entertainment-wise) and I intend to watch more.
BUT
Why is there so much shit happening to the women? The first episode had about 4295028502395230952 male characters and LITERALLY 5 female characters. Don’t think it passed Beschdel, not entirely sure because the scenes between female characters didn’t ‘seem’ all that important (about 5 seconds long)…….. also what the fuck was going on was Daenerys (sp?)? Like, come on! Her brother is awful! Infact generally all the men around her are awful. She was basically sold to some bloke. Then when she was quite OBVIOUSLY not wanting to sleep with him, he raped her! Also the red-headed girl (Sean Bean’s daughter), like, why is her aspiration to get married? She’s 13 for crying out loud. At age 13 she should be enjoying her childhood, not moving to a land far far away to get married and make her daddy more powerful.
WHAT THE HELL.
I CAN’T STAND IT ANYMORE
All of this Game of Thrones shit on my dashboard is making me SO CURIOUS so I am going to watch the first episode. Right now. 3.30am. Damn right. Await my reaction.
Iwannabepartofthefandomtooplz
Why I Need Feminism (and what it has taught me)
Women are under attack. With anti-abortionist activity on the rise and UK cuts hitting women hardest, a better question would be “what would we do without feminism?!”
It has only been one or two years since I first really discovered the movement. I knew it existed but I didn’t place much importance on it – after all, women have had suffrage on the same terms as men in the UK since 1928, I assumed we were paid equally and generally treated with the same amount of respect. How wrong I was!
In short, I learned everything I currently know about feminism from fellow feminists on twitter, through blogs and the books of Caitlin Moran and Jessica Valenti. Last but not least, I learned from my grandmother who is always open to discussion about issues facing women. As yet, I still have a lot to discover, but here are some of the things I have learned so far:
- 90% of rape survivors are female, 2/3 rapes were committed by someone known to the victim, and only 46% of rapes are reported to police in this culture that blames and shames survivors. A quick search on the Ched Evans case will highlight the absolutely horrific abuse and humiliation that rape survivors face even after their ordeal. (stats – rainn.org)
- 1 in 4 women will experience domestic violence in their lifetime, and on average this results in the death of 2 women per week. This involves physical violence, sexual assault and rape, and mental abuse. (stats – womensaid.org, UK)
- Gender-based street harassment limits women’s ability to be in public and feel safe. In a survey of 811 women, 99% had experienced street harassment. I myself spoke to a number of women and all of them had experienced this in the form of catcalling, following, indecent exposure, public masturbation and leering. It is incredibly disturbing that this is considered normal behaviour, something that “just happens”. (stats - stopstreetharassment.org)
- The virgin-whore dichotomy and double standards. This I learned from Jessica Valenti and from my male friends. As someone who as yet does not have experience with sex, I have been told by my male friends, who regularly engage in casual sex, that I should not, that I should wait because “it will be better for you in the long run.” In other words, because I am female, I should not be having sex. On the other hand, magazines such as Cosmopolitan tell me that I need to be shaved from the neck down and that I need to invest in lingerie so that I can be having lots of sex. But only with one person in a committed relationship of course. Otherwise I’m a slut. Feminism tells me that I can have sex whenever I like, with whoever I like, all on my own terms. It does not instruct me on how to conduct my sex life. It also taught me not to be ashamed of sex. Yay!
- Feminism has taught me that it is okay if I do not want to have children. I am 18 years old –young, yes, but old enough to know my own mind and desires. So many people, including friends and family, have informed me that I will eventually change my mind. Who knows, maybe I will. But I doubt it. Feminism, however, unquestioningly accepts my decisions and doesn’t label me selfish for not bringing children into the world.
- Before this movement, I didn’t know very much about safe sex and absolutely nothing about abortion. Feminism has given me the sex and abortion education that school did not – the education that we so desperately need. Feminism has taught me how to conduct safe sexual relations and the need for safe, legal and free abortion. It has given me choice, should I find myself in a difficult situation.
This movement has opened my eyes and educated me about the inequality faced by women across the globe. It has given me a voice and the ability to challenge the sexism I have faced for being born a woman. Although the fight is far from over, I feel as if it has set me free from the oppressive expectations I once had of myself and of others as women. That is why I need feminism.
Who Needs Feminism?: I need feminism because I am sick of the weirdly aggressive response I...
I need feminism because I am sick of the weirdly aggressive response I receive when I share my decision of not going to have children. I am told everyday ‘you are too young to know’ and that I will ‘change my mind when the right man comes along’ as if not having a child is a decision as changeable…
my sentiments exactly. No children for me plz.
