literature-andstuff

[literature-andstuff]

The Doll’s House and an Ivory Soap advertorial: being a woman

A Doll’s House is a Henrik Ibsen’s play about a family, about social norms and about truth. With Ibsen’s characteristic use of language, full of satire, he reveals the flawed nature of our society and the way it causes troubles in interpersonal relationships and, more importantly, one’s relationship with themselves. Nora is the best example of that. 

Although it wasn’t the only problematic thing for her character, she was heavily influenced by gender norms, especially because it was the XIX century, and those were way more strict back then. 

In my analysis I compared Nora’s situation (especially at the end of the play, when she decided to leave Helmer) to the advertorial of Ivory Soap from the 1940s, which we talked about in class, and which also portrays problems related to the woman’s place in the family and, by extension, the society.

Throughout the play, Helmer didn’t treat Nora as an equal, but rather an object of his entertainment. The way he addressed her with pet names, disturbed her when she spoke, and her dance for him are a good evidence of that dynamic. Because they were both preoccupied with social status and norms, he manipulated her as he could to stay in the status quo, and she played along. But eventually, she admitted to herself just how unhappy she’d always been. “I knew that wonderful things don’t happen everyday”, she said, revealing that she had been settling for less than she wanted, because she thought it was the right - or only - thing to do. 

In the final act, she described the dynamic between herself and Helmer with such irony, the reader was sure that she was actually more self-aware than expected, and her previous self was just constructed to satisfy what was expected of her. “You mean that I would never have accepted such a sacrifice on your part?”, “I was your little skylark, your doll, which you would in the future treat with doubly gentle care, because it is so bitter and fragile”.

The final support for the claim that the issue was strictly intertwined with the concept of femininity is in the exchange of words:

“Helmer: No man would sacrifice his honour for the one he loves

Nora: It is a thing hundreds of thousands of women have done”.

She emphasizes that to many, being a woman in society is a constant sacrifice, be it of their time, their authentic personality, their ambitions and goals in life.

Helmer telling Nora “she thinks like a heedless child” perfectly summarized the deprivation of agency of women through manipulation and wings-cutting, in order to maintain the status quo, which, I imagine, must have been a vastly bigger problem in the time of the play.

The play ends with Nora walking away from Helmer and all her current life to find her authentic self. “As I am now, I’m no wife for you” - she means that partnership should be based not on urging social norms, but on authenticity. This is additionally supported by the fact that the tragedy of the play resulted from a lie.

The aforementioned advertorial for Ivory Bath targets women as potential consumers, and the basis of the persuasion is that a relaxed woman is of better utility to her family. Through the visual (in form of a comic strip) we see that the husband and the son are talking about the mother “ruining the evening” with her complaints, resulting from a whole day of housework. A tired woman is portrayed as a burden to her family - but the author of the advertorial proposes a solution, not for the woman’s own enjoyment, but rather for her performance in terms of family life.

It feels like this narrative dehumanizes the housewife and portrays her as a product, like a robot whose main goal should be to satisfy their family, to a point of exaustion. Otherwise, she should expect a punishment - her family will turn against her. 

Assuming that the advertorial reflects the social attitude towards housewifes or women as a whole, we can only imagine how much pressure was (or still is) exerted on women. Even the products that are advertised for their own use appeal not to their satisfaction, but are presented as a means of satisfying others.

Both texts carry an important message about the social norms regarding women that were present in the times they were created, and whose remains we can still feel now. Women have not been viewed as their own people for a long time, and it’s important to be aware of these patterns, as well as of the general effect of social norms (as presented in A Doll’s House).

Viewing one’s life in terms of authenticity rather than external expectations, just like Nora eventually did, may prove itself to be an important life lesson.

[literature-andstuff]

Banksy: street art analysis

Banksy is one of the most famous street artists in the world. He’s a pseudonymous artist. His works often have a political war, sometimes commenting on the horror of war. Analysis of some works can be found below. 

Armoured Dove of Peace

Purpose: confronting the parties of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict 

Symbol: a dove with an olive branch (peace), a bulletproof vest with an aim on it (armed conflict, the peace is constrained by war)

By depicting the dove with an olive branch and in a bulletproof vest Banksy uses symbolism and social commentary to bring attention to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and its harmful effects.

Tank Tow-away Zone

Purpose: to deliver an anti-war message 

Symbol: a tank (symbolising war) being pulled away (which indicates a negative attitude towards what it represents)

By depicting a tank being pulled away and using the style of informative road signs the author expresses his pacifistic attitude and provides social commentary particularly about the Israeli-Palestinian war. 

Slave Labour

Purpose: to criticize the use of sweatshops in the London Olympics and Diamond Jubilee memorabilia, and generally slave labour.

Symbol: a sewing machine (symbolizing manual labour), the British flag (symbolizing Britain itself as the country profiting from the slave labour), a child (symbolizing child labour. 

[literature-andstuff]

The Great Gatsby

The Great Gatsby, a famous novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, tells a story of a wealthy neighbourhood nearby New York and its residents. The main character, Jay Gatsby, is a mysterious man whose main motivation is to prove himself worthy of the woman he once fell in love with and lost. 

