WoolyBully7, Cixous & Butler

“If woman has always functioned ‘within’ man’s discourse, a signifier referring always to the opposing signifier that annihilates its particular energy, puts down or stifles its very different sounds, now it is time for her to displace this ‘within,’ explode it, overturn it, grab it, make it hers…you will see how easily she will well up from this ‘within’ where she hidden and dormant…” (165-166).
As hard as this reading was, I think I was able to muster up some sense out of this paragraph. This quote was the only one with substance that I thought I somewhat understood. Even to this day, women are still being overshadowed by men. On the outside it seems like women have earned so much equality but they really haven’t. I’m going to preface this by saying that I grew up in a very, very matriarchal household. I don’t believe women can do great things; I know they can do great things and I have lived to see this happen on numerous occasions. There are female CEOs, governors, senators, cabinet members, TV show hosts, professional athletes, etc. The CEOs of Xerox and EBay are women, Hilary Clinton ran as an potential presidential candidate, the Chancellor of Germany as well as the President of Chile are women, and then there’s Oprah, who brings both gender and race into the spotlight. Hilary used to function underneath her ex-president husband, Bill Clinton, now she has taken the stage for the most part. Women are taking charge but even now, with Michelle Obama, I think it is being taken even further to help women gain equality in the workplace, at home, school, everywhere. They talk a lot about writing in this article, and I thought that writing was one of the only real mediums left today that knows no gender. Sure some writings may make more sense if we know what gender the author is but for the most part, all writers are created and treated equally.

yellowdaisy 4, cixous & butler

I found the Cixous and Butler reading about women and opposites in gender to be interesting yet quite confusing. Cixous begins by talking about binary oppositions then goes on to discuss bisexuality and femininity. I had a hard time figuring out what exactly she was arguing. I do agree with a lot of their views on feminism especially when Cixous talks about the femininity in writing and how it is much more difficult for women to speak up then for men. These readings made me think of a Christina Aguilera song called “Can’t Hold Us Down” in which she discusses the double standard of women not being able to stick up for themselves. The song is about how males get to speak out against someone or take a stand for something but when women do it, it’s a way bigger deal. Christina, in this particular song, was discussing how the media talks bad about her because she’s not afraid to write about or speak out against male artists.She sings lyrics like “so what am I not supposed to have an opinion? Should I be quiet just because I'm a woman? Call me a bitch cause I speak what's on my mind, guess it's easier for you to swallow if I sat and smiled. She puts herself out there and like Cixous says “for a woman speaking-even just opening her mouth-in public is something rash, a transgression.” To me, Christina Aguilera, in this song in particular, is a modern feminist because she is speaking out against ill treatment toward women. Today, it is still hard to believe there are problems because many women are gaining so many more opportunities then they once did in the past especially with women like Hilary Clinton even running for president. However, women are still stereotypically seen as bitches or divas if they take control like a man, sluts if they “get around” too much like a man, or masculine and inappropriate if they speak up against something like a man. Although these double standards are sad and not encouraging, women still need to fight until we are treated completely equal.

Petite Etoile, Cixious

So Cixious says, "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.” Now I have to agree, I have begun to speak and felt awkward or stupid, it would be difficult to find anyone who never has. But I can’t remember a time when it was because I was a female. I’ve spoken in classes before and faltered halfway through because the sudden thought that I sound like an idiot would smack me in the face. Or I’ve begun to speak and realized I said something that might upset someone. Such as a couple weeks ago when I was at a conference at UCF to help train activists and I compared guaranteeing freshman housing to guaranteeing women and children and life vests because they are weaker. The words no sooner came out of my mouth that I cringed and closed my eyes before the feminists in the back of the room started to shout. My friend backed me up and said that I had not obviously meant anything by the statement, we were talking about solutions to a housing problem on campus as an example for problem solving. And I think this is a good example of how sometimes people really just look too far into things. Yes some people will discriminate against women. But I think it is more on a personal level than a national conspiracy against women. I think the way an individual is raised, how his father treats his mother, how his mother treats him and other things like that, will affect the way they see women. Just in the same way with racism and other types of discrimination. I think the media does portray women poorly, as sexy play things or stupid or housewives, but I don’t think that it has such a huge affect that it might curb my salary someday. If that does occur, I think it would be because my boss personally thinks less of women. And I think the only way to fix that is some form of education or counseling for him. I also think the main problem here is that if men do have the upper hand, why would they want to change that? They have the upper hand… it is in their best interest to keep it that way.

