May 17, 2007 Essay Exam #2 – WS 10 1. You look in the mirror and what do you see? A mere reflection or a distorted perception of what you „think‟ you see? Women in today‟s society have many standards they must attain to, particularly pertaining to physicality. Our patriarchal culture makes it quit difficult for women to feel confident in their own bodies, unless they match up to the required definitions. In 1935 Paul Schilder, a psychoanalyst, coined the term “body image”, stating that it‟s a mental representation a person has of his/her body. It‟s a psychological image we create; it does not always represent accurate reality. This distortion is highly influenced by external forces such as family, friends, and society. We interpret others‟ reactions to our bodies as the reality which we, ourselves, are so blind to see. This, in turn, leads to questions like: “Do I look fat?” or “Does my butt look big?” For individuals to interpret the image they see is invariably complicated. In the movie, “Little Miss Sunshine” the chubby little girl requested ice cream after dinner and her dad responded stating, “Models don‟t eat ice cream.” This three second scene summarizes American cultural ideal quite well, it extends to such an extreme that a child is denied ice cream on account of her weight. In fact, this image of perfection becomes unavoidable, as it is seen in ever direction we look and ultimately, to obtain this ideal, ice cream must be left out. In each direction entails a different problem, laying out a horizon of possibilities ranging from unhealthy obesity to disturbing anorexia. This epidemic of obesity is a fairly new concept, as it was not so grave 20 years ago. This is largely due to the three billion dollar a year profiting diet industry who attempts to stuff us with pills and supplements to increase weight loss, while the food, especially fast food, industry increases possibilities and availability for cheaper junk food. This confuses the public, making reality an even further objective to comprehend. (Klein) Our mental image has been so distorted by people, memories, images, etc. that it has evolved into a disorder. People cannot tell if they are bigger or smaller, and what the culture deems desirable. The physical becomes unidentifiable and abstract, leading to a strict dependence on outside sources, which were the initial causes of this distortion. This mental deformation occurs among both sexes, naturally influencing women more, yet affecting men with adequate power. For men, a muscle dismorphia is prevalent as the muscles can never become too big. In the Hip Hop video by Bryan Hurt, he recognizes these „male‟ characteristics, and puts them in a manhood box. In this box lay an array of unidirectional qualities including strength, toughness, money, and women. Many of these relate to the muscle complex men feel the need to fulfill, so as to get the remaining two possessions, money and women. These things, in total, make up a real man, if any are not present then terms like pussy, fag, or weakling come about and as most men know, it is better to just stay inside the box. Bryan also mentions the gun as a tool for real men to prove their power and strength because in today‟s society physical strength is not enough, every man must be able to protect themselves and their „weak‟ partner in case of emergency. For black men especially, fathers hit their children from a young age reminding them that this is the type of behavior and physical abuse they should start getting used to. America is a hyper-masculine and hyper-violent nation, determining that manhood is all about conquering and violence. This, in turn, allows men to „conquer‟ women, as they have been doing for so many years and additionally, this behavior is perpetuated
in hip hop videos all across the nation. The women in the videos are mere eye candies; emphasizing men‟s insecurity by the amount of women surround themselves with and, in turn, degrade. This false sense of power is then translated into reality and directed at younger population who continue the cycle. (Hip Hop Film – Bryan Hurt) For women, this misrepresentation is geared in the opposite direction, leading women to never feel small enough. Exercise bulimia, eating disorders, and fasting are the repercussions of this image set by men and the media, which is ironically run by men as well. This new „cleansing‟ system, where women don‟t eat for days, merely depending on a vitamin rich liquid diet, is no different than anorexia. In the Middle Ages, women fasted as a religious experience to get closer to G-D and unit the body and spirit, whereas now it has become a serious epidemic, a disconnection between mind and body. This Dualist Axes is then developed, as people obtain a mind, body split. No connection is felt between the rational and the body, or one‟s mental distorted perception of it. In the past, anorexia affected younger women, between the ages of 17-24, and it exemplified a power over paradigm. This control of something else, the rational interpreted as superior to women‟s wisdom is caused by the intellectual dominance over the body. An increase in imagery importance in today‟s society, compared to the past when it was not so prevalent, attaches a different meaning to the body and ultimately amounts to fatal diseases such as anorexia and bulimia. (Klein) Victorian anorexics, for example, were a symbol of status. These women were seen as fragile and delicate beings, characteristics which have stuck to women throughout history, who were fortunate enough to afford the luxury of being sick. They didn‟t work and because of their upper class position, they could afford to faint and be taken care of. Food, on the other hand, was identified as a sign of female morality. Women were there to have and foster children, they were supposed to have sex, but not enjoy it. Though food had this direct linkage to integrity, it also induced pleasure. It was seen as a sensual experience, making foods like chocolate sinful for women to eat. This pleasure and sign of guilt or seductiveness was not to be felt by honorable women who, in turn, were applauded for fasting. For men, this phenomenon was quit different, as the Carl's Jr. Ad clearly demonstrates, “If it doesn‟t get all over the place, it doesn‟t belong in your face.” Men ate with their hands, no napkin and regardless of class this was seen as the normative behavior. They were not responsible for mere food etiquette, establishing two contradictory ends of the spectrum: women either don‟t eat or indulge in secret, while men make a grandiose, messy, and pleasurable experience out of it. (Obviously the male population got the better end of the bargain). Dove Bars use the slogan, “a private escape” as their attraction for women in today‟s society, where certain food still maintains a negative connotation. Like masturbation, women were not allowed to eat in public and this notion has carried into our culture as well. Eating was to be kept a private issue because with consumption came the indication of bodily functions, functions which women were perceived to lack. Women, if disturbed by any of these irregularities, were forced to keep it inside regardless of the infections and bladder dysfunctions it caused. (Klein) We can relate to this Victorian prism of thought today because many women, while peeing, turn the faucet on so as to distract from the sound of their release. Men, on the other hand, not only pee with the door open for everyone to hear, but they pee in any given location as long as nature calls, they will answer. Our patriarchal