One of the main motives in the story is class, how it affects people and class conflict. It seems that everyone there either wants to be rich, or is absurdly rich, to the point of ignorance and moral decadence. Maybe apart from the narrator, who just observes the story with no strong feelings, and George Wilson, who just wants to live a simple life with his wife. Yet, the Wilsons - the lower class - end up in the most tragic position at the end of the novel, while the old-money rich move on from the mess they have made. Gatsby’s story ends tragically, too, as his constant chase for a certain status and the feelings of Daisy lead to a disaster. 

During my English classes, we aimed to describe the characters, to get to know them better.

Jay Gatsby

He fought in the war and excelled in it.

He was said to have been an “Oxford Man”. (“By the way, Mr. Gatsby, I understand you’re an Oxford man.” “Not exactly.” “Oh, yes, I understand you went to Oxford.” “Yes — I went there.” A pause. Then Tom’s voice, incredulous and insulting: “You must have gone there about the time Biloxi went to New Haven.” Another pause. A waiter knocked and came in with crushed mint and ice but, the silence was unbroken by his “thank you.” and the soft closing of the door. This tremendous detail was to be cleared up at last. “I told you I went there,” said Gatsby. “I heard you, but I’d like to know when.” “It was in nineteen-nineteen, I only stayed five months. That’s why I can’t really call myself an Oxford man.”)

He sold liquor illegally and took parts in all sorts of illegal activities/transactions.

He threw huge parties to impress his old girlfriend.

He was very mysterious, there were plenty of gossips running around about him.

His life took a turn when he saw a yacht on Lake Superior and that’s where he met Dan Cody who took him on board, they travelled the seas for several years (”James Gatz—that was really, or at least legally, his name. He had changed it at the age of seventeen and at the specific moment that witnessed the beginning of his career—when he saw Dan Cody's yacht drop anchor over the most insidious flat on Lake Superior. It was James Gatz who had been loafing along the beach that afternoon in a torn green jersey and a pair of canvas pants, but it was already Jay Gatsby who borrowed a row-boat, pulled out to the Tuolomee and informed Cody that a wind might catch him and break him up in half an hour.” (chapter 6))

He came from a poor family, he always felt he was destined for something great and was determined to achieve it (“His parents were shiftless and unsuccessful farm people—his imagination had never really accepted them as his parents at all.” (chapter 6))

He was described as handsome and a ‘fine gentleman’ ("He has to telephone," said Mr. Wolfshiem, following him with his eyes. "Fine fellow, isn't he? Handsome to look at and a perfect gentleman." (chapter 4))

He was generous, after he became wealthy he wanted to give his family a lot, as well as his guests.

He called everybody ‘old sport’ ("I thought you knew, old sport. I'm afraid I'm not a very good host."(chapter 3))

He was calm and guarded, his eyes always looked as if he understood the person he was talking to on a very deep level (“He smiled understandingly — much more than understandingly. It was one of those rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it, that you may come across four or five times in life. It faced — or seemed to face — the whole external world for an instant, and then concentrated on you with an irresist- ible prejudice in your favor.”); some people also said he looked as if he had killed a man (“The two girls and Jordan leaned together confidentially. “Somebody told me they thought he killed a man once.”)

He would often look through his window or from his deck to observe East Egg from across the bay where he knew was Daisy’s mansion.

Daisy Buchanan

She came from a very wealthy family in Louisville and that’s where she met Gatsby who was a poor soldier at the time.

She had a very nice voice that everybody admired (“Her voice is full of money,” he said suddenly. That was it. I’d never understood before. It was full of money — that was the inexhaustible charm that rose and fell in it, the jingle of it, the cymbals’ song of it... . high in a white palace the king’s daughter, the golden girl…”)

She was very sensitive, easily moved to tears.

She was quite indecisive, fragile.

She was very charming.

She’s not in control of her emotions, easily rattled and vulnerable.

She was impulsive - drove after Tom’s and Gatsby’s fight and killed Myrtle.

Nick Carraway

He is the narrator of the story.

He finished Yale and was World War I veteran (“I was rather literary in college—one year I wrote a series of very solemn and obvious editorials for the "Yale News" (chapter 1))

He comes from the Midwest (“My family have been prominent, well-to-do people in this middle-western city for three generations” (chapter 1))

He is Gatsby’s neighbour and Daisy’s cousin (“The one on my right was a colossal affair by any standard—it was a factual imitation of some Hôtel de Ville in Normandy, with a tower on one side, spanking new under a thin beard of raw ivy, and a marble swimming pool and more than forty acres of lawn and garden. It was Gatsby's mansion. “; “Daisy was my second cousin once removed” (chapter 1))

He met Tom Buchanan while attending Yale University (”I'd known Tom in college” (chapter 1))

He doesn’t judge people, often acts as their confidant (“In consequence I'm inclined to reserve all judgments, a habit that has opened up many curious natures to me and also made me the victim of not a few veteran bores.”)

He has mixed feelings on life on the East Coast.

He dates Jordan, but dislikes her dishonesty (“Jordan Baker instinctively avoided clever, shrewd men, and now I saw that this was because she felt safer on a plane where any divergence from a code would be thought impossible. She was incurably dishonest. She wasn't able to endure being at a disadvantage, and given this unwillingness, I suppose she had begun dealing in subterfuges when she was very young in order to keep that cool, insolent smile turned to the world and yet satisfy the demands of her hard jaunty body.” (chapter 3))

At the end of the book, he returns to the Midwest (“After Gatsby's death the East was haunted for me like that, distorted beyond my eyes' power of correction. So when the blue smoke of brittle leaves was in the air and the wind blew the wet laundry stiff on the line I decided to come back home.” (chapter 8))

Tom Buchanan

He went to Yale with Nick. (Daisy was my second cousin once removed, and I’d known Tom in college. And just after the war I spent two days with them in Chicago.) (“He was probably bumming his way home. He told me he was president of your class at Yale.” 98 Tom and I looked at each other blankly. “Biloxi?” “First place, we didn’t have any president ——”)

He came from a very wealthy family.

