Let's Talk About Sex(ism)

Dear MC,

Book sexism absolutely runs rampant, and its something I take offense to, both as a female writer and reader. I mean, what do people think, that the Bronte sisters just sat around, twiddling their thumbs and knitting scarves? Honestly, if women wrote and read like how society told us to be, we'd be indulging in nothing but makeup tutorials and books about sitting there and looking pretty while we wait for our husbands to come home. Where is the plot twist in that situation, I ask you? Woman has actual independent mind? Women has dream and ambition? Why--gasp--we can't possibly have that nonsense in the world of publication!

Much of what I choose to read is perceived as "chick lit." Oftentimes women write these novels. Oftentimes men avoid them like the plague. And while I understand how something like Confessions of a Shopaholic wouldn't appeal to men, for all we know, there's some shoe-hoarding male out there, waiting for someone to finally understand him. I'm not drawn towards this genre because it's "for chicks," or because the latest book club is talking about them. I'm drawn to these books because their themes are pertinent to living, breathing humans. Perhaps they're coated in situations that only women must endure, but looking beyond the surface, the reader can notice some universal topics. In Charlotte Perkins Gilman's The Yellow Wallpaper, a young woman gets diagnosed with hysteria because she was forced to stay home and do nothing all day--an issue a vast majority of women faced in the 1800s. In fact, writing was discouraged for woman at this time. While most women were diagnosed with hysteria, we have all (and will) felt restless. We have all felt trapped. We should all acknowledge that yellow wallpaper is a horrendous idea.

Even Ann Brashares, who writes about sisterhood for goodness sakes, spins a girly plot into a universal theme through her examination of fading friendships. While the interpersonal is something women typically spend more time thinking about, it's not like men are always best bros for life. They too must deal with the loss of losing someone they'd grown up with, someone whose wavelength they have finally wavered from.

Feminist theory, as several writers have noted, is the hardest to pinpoint because the only thing that all feminist theorists can agree upon is that it is different from all other theories and that one synonym cannot do it justice. Feminism, in writing, neither encourages nor discourages wearing tons of makeup, or joining the workforce, or knitting cat-hats. It is simply a lens in which we take a piece of literature and examine the role of women in that work. Any piece of literature could be chick-lit, as every work has literature about chicks. And not the clucking kind.

Yes, I still sometimes feel that twinge of embarrassment when I tell my guy friends that I genuinely enjoy Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and that my favorite books are often about mothers and daughters, but hey, it's better than not reading at all, right? Which brings me to my next question: our friend Keri raised a very important issue when trying to find something new to read. She noted that she would only like to read fanfiction, and consoled herself that it was better than reading nothing at all. While I agree with that statement, I find it sad that a lot of young readers are picking books of lesser quality--especially those who want to become writers. It seems we're lowering our standards because of the decline in reading in general. If kids aren't playing video games or punching each other, we congratulate them. But what kind of message does that send when we say it doesn't matter what you read--pick a cereal box, Twilight, anything at all? Our standards will continue to be lowered for this generation, and come college, these people won't know a classic when it bites them in the butt.

This notion seems to be particular to reading. We wouldn't tell an anorexic to "eat anything at all," and then celebrate if she eats nothing but doughnuts and ice cream. We'd teach her about proper nutrition and balanced diets. What makes reading different?

How can we encourage students not just to read, but to read well?

Peace and Ponies,
Kira