Presentation - Gender and Feminist Theory
From MediaStudies
Contents |
Discussion
Monday, Sept 22nd the Gender and Feminist theory group will meet to discuss pertinent articles and films pertaining to these theories. We will begin with basic theory and move into more specific genres, including feminist backlash in the late 1980s and today. Liv and Jaime will show clips from Fatal Attraction and 300 as a way of demonstrating some of the more common roles of women in film as a reflection of the period in which they were made.
Come prepared to discuss:
- How you see Mulvey's article pertaining to both film and television today.
- Why is it necessary to spotlight female engagement in all media?
- What do you think is important to discuss today and why? Be ready to share your ideas!
Assignment
Laura Mulvey: Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema
When Worlds Collide: Fandom and Male Priviledge
Forum
Liv: I just want to thank all of you for participating in today's discussion. I feel as though pertinent points were made in discussing Laura Mulvey's article in terms of current media (films, television, etc.) as well as media created when she wrote this piece. I hope everyone was able to take something away at the end of class, I know I was. Unfortunately, we did not get to discuss the second article we posted, which is quite fabulous . If you read it and would like to discuss it, I feel like this forum would be the place for that! I know the first time I read it, it really got me thinking. Thanks again for all of your participation, it really made our job easier and more enjoyable!
Alex: I also thought this was a strong session. Good work on the organizers' part, choosing clips and structure. I wish we had had a chance to hear how feminist media theory might be relevant to the various projects of people at the table. Perhaps you all could post a bit on that as well. I'd be happy to direct you towards other theorists if I know what questions you might be posing.
Alex: thought you might find this blog interesting on post feminism and new media: http://newfeministmediaresearch.blogspot.com/2008/05/you-just-said-mouthful-there-sister.html
Caitlin: I also thought that this session was really interesting. I have done a lot of work with the role of females in film and have recently gotten very interested in the reasons why females are portrayed the way they are and how that affects us as women. I am considering on writing my thesis about the process of growing up as a female and how the movies we watch form our thoughts and the general way we are. I really liked how everyone questioned the way they felt about film, and admitted to actually liking the movies and tv shows they watched, but at the same time understood how detrimental those images can be to the image of women.
Liv: My interest is really in soap operas. I know a lot has been written about them, but I am thinking about writing my seminar paper on their relevancy today. I know that within the past 10 years soap opera ratings have greatly declined, and at the same time we are seeing an increase in primetime shows that follow a soap opera model. I'm interested in taking a look at why this decline in daytime ratings is happening. Is it possible that it has to do with more women working during the day when soaps are on? We shall see...
Nancy: Guys I though class was great and really insightful. As childish as this comment seems I went home and while watching tv that night was completly engrossed by the idea of trying to view what I was watching from my personal gender perspective - long story short I did not enjoy TV as much.
Sign Up
Add your name below to sign up for this session.
(maximum 18 students; if 18 have already selected, please choose another session)
This session will meet in Broad Center, Room 208, at PITZER.
Alex Juhasz
Steve Mears
Alice Stevens
Caitlin Daley
Nikki Morin
