Feminism in the BSC

[booboobrewer]

This thread reminded me of their Halloween costumes...there was a lot of variation, except for Mary Anne, I think, who would go as a cat most of the time, or as Dorothy. Kristy went from lobster to Amelia Earhart to Sherlock "Bones". Stacey dressed up as Father Time once (but I think she might have called herself Mother Time.) One of Abby's costumes was the Soccer World Cup, and she wore a shirt that said "Soccer: Invented by men, perfected by women."

[hitzpink]

I don't think that Ann's attempts at injecting a little feminism in the books are so horrible.. The way she handles it is sometimes a little irritating (like in Island Adventure when Claudia refers to the doctor as a 'he' and Haley points out that the doctor could be a 'she' and then makes a big deal of it at the end when it really is a she - not realistic coming from a 9 year old), but overall I don't have a problem with her using a female mayor or whatever.

I also don't think that some of the mothers being housewives goes against the 'feminism'. The "snow person" thing and other comments like that did seem very forced, but in general I think Ann was just trying to show a variety of female roles. We have the housewives, the mayor, and everything in between.

BTW, what is this meter-reader you guys are referring to? Like, a parking meter? One of those people that goes around and gives tickets for expired parking meters? If so, is that a stereotypically male job?

[macca]

They come around to houses and read the numbers on the electricity meter.

Normally it's located outside, so you wouldn't even have any interaction with them and although it's not stereotypically a male job (like a truck driver or something), you would generally expect them to be male. The fact that they were mentioned at all really seemed like just a forced opportunity to throw in a "token" female.

I'm not at all against the variety of female roles portrayed in the books - in fact, I think it's a good thing, considering the books are about a bunch of girls taking care of kids and could you get anymore traditional? What I don't like are the feminist-for-the-sake-of-feminist stuff, like the examples you mentioned.

[ktag]

#19: male nurse
#20: male secretary, "first basewoman"
Kristy's book: "snowwoman"

Okay, if the kids want make a snowwoman, that's great. But then they make one for the neighbor who goes "Look at that! You made me a snowwoman!" Umm...there's nothing on it to suggest it's female, so why assume it is? Are girls not allowed to make snowmen or something? Sheesh.

[macca]

^ I believe the PC term is snow person

In Phantom Phone Calls, Claudia angrily berates Kristy for referring to the generic burglar as "he".

In Snowbound, Kristy doesn't like the term "weathergirl" and refers to her as a "weatherwoman".

Umm...there's nothing on it to suggest it's female, so why assume it is?

Ann's reasoning probably was that there was also nothing to suggest it was a MAN - so why assume it is? Ya know. Either way, it's that pathetic brand of feminism. Who the hell cares whether a lump of snow is supposed to be male or female? Geez.

[inge]

[quote author=macca board=bsc thread=1143169664 post=1145703689 Either way, it's that pathetic brand of feminism. Who the hell cares whether a lump of snow is supposed to be male or female? Geez.[/quote]

Word. This defenitely got on my nerves, all the he - or SHE!! - stuff going on in the series. Who cares really? Feminism is a good thing, don't get me wrong, but this isn't really feminism as much as it is annoying people with little details.

[macca]

^ Oh, I'm all for feminism - worthwhile feminism. In the scheme of things, it makes no difference whether generic terms are male. It's just for convenience sake, not because men are superior. Ugh.

Also, why does Dawn act so confused about why her mother is taking Richard's name in Dawn's Wicked Stepsister? Does she honestly think it's appropriate for her mother to keep her ex-husbands surname when re-marrying?

[fluffy]

I always thought it was strange how the women kept their ex-husbands names when they got divorced, although Stacey's mom does change her name in one of the crappy Friends Forevers. The girl power message of the books is great, but it could be very forced sometimes. Especially with Abby. Ugh.

[macca]

fluffy said:

I always thought it was strange how the women kept their ex-husbands names when they got divorced.

That's pretty realistic though, especially if they still have school-age kids. Much less confusing for everyone involved. A lot of divorced women I've known have kept their ex-husbands' name just to avoid the hassle of changing all legal documents.

[wanderingfrog]

I think people who don't care if generic terms are always male should read this essay by Douglas Hofstadter. I'm not saying it will change anyone's mind, but it makes for interesting reading.

But for God's sake, don't show it to Jessi.

[macca]

wanderingfrog said:

I think people who don't care if generic terms are always male should read this essay by Douglas Hofstadter. I'm not saying it will change anyone's mind, but it makes for interesting reading.

well, it's definitely interesting and I do see the point, however I still can't bring myself to care whether generic terms are male! Sorry ;D

[hitzpink]

wanderingfrog, that was a great essay, thanks for sharing!

[Amalia]

I don't know if this is a feminist jab, but it seemed like one to me (MA & Zoo Mystery): "The female [emu] lays the eggs but it is the sole responsibility of the male to incubate and raise the young."

[booboobrewer]

This is probably a stretch, but I find it funny how Stacey refers to roaches as him...

Hah!

Don't know if it's been mentioned yet, but since I just read Claudia and the Middle School Mystery -- when they're going to break into Shawna's locker, Dawn says, "Okay, man your post." Stacey comes back with "Don't you mean woman my post?"

[sparklymouse]

In one of the Little Sister books Karen's teacher made the class research and write a report about their most interesting female ancestors. You'll all be impressed to hear that Hannie Papadakis' great-aunt was the first female brain surgeon in America and Nancy Dawes' great-grandmother spied for the French freedom fighters in World War II. Karen had crappy female relatives who did nothing impressive except someone from Lisa's family was a bookie for an illegal gambling business. Hee.