You know you love it...

It’s scary realizing how much movies and shows affect one’s life. But, regardless of how much TV you watch, you are still socialized into a specific environment that lives specific scenes from movies and shows. Hilary Radner’s book Neo-Feminist Cinema, looks at “girly films, chick flicks and consumer culture.” She specifically talks about 10 pointers that are seen in all chick flicks and girly films.

After reading more about those 10 pointers, I started realizing that these trends don’t only occur in films, but in shows also. I’m going to talk about the how these 10 points can be applied to the TV show Gossip Girl. To begin with, Gossip Girl is definitely a more girly show that revolves around the lives of urban teenagers, and the drama around their personal lives.

1. The first trend the author points out is that a woman’s appearance is a crucial aspect to her identity. That is the first thing you notice in GG, even from season one. The prettiest girls are the ones playing the main roles throughout the show. They are the girls who started off gorgeous and throughout the show remain powerful, strong and still pretty, of course.




2. The female lead always succeeds in her goal of being with the man of her choice. Serena and Blair, the two protagonists in the show usually end up with the man of their choice. Even if they weren’t sure of whom they wanted, they still end up with whomever they end up choosing. This leads me to the next point the author makes.




3. There is ambivalence about the role of romance, marriage, and work in a woman’s life. Like I said in my previous point, the two main female characters are never sure of which man they really want to end up with. In the picture below I highlighted those four people, because Blair, the brunette, has actually been with all three main male characters. Every time Blair is with one or the other, she believes that he is the man for her and falls for him.



4. The protagonist is a single woman who works for a living, and whose work some way defines her. After both girls graduated from high school, we see their struggle to find themselves in terms of what jobs they want to pursue. Whenever either lady chooses her path, she would always be single and very sure of the path she takes, like it defines her true identity and life somehow.

5 + 6. The ability to shop is a tool that enables the female lead to resolve her conflict and achieve her goal and consumer culture serves as a magical place where everything goes right. We constantly see the girls wearing the best clothes that all the other girls on the show envy them for. Serena and Blair go shopping for any and every event, especially when they’re down. To help them get their mind off their problems, they believe a new dress could solve it all, like it’s therapy.





7. Films tend to take place in a large, well-known place. Gossip Girl is set in New York. Also, every time the girls travel anywhere, it’s always to big cities like Paris and Los Angeles.

8. There is a theme of personal transformation. Throughout the show we see how the two main female characters are always undergoing personal transformations, like changing their education and work paths. We also see a lot of makeovers throughout the shows, especially for those girls who were less popular and suddenly try to become on top, with the rest of the powerful girls.



9. The plot contains a do-over in which a past mistake is resolved. The girls constantly fight throughout the seasons and make-up by the end of the episode or season.



10. There is a sense of nostalgia or glorifying the past. The girls always get advice from their mothers and grandmothers about their past experiences when it comes to men, fashion and power.

Every girl reading this will probably agree to most of these points, one way or another. Even I, someone who isn’t the biggest shopping fan, still realize the importance of looks and the way I dressed. When it comes to men, of course I want the best man for me. And I constantly hear my friends saying things like, “why wouldn’t he want me?” “I can so get him,” and other lines suggesting that they are very familiar with those celebrities who “apparently” get everything they want. My girlfriends and I are very close and we always have “girl’s days out,” where we hang out and do all sorts of girly stuff like shop, do our nails, or give advice to each other about our futures and our paths in life, very much like the girls from GG.




“XOXO,
GOSSIP GIRL”

"We've Got The Power"

In our last Sociology class, we discussed women and gender. Considering how there is an overwhelming majority of females in our class, the topics on femininity, neo-feminist cinema and power were highly intriguing.

I have witnessed and experienced a significant amount of sexism, not only from males but females too. Mothers in particular. They seem to conform to their roles as being housewives and homemakers; cooking and cleaning are an integral part of a married woman’s daily routine. Men, however, conform to their roles as being the breadwinner of the household. If men are placed in a situation where they can’t be the providers of the family they will submit to playing no part whatsoever in helping around the house. This is because they feel emasculated and since socialization portrays working around the house as a female’s responsibility, men would rather be useless than serve a purpose.



I have first-hand experience, in my own household, of my brother telling me to make him meals because I’m a female. I have also experienced something similar from my mother. She advised me to learn how to cook earlier on, in order for me to provide meals for my future husband. Parents, and the family, are the most prominent agents of socialization in any individual’s life. This explains how people can justify that they’re right for whatever reason – may it be on buying a house or car, or making the right choice on a certain issue - because their parents have cautioned them on what is right and what is wrong.


This week I attended the student-faculty dodge ball game. Seeing as the majority of students are female, some male students expressed bitterness because they saw this as disadvantageous to the students’ team. “The only reason we’re losing is because we have so many girls on our team,” said one male.


Men seem to be under the impression that women can’t exert physical power. This is mainly due to socialization – movies such as Rambo and the Expendables convey masculinity through strength and violence. But even when women play roles that show ‘power over’ others, which means getting others to do something even when they don’t want to, it isn’t interpreted in a serious manner. This is mainly because men find women playing aggressive roles attractive, and almost all of these roles played by women are sexualized.



Although the faculty won the dodge-ball game, there were quite a number of females on their team as well. The males on the student team purposely targeted the females on the faculty team, assuming that they would be the “weak” point. But the females played a large role in contributing the large number of points the faculty team won by, which shows that it is merely a social construction that “women are physically weaker than men.”

The Girly Truth

In today’s post, I will analyze the 10 common girly traits found in girly or neo-feminist films. In my post, I look for these traits in The Ugly Truth. I will give examples in each of the 10 traits when applicable because this will allow for readers to better understand what I am referring to when I use my examples to explain the traits.

