I very much enjoyed both of these readings for the sole
reason that they debunk the personalities of characters who are most times
idolized, but only exist in fiction. I think these readings serve a good
purpose because women today should not use fictional characters as role models.
In Berlatsky’s article, she writes about how the personalities of the two main
female characters reflect so heavily on our society today. Berlatsky says the femininity
in Bella’s character from Twilight,
stirs up so much talk with critics about how Bella is not a good portrayal of
women in our society and some even say that it is borderline sexist. Also
according to critics and feminists, in The
Hunger Games, the overdone masculinity of Katniss’ character is a more
accurate reflection of society’s women, because they can be independent and
don’t need to rely on men. However, the reality is that these are still
fictional characters. Sure, it is possible that these characters might give off
a bad image for some women, but we have to remember that their personalities
are a product of the book or film. The author creates their personalities in
order to compliment the story. They are women but most importantly they are
still FICTIONAL characters; their purpose is to make a story that interests
readers. To put this in perspective, lets think about how the stories would be
if we flipped Bella’s and Katniss’ personalities. The stories would suffer,
Katniss would be too “frilly and clumsy” to defend her district and she'd probably end up hurting herself before she ever became an underdog, Bella would have little to no interest in finding a husband so the
werewolves and vampires have no relation and nothing to fight over. Critics and
society can take offense all night and day long about these “portrayals of
women” but at the end of it all, these are still fictional books and movies we
are talking about. Crap, didn’t mean to spend 322 words talking about the first
reading so sorry if I have already bored you, the second reading does much of
the same though. Ross talks about how all of the imagination Disney uses in
their movies is giving young girls a false image of what womanhood is
all about. These fictional Disney characters are not meant to be role models,
they seem like it and that’s why the films do so well, but they are only imagined
women. One of them is a mermaid… enough said. I like both of these readings and
I think they compliment each other well.
Kuzie,
ReplyDeleteI really like how you pointed out that Bella and Katniss are both characters, and how you used the example of what would happen if you switched the character's personalities. You brought up a lot of great points.
I disagree however, with one of the first things you brought up in your blog. I do think that people in today's society can benefit from looking up to both of these characters. I am not particularly a fan of twilight, and by no means do I necessarily have the same priorities (romance) that she does, but I do think that her character serves as a great example of a typical high school girl-which isn't a bad thing. Yes, at first glance Bella comes off as much more weak than Katniss, but the fact that she did everything she possibly could to be with Edward shows her strength. She embraces her feminine side while being tough. Granted this is a movie, but she faces life-threatening situations that most people would run from. Bartalsky turns this into an excellent point when examining Katniss’ character. In Hunger Games, Katniss’ masculinity is highlighted over her femininity. I do appreciate this character choice, it emphasizes her strength and the stoic nature of the series; but in the end this makes her less relatable to the target audience. If I ever have a daughter, I want to teach her that she can go after whatever she wants even if she is awkward, quiet, and girly.
I feel ya homegirl. Yeah if I felt like writing more I probably would have added that at the same time these characters can have some positive influence on girls. I just thought sometimes these characters can be taken too seriously, but I totally see what you sayin'.
DeleteKuzie,
ReplyDeleteI like how you point out right away how we idolized fictional characters. Which in some cases we shouldn’t idolize them. I do disagree to a point with what you are saying though. Although I agree that we shouldn’t idolize fictional characters doesn’t mean I don’t think we shouldn’t in some ways take what they do into consideration of our own lives. Katniss in The Hunger Games stands up against the government and fights back. Also in the last movie a building gets bombed and she tries to save them or at least make the people pay for what they did. I think that is something to look up to. We have military who does these actions and having young girls feel like they can kick butt against the enemy is refreshing. Bella in Twilight also stands up for her family and protects them, and sadly our society is more concerned with selfish thoughts than thoughts about family. I feel like these women can show us little things to better us but as a reminder like Kuzie said they are fictional characters. As for the second reading I think the three Disney movies that they talk about are also good examples of young women and they all have little things we should take away from. I think the little mermaid shows us that if we want something badly enough you have to work hard and may have to sacrifice something to get it. Beauty and the Beast the character bell shows the watchers that you have to stand up for yourself. She doesn’t take shit from anyone and she makes her own decisions. I know that these are two lessons women and people should be aware of and follow. If I have a daughter I will show her the Disney movies and what other movies that I think have little hidden meaning.
While reading both readings i was puzzled and surprise by some of the things both authors were saying. Not only were both authors saying that women living in a fantasy is unrealistic and could be dangerous and have no relevance to their daily lives , but they also say that the Disney movies also provide positive things that that women can learn fro as well.. Deborah Ross says that In Alice In Wonderland, “she presents adventure as a positive, the heroine leads her in the direction of personal growth and control over her surroundings.” Ross also says that in The LIttle Mermaid her fantasy was an anti-fantasy. Ross believes that in Beauty and the Beast Bell, is showing girls that tenderness and esteem are what's best for marriage. She is not filling girls head with fantasizing things. The Beast is also teaching self control. Ross also says that at the end of the movie when she chooses the Beast over Gaston she is showing womens value of equal rights. In “Twilight vs Hunger Games” Noah says that if Bella and Katniss were to meet he thinks that they would get along and understand each others differences even if both of them are completely different from each other showing that not everything is negative unless you make it that way. For these reasons and a couple more i would have to disagree with what this blog says (because i have too). Not only did they portray negatives, but they portrayed positives as well.
ReplyDeleteI disagree that women today shouldn't look to these fictional characters as role models. In many instances they are just like the women in todays world. In my opinion Bella, from twilight, portrays most high school women. That’s not supposed to be a bad thing though; many people look down on Bella's decisions through out the series and think of her as a confused, young, irresponsible girl. What I see is a girl, first off, fighting for something she wants, in this case Edward, but nonetheless she fought for her dreams and didn't let any amount of problems get in her way. Secondly, I see her get pregnant and instead of taking the easy way out and aborting the baby she realizes she made a life-changing mistake and takes it head on even though it may kill her in the process. Which, I see it as, one of the most mature and responsible things that she could have done. I believe that takes a ton of strength and determination to fight something like this, and young girls can look up to her knowing that even though she made a few mistakes on the way she didn't by any means take an easy way out. Also, with Katniss she shows strength in a much more obvious way, in which she protects her district, family, and stands up to the capital though, it may be the very thing that gets her killed. As for the second reading, I believe it shows young girls to also fight for what actually makes you happy. Deborah Ross, mentions the Beauty and the Beast, right off the bat I see a girl who at first is scared of the beast. She slowly gives him a chance and learns that despite his looks she could really love him. Not only does it show young girls to follow their heart but to also give everyone an equal chance. She even picks the beast over fancy perfect man, I forget his name, but it just sends an underlying message to the young viewers to not judge a book by its cover.
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you said mostly about the first article over Twilight and The Hunger Games. Fictional stories can follow any plot, they're fiction. However, I disagree that the first and second essay did mostly the same thing. The first article merely stated the outcomes of each story and offered insite from other entertainment-based journalists. On the other hand, Ross offered lots of background information explaining the feminist ideals of the time when these Disney films were produced, as well as showing the structure of management within Disney. I find Ross's claims to be much more convicing with how she presents the importance of her information. Berlatsky just provides you with quotes from articles outlining almost the exact same as he has. Granted the two are writing for very different audiences, but a level of persuasion is still necessary.
ReplyDelete