He came across as aggressive when he interacted with others: (“His speaking voice, a gruff husky tenor, added to the im- pression of fractiousness he conveyed. There was a touch of paternal contempt in it, even toward people he liked—and there were men at New Haven who had hated his guts.” Chapter 1)

He was one of the best football players.

According to Nick, he peaked when he was young and everything felt like anti-climax afterwards.

He repeats what he read in racist books (“I suppose the latest thing is to sit back and let Mr. Nobody from Nowhere make love to your wife. Well, if that’s the idea you can count me out... . Nowadays people begin by sneering at family life and family institutions, and next they’ll throw everything over- board and have intermarriage between black and white.”)

He believed in conspiracy theories and is also confused about them (“I read somewhere that the sun’s getting hotter every year,” said Tom genially. “It seems that pretty soon the earth’s going to fall into the sun — or wait a minute — it’s just the opposite — the sun’s getting colder every year.”)

He had a simple mind although tried to pretend otherwise.

He called Gatsby “Mister Nobody from Nowhere”.

He is sexist and violent towards his lovers (“Daisy! Daisy! Daisy!” shouted Mrs. Wilson. “I’ll say it whenever I want to! Daisy! Dai ——” Making a short deft movement, Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand.”)

He cheats on Daisy with Myrtle.

Myrtle Wilson

Tom’s lover.

She had a sister - Catherine.

She lived in the Valley of Ashes.

George Wilson’s wife.

Meetings with Tom were her opportunity for a better life - he was giving her gifts and because of him she could try to live as an upper-class for a while. (“Is it a boy or a girl?” she asked delicately. “That dog? That dog’s a boy.” 23 “It’s a bitch,” said Tom decisively. “Here’s your money. Go and buy ten more dogs with it.”) - the whole scene about buying dog 

She was killed by Daisy.

Tom never loved her and treated her as an object or his possession.

George Wilson

Myrtle’s husband.

He owned a garage in the valley of ashes.

He was gullible.

He killed Gatsby and himself after death of his wife.

He was a very average man who Myrtle initially took for being of “good breeding” ("I married him because I thought he was a gentleman," she said finally. "I thought he knew something about breeding, but he wasn't fit to lick my shoe." (chapter 2))

Jordan Baker 

Famous golfer but cheated her way into winning the tournament.

She was a friend of Daisy’s.

She was more reserved than Daisy, which was seen in her relationship with Nick.

She is the polar opposite of Daisy - she’s not married or committed to anyone and lives her life largely for her own pleasure and by her own rules.

She often made sarcastic remarks that made others laugh (“I’ve made a small investigation of this fellow,” he continued. “I could have gone deeper if I’d known ——” “Do you mean you’ve been to a medium?” inquired Jordan humorously. “What?” Confused, he stared at us as we laughed. “A medium?”)

She was a liar and a social climber, fame-hungry.

[literature-andstuff]

Persepolis: the symbolism

Persepolis is a graphic novel by Marjane Satrapi. Through characteristic visuals and a witty dialogue we can follow the story of a young girl experiencing a dark period in the history of Iran - the war with Iraq of the 1980s. It’s a great read, both because of the historical and cultural knowledge it conveys, and simply because of how interesting the story is. 

Some of the most important parts of the narrative are hidden in symbolism, especially important considering the nature of a graphic novel, where a lot of the textual content gives way to the form. 

Among the most significant symbols in Persepolis are:

The bread swan: it was a gift that Marji’s beloved uncle gave to her. He made it in prison, where he was as a political prisoner. The bread as a material for art can be thought of as the symbol of resistance - poor and opressed people, who didn’t have much but their ideas, used anything they owned to pass the ideas on. The swan, as a symbol of love, trust, loyalty can also represent the relationship between Marji and her uncle, who were soulmates.

The key: a key to heaven was promised to young soldier boys as a reward for their death in sacrifice for the country. It is a symbol of martyrdom, but also, considering that it was plastic painted gold, a symbol of the phoniness of war as a higher value. 

The cigarette: smoked by Marji, a young teenager, as an act of rebellion, it’s meant to symbolize rebellion itself, as well as the loss of youth and innocence, forced on children by the war. 

The veil: the veil, which women were forced to wear in Iran in 1980, is a symbol of oppresion, suppression of individuality and character, and the division of society. By the way they wore their veil, women either made a political statement or were quickly cathegorized by ‘a type of woman’ anyway. It made Marji, and probably many other girls coming of age, confused about her identity.

