Feminism and the 21st Century.


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trixie1868 is offline trixie1868 Post #1  May 31,2010, 3:40am

what the bejeezus is going on round here?!

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I have been honestly fascinated by the reactions to Sex and the City on these boards. Some women post to publicly distance themselves from it, the minority admit to watching it and men seem to distrust it.

I would imagine there's quite a few PhDs currently being written on it and I've been wondering for a while now; does SATC reflect feminism in the 21st century or shape it?

Are we having reflected back to us the reality of women's lives 40 years after the birth of the women's movement ~ balancing careers with relationships and motherhood and picking a safe and fulfilling emotional path through the sexual jungle.

or

Is SATC making us feel that men are often the 'big bad wolf' with schemes to dominate us professionally, sexually and emotionally?

Why does it upset men as much as it seems to? I've never watched a single episode with a straight man so I'm amazed to discover that it does. Was it anti-man? Did it feel like it was anti-man to men?

When we react to Sex and the City ~ are we in fact reacting to Feminism in the 21st century?
Last edited by trixie1868; May 31,2010 at 3:42am. Reason: forgot a question mark
 
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scarlet13 is offline scarlet13 Post #2  May 31,2010, 4:49am

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I don't know if SATC has anything to do with feminism.

what i do know is that some men are threatened by anything they take to mean that might have to change somehow, or have to improve beyond "nice guy" and "good job" to get the girl.

I think men are threatened by SATC simply because is shows that 1. women's bond of friendship is just as important as their men are, and 2. that women's sexuality scares the carp out of them.

FWIW, Samantha was always my favorite character.
 
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insertscreenname is offline insertscreenname Post #3  May 31,2010, 5:13am
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trixie1868 wrote :
Why does it upset men as much as it seems to? I've never watched a single episode with a straight man so I'm amazed to discover that it does. Was it anti-man? Did it feel like it was anti-man to men?

When we react to Sex and the City ~ are we in fact reacting to Feminism in the 21st century?
The show never upset me, although I only watched it a handful of times. No, I did not get the sense it was anti-man at all. I just got the sense it was an "urban woman's sex & relationship show". *shrugs*

IMO, to say reacting to the show is reacting to 21C feminism is to give the show far more credence than it probably deserves. The only reason it was "groundbreaking" is that it talked openly about sex and relationships directly to women. If anything, the stereotypical nature of the characters on the show is perhaps damaging to any sense of true modern feminism.

scarlet13 wrote :
I don't know if SATC has anything to do with feminism.

what i do know is that some men are threatened by anything they take to mean that might have to change somehow, or have to improve beyond "nice guy" and "good job" to get the girl.

I think men are threatened by SATC simply because is shows that 1. women's bond of friendship is just as important as their men are, and 2. that women's sexuality scares the carp out of them.
I agree with you about many men being threatened by "change" or "improvement". I see it all the time.

Regarding men being threatened by the show:

1. Any thinking man already knows this.
2. Not scary at all. Women's sexuality is interesting. Confusing at times, yes, but interesting nonetheless.
 
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Cape_Codder is offline Cape_Codder Post #4  May 31,2010, 5:38am

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Lets not forget that the purpose of the show was to generate money, period. The show was not designed to enlighten society or embrace certain social positions, or advance rights including women's rights.

Producers advance entertainment. Whatever topic increases viewership and pacifies the sponsors is embraced. If, during the filming a certain character became loved and adored for having a foot fetish the producers would have embraced it.

We can all identify with certain comments made in a show, or a certain position a character happens to take or advance. One must remember though, these are actors, not people living their life on screen and how they act and what they say is to advance their character and the show in general.

When people begin to relate to certain actors or ascribe certain qualities to a person forgetting they are in fact just acting ideas can go astray. When you attach a philosophy or cause such a women's rights to the show itself you enter dangerous territory. Elements of women's rights or other issues can be expressed in the context of a show because it's popular, but never forget that the show itself and the actors are there for the purpose of the almighty greenback.
 
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annother is offline annother Post #5  May 31,2010, 5:39am
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scarlet13 is offline scarlet13 Post #6  May 31,2010, 6:08am

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insertscreenname wrote :
The show never upset me, although I only watched it a handful of times. No, I did not get the sense it was anti-man at all. I just got the sense it was an "urban woman's sex & relationship show". *shrugs*

IMO, to say reacting to the show is reacting to 21C feminism is to give the show far more credence than it probably deserves. The only reason it was "groundbreaking" is that it talked openly about sex and relationships directly to women. If anything, the stereotypical nature of the characters on the show is perhaps damaging to any sense of true modern feminism.



I agree with you about many men being threatened by "change" or "improvement". I see it all the time.

Regarding men being threatened by the show:

1. Any thinking man already knows this.
2. Not scary at all. Women's sexuality is interesting. Confusing at times, yes, but interesting nonetheless.
I should have said some men.

personally, i could never date anyone with such a reaction to anything- it smacks of control issues.
 
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insertscreenname is offline insertscreenname Post #7  May 31,2010, 6:33am
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scarlet13 wrote :
I should have said some men.
I know. I was being a bit of a smart arse.

scarlet13 wrote :
personally, i could never date anyone with such a reaction to anything- it smacks of control issues.
Yeah. Many people are afraid of having their comfy brain boxes shaken.
 
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Ephemera is offline Ephemera Post #8  May 31,2010, 7:05am
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I think SATC is just fun. It's got everything entertaining in one show: sex, fashion, beautiful men, great scenery, witty one-liners and stereotypical characters that are fun to identify with in the same way that astrological signs are. I have the complete set and my daughter and I watch it while we eat dinner frequently. My sons (one gay, one straight) watch it and my nephew does and all my boyfriends through the years have seen episodes with varying degrees of interest. I'm going to the movie this evening with my daughter. Looking back on the ground breaking television shows of the past it seems as if they are ground breaking for their portrail of certain facts of life that had been previously censored from television. All in the Family - racism, sexism, anti-hippyism, etc.... NYPD blue - realism in inner city violence, real-people language, etc... Many, many more. All just presenting an aspect of life that is a gritty part of reality on one level or another. Not every situation in every show is true to everyone's personal life. But enough of them are that it can start dialogue and sometimes even change. We cannot see what, if anything, SATC will mean in the long run from this point in time - wait a decade.
 
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jayjay is offline jayjay Post #9  May 31,2010, 8:21am
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...things seem to have gotten quiet around here.

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trixie1868 wrote :
Some women post to publicly distance themselves from it, the minority admit to watching it and men seem to distrust it.
I'd guess women who 'distance' themselves from the show are (or at least want to appear) to be more 'traditional'.

trixie1868 wrote :
Is SATC making us feel that men are often the 'big bad wolf' with schemes to dominate us professionally, sexually and emotionally?
Did the show depict men as 'big bad wolves'? In only watching a handful of episodes I didn't get that impression.

trixie1868 wrote :
Why does it upset men as much as it seems to? I've never watched a single episode with a straight man so I'm amazed to discover that it does. Was it anti-man? Did it feel like it was anti-man to men?
In my limited viewing of it I didn't get the feeling that it was anti-man, though I didn't consider any of the male characters I did see to be any great catch for the women. I also don't find the show upsetting....it's just that the demographic depicted on the show isn't my target dating pool.
 
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gothustartus is offline gothustartus Post #10  May 31,2010, 8:47am
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insertscreenname wrote :
Yeah. Many people are afraid of having their comfy brain boxes shaken.
If you never have to think about or debate a point you're never in danger of being wrong.
 
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