Week Two

With regards to the reading, "You're a hardcore feminist, I swear", I had some mixed feelings. On one hand I completely agree with her that being a feminist doesnt automatically mean you adhere to the list of "antis" that she provided, and can be liberating in the sense that you don't have to feel pressured to be the girls on the magazine. Actually I guess I completely agree with what said, it just sort of rubbed me the wrong way. I think growing up in an all-girls household with very strong-minded women I've kind of been born into being a feminist without really realizing it. It was always made very clear to me that my only real focus was to find something in life that allowed me to be completely independent and never ever totally reliant on a man. Having this drilled into my head, I never even really considered some of the roadblocks or glass ceilings that I might encounter because I am a girl. I've always been taught that my success was directly related to my amount, or lack thereof, of effort. I guess the only thing that I really didn't like was how she seemed to be saying 'DUHHH' the whole time-yes it definitely drove her point home, I guess for me it just had more of a condescending rather than empowering feel to it. However regardless of my personal opinion, I realize that most girls, especially internationally, have not grown up in the same borderline man-hating environment that I have and therefore this reading could hit home in a very different way. Overall I obviously agree that gender equality is something that must be acheieved, and yes there has been significant progress but the process should still be in motion.