[literature-andstuff]

Alone by Edgar Allan Poe

Edgar Allan Poe

Alone

From childhood’s hour I have not been

As others were—I have not seen

As others saw—I could not bring

My passions from a common spring—

From the same source I have not taken

My sorrow—I could not awaken

My heart to joy at the same tone—

And all I lov’d—I lov’d alone—

Then—in my childhood—in the dawn

Of a most stormy life—was drawn

From ev’ry depth of good and ill

The mystery which binds me still—

From the torrent, or the fountain—

From the red cliff of the mountain—

From the sun that ’round me roll’d

In its autumn tint of gold—

From the lightning in the sky

As it pass’d me flying by—

From the thunder, and the storm—

And the cloud that took the form

(When the rest of Heaven was blue)

Of a demon in my view—

 Analysis 

The poem Alone by Edgar Allan Poe, written in 1830, is a pretty personal one. It’s actually considered to be one of the most revealing of his works. You could identify that the speaker in the poem as the author himself, considering the storyline of his life, riddled with addiction, depression and traumas. I think he wrote the poem mostly to get the feelings he’d held inside for his entire life out, maybe to make those rare people with similar experiences as his understood.

The text is about emotional isolation and being misunderstood. The speaker says that from his very first years of life, he couldn’t relate to his peers. He perceived the world in a completely different way, according to him. Different things made him sad, and he saw beauty and joy in different things. There were passions within his soul that he couldn’t find in nobody else, he was interested in things that nobody else care about - or he lacked the communication skills to share his love for them. He grew up seeing more and more differences between himself and others, to the point where his mind became a mystery for him, one that he was never to solve in his life. He mentioned that this mystery arises from „every depth of good and ill”, emphasizing the ambivalence of emotions and thoughts that came upon his mind. It is also said that childhood was the dawn of his turbulent life, as it shaped him, and was probably full of events that instilled this unhappy mindset in him.

 The rich imageries he used to describe various elements of nature may symbolize his search for his own place in the world, in which he always felt so strange. They may as well indicate that he thought of himself as someone more sensitive to certain things in life, a good observer, perceiving the things that others failed to notice, or that this in-depth observation of the world made him realize how much he stands out from it, but he couldn’t quite understand why, so his mind being a mystery stemmed from it. The last imagery of a cloud taking a demon’s form, surrounded by a blue sky. He probably saw himself as the cloud, thinking of himself as a bad, or at least an adequate person, while everybody else seemed to get the world naturally and unanimously. He saw the society as a harmony that he was a disturbance to.

 Poe uses anaphoras like „As others were; I have not seen/As others saw; I could not bring” and enjambments like „I have not taken/My sorrow; I could not awaken…” as literary devices to enrich the poem. The text has twenty two lines with no stanza break. The rhyme scheme is AABB, and the poem follows iambic tetrameter.

 The tone of the poem is quite gloomy and sad, but in a somewhat comforting way. The whole poem suggests that the experiences of the person speaking are unique, characteristic only for him. Yet I think the popularity of the poem shows that it’s way more relatable than it was predicted by the author. Also, human mind is very complex and can produce so many various thought patterns, and some thoughts tend to remain more or less private. That’s why people can always feel left with the feeling that nobody else thinks like them, that they’re very different. I think it’s more often an issue of lack of communication between individuals than actual inadequacy of one person. This being said, I don’t want to invalidate Poe’s feelings, as he must have been a very original mind indeed. He was one of the greatest poets of his generation, and art of any kind requires an unconventional way of thinking. He also suffered from mental illness, which was probably the reason for the way he felt and how his perception of the self against the world was distorted. The traits of character described in the poem are by many associated with his genius. 

[literature-andstuff]

How to Attract Women Without Even Trying analysis

„How to attract women without even trying” is a commercial in form of an advertorial published in the 1990s. Its aim is to promote a book by Franklin Parlamis, titled “A Passive Man’s Guide to Seduction”. Both visual and written means are used to attract and persuade a potential reader. The target audience, as suggested by the title of the book, is limited to single men who struggle to connect with women.

The advertisement begins by pointing out a problem, only to propose the promoted product as a perfect solution. The problem in question are the changing gender roles in dating. The author believes that modern women, women of the 90s, to be precise, are significantly different than they used to be, and therefore, they need to be approached with a different strategy. They are described with words of masculine connotation, such as “ballsy”, “assertive”, or even “the aggressor”. The whole advertisement operates on the premise that women are, traditionally, passive, while men are more dominant. However, as it’s noticed, the society has put a spin on it. The women are becoming more demanding – or, as the author calls it, “aggressive”. It is the norm for men to fight this phenomenon, but not for the author of the book – he’s proposing an innovative, shocking approach, completely opposite of the norm. This freshness and originality is meant to attract and convince a buyer.

It is suggested that all women are exactly the same. The author claims that Parlamis “taps into the psyche of a woman”, but in fact, he simplifies said psyche largely, making it seem as if people didn’t have different personalities and failed dating life could be caused by one problem, which can be solved in one easy, universal and foolproof way. These generalizations are used to emphasize how radically the society is changing, and therefore, create a feeling of inadequacy in the target audience. The reader is meant to conclude that if he fails to educate himself about the new order of things and adjust his actions, he’s going to miss out. It’s an efficient persuasion tool, as few people are not afraid to stick out in the crowd, especially if the reason would be their outdated understanding of the world.

The author proposes a detailed strategy for attracting women, which leaves little room for individuality, essentially encouraging the reader to change his entire personality, adapt a persona that is going to make him well-off in this new society. At the same time, he ensures him that he “just has to be himself” and that “the less he tries, the more she comes after him”. The reader is meant to conclude that reading the book will make him catch two birds with one stone – learn how to charm women while not losing himself in the process, and doing that with little to no effort.

