Archive Tag:feminism

Drabble 8 – Flaiche

François Perrier's "The Sacrifice of Iphigenia"
François Perrier’s “The Sacrifice of Iphigenia”

I’ve talked before about my intense love for Greek and Roman mythology, and here it is again.

For some reason, the story of Iphigenia really stuck with me. When I took a class on Greek literature, we actually didn’t read the story of Iphigenia–we watched the Michael Cacoyannis film version, which I think is lovely in its ambiguity.

For the uninitiated, Iphigenia is the daughter of Clytemnestra and the famed hero (not my hero, just generally heroic by Greek standards) Agamemnon. Before the Trojan War can begin in earnest, the Greeks have to sail to Troy. Unfortunately, the wind isn’t blowing (or is blowing too hard, depending on which version you read). Odysseus tells Agamemnon that Artemis demands that he sacrifice his daughter, Iphigenia, thanks to Atreus trying to feed all the gods his son, Pelops (that Atreus family, I tell you).

Some stories say Odysseus was lying to manipulate Agamemnon, some say it was true. Whatever the case, Agamemnon sacrifices Iphigenia, the winds begin to blow (or cease blowing so hard), and the Trojan War carries on.

In some versions of the story, Iphigenia is simply dead. In Euripides’ version, Iphigenia is whisked away by the goddess Artemis herself. I like that version better.

Bitch Planet and Non-Compliance

Non-Compliant

There are a lot of great comics out there, but the one I want to talk about is Bitch Planet.

Bitch Planet is a sort of middle-finger love-letter to the women’s prison exploitation films of the ’60s and ’70s. If you’re not familiar with the genre, think of the kinds of things Quentin Tarantino is paying homage to. Cheesy, kitschy, exploitative messes that revel in debauchery and violence and sexuality and women, generally for the purpose of the male gaze. In the world of Bitch Planet, women who don’t fit the standard of the ideal woman are sent to the eponymous planet for imprisonment, re-education, or safekeeping–take your pick. These women are called “non-compliant.”

Drabble 6 – Bluestocking

Young Girl Reading by Jean-Honoré Fragonard
Young Girl Reading by Jean-Honoré Fragonard

There’s been a blog post sitting in my drafts for over a week now. It’s not particularly inflammatory, I just hesitate to post it because it’s on the personal side and I also worry that it sounds a bit like I’m trying too hard to be smart.

always feel like I’m trying too hard to be smart. I played dumb in class to avoid accusations of being a teacher’s pet. I worry that my writing sounds too much like purple prose even though I’ll praise Angela Carter to the heavens. Don’t use too big a word or you’re trying too hard, don’t describe things or you’re trying too hard, don’t even try because you’re trying too hard.

Forget that. I’ll try too hard if I want to. I’ll tattoo Angela Carter on my bicep and imagine that every time I think I’m too anything she’s whispering, “So fucking what?” into my ear.

Here’s something writer William Hazlitt, considered the greatest art critic of his age, had to say about women who were too intelligent:

“The bluestocking is the most odious character in society…she sinks wherever she is placed, like the yolk of an egg, to the bottom, and carries the filth with her.”

Nice. Here’s to carrying the filth with us everywhere we go. Anyway, here’s a drabble.