Tag: Beauty
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There’s Nothing Empowering About Those ‘Body Positive’ Sports Illustrated Covers
Beauty certainly isn’t “cookie cutter” or “one size fits all” and seeing this (not so) ground-breaking idea finally appearing on the covers of an iconic beauty magazine gives it even more commercial validation for all those women out there who have never considered themselves to be ‘conventionally’ beautiful. And yet, as I looked at these…
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Wicked Wiles: Little Mermaid (1989)
Lyrically, ‘Part of Your World’ could be more multi-layered than you might think. On the surface, it is about a teenager’s dream of running away from home, sick of her father’s stifling rule. However, closer examination could provide deeper meaning relating to gender.
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The Lumbersexual Proves That Masculinity Is In Crisis – And It’s a Good Thing.
An on-point lumbersexual has got his keys to his vintage truck in one hand and his brand new iPhone in the other. The perfect hyper-masculine costume for the 21st century. A parody – not an homage – of masculinity.
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Wicked Wiles: Robin Hood (1973)
These Disney bachelors seem a lot more maturely developed than the dwarves of Snow White who lived in squalor for fear of taking up ‘womanly’ chores. The tone, however is still frustratingly unclear: Are Robin and Little John progressively comfortable enough in their masculinity that they can easily affect traditionally female activities? Or are these…
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How The Female Gaze was Celebrated and Censored in Cardcaptor Sakura
Originally published for Bitch Flicks as part of their ‘Female Gaze’ theme week, 26th August 2015. With their starry eyes, cutesy costumes, Barbie-esque features, and catchphrases overflowing with dreamy positivity, the magical girls of the shojo (girls) genre of anime might not seem like the most feminist of heroines upon cursory glance. Yet, the plucky…
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Wicked Wiles – Cinderella (1950)
Upon receiving the invite to the ball, Cinderella’s stepmother agrees she can attend on the condition that Cinderella completes all of her chores and has a suitable dress. When Anastasia and Drusilla object she repeats her condition: ‘I said if.’ Obviously she has no intention of letting Cinderella attend, but clearly gets some sick pleasure…
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WICKED WILES: Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs (1937)
Grumpy: ‘She’s a female! And all females is poison! They’re full of wicked wiles!’ Bashful: ‘What are wicked wiles?’ Grumpy: ‘I don’t know, but I’m against ’em.’
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Wicked Wiles – What Do Disney Princess Films Teach You About Being a Woman?
Nothing in this mission statement is purposefully negative or harmful, just as none of Disney’s films are. And yet, as open and expansive as it encourages young girls to be, there is also an inhibiting factor straight from the offset – this is a gender specific genre according to Disney, and as such, limiting to…
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Selfies – “Electronic Masturbation?”
Written and posted for new blog, Fanny Pack, on 19th November 2014. Please head over there and follow them for more of the same Feminist articles written by myself and others! Today’s technological advances have made it possible for us to make as many self-portraits as many times a day, hour, or even minute, in any…