society has also engraved certain views pertaining to other extractions women face, such as the period. In “Menstruation and Tampax,” Karen Houppert identifies the habitual menstrual etiquette that the patriarchy has embedded, leading to subconscious reactions to situations. She states that the menstrual cycle has so rituality been degraded that scientists don‟t make an extra effort to continue research pertaining to cures for cramps. Though men, our society‟s leaders, don‟t experience this natural process it is one which holds high value, without it life would stop. Additionally, this cycle has been associated with a woman‟s overall inability to function while she is experiencing the seven-day run. In a study, Karen found that, “More than one-quarter thought that women could not function normally at work while menstruating, with 8 percent saying that women should make an effort to stay away from others when they‟re having their periods.” If I didn‟t know any better, „that time of the month‟ would be characterized by some monstrous transformation, which is quickly restored after the bleeding is complete. Though ranging hormones do fill the body in higher quantities than on a regular basis, these hormones don‟t prevent women from carrying out daily functions. These erratic outbursts, commonly associated with PMS, may occur just as heavily before the period as they might after and not just among women. Men have high level of hormones constantly roaming their bodies, proven by the fact that they think about sex every seven seconds. But this doesn‟t disable men from performing intellectual and vital tasks, men are supposed to have these feelings and as the standards are set by men, it is only when it occurs amongst women that these actions are deemed emotional, unpredictable, and unsustainable. “Twothirds of those surveyed said that women should not mention their periods in the office or in social situations.” It is out of mere etiquette that private issues like that should be kept internal, but then this concept should apply to all people, not just with women and their periods. Why can men talk about flatulence and bowel movements as freely as women can talk about shopping, but when it comes to a process that fosters growth and development, it should be kept private? The answer, a patriarchal society. It is feminism that allowed women to feel more connected to their bodies and not be ashamed of their menstrual cycle. “The mostly male CEOs of companies manufacturing menstrual products, as well as advertising executive, religious leaders, and sex-ed authors – have set a tone that shapes women‟s experiences for them, defining what they are allowed to feel about their periods…about their bodies…about their sexuality.” It becomes very difficult to interpret reality when a particular type of this reality has been excluded. The menstrual cycle serves as a prime example of this exclusion, as males know little about the experience and therefore don‟t find it necessary to include in daily life. This was the prime reason for the Second Wave of Feminism because the females represented were predominantly white and middle-class, while the rest of the population was excluded and felt the need to stand up and fight. This fight for equality has persisted for many years and though women, as a whole, have come a long way, there is still much work needed to be done before a stamp of completion can be placed. (Karen Houppert) Relating back to Victorian era eating dysfunctions and the male domination of image and reality, the 50‟s and 60‟s inquired no dialogue about such problems. These periods were filled with quietism and conservation, the female objectives that patriarchy strongly enforced. The 70‟s then lead to a more rebellious revolution, where eating and the correlating disorders were substituted by drug use and its inherent weight loss, or gain.
Through the late 70‟s and into the 80‟s the term „clinical‟ entered the realm of conversation and people were now being labeled as cynically anorexic or bulimic. The fact still remained, however; that those who were not clinically proven to have eating disorders, still had a strong distortion of their body image and much more was required to find a solution than a simple prescription or visit to the shrink. Four out of five women have some distorted relationship with food, leading to an unhealthy life-style. (Klein) These intense conclusions all demonstrate one point, male supremacy. The long-lived patriarchal culture has so deeply embedded certain qualifications and stereotypes, for both genders, that there is little denying its strong repercussions. As males are inherently strong leaders, their characteristics must entail physical strength as well as rationality, while women were consistently viewed as emotional and passive, therefore; amounting to their appropriate value determined by beauty. This beauty is far from reality-based because just as these expectations and characteristics have been set by men, so have the standards of body image and the ideal. It is difficult to escape this narrow set of limitations, set my men, making it incredibly complicated and often times detrimental to fulfill. In short, these definitions connect to our social expectation of gender, allowing men to set the rules while women are enforced to follow them. This distinction between the sexes and their appropriate functions becomes difficult for those who follow the regulations, yet quite remarkable for those who make them. In a sense, a utopia for the male population is set, as they establish the regulations and inflict others compliance, further benefiting as exceptions to the rule. And instead of fighting back to create new standards of the norm, set by both groups, women show little interest in giving our culture a push in a different direction. 2. According to Naomi Wolf‟s article, “The Beauty Myth,” the “violent backlash against feminism that uses images of female beauty as a political weapon against women‟s advancements” is the beauty myth. This myth tells a story about a universal quality named “beauty.” Women are responsible for obtaining it, while men are inclined to those women who posses it, so it turns into a necessity for women, not men. The strong and fit men must then battle for the beautiful women, who are more triumphant at reproduction, ultimately creating a system based on sexual selection. This story is titled a myth due to its fallacy. Naomi states that this beauty “is a currency system,” like our economy, and it is established by politics which keep the men superior and the women inferior. Women are placed into a hierarchal society where the standards of physicality are determined by men and, in turn, they are expected to contend for the resources that men have produced for themselves. This power over paradigm is not about women, it is about “men‟s institutions and institutional power.” The myth has not always been this way, placing old rich men with beautiful young women. In the matriarchal Goddess cultures, in the Mediterranean from about 25,000 B.C.E to 700 B.C.E, the conditions were inverted. The Goddess has many partners and their “function [was] the service of the divine womb.” During this era the vagina and menstrual cycle were valued and viewed with uttermost respect, in contract to the images and representation the period and vagina hold today. “The qualities that a given period calls beautiful in women are merely symbols of female behavior that that period considers desirable…Competition between women has been made part of the myth so that women will be divided from one another.” (Wolf, Naomi) From this division, as many women are so strongly upholding today, stem five prominent critics that feminists raise concerning these ideals and their inherent detriments toward women‟s advancement. The first,