Dba123, Butler and Cixous

Reading Butler and Cixous definitely proved to be a challenge for me, but from what I did understand I thought they both made some interesting connections between feminism and post modernism

 Butler, I especially thought related to some of the previous theorists we have discussed.  On page 192, she refers to Foucault and his ideas of power structures end up creating how subjects present themselves.  “Juridical notions of power appear to regulate political life in purely negative terms—that is, through the limitation, prohibition, regulation, control and even ‘protection’ of individuals related to that political structure though the contingent and retractable operation of choice.  But the subjects regulated by such structures are, by virtue of being subjected to them, formed, defined, and reproduced in accordance with the requirements of those structures,” (192).  Not only did I think this related to Foucault concepts, but also Althusser and his notion of the repressive State Apparatuses and Ideological State Apparatuses.  Butler relates how power structures have reinforced what the ideal of women and feminism is what it is today.  Althusser believed our identity is shaped by outside agents, some by force and some that we are not even aware of at all.  Butler applies the same ideas to a larger group instead of individuals themselves, this group being women.  Ideas of how women should be are engrained in everyone, both men and women, due to the power politics have in deciding how we should think women should be.  I think Butler was saying how not all women are the same, so that the common ideology of how women should be cannot be applied to all women, or at all.  

thestig, butler

“Women denotes a common identity… it becomes impossible to separate out ‘gender’ from the political and cultural intersections in which it is invariably produced and maintained” (193).

The term ‘women’ is tossed around in modern society in ways in which are demeaning and unfair – when it comes down to the malaise of modern society – to members of both genders. In other words, the word ‘women’ is part of the root to the problem as a whole: that females are reduced to “women.” Why is this the case in today’s society, one might ask, where females are supposedly equal? Statistics do show that the females are getting jobs, some of which are high paying, however when compared to the income of males in equal positions, statistics show females are generally paid less. In addition, even though the glass ceiling effect may not be as evident today as it was 50 years ago, it still exists. The word ‘women’ is thrown around too much, and our media certainly doesn’t help to improve the situation.

‘Women’ are often portrayed as fulfilling the roles of housewives in media. When this notion is consumed, it becomes an accepted ideology. Females are not limited to being housewives, but as Butler presents, it becomes difficult to see the potential of ‘women’ when always portrayed in roles which fulfill the stereotype of the life of a women.

Every once in a while, a movie will come out of Hollywood where there is a man fulfilling the role of what one might expect a women to fulfill. The films identify this paradox, and the result is comedy: i.e. Ben Stiller plays the role of a “MALE nurse” in Meet the Parents. Every scene in which he is introduced or introduces himself, he says, “male nurse.” The fact that he says, “male” further perpetuates the denotation of women. Therefore, ‘women’ are objectified not only through the objectifying females in media, but also through objectifying males playing a character usually expected to be played by a female.

Juice15, Cixous

“Why does man fear being a woman” (Cixous 159)?
This Cixous reading was very interesting and had many ideas that I have never really thought about. Being a male, this reading was very interesting to read, considering its use of “we” as in females. This was a very intense and seemingly harsh reading and I am still trying to grasp onto where these concepts came from and how they came about.
The quote above is one that I read a few different times and not sure of an answer. If Freud couldn’t come up with an answer I am not so sure I can also. This question seems to interest me and I will be sure to ask around and see what the answers are and how they vary between male and female.
The idea of bisexuality being a fantasy of a complete being and the fantasy of unity is another interesting concept. I never have thought of this idea in such a way. It is supposed to be the location within oneself the presence of both sexes, it is strange to see such an in depth idea other than just a choice of sexual preference.
The excessive talk about the “phallus” was interesting also. The “Phallocentric Performing Theater”, the primacy of the phallus, pahllic monosexuality, phallocentric narcissism ect. I felt attacked during this whole reading and not sure what to think about all this, especially since most this stuff feels like it would occur subconsciously.

Dot, Cixous and Butler

Although I do believe the men and women should be treated equally and that both genders should be given the same opportunities, I have never considered myself as being a feminist in any sense of the word. In our society, there is a very negative connotation associated with feminism and most people, in my generation at least, strive to not be called one. Our culture largely sees feminist as being dirty women, who hate men and do not shave their armpits, but after reading the article by Cixous and Butler, I have found that there may be more to that assumption. 

Sure there are some feminists who fall into the previously mentioned categories, but as Butler mentions, "the term women denotes a common identity" and even if all women are not self-proclaimed feminists, we all do have similar notions of how women are treated and should be treated (193). I was surprised how easy it was for me to relate to numerous things said in both articles, as I do not normally agree with radically feminist viewpoints I had originally thought that I would not like the things said by these authors. However, I found many of their claims easy to relate to. 

I especially liked Cixous' quote which states that "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" (163). I found this insight to be extremely enlightening and sad at the same time. I have definitely felt this fear, mostly in male dominated class room settings, and I know the reality of it. However, I have never really thought about it as a universal feeling and am sort of glad to know others feel it. It is however, discouraging that all women are affected by the power that men seemingly hold over us and even fear what will happen if we voice our own points of view.

Thinking deeper on this point, and examining the males around me, I wonder if they even realize the power they have over us. I am sure my guy friends would not agree that women should not speak up in classrooms, but still there is something intimidating about speaking out in front of strange men. 

What is it about our inferiority that makes women feel so threatened by merely speaking? In a culture as accepting as ours, it seems silly that such a thing would be so scary, but really it is. I would hope that one day all women can get passed this fear and loudly voice our opinions to males... Maybe I am a feminist after all.