The Bechdel Test: Women's Roles in Film

This morning I was doing my usual Facebook browsing while drinking my coffee, and came across an interesting status from one of my friends:

I'm lucky to have my friend Kelley. A month or so ago (to make a point) she asked me about naming movies which contain a scene where two or more women carry on a conversation W/O a man present and on a topic OTHER than men/ the male protagonist. A month later I've come up with "Fried Green Tomatoes" and not much else...can you help me out Face-bookers?

It got me thinking. And thinking. And then I became intrigued! I went through my DVD collection and out of 103 movies, the only two I have in which women are having a conversation without a man present and on a topic other than a man or men in general are "The Devil Wears Prada" and "Little Women."

The official test name for a piece of media in which there is a scene with a) at least two women present, b) the women talking to each other, and c) them talking about something other than a man is the Bechdel Test (not having a man present during the conversation is another criterium added to my friend's challenge). This test was first suggested by Virginia Woolf in regards to literature back in 1929, but became introduced by Alison Bechdel in 1985 in a comic strip. Kay Steiger refers to the Bechdel test as "the standard by which feminist critics judge television, books, movies and other media."

But why should it be used by only "feminist" critics? If we are truly interested as a society in achieving equality between men and women, shouldn't all critics be interested in this criteria? Shouldn't we want to see movies in which women are talking together about things other than relationships with men? This is not just about the feminist agenda; it's a cultural slap in the face to 150 million women. And what's worse is that we are all conditioned to it.

And we don't even realize it:

I previously mentioned that I have two movies that pass the Bechdel test. After going through my DVDs, I had a thought: what about movies in which men have a conversation on a topic other than a woman or women in general? The opposite of the Bechdel test, if you will. Out of 103 movies I own, 57 of them fit this criteria. Every superhero movie, every comedy, and every political or spy thriller fits this criteria but not the other.

I am what I would like to consider a rather forward thinker. Yet, over half of my movies have scenes in which men talk about things other than women and only two of my movies have scenes in which women talk about things other than men! I, an incredibly tuned-in fan of equality, have been watching and purchasing movies that are massively male-dominated!

But what does it mean?

We are still developing into the society a lot of people like to think we already have. A lot of people like to think that women have the same opportunities men have and that if we didn't have kids, we could be equally successful. That's not true yet. Many people like to think that racism is a thing of the past in our country. That's not true yet. A huge number of people in our country like to think that if you "want it badly enough and work hard enough," you can "get out" of wherever you come from and be whatever you want. That's not true yet. These are all ideals that we desperately crave and I feel like we assume they're already fact because we want so badly for them to be true.

But we have to realize where we come from; we, the American culture. It's been male dominated from the start, if you don't count the Native Americans as having started our culture (and let's be honest here, how many of us remember that they were American before our ancestors were?). It's been white dominated from the start. And it's been capitalist driven from the start. Can we expect our culture to change? Absolutely. Can we demand that there must be a change? Yes! But change is slow; it took us 150 years from the declaration of us being American to get to the white, male, capitalist part of who we are as a culture. We've only been burning bras and allowing our daughters and sisters to have opinions and jobs away from the home for 65 years. Yes, we've made some changes and yes, we're getting closer to the ideal society that we so deeply desire, but we're not there.

Yet.

"Be the change you wish to see in the world." --Gandhi

Social Mini-Experiment: Does Appearance Actually Matter?

Starbucks.com

Good Monday morning, everyone! I hope you all had a great weekend! I had a fantastic weekend, but found it so hard to wake up this morning. Mondays sometimes turn into Starbucks days for me because I need that extra pick-me-up. Today's Starbucks run actually turned into a little social experiment. Here is the background of my incredibly un-scientific experiment:

I have been a Starbucks drinker for a long time (Those of you who are going to judge me for drinking Starbucks instead of supporting local business, please do so and get it out of your system. Okay...judging completed? Great! Keep reading.). A year ago I was doing weekly professional observations at a local middle school. I had to be there around 7:30am each week and I started making a habit of dropping by the closest Starbucks in an act of self-bribery to get myself out of bed. I was always dressed very well since I was on my way to a professional engagement. I got used to a variety of free items the guys at Starbucks would give me: free coffee upgrade, free banana bread, free frappuccinos, free muffins, etc. I didn't really think much of it, until my fiancé told me that it isn't normal, and I was getting "special treatment" because of the way I looked. I laughed it off, thinking he was just being sweet or something. I attributed my getting free things to the fact that I'm a morning person and I'm quite personable in the early hours of the day. I always asked how the guys were and was very pleasant. Just to clarify: I never flirted with them, I'm just a conversational person.