dealing with the sheer time and energy needed to obtain the „ideal‟ image. In the movie “Mean Girls,” the „popular‟ girls stood in front of the mirror religiously and each stated what they didn‟t like about themselves, from simple imperfections to grandiose ones. When Lindsay Lohan, a new addition to this group, had nothing to say or complain about the girls regarded her with great animosity, claiming that every girl has something they are not happy with. This critique takes much devotion and time, leaving less to do more practical things such as reading or just relaxing. Our society is so engaged in obtaining this ideal image, one of thinness and total perfection, that it has become impossible to bypass this epidemic. This “cultive thinness” further subordinates women in our society, reducing them to objects that are consistently and solely focused on the beauty image of the present time, place, and culture. This ideal is dynamic though, it is constantly changing. For our present culture, the sign of femininity is the breast; a body part which is has been exclusively reduced to a sexual object. It has not always been this way though, for in Victorian times the lactating breast was viewed as the epitome of femininity. Today, the boob belongs to society, for they are a women‟s tool at attention and a false sense of power. The article “Double Life,” by Lisa Moricoli Latham, states, “From playboy to St. Pauli Girl, American culture declares that while breasts as a signifier of available sexuality should be flaunted, breasts doing the job nature assigned them are taboo. Right when a woman needs her breasts the most, she‟s told to cover up and move on.” In Victorian times, women were encouraged to breast feed in church without concern of negative repercussions. The link of sexuality to the breast has been so deeply engraved in our culture that even a girlfriend may feel embarrassed or uncomfortable in front of her breastfeeding friend. The article continues to say that in a radio interview pertaining to breast-feeding in public, callers‟ reactions varied but a “loud-and-clear tolerance for nursing [occurred] as long as it also carries sexual gratification for the witness.” “If she were hot, it‟d be okay.” Even an act which really enables life to evolve can only be accepted if beauty plays the defining role, that‟s the superficiality of our culture! In the 1920‟s it wasn‟t even attractive to have breasts, as many women taped them down to look younger. Just as eating disorders stem from the fear of aging, which our culture defines as negative, so do various trends of beauty. Freeing from the prior Victorian image, reverted after W.W.II, women simply let loose and went crazy, wearing short skirts and taping their breast was a sign of freedom from the limitations that the feminine ideal produced. To demonstrate further how dynamic this beauty image is, the 1980‟s delivered a new trend, encouraging women to wear shoulder pads as a sign of power. With the second wave of feminism wrapping up, women were prominent in the work force and suits began to symbolize the power they gained from the corporate world, now not only a male arena. Women were delaying marriage and family life to peruse their personal interests, which they had been denied for so many years. The point is again, that this image of good and beautiful is constantly changing, though one thing that remains the same is where the standards stem from. Our patriarchal society has for so many years, determined a female‟s worth and to them it stems directly from beauty. (Klein) The second feminist critic pertains to the mere cost of being beautiful. Looks have become a female‟s measure of value. The younger, skinnier, and prettier her face is, that is the closer she is to perfection, the more respect society will grant her. Men have a much larger range of images which assign value to them. A beautiful
woman, by cultural standards, is constantly seen with an average looking male or even nasty old man. Wrinkles and gray hair are a symbol of wisdom for the male population, which was also true in matriarchal societies for women, but has now developed into a negative and worthless icon in women‟s lives. Look at men like George Clooney, who now has gray hair and looks sexier then ever, according to cultural definitions. Though more men have been sited to resort to plastic surgery and eating disorders to obtain the „thin‟ standards not solely geared at women, the rates and history are no where close to that of the female population. Our reflection is laid with distortions, heavily influenced by our culture‟s physical ideals. We are more critical of the image we see in the mirror than those who step outside and see it from another standpoint, it‟s all psychological. Approximately 30% of our culture is drastically overweight and geographically the reasons of lower income families produce this statistic. Today, since the sign of wealth is thinness, the question boils down to whether or not one can afford supplements, organic food, information about nutrition, Pilates, or other means of living a thinner life-style. Though, not everyone is so fortunate to have the flexibility of affording all these extracurricular spending and for those who can‟t, McDonalds seems a better option to feed the whole family then going to Whole Foods and feeding just one member. A detrimental impact from this obsession with thinness as a real value indicator leads many women to deny themselves of food or happiness. They simply punish their body for looking the way it does, rejecting it in such a drastic way that their motivation begins to stem from the wrong sources. People, especially women, need to love their bodies and feel more grateful and empathetic toward them, realizing that the images portrayed in magazines and advertisements are all airbrushed to perfection. Going to the gym or selecting a certain diet should all arise from proper and healthy intentions, making the gym, for example, a place about aesthetics, balance, and health not torture and anguish. My friends and I planned a trip last New Years to Mexico. We all got so entangled with the idea of loosing weight that for four months prior to this voyage, we spent two days a week at the gym and in addition, I went to Pilates twice a week. Not only did the bills on food and exercise surpass any I‟ve ever seen before, my view on the gym for six months after was a horrendous one. One of my friends takes Pilates because she vouches that she will never attend that place of evil again. It‟s quit sad to make a body undergo such stress and pain, yet the realization that came after really dawned light on this subject, and my attitudes toward exercise have never been the same. (Klein) Though my friends and I had this epiphany, it is not always the case with young women. The third feminist critic is directed toward that detriment to mental, physical, and emotional health that comes about with such abuse. The extremes that women go to in order to look „good‟, again according to the current society, are incredible, as well as the mental and physical damage they cause. As Julia Scheeres‟ article titled “Vulva Goldmine,” illustrates, “the latest fad in plastic surgery: genital alterations for women…includes procedures to liposuction and lift sagging pubes; inject fat into the flat labia majora to give them a plumper, more youthful look; tighten vaginas with lasers; prune long labia minora; and unhood clitorises for greater friction.” We criticize ancient African traditions for clitoral circumcisions, yet our society has emerged with this new trend of vaginal alterations! Now that there are no limits to adjusting the body, going from face lifts and hairline adjustments to breast enlargements and vaginal reconstruction, the culture has gone completely mad with the
