Sunday, May 18, 2008

Gender Studies, Plus!

















When you have a spare hour or two, I'm interested in what any of you think of these cultural critiques. They were both produced by the most excellent Media Education Foundation.

This first one is about the essential role of violence in our culture's idea of masculinity. (53 minutes)

The second one is about what advertising says about/to women's identity. (34 minutes)

I'd have rather posted this and this, which I feel address the same material more potently (less than ten minutes to watch both) but all I could find were previews.

I know for me, these ideas and some related ones have really changed the way that I see my culture. . . Especially when considered in combination with realizations about how fantastically, destructively materialistic*(55 minutes) our culture is.

It causes me to want to become a buddhist nun in Thailand. . . no wait, it makes me want to take a vow of non-materialism and renounce media constructions of gender. . . no wait, it makes me want to be a buddhist nun in Thailand.

*sigh*

Decisions, decisions. . .


*if you watch one, start with this one (unless the other ones specifically seem more interesting to you). Fantastic work from PBS, featuring the disembodied voice of that guy from NPR!


P.S. Edit: ok. . . so I promised you the *cough* judicious *cough* use of pictures and links. . . and so, for kicks: