I could not live without music, but better yet I couldn’t live without music that truly makes me think. Of course, we listen to music on the radio, in our car, while we work, while we eat, etc., but when I listen to music, I normally listen to the lyrics — what is the message the song is sending. This is one reason I really cannot relate to mainstream music, I feel the messages are bogged down with oppression for individuality. I cannot relate to a lot of mainstream rap because I feel it degrades women (and over-emphasizes a capitalistic lifestyle), so I find my range of music adjusting into indie a lot of times. Even though this happens, there are usually decent messages, but every so often, very progressive messages comes along. Now, one has to be careful with messages of progression because they could just be subterfuge to get people to think one thing but are really prescribing to another (see my post about Avril Lavigne), and although I am not sure the background of Saving Jane, I really liked this song when I found it. I have done some work with gender roles in fairy tales and how our culture still is creating the “same ole fairy tale”, and this song a girl (princess) realizes she does not need to live in that fairy tale!

BETTER DAY 

I have been asleep so long now
All locked up without a key
I have tapped my feet impatient
For a change to come to me
I’ve been hanging my hair
Outside this tower
Waiting for a savior
When all along I had the power to save myself
And I can tell
It’s gonna be a better day
I think I’m gonna be okay
Got a little air to breathe
It’s allright with me
I got a little light to shine
You can’t take what’s mine
I’ve been down so low
Nowhere but up to go
So go ahead, bring on the rain
It’s gonna be a better day

Every princess has a castle
Some kind of honor to defend
I would rather fight my battlews
Than hide behind a thousand men
I’ve been hanging my hair
Outside of this tower
Waiting for a savior
When all along, I had the power to save myself
And I can tell
It’s gonna be a better day
I think I’m gonna be okay
Got a little air to breathe
It’s allright with me
I got a little light to shine
You can’t take what’s mine
I’ve been down so low
Nowhere but up to go
So go ahead, bring on the rain
It’s gonna be a better day
I gotta make my own luck
I gotta find my own way
I gotta see that there is more to life than just existing
I wanna be living
It’s gonna be a better day
I think I’m gonna be okay
Got a little air to breathe
It’s allright with me
I got a little light to shine
You can’t take what’s mine
I’ve been down so low
Nowhere but up to go
So go ahead, bring on the rain
It’s gonna be a better day

I think Saving Jane has been on some Disney album before, so I think this is a nice message to be sending young girls, that they have the power to be who they want. She also has a song called One Girl Revolution. Although a few of her other songs take on messages around addiction (nicotine, alcohol), there is something to be said about breaking away from the fairy tale (reference to Rapunzel in this song). I find it interesting that so often parents do not question “traditions” that have been around for ages to pass along to their children, like fairy tales. There is so much gendering that happens in fairy tales, which is just one of a hundred ways parents subconsciously gender their children. I know if I ever have children I am showing them Free To Be You And Me (see my post here : http://www.wavinghand.com/gender_relations/?p=13). There is some great alternative media / stories if people were to seek them out, and I think this song helps get at breaking the helplessness of females in fairy tales! 

I have been reading “The Body Adornment Encyclopedia”, and there is just a load of great information in it (I suggest reading it to anyone – even if you aren’t overly interested in the topic of body modification), and like with any subject there are gender implications to some of the information. I haven’t read the entire thing yet, but I will post some more gender related comments as I go through! For now, I have two main comments!

• In the book it was talking about “Beauty” (B) – and how the standards for women are much higher for men and much more unobtainable and a lot of the things I think a lot of people would agree with. Then they went on to talk about how a common feminist philosophy is that women are supposed to be thin for a very literal and figurative reason – to take up less space. I had never thought about beauty standards being so literal before – that the skinner women are the less room they take up on earth (and on the other side that men are bulkier because they can / should take up more room). Whether it is a stretch of a metaphor or not, there is a valid passing thought to be considered that asks what other reasons is skinny so popular. I mean obesity could just as easily be considered the standard under different social perceptions? Regardless, interesting metaphor to think about.