obsession of beauty. The relationship women have with their bodies is continuing to detach, as their selfesteem gets lower with the increasing ability to alter the body, the cost issue arises here as well. These surgeries can go up to $10,000 a pop, particularity focusing on the vaginal ones. The most frustrating point about these procedures is that women are not performing them for their personal benefit; they are striving to obtain the ideal image and with such motivation, spending thousands of dollars to do so. This is the primary reason for persistent patriarchal domination, they set these standards and instead of dismissing them or conquering personal goals, women aim to fit the definitions as best they can, this is also the prime reason why men don‟t go through life so concerned with their looks. The damage females undergo to attain these standards is startling and the worst part is that it is not even done for personal use and enjoyment. A woman can undergo twenty different procedures to alter her body and if her man doesn‟t like it, she will remain unhappy. (Klein) The patriarchal society establishes these norms of beauty, but a very powerful source, also run by males, is cleverly active in inducing these ideals into daily life. Advertisements, magazines, television, and the media in general amount to extremely powerful forces which help sustain the patriarchal supremacy, as well as providing guidelines for many people. The forth critic of feminism is the lack of diversity presented in the media. For men, the system is inherently different as they run the show. They have a much broader range of what it means to be beautiful, and it is not just physicality that verifies worth and power. For women, the case is completely different due to our Eurocentric image of beauty. This image entails thin, young, perfect bodies with large breast, no creases, and little to no imperfections; if not naturally perfect the computer will help a woman get very close. The female culture displayed in mainstream magazines, or other aspects of the media, emphasize specific cults according to gender. The cult of femininity stresses that femininity revolves around self-absorbance, vanity, and extreme obsession with relationships, particularly with men. In other words, the female life relates to other people, she is not a being for herself; she serves as a purpose for the patriarchal society, a purpose that patriarchy defines. For men, on the other hand, the cult of masculinity accentuates adventurous behavior, other qualities of hegemonic masculinity, and most importantly their individual notion, asserting that men are independent and from that stems their power and energy. Well how perfect?! Men establish the rules and set themselves in a hierarchal society where their services, performed by women, are valued according to their standards. In relation to the media, these ideas are continuously represented and as sponsors determine what we see, the male head CEOs emphasize even further these dominating features of patriarchy. There would be no media if people didn‟t show interest; just as if something becomes successful a higher production rate is established. The argument goes both ways though, because when people are not in accord with what is shown then the media is most likely going to terminate the program. The media also reflects what it values and what people allow it to value, money, the key thing with the American ideal represents and the formation of our capitalist society. This representation of the public is not quit accurate though because people don‟t like to be dumped down or reduced to shame and the media is very good at doing just that. It upholds normative images that men in power established and, in turn, places people who fit those ideals on camera, making this image seem obtainable to the rest of the public. When I look at these images, such as Victoria Secret Models, a feeling of envy and hope arises. Though I understand that these images have
greatly been altered to fit the ideal of perfection, it still intrigues me to try and obtain these goals as much as possible. While I am pretty confident with myself, for women who are not, these ads can be very discouraging and as some of my friends have demonstrated to me, it can lead to serious implications of the mind and body. The film, “Killing Us Softly 3” clearly demonstrates, there are common themes that emerge from advertisements, a powerful branch of the media, which perpetuate the beauty ideal, the degradation of women and its inherent consequences. They evoke a body type that only 5% of women have, yet all women want because it is constantly thrown in their faces. Body type is genetic, not every woman will have the same curves, though they should not be denounced for having more than others. Innocent women are continuously portrayed as sexy, like the young school girl, because youth and subordination are the keys in a patriarchal society. The silencing of women closely follows the innocent physic, as an ad for eye make-up stated, “let your eyes be heard without making a sound.” In other words, a women‟s role is to look good, shut up, and barely be there. Objectification is another common theme which reduces women to objects, an ideal characteristic in a patriarchy because these object are then used for male purposes. These objects must obtain certain standards for men to accept them, however; it doesn‟t just come naturally with being a woman. The Eurocentric image of beauty dominates our culture making the flawless, white, thin, young, and powerless the most valued women in our society. An Armani Exchange ad used the slogan, “The more you subtract, the more you add” reminding women not to obtain power or take too much space if they want to be desirable. Lastly, violence has become a common theme in advertisements where women are either stocked by men or seen in erotic and violent positions through murder or the „beat-up‟ look. This again, traces back to common theme of male domination and though more men appear in ads half naked, to demonstrate a misleading concept of equality, they don‟t live in a world which constantly determines their goals and standards through the opposite sex‟s perspective. (Klein) This is a crucial issue to evaluate and understand because without the power of education, the influence of change will never erupt. Cultivation is a process which builds and maintains a stable set of images through, for example, cartoons, characters, or plots. This later unfolds into terms like „chick flicks‟ and „dick flicks‟ confirming the gender roles of both males and females. This stability causes us to interpret the world in a certain manner, considering the number of ads we see every day and the way they appear and influence us, a drastic change since the Industrial Revolution. There has been an emotional and psychological shift in the campaigning process which is strictly geared at desires. Unfortunately, it rarely has anything to do with the product it sells, it relies heavily on the image and the identity constructed with that image. This directs the public toward change which can only be accomplished with the service being advertised. In a sense, it is all based on lack and what our society doesn‟t have. Considering the fact that ads are in more places now, it becomes more difficult to bypass these messages. The bias, however; lies in the fact that these ideal images have been made to sell, sexuality, attractiveness, etc., they are not consistent with reality. The reflection hypothesis confirms this bias by rejecting the media‟s neutral fashion, which states it‟s a mere social mirror, reflecting the culture and all its attributes. When reality strikes, however; quit the opposite is revealed as their interest lies in selling products and distributing them to as many people as possible. It is hard to believe that