The main visual used is probably the cover of the book that is advertised. It’s relevant to the topic – it’s a photograph of a heterosexual couple, which is the ultimate desired outcome for the potential buyer of the book. The man is on the left. He looks straight into the camera, his look seems confidential, as if he was about to share a secret with the person looking at the picture. The woman is hugging him, her arms surrounding him entirely, and kissing him on the cheek. She seems to be in love with him. She’s looking somewhere between him and the camera, which may signify that she can barely keep her eyes off him. The choice of the photo isn’t accidental – it’s meant to enhance the desire of a relationship in the target audience. Other visuals on the page are supposed to represent other advertisements, but they are still relevant to the topic of dating women and definitely change the perception of the advertisement. The potential buyer of the book will not read it for the sake of reading it.

Rather, the motivation will be the beautiful women, such as those shown on the pictures. They are objectified and presented as the “final product” of the whole process of acquiring the knowledge from the book.

The simplicity of the world that this ad is creating is, realistically, a little naive, but just as effective in marketing. It provides a lot of hope for those who struggle with their dating life. It would definitely persuade a less skeptical and critical consumer.

[literature-andstuff]

The Story of an Hour article

Based on The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin, 1894

The whole town of Grayville shook at the death of a local housewife, Louise Mallard, following a strange series of events. 

 Doctor J. Johnson from the town hospital confirmed that on June 18th, 1894 Louise Mallard experienced a heart attack. “It was nothing like I’ve seen before”, says Johnson. “Mrs Mallard had no pre-existing conditions, was young and in a relatively good state.” Nobody could have seen death coming her way. It came upon her close ones and her neighbors like a bolt from the blue and left them with immense grief. 

 There was some considerable peculiarity to the circumstances of her death. Just an hour before this tragic occurrence a message had been delivered to the Grayville Times office about a railroad accident, along with the list of fatalities. Among the deceased was mentioned one of our townsmen, Brently Mallard. Fortunately - or not-so-fortunately, considering the aftermath – the list turned out to be inaccurate. Mr Mallard was not only not involved in the accident, he had no idea it had happened. He arrived home to stand face to face with his wife, who, in a matter of seconds, fell to her knees and never spoke again. 

 The overload of devastating news deeply traumatized Mrs Mallard’s sister, Josephine, and Mr Mallards friend, Richards, who were present at the Mallards’ house on that day. “My friend Brently and Louise were very close”, said Richards the day following the death. “No wonder that the horrible news overwhelmed her to the point of illness.” Her sister, Josephine, who was Mrs Mallard’s best friend, has a slightly different opinion. “Her and Brently had a lot of problems,” she said. “I think she felt too many things at once when she heard about the accident, and it was just too much for her. May she rest in peace.”  

 Mrs Mallard was known, liked and respected in our town for her friendliness, great sense of humor, a giving heart and so much more. An open funeral will be held for her on June 25th, 11am, at the Grayville North Church. 

[literature-andstuff]

A letter to Ms Liza Donelly

Referring to the TED Talk found here.

Dear Ms Liza Donelly,

 I would like to start this letter with an expression of how much I admire your engagement in social issues that need to be tackled. I believe it’s remarkable when somebody uses their passion and talent to communicate something significant, to change the world for the better, to help the oppressed.

 An intention to be vocal about something is one thing. Choosing the right medium for it is another – and I would even dare to say, more important. You mentioned humor in your TED Talk a few times. In fact, all of your art is based on humor. I think it’s essential for its message to get through to people. In our times of mass culture and social media people are looking for entertainment. Maybe a few individuals care more about straight up sociopolitical issues than their own entertainment, but most of us are more receptive to content that provides some dopamine rush coming from its humor. Memes are a perfect example of that – they play an enormous role in normalizing and stigmatizing certain behaviors and opinions, especially in younger generations, which are going to create the future of the world, after all. That is because they carry their message with a dose of irony or some other type of humor. If something can make people of many different backgrounds laugh, it means it connects them, makes them find something they can all relate to, something they have in common.

 The same things can be said about good old political cartoons, such as yours. I have not seen many cartoons mentioning gender issues, so I really appreciate that you decided to create. What is really important to me, that your artwork doesn’t only focus on economic oppression, but also mentions systemic social oppression, such as lack of sexual freedom, the beauty myth, and the overall social pressures that are put on women from their youngest years, pressures that sometimes contradict one another.

 What you do is really important and empowering. I’m sure it has contributed to women of the world feeling less alone in their daily struggles. 

Best regards,

Karolina 

[literature-andstuff]

The World’s Wife

Carol Ann Duffy’s poem collection The World’s Wife contains poems that together form a chronologically organized whole. The main theme is relationships from a woman’s perspective. Each poem represents some type of relationship that a woman is likely to experience in her lifetime. I get the impression that Duffy meant to show the cycle of life that each woman can relate at least to some extent.

There is a lot of intertextuality in the collection, in fact, the whole concept is based on it. Each text is a reference to some woman that is a part of our culture either as a mythological character, a historical figure or one coming from a tale. Some of them are not known themselves, but are a female counterpart to some famous man from history. Especially the latter suggests a feminist background on the work, being an imagination of how the history would play out if there was more femininity in it, if female perspective played a role. 