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• The other point I thought was just flatout disgusting was under Australia (A). Talking about native tribes and traditions (in relation to rites of passage) the author describes the male maturity process. The male (usually 12 years of age) goes into the forest alone (separated in a very direct way from his mother), and must find his way back to the tribe. Waiting there will be his male blood relatives as well as his future ‘in-laws’ (as the bride will be picked for him – also around the age of 12). From there, they circumcise the boy and make him eat his own flesh. The circumcision is a very direct metaphor for bleeding out any signs of femininity that the boy may have left (and at times later on they will make an incision under the shaft of the penis in order to make sure the boy has drenched out all femininity). Thinking about cross-cultural perspectives of gender always opens a whole new bag of worms because there are different customs all over the world. In America we go about gendering in such an overt way (comparatively). I just find it rather depressing that some cultures find that having qualities of other genders / sex to be such a demoralizing stance, that they must cut it out of themselves. I wonder where that intense segregation comes (in other cultures). It is different from country to country and even tribe to tribe. I do get glimmers of hope when I hear about a lot of Native America tribes and how they treat their women. For example, when women are on their “moon” (period), it is a time for them to relax, and men see it as a cycle of wisdom. Now, that is a much different interpretation than this Australian tribe. (There is a great article called “If Men Could Menstruate” – but i’ll save that for another time!)

Those were two pieces of the book that really shouted out “GENDER ALERT” to me. There is some great info about Betty Broadbent in the book too (the first women to be fully tattooed). She was a pioneer for the tattoo culture bad in the day (she had 365 – one for each day). It was nice to read about a woman from a long time ago becoming part of a culture that was mostly started by sailors, then advanced by bikers (and carnival folk).

Well, hopefully you found those points of focus interesting as well, if I see anything else of relation in the book, i’ll be sure to post!

REMEMBER TO VOTE TOMORROW NOV. 4th!

This election has very apparently been one that has been shrouded with gender opinions across the board. From Hillary’s crying game to Palin’s moose shooting tactics, the battles of gender have been brought into the spotlight of politics more than ever (at least at the presidential level).

In a recent article on Galesburg.com, it was suggested that gender does play a role in this current election. One older woman in the article suggests that Palin has murky views on the role of women, thinking they should just sit in their homes all day. This, too, is what bothers me about Sarah Palin. Going back to the idea that she believes that women should have to pay for rape kits, her views on femininity feel overflowed with contradiction. On one hand she lives the very stereotypical ‘beauty’ role of women in society (pagent, etc.), but then on the other hand is a women who ‘could be’ a strong politician (with more experience), and is very pro-gun (a typical male recreation). The point is that even though she sits back and defies some gender roles, she is quick to throw other women even further in the bucket of their ‘place in society’.

Not A Kiss I Want

One point of take-off that I find very interesting is that men and women are voting rather equally in this election. 52% of women projected for Obama and 49% of men for McCain. Although my tendencies would be to lean that women are more liberal (historically more oppressed groups are more liberal), but it seems pretty even. I just find it very hard to believe that women could vote for an administration that would make them pay for a rape kit. The very notion of such a law is a slap in the face to victims, which surprises me the % of women is not higher as women statistically care more about health care in this election. Even though I feel like the divides should be bigger, it is kind of nice to see women and men equally thinking the same about the issues.

I also read a recent article about women in politics and how they may need a little extra than a good platform to win over the people (i.e. a good looking face or body). A study done by Northwestern University found :

• Voters perceived the faces of male politicians as more competent and dominant relative to female politicians.
• Female politicians were perceived as more attractive and approachable relative to males.
• Candidates who were perceived as more attractive by men were more likely to win votes in the actual Congressional election.
• Gender stereotypes may bias voters to value male politicians over female politicians because they possess facial features associated with effective leaders.

Although, I take a very sociological stance on just about everything I read, watch, or observe, the last point sends out an interesting psychological message as well as one that could be contradictory. It may be true that we associate male facial features with success, which may aide to some of the discrimination that Obama has faced. We have to wake up to our biases because they are holding down people who can create change for us. Just because Sarah Palin has a pretty face does not mean she has any competence. I would argue the contrary — That women who meet the standards of beauty for our society are less percieved to do a good job because women in this setting are percieved to have lower intelligence. Even though this is not true, it seems to be antithetical to the logic behind the facial arguement.

Although I am sure Sarah Palin being VP would raise some interesting gender issues for politics, I can only hope that she does not make it to that seat because this would mean setting the thoughts of feminism back moreso than the counter-party.