women established these ideal for themselves, resulting to mere torture of their most youthful and prominent lives. It is men who form these standards and the media who perpetuates them through various products which, in turn, brings profit. (The media again is run my males so this vicious cycle makes sense). Our culture‟s greatest idle, Oprah, wasn‟t allowed to appear on the cover of Vogue in 1998 until she lost twenty pounds, was that a personal choice or an external force which influenced the decision?! (“Beauty Myths and Body Projects”, Bitchfest; 252) Lastly, the final critic feminists raise about beauty practices states that they merely contribute to subordination. Class, economic status, race, and this narrow image of beauty all perpetuate objectification of women and enhance male power. Due to these extreme standards women of various groups, as well as mothers and daughters are in competition with each other, for they fear loosing their value. A value which is determined by youth, in turn, evokes controversy among elders and the youthful populations. Instead of collaborating and redefining the male definitions of worth, these standards are enhancing conflict among the subordinate group, further belittling them and allowing patriarchy to prevail. The idea that this patriarchy establishes focus strictly on white, young, skinny females, leaves those who fall outside the „norm‟ in the dark. An article by Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha, “Busting the Beige Barrier,” demonstrates the issues by pointing out that for white or black women the perfect colors of make-up are available at local drugstores. While women of beige color, in between, are forced to spend twice as much money in department stores to find a color that matches their skin-tone. This is not due to the lack of material in the make-up industry. It is a result of the male-culture‟s standards of beauty and their ally, the media, who feel that beige is not a common skin tone and as such, doesn‟t deserve recognition. The problem arises with class as well, if one cannot afford to reach this ideal, she is further subordinated through the qualities she lacks and cannot afford. This vicious process can only be dealt with through unity and power and as the patriarchy teaches women to be insecure and needy, there is not enough force to establish definitive changes in our society. Education, awareness, and most importantly unanimity are keys to alternation, for ignorance perpetuates our current male-dominating model‟s success. When women understand this as much as they comprehend the fact that they want change and equality, the male population will be forced to step down, but they will not do so without a fight. (Klein) 3. Religion is an extremely powerful and dominating part of our culture, as it has been for thousands of years. It provides identity and community in a very definitive way, through symbols and rituals which perpetuate these correlating beliefs, a set of guidelines per say. Unfortunately, there is a blurred boundary between fiction and non-fiction through the stories and cartoons children are engulfed with from a young age. These become very significant and potent as their image of G-d is established through patriarchal means. The male gender is most often associated with the image of G-d; as statements like “we were created in HIS image…” always emerge. Human beings are naturally symbol making creatures and as language is the ultimate symbol which allows reality to exists, the bondage of our culture stems from similar systems of meanings. For example, attire plays a significant role in determining our status and the type of person we represent, though it may be far from accurate, it‟s the first impression that makes a large impact on people. Religion was constructed by people, by symbols and it became very potent in society, creating the basis of our patriarchy.
Men were the sole creators of religion, demonstrated by our first recorded patriarch Abraham, and the system of rules which followed in his accordance. The New Testament was established my men and years later the interpretation of it was also done through male groups. It was written in male language, leaving women completely outside of the scope, with words like „HE‟ and „HIS‟ which comprised the entire holly book. The images of G-d were intrinsically influenced by this culture, usually labeling HIM as white, older, and wiser. Women were then brought into the picture through sexuality, which represented sin and the downfall of the holly male, beginning with Eve‟s immoral snatch of the apple. This gave rise to women subordination, as we all knelt to a male divine figure and accepted this perception with no questioning. The Virgin Mary is the only woman honored in religion, as she is the pure mother, establishing the single metaphor men gave to women (though it goes beyond my understanding of how a virgin was able to have a child?!). From virgin goes slut, there is no in between, and the Madonna-whore dichotomy emerges. Women are good or bad, evil or pure; there is no middle that men are fortunate to enjoy. From a micro level, stories were created, by men, to symbolize events and fairy tales which, in turn, constructed the belief system on a macro level. The Goddess face, on the other hand, is the symbol of matriarchal society, in which all the entities are connected and intertwined. Unlike the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit known to Christianity, the prime aspect of the Goddess acknowledges the phases all in one woman: the Madden (pre-sexual girl), Mother (creator of birth which manifests society), and Crown (a wise woman, gone through menopause, who is free to teach and pass on her experience to others). Women are taught from an early age to compete with one another, as the union of females is threatening to patriarchal culture. Like consciousness-raising groups were accused of bad-mouthing men, women who met in groups were accused of witchcraft because the unknown always stirs up a challenge. (Klein) The Long Beach Women‟s Spirit is an example of such a group commonly associated with hatred and witchcraft, a group which our guest speaker, Nita Rubio attended. Her journey to finding herself and her spirituality is essential to understanding the religion of the Goddess. This group consisted of daughters of the Goddess who celebrated themselves in aspect of her. They did this through dance and play, activities not usually geared for older women. This intrigued her, and through this she found that spirituality is her means of escaping the hectic world, but not fully departing from it. Many women don‟t have an ideology of feminism or spirituality from the start, an epiphany usually takes place to get them there and Nita‟s experience was quit enlightening. During a vacation in Mexico, she and her friends were waiting for their boyfriends, while guarding cases of beer. Inevitably, men approached them and insisted on having a beer with them. It wasn‟t until she responded by saying, “No, I have a boyfriend” did the guys understand she was serious. Why does a woman have to belong to another man in order to be heard? This gave away her power, but at the same time empowered her to share these issues and do something about them. Just as Betty Freidan made an isolated issue global and enabled women to come out from under their shells and evoke change, Nita realized that the personal is political. This was her catalyst for inner change, as it is for many women who undergo such epiphanies. She then joined the Women Mysteries of the Ancient Women Sisterhood and realized that change doesn‟t emerge from docile behavior. This group made her aware of the patriarchy and its power, relating the