But then I got to thinking about it.

I moved up to the Cincinnati area a few months ago. No more Starbucks where the guys who work there have gotten to know me. A couple weeks ago I had to go deal with some computer problems at the Apple store. I was acutely aware of the fact that there was a Starbucks in the mall close to the Apple store. I dressed nicely: jeans, heels, cute top, hair pulled back, natural but accentuating makeup. I had to leave my computer at the store for a while, so I wandered down to Starbucks. There were two people working there: a guy and a girl. I waited until the guy was closest to the register, had a friendly conversation with him, and then asked for a coffee and a bagel--and got free cream cheese! The very next day, my computer messed up again and I had to take it back. And I dressed up again: wedges, jeans, Michael Kors top, hair up again, makeup edgier than yesterday, but not too much. Again, I had to leave my computer at the store for an hour, so I went back to the same Starbucks. The same guy was working there (different girl, I think), I asked for the same order, and got free cream cheese again. When I told my fiancé about this he was not surprised at all, and repeated what he had told me a year ago: that I was getting free stuff because of the way I looked. I was determined to prove him wrong.

This morning I was in yoga pants, sneakers, and a hoodie, with my hair in a ponytail and no makeup. I went to Starbucks, was my usual charming self, and didn't get any free stuff. I actually stepped outside my typical personality and tried to engage the male barista in more of a conversation than I normally do. I asked if he had had a good weekend. He looked at me, said, "sure," and went back to the making of my drink. At the other Starbucks the male barista and I had chatted for a good couple of minutes. This guy would barely even talk to me. I got my coffee and left.

So. I was talking to my fiancé about this little social experiment this morning before I conducted it; he was already assuming that today was going to go exactly how it actually went. He said that all it shows is a few thousand years of males being hardwired to pay special attention to the attractive females and ignore the ones who aren't "hot." I think this experiment does show that, although, for the record, I look stunning in yoga pants! ;) But when I was growing up, I was always told that "looks don't matter" and "it's what's inside your head that counts." Is it? I'm not so sure. I think it's important to be intelligent, because if you're just some bimbo with no brains, even if you are super-hot, you won't get an extraordinarily high-profile job because you can't handle it and you have no idea what's going on. But look at these women who are CEOs and business owners. They're attractive women.

Andrea Jung, Chairman and CEO Avon

Safra Catz, President and CFO Oracle

Angela Braly, President, Chairman, and CEO
Wellpoint Health Insurance

Indra Nooyi, Chairman and CEO PepsiCo.

Would they have gotten this far if they hadn't been attractive? I would love to say, "Yes, it's about the hard work they put in, not their looks," but is it? I'm sure they all have put in hard work, but they're all also attractive. 

So, in this very small un-scientific look at society, appearance trumped personality. It's kind of too bad it turned out like this, in my opinion. I'm not saying I wish I'd gotten free stuff, because that isn't really what matters; I just wish that personality had trumped appearance. But, like my fiancé said, it's a four thousand year old hardwiring problem in men that we are trying change with a one hundred year old feminist movement. 

I think this is something that women, especially "progressive" women, don't want to acknowledge. But it's there. So, ladies, I kind of feel like I'm just saying something I think we've all felt even though we're being told otherwise: "Looks do matter."

"Be the change you wish to see in the world." --Gandhi

Social Media: Overshare?

Wow! I just have to say "thank you" to everyone who read yesterday's post--there were over 300 views yesterday alone, and now I'm up over 2,200 total! I've only had this blog up for a month and I am just so excited that it's getting such positive feedback!

I got to thinking about why my blog is doing so well and realized that I would be completely unknown without social networking sites. (Granted, the photos yesterday didn't hurt my views, but I don't really think that's the reason people read my blog.) This morning, I heard that Justin Timberlake is revitalizing Myspace and launching it soon. This is the link to "The New Myspace" preview video. It looks like it's going to be a music sharing/event making/store/hanging out site. In light of this event, I got to looking at the social media scene, and all of the sites I'm on and what I use them for.

http://www.solveitmedia.com

Facebook: This is definitely the social media site I spend the most time on. I am connected with my family who lives all over the U.S., friends from all over the world, and people I've met at professional conferences or educational events.
Pros: Easy to connect with family. Great photo uploading. User friendly.
Cons: It seems boring; I've been on it for over five years and I don't know if it's because I'm older and have better things to do than creep on people or if the site is really just losing its luster, but it's not as interesting as it used to be. Also, I never know what privacy setting has changed; I feel like I read the "terms" every week just to make sure I'm not missing something.

Twitter: I love Twitter for updates that seem kind of silly. I don't necessarily need to post a whole Facebook status about it, but I still want to share or comment.
Pros: Super easy to use. Easier than FB to connect with celebs.

Cons: From what I've observed, people spend less time reading profiles on Twitter, so it's harder to promote yourself or a product. It's also kind of impersonal; just a list of random one-liners.

http://www.emersonsocialmedia.com

Google+: I only use Google+ for promoting my blog and work-related stuff. (Also, I have YouTube; love that.)

Pros: It's connected to Blogger. Hangouts look like fun.

Cons: It's not user-friendly at all. I really don't like the way it's organized. Also, it's not as clean as FB so a lot of people didn't switch/add Google+ when it came out, because why should they? They have a social networking site that they know and love.

Pinterest: LOVE! :) This is pretty much how I'm planning my wedding and getting ideas for what I want to do with my apartment. I love this site.

Pros: It's so easy to use. It's fun. There are so many links to other sites I would never find with out Pinterest.

Cons: Every single thing you pin shows up under your name if you Google yourself. Interesting. 

Recovery Record: BEST APP EVER for people recovering from eating disorders! I use it every day and try to log all my meals! It's great.

Pros: You get rewards (songs) for logging your meals. You can "pair-up" with someone else and give them virtual gifts. It's FREE. You get encouragement emailed to you if you don't log for a couple days and it's really sweet. It's exciting and makes you want to log your meals and get better. It's customizable for your particular needs.

Cons: Again, pseudonyms are the only thing allowed, so you can't really connect with people even if they sound super cool. Sometimes there are glitches and you don't get them fixed until they send out an update.

http://hazellcottrell.com/category/social-media/

Little Monsters: Joined it yesterday to promote my blog since it was about Lady Gaga.

Pros: If you love Gaga, that's the place to be. It's nice to see young people coming together and sharing their problems without any criticism or bullying.

Cons: It is so emo. I'm a little old for the site, I think. 

LinkedIn: Professional social networking site. I have one, but don't use it a whole lot.

Pros: My resume is uploaded. Everyone can see my qualifications for jobs.

Cons: I've had this site for 5 years and have never had someone call me for a job.

The Knot: Wedding site!!! :)

Pros: It has so many ideas! We can have our own wedding site and blog. It gives you a timeline and to do list!

Cons: Honestly, I don't know if it's worth it. I have found a lot more ideas on Pinterest than The Knot, and I have this blog, why would I make another one? 

Fitocracy: This is like an RPG for fitness! It's awesome! I use it every time I work out.

Pros: You don't have to use your real name. You can upload photos. You can give other people "props." Join fitness events in your area. Join groups that relate to your fitness goals.

Cons: Doesn't tell you why you get more points for some exercises and less for others. There aren't a lot of people on it yet, so you have to mostly connect with people you don't know.

PatientsLikeMe: Track your symptoms and see other users who are going through the same thing! I used this a lot when I started having more medical problems. I don't use it much anymore, but I really liked it.

Pros: Awesome graphs. Tons of conditions listed.

Cons: No real names allowed, so if you really want to talk to someone about something, you don't really have a way to do that. Not very user friendly.

http://nowsourcing.com/2010/03/17/social-media-infographic/

So, these are all the social sites I'm on. Social media and social networking is great, but this is kind of crazy! I know that it's the only reason my blog is read, but at the same time, I don't go out and hang out with people, because I'm working on my profiles all the time. Also, none of these are private! Anyone can search and find all of this about me. I don't regret any of it; I feel like I've been very true to myself and I'm honest on everything. It just seems a little bit creepy that I've allowed all of these sites to have access to my information and keep it even after I cancel my accounts.

Our world is moving forward so quickly and social media and social networking is a HUGE part of it! It seems like being social is the exact opposite now of what it used to be: You used to have to try to be noticed; now you have to try really hard to stay anonymous. So, my life is pretty much displayed online; that's typical for our generation. But is it safe? Is it smart? When is privacy more important than sharing everything online?

myspace.com

I asked for an invite to the new Myspace. :)

"Be the change you wish to see in the world." --Gandhi