Women's writing

I've noticed just recently that, subconsciously, many of my film reviews on here have paid special attention to the presentation of women within the reviewed work. This has evolved quite naturally, and wasn't at the front of my mind when I started writing this blog. I hate the phrase 'I'm not a feminist', which I've very probably written somewhere on here, and yet it comes to mind to say it again now. I hate it because it (wrongly) suggests some sort of radical bra-burning, man-hating extremism, maybe even lesbianism. I wouldn't say that any of this qualities pertain to me. However, I am acutely sensitive to what it means to be a woman today, and how this idea is formed and manipulated by the culture around us - be it films/art/literature, or the press, or one's own peers. I consider myself to be very independent but I also thrive in my (heterosexual) relationships. My world doesn't revolve around body image, a desperation to achieve a celebrity level of beauty, or the need to find a man to 'complete me'. But I find that these characteristics are challenged and threatened on a regular basis. And I believe that can only be for the worse. I believe that my wish for all women to find happiness within themselves in a culture that makes it difficult, does make me a feminist to a certain degree. Presentations of women that propagate the idea that we are willingly subservient to men and constantly seeking to improve ourselves to become more desirable, make my blood boil involuntarily.

I was reading the Guardian online this morning, as I do most days and came across this article by freelance journalist Jill Parkin, with 30 years experience under her belt. I'd encourage you to take a moment to read it, but if you can't/won't, it basically describes how recently she's found herself having to reject freelance assignments for the first time in her life because so many of them require women to completely expose themselves and their personal lives in their writing. Examples include the women talking about their degrading sexual habits, or those undertaking fad diets: the Daily Mail is currently running a weight loss contest between two journalists. Ms Parkin is quite right when she says: "it's almost as good as women mud-wrestling or a wet T-shirt competition".

I don't make a habit of leaving comments on articles but I was incredibly frustrated that there wasn't the opportunity to comment on this one. I thought her article was a real eye-opener. It made me feel incredibly uncomfortable, but at the same time I applauded her approach and unwillingness to participate in this charade (although this record suggests she succumbed at least twice in late 2007). As she says, men are not expected to debase themselves in the same way. It's very fitting with the women's magazine culture which purports to advise us on the best ways to live our lives, which I've discussed elsewhere. It's an illusion which reinforces the idea that we are perpetually incomplete without more material things (namely clothes, shoes, bags and beauty products), without losing just a bit more weight, and of course, without a man.

I know that the magazine industry and press in general has been suffering desperately in recent years, and the battle to attract and retain readers is an incredibly tough one. But I don't believe that reducing the editorial to the lowest common denominator is positive for any of us. I say the 'lowest common denominator' because magazines would probably argue that they are only responding to demand, and they have a point. It is frustrating that women are buying into this kind of material, and thus feeding it. I remember finding it fascinating to see how more than one new UK women's title purported to be making a stand and providing more intelligent editorial, that women are seeking - such as First magazine. However it took very little time for it to metamorphose into the typical mould of celebrity/fashion/sex/beauty as espoused by the likes of Glamour, Company, even Heat etc.

It's funny then that just recently I've started writing for an online women's magazine. I'm not going to provide links, but my belief is that if I want to try and change, or at least challenge this culture, then I have to set an example myself. Not one beauty or weight loss article so far. I'm mostly concentrating on cultural articles - film/book/art reviews, topical commentary. However I'd like to introduce a quasi-biographical section with positive female role models (with a less didactic title...). I'm not out to write feminist articles, but neither am I intending to blindly continue the superficial style of editorial that's so dangerously prevalent in women's light reading today.