Goddess history, feminism, and sacred sexuality in one. The sacredness of the body was to be cherished and not abused, as the illusion of control many women undergo in our culture due to their seductiveness. The Feminist Spirituality in the late 60‟s and 70‟s was a new concept during the second wave. The movement started in 1974, with Karen and Susan who put out a women‟s magazine that initially focused on gender and economic issues (1973). Establishing the patriarchal values so deeply embedded in our institutions, while classifying everything else as deviant. Their second tour, in 1974, broadened the scope to include artistic expression, literature, music, poems, etc as a new culture in response to the repression emerged. This New Women Culture drew from the oldest time in history and required that all women care for each other. Consciousness-raising groups materialized to raise spirituality, including honoring the body, expanding spirit, and respecting nature and humanity through a partnership model perspective. The Liberty of Non-Rigid Social Forms then came about, which based experience on personal needs, beliefs, and communal experience, again emphasizing the fact that personal is political. Challenging the status quo and referring back to ancient customs served as a basis for this community. It was quit depressing that few direct lineages are found of Matriarchal societies, true DNA connections, but the importance of nature was a concept that strongly returned. The moon, for example, is sacred in that it correlates with women‟s period cycles, without artificial light women would all bleed at the same time, representing the sacred connection between the female body, nature, and all women. Pagan customs are a European example of this connection between the body and earth. (Nita Rubio) Referring back to direct lineage, Wicca is a well-known custom that allows any woman who claims her power to be a part of and its one with direct historical roots. The term means to bend or shape consciousness, in other words, to be awakened or empowered. This custom was strongly degraded my men and it was perceived as a major threat to male supremacy. Originally women witches were known as healers and this name emerged from society who called them that as a sign of control. The famous „witch-hat‟ also emerged from a fashion that people wore and since these healers lived in the woods, when the fashion changed, they were outdated. The hat then became a signifier of the evil that these so-called witches represented. (Nita Rubio) The circle of Aradia serves as an example of an all women‟s Wicca convention, but others included both sexes. The source of the divine in all of them, however; was the feminine. Since pre-historic society the male paradigm of analysis was used to establish that long sticks and battle armor were signs of strength, but in reality these branches were parts of nature used in dancing circles, exactly the opposite of acts of aggression. In Western Europe, the first signs of Matriarchal societies emerged through figures like Venus, which, again, was interpreted by males as purely sexual through her large breasts and big belly. Unlike patriarchal cultures, these societies revered women due to their corresponding cycles with nature and their ability to give birth. These societies existed from 2500 BCE, about 27000 years ago, without fortification or invasions. In these establishments, the partnership model prevailed and war was not an issue, it was the power within paradigm, not a hierarchal system. The first patriarch was then recorded as Abraham, who existed during 1800 BCE, with Mohamed following in 600 AD. With that came the negative allocation of women‟s position in society, viewing their cycles as dirty and private. Heavy sanction were then given to those who were bleeding, making sure that while a woman was bleeding, she stayed in bed and her husband was nowhere in site. Unlike the
Pagan traditions which valued the connection women experienced with nature, establishing sacred ceremonies for women to commune at this time, patriarchy established different objectives. The Dame is an example of such a group that exists today, in which the foundation focuses on women‟s period cycles, views sexuality as a life-force, and uses dancing and inner movement as a source of healing. Many women forget the importance of their inner inquisitions, as they are constantly devalued by society. The mind-body split recognizes this disconnection with the body due to our culture‟s unnatural ways of healing, like medicine instead of meditation, and the consistent devaluation of women‟s wisdom through their bodies, which is determined by age and appearance. (Klein) In the Carol Christ article, “Why Women Need the Goddess,” a stress on finding the divine within oneself is impossible to avoid. Women need to recreate their histories and desires through rituals and communions because these serve as the symbols of life. These symbols, again, are significant in all cultures, like marriage and divorce serve to inform the community of a partnership status is our culture. Symbols are the building blocks of language which the present society attaches great meaning. According to Carol, symbols have moods and motivations. The moods are psychological attitudes, the inner-state or feeling about a symbol and the motivation is the outer manifestation or action to the symbol. The mood brings action which, in turn, is motivation. This action can either be political, economic, or social as the moods are deeply rooted. It‟s difficult and almost impossible to get rid of these symbols due to their inherent roots, so the only way to terminate them is to alter them. Religion has immense effects and it cannot be left in the hands of patriarchy, yet again. Another paradigm must be restored and recognized. In 1975, 1800 women gathered in Boston as a reaction to this sexism established by patriarchy and in 1978 the first Goddess course was held in Santa Cruz. The recreation of the Goddess and her inherent rituals were beginning to emerge as was a new sense of womanhood. The Goddess is everything and everywhere, it depends on the people praising her. She is linked to nature, she is the rivers, and she is the oceans. She represents both good and bad together, like Heaven on Earth. As G-d is known to be male and women were left out of that, the Goddess reclaims the importance of females in our society, though it doesn‟t depend on gender. There are four essential aspects of the