Graham, Cixous

This piece focused a lot on what is ideologically feminine, and what is masculine. Not only did the author discuss mannerisms of the individual themselves, but even stereotypical associations such as words and gestures were included in the writing. We have read stories about this in my other media classes, and it reminded me a lot to something we read about the way that men are often afraid to be viewed as feminine, therefore they often overcompensate which ultimately makes them become viewed as being barbaric human beings.
Although men are ideologically superior to men and they often act “tough”, the article mentions that they are very afraid to be viewed with these feminine traits, therefore they fear women in a sense. This allows women to feel some sort of power that we do not often feel in society, because society often deems women as incapable and inferior. This power that women gain from the fear that they inflict in men confuses me, because I have never really considered these points before. However, I do see the way that men attempt to act “manly” when they get around groups of girls. I guess this could be because they are trying to impress the girls, or maybe it is because of what the author discusses…men fear being women.
This relates a lot to previous discussions that we have held in class about ideologies. Who has created the image of a man, and decided what is manly? These ideologies are so ridiculous, because it has society feeling like they have to look and act a certain way.
And why are men always viewed as the dominant figures? We just read a book in my cmc200 class about pornography and the way that men dominate women in the sex industry. Why is it okay for women to be treated so inferior to men…it doesn’t make any sense.
These ideologies are going to continue to exist because "every woman has known the torture of beginning to speak aloud...because for women speaking-even just opening her mouth - in public is something rash, a transgression." This is saying that women are not speaking up about what is happening. And if the woman speaks up will anyone listen? Maybe not, and that is a harsh reality of the way that our society operates. This article was really interesting to read.