The very first poem, Little Red-Cap, is my favorite one. It plays with the original story of the Little Red Riding Hood. She is presented as a young woman, living through a transition from childhood to maturity. A crucial part for this process is her meeting her first lover. She’s captured by lust, impressed by his masculinity, to which she refers in both positive and negative ways. Duffy portrays her as inexperienced and uncared for before she met him. She longs for connection, so she fails to set boundaries. She mentions loss of innocence (referring to it with a symbolic “white dove”), but in a way that implies that it wasn’t shared by her completely consensually, but rather taken by him. She describes the love she experiences as brutal (comparing her lover to a wolf, which reminds us of danger and violence), but love nonetheless (“breath of the wolf in my ear, was the love poem”). Little Red-Cap seems to accept the way she’s treated and overlook it because of how much she admires the man she’s with, how exciting and inspiring he is (“What big ears he had! What big eyes he had! What teeth!” is a repetition and a direct reference to the story the poem is based on). In the last two stanzas the mood changes and the Little Red-Cap is ten years older. She uses various metaphors, such as the forest (being the metaphor for their relationship) to describe her realization of how oppressive her partner is, also that he has grown boring and has nothing to offer to “make up” for his behavior anymore. She breaks free. I think Duffy uses this poem to show how the perception of love and the boundaries we set changes as we mature. The first romantic connections we form in our youth, when we are figuring life out and seeking security (especially in women’s case, taking into account that historically we’ve been dependent on men economically, and there are still remains of that norm today), and oppressive patterns of behavior can sometimes be mistaken for security with a lack of experience. As Little Red Hood matures, she begins to view her partner as what he really is. The fascination is gone, so is the need for security, as she is older and wiser. 

However, not all Duffy’s poems are about romantic relationships. The last poem, Demeter is told from a dead woman’s perspective (that is why it’s the last one, chronologically). It refers to the Greek myth about Demeter and her daughter, Persephone. She talks about her daughter, how the world lightens up as she walks by. She is seemingly very proud. The first two stanzas create a sad mood, painting a picture of emptiness and cold winter. But when the daughter comes, spring comes with her, and nature comes alive. Rich imagery allows the audience to better picture the contrast between the two situations. The poem suggests a very strong connection between Demeter and her daughter, strong enough to survive the death of one of them. There is a part of Demeter in every woman, both genetically and psychologically speaking. The changing of seasons as the daughter arrives may refer to the importance of motherhood and legacy for some women. 

Duffy definitely views the mother and daughter relationship as a very significant one. She mentions it in the poem Queen Herod as well, which talks about the never-ending need to protect your daughter from the evil of this world, while some of the perceived evil might be your own experience as a female projected, such as unrequited love. 

Although many of the poems tell stories of relationships that left at least one of the sides unhappy, it’s not always the case. In Anne Hathaway (a reference to the historical wife of Shakespeare) the woman speaking is very happy due to her lover being by her side. She describes his behavior in the best way possible, as gentle and full of goodness, which leaves us with a better impression about the kind of love between the characters than in, for instance, the first poem. It conveys hope that this kind of love exists, too, and each of us is likely to experience it at some point. This variety, an abundance of forms that love can take is what makes it such a great subject for art. It was most certainly one of the author’s main inspirations for the collection.

The World’s Wife is all about relationships. Some are more relatable, some are less, but they are all human and abundant in the world around us, even though in the poems they are wrapped up in unrealistic stories full of symbolism.

[literature-andstuff]

The tempest and its most important themes: colonialism and power

Shakespeare’s The Tempest explores a variety of themes. One of the main ones is power - it is suggested that if someone is able to exploit their power, they will. Antonio takes advantage of Prospero and he, in turn, starts to exploit Ariel and Caliban. He uses an unfair advantage, his magical powers, to enslave them, giving them no fighting chance. It can be interpreted as the belief that there’s no stable justice in life and who gets to be free and takes away freedom from others is often decided by factors that individuals have no control over. 

This notion above leads us to colonialism in The Tempest. When Prospero and Miranda arrive on the island, Ariel and Caliban already live there. They are the actual inhabitants, and it may be argued that they deserve to decide about the island more than Prospero does, because they know it better and have lived there their whole lives. Prospero uses tools that only he has that allow him to take power over them, having no respect for their will or freedom. We can spot the same patterns in history, for instance in the colonial period when European countries invaded ones that were ‘less civilized’, exerted power over them using more advanced technology (like Prospero’s magic), and proceeded to change and exploit them to their advantage. Of course, Shakespeare lived way before this period, but even in his perspective, the past was full of invasions and disregard for the original inhabitants’ will. 

[literature-andstuff]

A scene from Edward Scissorhands: identity vs social norms

The scene can be found here.

How is identity portrayed?

The movie ‘Edward Scissorhands’ tells a story of a boy with scissors in place of his hands, a feature that makes him very different from others. He struggles to find his place in the world and fit in with the society. He gradually learns how to form relationships and even make use of his special abilities. In the analyzed scene we can see that he still doesn’t quite know who he is. During the interview, he responds with enthusiasm to the woman proposing him a surgery which would give him normal, human hands. Then some other women from the audience notice that the scissors he would get rid of are what make him special, if it wasn’t for them he would be just like everybody else. His caretaker then suggests that it’s not his scissorhands that make him so special, but his good nature. This dialogue shows how complex identity is, and how many dilemmas we face when we’re trying to understand what makes us who we are. 