Goddess, according to Carol Christ. The first deals with the affirmation of female power which was a huge issue in the 70‟s. This involved individual empowerment of women as intellects. Distinguishing greatly from the service that patriarchal society deems women were placed on earth for. The second is celebrating and affirming the female body. Unlike the Virgin Mary, who was free from all bodily functions and sexuality, she was seen and revered as the divine woman in patriarchal religion. (Though to fit this paradigm, they needed alter her image and take away her sexuality.) From this emerged the image of Mary Magdalene who was viewed as the evil whore that represented the opposite of Mary. In the Goddess tradition, as the Goddess symbolizes both the good and bad, slut and prude, a woman‟s sexuality must be reclaimed. It is a sacred aspect of her life and as such it cannot be assumed as a role again, getting away from the power-over paradigm. In a patriarchy women are taught that their only power is seduction and sex-appeal, giving them an illusion of power which in reality steers from intellect and allows men to dominate further. The blood cycle, therefore; should also be revered and cherished
as it a clean and sacred asset in line with nature. May Day serves as an example which marked the cross quarter between spring and summer and gave the world a heightened sense of creativity, energy, and sexuality. The village people would make love in the fields to energize the crops, uniting body and nature, and steering from today‟s idea that sexuality deals only with a woman‟s false sense of power, established my patriarchy. The crown is important to the culture just as much as a woman‟s cycle because she contains all the wisdom that must be passed down to younger generations, unlike the negative connotation we assign older women today. The third aspect of the Goddess is acknowledging and seeing the importance of a woman‟s bonds and heritage. Women in today‟s society are in such fierce competition with each other, that even mothers and daughters have lost their sacred bond. Our culture maintains this separation to keep male supremacy in tact, instead of females forgetting about the physical differences they are competing about and uniting to form a helping bond for one another, they continue male standards. Our lineage and history has been forgotten as male domination drew a black cloud over it. Authentic female bonding unties the body as well as entire female community, not to talk about men and fashion, but to discuss our inner beings, sacred sexuality, and love. Patriarchy has deemed this spirituality as evil, devil related, and therefore much skepticism is aroused when the topic comes up. In ancient cultures, a Greek myth establishes the worth that female sexuality and bondage have. Persephone was once raped by Zeus, which represented the early ownership of women, and later Hades wanted her for himself. He obtains her through a smell she is attracted to and while smelling the flowers she is taken to the underworld. Demeter, her mother, is so devastated that her only love has disappeared that the land dies, as her saddens takes the life force away. Later Balbo comes along and dance wildly, not „Goddess-like‟, in the fields and flashes her vagina to Demeter. She, of course, starts laughing and this breaks the spell, returning all life force and allowing everything to bloom once again. This myth depicts the mother daughter separation our society has so readily forgotten, as well as the power of true sexuality, not as an object but as something she owns and holds scared with respect. The disconnection on account of the ideal beauty image is depressing in today‟s culture. Our roots need to once again be united and held on to. The last aspect of the Goddess is the affirmation of female will; the ability to manifest and do things, still with the existence of men, but through connecting the body and humanity, simply stepping away from the patriarchal paradigm. A new light needs to be shown distracting from the monotheistic patriarchal cultures and creating new symbols of meanings to create a newly equal reality. (Klein) 4. After the Native Tribes, the Romans also believed that the Earth Goddess lived in all aspect of life, just as the Goddess. Following the Romans, female praise continued in Europe where older women were revered and acknowledged as intellects and healers. The Christians, however; were the first to question this female supremacy and as most people do when they doubt, they assume the worst. So devil-worshipers, evil-doers, and witches were the terms they chose to assign these women. The „healers‟ history has been lost over so many years as society began to condemn these women of witchcraft and sin. During the Renaissance, the witch-craze established that these women in power were dark and symbolized death, on account that the current patriarchy feared losing its authority. Halloween was the holiday celebrating the Queen of the night. The previous Pagan festivals which were directed as remembering their ancestry through orgies, sacrifices, and various rituals were
bringing forth a fearful and negative connotation. The hat used to be a symbol of knowledge and the caldron represented the power of women and life. It is from these roots that witches began to be feared; in essence it was female power that was feared. Now society associated both those object with evil and sin. Since witchcraft dismissed many cultural traditions, witches began to be persecuted. For example, in Africa they were labeled „heathens‟ when in reality, they were the folk healers of Peru. The drugs that pharmacies assign to individuals in today‟s culture were distributed by these healers in ancient times, but due to their immense power, extraordinary fear emerged. The Curenderas, Mexican healers, continued despite social protest and upheaval. Now, doctors actually return to ancient methods of healing which in those days were so tremendously apprehended and reviled. In fact, many European healers rely on Christian tradition, distinguishing them in no way from ordinary citizens. (“The Burning Times”) Witch stemmed from the Anglo-Saxon word „Wic.‟ This term meant to bend or to shape, usually in regard to forming an alternate state of consciousness through natural means, not chemical. The modern day term for a witch is a „star-hawk‟ and in Pagan tradition, both Christianity and nature are respected and honored. The Christianization of Europe brought about the loss of many lives, with the Inquisition established by the Roman Catholic Church. If anyone were to criticize the church, an execution would be in order before the sentence was finished. By 1554, women were drowned for calling up sprits of the Rhine. The witch hunts amounted to a women‟s holocaust, killing 9 million women, over 200 years from 15th to 17th century. 