feminist ear-worms

Hah! Now THERE's a unique subject line for you!

I've had an ear-worm for several days now. (For those who aren't familiar with the term, it's not a parasite, or at least not a physical one. It's an annoying song that gets stuck in your head and won't leave you alone.)

My current ear-worm is Helen Reddy's "I am Woman."

So not only is the tune annoying, but the general philosophy drives me crazy as well!

Feminism had a great beginning ....

equal pay for equal work? Great idea.

fighting pornography and domestic violence? Great idea.

But by the time I got to college, feminism had morphed into wacky-ness, and was more concerned with proving that --

a. women are just like men!

b. No! women are better than men!

c. actually, men should become LIKE women!

There was also a great deal of other absolute nonsense spouted in the name of women's rights. So my general opinion of feminism is that it has outlived its usefulness and become a refuge for bigger, slightly nutty, women.

This is why Helen's little ditty is making me crazy. It seems to embody the nuttiness I witnessed among the feminist college professors I knew.

However, that's not to say that I didn't USE the feminist rant on occasion while I was in school.

Being a firm believer that college papers don't necessarily need to agree with one's personal philosophy, since their purpose is only to prove that one can write, I decided to play with my philosophy a little when I wrote.

I started taking stands against things I genuinely disagreed with ... but doing it from the perspective of a feminist instead of as a Christian. The difference in reception was amazing!

There was a particularly offensive play on campus one semester, and I had to go and see it, and write a review, as part of a communications class. I protested the nudity and degradation of the female characters.

Now, the reason I really think these things are wrong is because God designed and desires our sexuality to be experienced within the context of marriage, and because human beings are created in God's image, and should not be treated in a degrading fashion.

However, what I wrote was that the women were objectified, and I was offended. Male domination, blah blah blah ....

It was fascinating to see the waves of sorrow ripple through the communications department over the horror that was that play (Robin Hood, oddly enough). I think, if I'd written from my real perspective, the response would have been quite different.

All these things brought to mind by one (annoying) song!