1.    Women’s appearance is a crucial aspect of her identity?

In the course of the movie The Ugly Truth, Abby cannot find her perfect man who fits all ten of her checklist criteria. The entire plot revolves around how she will eventually get the man of her dreams by changing her appearance, which as a result will reflect her new identity and attitude. Mike is her guide and he is the one who emphasizes the importance of her appearance and how she has to change a lot about herself to get the Doctor she has her eyes set on. 

2.    The female succeeds in her goal of marrying the man of her choice?

What’s interesting about this movie is that Abby succeeds in obtaining the man of her dreams but realizes that he wasn’t the man of her dreams after all. Instead, Mike is the right man for her. She does eventually end up with Mike and at the end of the movie we don’t actually witness a wedding but the idea of marriage is implied.

3.    The protagonist is a single woman who works for a living and whose work in some way defines her?

From the beginning we can tell that Abby is a single, uptight workaholic. She is a producer for the KSXP news company. When her boss told her the bad news that he may need to kill the show, she immediately considered canceling her date and staying home to think of ideas to raise viewer ratings for the show.

4.    The ability to shop is a tool that enables the female to resolve conflict and achieve her goals?

The main goal in The Ugly Truth is for Abby get the man of her dreams, which for the most of the film Collin, the doctor. Mike takes her shopping and helps her change her look from the woman “operating heavy machinery” to the attractive lady that is desirable.

-->

5.    Consumer culture offers a magical place where everything goes right?

After Abby changes her look and identity through appealing to consumer culture and going out shopping, everything begins to go right. When Collin comes over to see why she never called him back earlier that day she greets him at the door wearing a tight black dress that compliments her body. In that scene we see that he starts showing interest in her right then and there because he asks her on a date to a baseball game.

6.    There is ambivalence about the role of romance, marriages and work in a woman’s life?

Abby is trying to balance out her professional life with her personal life. Throughout the film we see how she tries to be the independent, confident workaholic while still having a girlish feel to her through her endless search for her perfect match. She believes in true love and that she will find it when she finds the man that fits all ten of her checklist criteria. In one of the scenes Abby has to give up her romantic getaway with Collin for work reasons. Her boss asks her to accompany Mike to his interview with Craig Fergusson and she does as her boss requests. During her time with Mike, she realizes she is in love with him and not Collin and that’s when things become quite complicated for Abby and she is put in a position where she has to choose.

7.    The film takes place in a large well-known city?

The Film takes place in the capital of the state of California, Sacramento, which is the sixth largest city in California.

8.    There is a theme of personal transformation?

This is definitely evident in the events of the film. Both Mike and Abby help each other to transform to the better versions of themselves. With Mikes help and guidance, Abby is able to transform to an attractive, desirable woman who can get the guy of her dreams, Moreover, she learns that check list items don’t matter in the face of true love.

At the beginning of the film Mike comes off as a misogynist who does not believe in true love. The time he spends with Abby allows him to discover how amazing she truly is and therefore ends up falling in love with her. Because of Abby, Mike is transformed to a man in love.

9.    The plot contains a “do-over” in which a past mistake is resolved?

The mistake that takes place in The Ugly Truth is that Mike lets the elevator moment slip away because when he goes to Abby’s room to talk to her about it, Collin greets him at the door. Abby tells him that Collin surprised her in the hopes that Mike would tell her to leave Collin and be with him but Mike fails to do so. In the end Mike fixes his past mistake on the hot air balloon by admitting to Abby that even thought she drives him crazy he’s in love with her.

10. There is a sense of nostalgia of glorifying the past?

Not applicable.

9/10 of the common traits are found in this movie, definitely making it fall under the genre of the girly film or the neo-feminist film.

Neo-Feminism in Confessions of a Shopaholic

In Confessions of a Shopaholic (2009), the lead character, Rebecca, is a recent college graduate who is deep debt because of her shopping addiction. Ironically, She lands a job as a financial advisor in a New York magazine. Rebecca lies about her credentials to be able to get the job to support her addiction as well as to pay the bills. As a perfect Hollywood love story, Rebecca falls in love with her boss, who happens to be a rich entrepreneur. Although the film is about a young woman’s struggle against her typical feminine addiction, the end result is that she gets together with a rich guy who would be able to support her. She also becomes famous by doing her articles and lands an interview on national TV.

This film contains the traits that “constitute the ‘commonplaces’ of the genre, and which are linked to the neo-feminist paradigm,” (36) as Hilary Render mentions in her book Neo-Feminist Cinema. 1. Although the film is clearly directed at a female audience, Rebecca’s character “underlines appearance as a crucial aspect of feminine identity” (36). She’s always dressed fashionably, has makeup on, hair done in perfect waves, and acts in the typical feminine way that is socially constructed. The film begins by her speaking about the dream of owning nice shoes. 2. The ‘marriage plot’ is another trait included in this film. Rebecca ends up with the rich handsome guy of her own choice, who happens to also be in love with her (if only life worked that way). 3. “The protagonist is usually a single woman who works for a living, and whose work in some way defines her; however at the same time regardless of the role she plays, she is distinguished by her girlish personality and looks” (36). Rebecca lands a job as a finance advisor—a job that would typically call for a serious look, but our lead keeps her colorful, ‘girlish’ sense of style through out the film. Even during an important luncheon, Rebecca is dressed in a white suit and high heels, unable to escape her girly attitude and cheery personality. 4. One of the most important traits is the consumer culture presented in the film. This trait, according to Radner, is crucial in the setting, “as well as often providing tools that enable the heroine to resolve her conflict” (37). Rebecca connects with her boss in the scene she helps him shop for the important luncheon. Her addiction and knowledge helped her gain the love of her life.