85% of the people killed during these hunts were women though unfortunately, no records or sorties were found on account of these innocent individuals. The witch craze was more than an execution of Catholic heretics; it was a destruction of a way of life. Women who were tested for witchcraft were thrown in the rivers and if they drown then they were wrongly accused, but if they floated they were killed, on account that they were witches. These people lived peacefully in villages, in alliance with nature and the seasons, as Earth was their mother. They practiced traditions such as May Day, honoring the mark between spring and summer, and on such account were accused of witchcraft. Pagan tradition was based solely on action, custom, and experience not a strict belief system, which was questioned by the Church. With Christianity came the belief that a Goddess was a saint, just as Mary had been established. There was no other female figure of such honor and respect, so the Pagans demanded recognition and wanted their own woman to relate to, a “Mary Goddess”. Within a year, 500 Churches were constructed for Mary who still bears the name of her Pagan ancestors, who is revered as the Queen of heaven and Mother of G-d, despite the Goddess original establishment in all things. (“The Burning Times”) In that society, there were two religions, the elite Christian and the majority who still represented nature and the Goddess religion. In 1429, Joan of Arc led the French to victory versus England and immediately she was declared a witch. Though later the name changed and she was seen as a G-d-like figure or saint. It was not odd for women in those days to take on these kinds of roles, as sort of mystics, though the Church got increasingly defensive. Their doctrinaire institutions were increasingly being threatened by social change. By the 15th century, the old order had changed. Women used to serve as physicians who birthed babies, held the dying, counseled those less wise, but the priests began to fear the power women had and grew increasingly suspicious
about these tasks. The Inquisition brought about the notions that midwives, these healers and counselors, were harmful to society. Abortions and birth control, for example, were not G-d‟s will and those who disobeyed G-d were not worthy of life. In addition, they couldn‟t comprehend the fact that women could heal and cure without undergoing a rigorous education. Though their lives were at steak, these women still practiced their centuryold traditions. The witch burnings were instituted to control the powers of reproduction, in essence women, sexuality, which was regarded as a sin, contraception, deemed to defy G-d‟s will, and control of the body in general, aspects which gave women power. During this period, the domestication of women began. Simultaneously, trade expanded and the land of peasants were ceased, as they were forced to move into cities or towns and for the first time, these reformers and witches, who remained in the hills, were classified as rebels and perpetuators of evil. The repression then congruently increased and the mysterious people began to be victimized. Masks of shame were worn by those who spoke out against the Church or their husbands, for a man could beat his wife as charity for her soul. The Ducking Stool was another example of the social humiliation people who disobeyed the norms had to undergo. It was a cage hung in the middle of the town so that the whole community could come and visit the „rebel‟. Women were seen to introduce sin and temptation through sexuality, which was no longer considered a gift, but pure evil. And as good people went to heaven, the wicked went to hell; no more Heaven on earth paradigm. The Black Plague that hit in the 14th century was deemed to bring the end of the world, and the Church saw it as G-d‟s punishment for all the sin executed on it. Though there were many epidemics and women were continuously turned to for help, now this help was regarded with neglect. During the 15th century the female population rose due to the numerous male lives taken by the war and as such women were viewed to have an immunity to disease. The established patriarchy was not happy with the ratio of outlived women in comparison to man and its inherent rate of independent women, or unmarried women. These women then obtained names like spinster, widow, or beggar (since their property was taken, they were dependent on charity). (“The Burning Times”) The clash between the Protestant and Catholic Church further increased the witch craze. The threatened institutions used witches as their scapegoats for the threats they were experiencing with the current society. Their lack of control from emerging groups and fear of subordination lead them to blame those weaker and execute them for crimes (sins) they didn‟t commit. Eventually these horrid tales told by authority were converted into facts, that commoners new nothing better but to believe. Myths began to emerge that witches flew through the air, hunting to destroy, that they were agents of the devil, and anyone you touched them would instantly die. The old hag, which used to entail sacred knowledge, eventually turned into a negative term used to describe a „witch‟. These witches began to gather at night to practice the traditions they have been around for so many years, but all of a sudden were regarded as deviant. These communions were also viewed with great neglect and even discussed in the art and literature of the time, all equating to one conclusion; witches are evil. This era became known as the age of suspicion. (“The Burning Times”) Renaissance or reformation was known by its name, as the period of „re-birth‟. Church reforms began taking place as the dawn of science brought about the telescope and the discovery of the New World. Frances Bacon introduced the scientific method and used the technology of the inquisition to get the truths out of nature, in
other words torture. The witch hunts took a new turn as they evolved into profit seeking businesses which distributed books and gave many „non-witches‟ prominent job opportunities, such as lawyers and judges. Anyone was accusing everyone of being a witch, if it served their interest and amounted to cash into their favor. As most witches came from rural areas, for sheer embarrassment they were placed in the town square, stripped of their clothes and later jailed and tortured. Additionally, they were shaved because their hair was known to withhold magical power and they were directed to approach the inquisitor backwards, so as not to give him „the evil eye‟. Various torture methods were inflicted to enforce confession of witchcraft and they were continued until the individual finally gave up and confessed, inclining toward death over the imposed pain. In 1590, the only recovered letter from Rebecca Lamp was found, asking her husband for a various method of suicide so she wouldn‟t have to undergo the torture. In due course, entire villages were terminated and in the 200 years of terror transformed ancient Pagan religions into devil worshipers. The celebration of the seasons was disappearing and the poor harvest was blamed on women, who were seen as demons lead by the devil. Women were deemed irrational being, driven by passion and their sinful sexuality. This evoked a danger and further testified their „contract with the devil‟, through sexual acts. Here we begin to see the rise of women‟s subordination as established by the patriarchal society. Malleurs Malificarum was recorded studies of the repression and rejection of sexual actions, as well as the fear of night, sex, and women in general. This influential book reinforced that all women were witches and the source of evil in the society. Other than negative remains, no monuments were left to remember those who died on Halloween; historical evidence prevailed only from the winners. Though various fairy tales are told to children, October 31st is a remembrance day for those innocent women who passed. Women today gather to fight for what they believe in, so accounts like this don‟t happen again. Their voices are made to be heard, not feared and their actions are made to be respected not bypassed as sources of evil. (“The Burning Times”)