Other elements of video analysis

Sound:

The sound of clapping people and dialogues between them are the first most important sounds in this scene, because of them we can understand the situation in which characters are. When the protagonist is asked a question about his beloved one there is the first non-diegetic sound which is a quiet song in the background that shows us the importance of this moment and emotions of the protagonist towards the girl in front of TV.

Camera Shot: 

The distance between the camera and the subjects of the scene changes, subtly illustrating the emotional significance the events have from their perspective. The members of the audience are usually shown in long and medium shots, sometimes indirectly, through a TV screen.  Even if kind, they are merely distant strangers. On the other hand, Edward’s reactions are captured more closely. When a question about his relationships is posed, the camera zooms in on both Winona Ryder’s and Johnny Depp’s faces, evoking a feeling of intimacy between them, further emphasized by the music score. 

Montage:

The cuts between close ups of Edward and the audience which gradually speed up make the scene more suspenseful. It also builds a more personal relationship with the protagonist. The fact that the viewer can hear the claps and awws even when the audience isn't visible on screen paints a more united and life like scene.  

Camera Angle: 

There are a lot of eye-level shots of Edward, it mimics how we would perceive him in real life to feel more connected to the character. There are a few lower-angle shots, which in this case, mimic how Edward would see the audience as he is sitting in a chair and the audience sees him from the rows that surround the sitting area, placed in the lowermost part of the room. The shot seems almost overwhelming as it towers over the camera shot, we can anticipate that it is also overwhelming to Edward, who throughout the scene has a range of emotions going on on his face. The camera shots usually levels with whoever is on the screen, usually to show emotions more clearly or to mimic a character’s perspective and perception of their surroundings like in case of the kids in front of the tv. We can also see some higher-level angles, almost a bird’s-eye view at the beginning of the scene, which shows the whole room where the televised interview is being conducted. There are some eye-level shots of Kim, so that the viewers can feel more connected to the character as she watches Edward on tv and waits for him to answer the question on-air, one that is related to their bond. Thanks to this shot we can see the anticipation and many other emotions visible on her face.

Mise en scene:

The action of the video takes place mostly in a TV studio, but also in a house. Edward Scissorhands is invited to appear in a show where an audience asks him questions. The studio is bright and colourful, so are the people there. In contrast, Edward is pale and dressed in black, which shows that he isn’t like them and doesn’t fit in. Despite the seemingly welcoming atmosphere, Edward is uncomfortable with attention and the questions aren’t tactful and at times, even mocking. Also, next to him are placed a hedge cut into the shape of a giraffe and a poodle with its hair cut. That obviously references Edward having scissors instead of hands and implies that he himself did that. The place of the action changes when Edward is asked about his love life. Then it takes place in the house of his love interest, Kim, where she watches the show with two boys. She is attentive and waits for his answer, the boys tease her about her feelings. After the host repeats his question, there’s a shot of Kim and Edward looking straight forward as if they were looking at each other despite not being in the same room. It’s cut short when Edward incidentally destroys the microphone, implying that they still haven’t admitted their feelings.

[literature-andstuff]

Why I Want a Wife article analysis

In the extract from the New York magazine’s article written by Judy Syfers in 1971, she touches on the subject of femininity. The text is full of irony. “A wife”, which is one of the roles that most women play in the course of their life, is portrayed here not as a part of a loving relationship between two people, but rather as an object to “look for”, when the old one fails. This is, of course, a commentary on Syfer’s observation of how most marriages function, specifically in terms of gender roles. By saying “I belong to the classification of people known as wives” Syfers suggests that women are often seen only as wives to their husbands, and not as their own people.

The author begins to mention one by one the things that are expected from women in a family. They get more and more ridiculous as the text goes on. The constant repetition of the word “I” serves two purposes: it emphasizes how selfish the demands are, and it builds tension and the impression that the flow of the text gets faster and faster, and that the expectations are piling up. It creates an atmosphere of chaos and pressure, suggesting that it is exactly what a modern woman feels everyday. 

The audience of the article is both women and men. By reaching women, the author is trying to show them that they are not alone, and that the expectations of the society put on them are enormous and not meeting them doesn’t equal failure. The purpose of targeting men would be making them realize how hard it is on the other side and encouraging them to support women and consider an equal share of responsibilities in their relationships. 

[literature-andstuff]

Army for Women Ads: femininity then and now

The analysis of the two U.S. Army posters above show how the understanding of femininity has changed since a couple of decades ago, when the first one came out. Both of them target women in order to encourage them to join the Army, so they certainly use persuasive devices that would feel familiar to women - but what feels familiar to women changes over time.

The first text portrays femininity as something very far from masculinity and not very flexible. It uses an image of a woman doing her makeup, and another one searching her purse, which are actions traditionally attributed to femininity. The poster is in warm colours, which remind us of warm feelings, which are often associated with women’s stereotypical emotionality and motherhood. Appeal to emotional needs can be found everywhere in the text, especially when “finding a friendly face” or the friendliness and helpfulness of the officers are mentioned. It is assumed that women are worried that they will not be secure enough without men’s help and constant emotional nurturing. Aesthetical pleasure is also brought up as a way of convincing the women in the audience. There is a promise of a good-looking room and the option to personalize it, as well as reinventing yourself as a person due to the Army experience. It is also stated that as a woman, “you can leave the Army after three years with an 18-months’ notice or when you marry” - not “if”, but “when” you marry. This fragment suggests that even though the Army is open to women, getting married is still something they have to do, perhaps more important than continuing to develop their career. 

The newest text doesn’t try to convince the audience that there is a special place in the Army for femininity. In fact, it does quite the opposite - it actively counteracts this idea, stating that “The best place for women in the Army is… everywhere”. It’s meant to convey the message that gender plays no role and women can be members of the Army without special treatment and the need to be helped. Unlike the first text, it doesn’t suggest that men and women have different emotional needs. There are four different photos of women included, all of them representing a different job in the Army. They are not involved in any ‘feminine’ activities, nor are they wearing traditionally feminine clothes. They look proud and confident. The visuals are meant to further emphasize that women can achieve the same things that men in the Army and work in the same positions. 

The first text was created in the times when feminism had already achieved suffrage and other basic rights for women, but gender stereotypes were still very much prevalent, both in the streets and in the media. They still are today, but definitely to a lesser extent, and if they are shown in mass media, they are usually confronted by a backlash. 

[literature-andstuff]

White Teeth by Zadie Smith

White Teeth by Zadie Smith is one of the best books I’ve ever read, although I have to say that I see all her books as masterpieces. I’ve never come across another author who would include so much research, so much historical information in their works; the kind of information that is not necessarily common knowledge. She writes mostly about racial and cultural minorities and their struggles in the Western world. 

White Teeth, in particular, features a range of characters, each facing their own problems resulting from their social status, race, age group or generational differences. The story starts with a middle-age man named Archie, who, bored with his own averageness and routine, decides to end his life, but fate decides to prevent him from doing so by a random event, which leads Archie to new conclusions about the nature of life. He starts a new chapter with his new wife, a young Jamaican woman named Clara, who had just escaped her extremely religious family house to live in a commune. He soon falls back into a routine of your average middle-aged British guy, which means working 9 to 5 and spending rest of his time in a filthy pub with his best friend, who he had fought next to in the war.

Said best friend, Samad, a man from Bengal, struggles because of his unfulfilled ambition of becoming a national hero like his great grandfather did. In the meantime, he works as a waiter at an Indian restaurant and argues with his wife all the time. He also feels constant guilt because of his faith - he doesn’t feel like he’s good enough of a Muslim. His affair and alcoholism doesn’t help the situation.

His two sons, twins, grow up to become polar opposites. One of them - Magid - is sent back to Samad’s home country due to Samad’s belief that the traditional upbringing he had experienced is a way better option, compared to the rotten morality of the British society. He becomes an intellectual and what many would call a golden child. When he eventually comes back to London, he starts to work with a scientist, whose main goal is to genetically modify a mouse, which results in protests by many social groups (represented by other characters in the book). The liberal, modern and open-minded family of the scientist welcomes the other twin, too, trying to calm his rebellious temperament. Millat occupies himself mostly with proving others that he’s the alfa of the group, first by being the leader of a gang, then by engaging in extremist religious groups. 

At the same time, the daughter of Archie and Clara struggles wissith finding her true self in the unclear picture she has of her family’s past. 

The range of issues tackled by this text is enormous, and yet the author managed to blend them together perfectly, so that the reader can perfectly empathize with the problems faced by each character, even if they can’t relate to it per se. The stories come with a vast amount of knowledge, too, be it about the war that Archie and Samad took part in, about the Indian Rebellion, or even about the British rule in Jamaica. 

The book was also, in a big part, a commentary on the morals of the late-20th-century British society, as observed by Smith. Xenophobia, racism and privilege are some of the returning topics. The ethical questions that come with scientific advancement were also discussed, not without a satirical, even sarcastic tone, so characteristic of Zadie Smith. She uses this style of writing to criticize some more individual issues as well, like the moral duality of Samad, who, while repressing his worries about being what he believes to be a sinner, criticizes the faith of others and their lack of compliance with the rules of Islam.

The stories she tells are painfully realistic, she likes to capture life in its raw version, speak of the misery or dullness of human life in a nonchalant way. Yet she still keeps those stories dynamic and interesting, and very complex, just as real life is. 

if you read the book, you’ll probably find yourself in awe of all the interconnections that appear between the stories and characters, and how smoothly they come together. You will also probably be richer of much new knowledge about the world and understanding of the human condition. 

[literature-andstuff]

Poetry by Alphonse Mucha

I decided to start my portfolio off with a short analysis of a painting by one of my favorite artists of all time: Alphonse Mucha. This artwork is a part of a series called The Arts (including Paiting, Dance, Music and the one I’d like to focus on - Poetry).

Many Mucha paintings come in series, and most of them depict people, women in particular, posing as symbols of some abstract phenomena. Since this portfolio and the whole course is about language, I believe Mucha’s Poetry is a good thing to reflect on, since it represents many traits of poetry through its visuals.

The woman on the painting is gazing down upon the scenery, she appears to be in contemplation. Her pose suggests sensitivity, perhaps sensitivity to beauty in particular, some vulnerability, delicacy. Both her dress and her hair are flowing and blend together. We could compare her appearance to the flow of poetry, a ribbon of words woven from thoughts that come from observation of the world around and reflection on it, interpretation of it.

The pale colors and flowery ornaments of the painting only emphasize the subtleness and ethereality of the art.