RuPaul's Drag Race: Queens in Space

My first reaction to watching this show was, "This is like a very strange version of America's Next Top Model." After watching the complete episode, I noticed a few interesting things that very much connect with the argument that Susan Sontag is making in Notes On "Camp." 
The first is that the contestants in the show are very over-dramatic and like to exaggerate (both their attitudes and their style). For example, during the script reading, Mimi tries to show that she's the star by over-emphasizing the words and being loud. In Sontag's words, they are "propos[ing] a comic vision of the world,” and it does make the show much more entertaining to watch (44). During the runway show, most of the contestants went all out in their costumes (wearing elaborate head pieces, super high heels, and very flashy fabric), which relates to the fact that “the hallmark of Camp is the spirit of extravagance” (25)

The second is that the contestants do not take themselves very seriously. Instead, they are very open to using vile language and just being whatever they want to be. This connects with Sontag’s description of Camp in which it is “playful, anti-serious” (41). While some may view the idea of men dressing up as women as unnatural and bizarre, Sontag would argue that “what is most beautiful in virile men is something feminine” (9). 

So for those that don't take themselves or others too seriously, this show would be very amusing and enjoyable to watch.

RuPaul Drag Race Reaction

I watched the episode “Jocks in Frocks” from Drag Race and my first impression of the show was of disbelief and a little bit of uneasiness. As a heterosexual male, it was hard to even believe that something like this could even be seen on television. However, after watching the episode I began to understand why many people could find a show such as this enjoyable. The show can be interesting because it perfectly fits Susan Sontag’s idea of “camp”. Everything about the show is completely over the top, from the water dunk at the beginning to the lip synching at the end to decide elimination. It almost seemed like the people on the show were being overdramatic with their actions and behavior and just having fun on the show. Almost as if they were making fun of themselves in a way. Media such as this that is over the top and campy can be a great source of entertainment.

Camp Taste

After watching the episode “Jocks in Frocks” of television show “RuPaul’s Drag Race 3,” it is clear that the program perfectly exemplifies Camp taste as described by Susan Sontag. The show is frivolous, playful, and extravagant as it features men dressing up as drag queens; it is the epitome of Camp as it is so over the top and non-serious. The idea of changing how the men look by dressing them up in women’s clothing, wearing make up, and even employing fake boobs parallels the Camp concept that nothing in nature is Camp; everything that is Camp is artificial and exaggerated. Therefore, the notion of dressing up men as women is completely of Camp quality as it goes against nature. The entire show is centered on visual appearance and how things look, just as Camp is. However, the show does not try to fit all these Camp qualities, it just does. The show unintentionally fits into the Camp taste, which in that sense of naïveté is what makes it Campy. The show is full of passion and exaggeration as the men on it strive to dress themselves or their projects up into completely ridiculous and frivolous costumes and therefore embodies the true essence of Camp.

Another interesting quote!

“The emotional, sexual, and psychological stereotyping of females begins when the doctor says, “It’s a girl.” ”

—	Shirley Chisholm

Interesting quote

"As far as I'm concerned, being any gender is a drag"--Patti Smith

Gender Roles in Commercials

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EHRbRFSlr8

Gender roles are everywhere. We already know that. But it's interesting to see how knowledge about gender roles is used to manipulate the masses through advertisements. We've all seen the Axe commericals that claim that their cologne attracts girls, or the millions of commercials about gym equipment or workout plans that show middle aged women achieving super model bodies and middle aged men becoming strong and muscular. Alcohol ads tend to do the same (showing men drinking alcohol with tons of pretty girls around them admiring the men). I cam across another ad that utilizes gender roles in a funny way to promote men's consumption of alcohol (for the ad basically says, men are to alcohol as women are to shoes). What do you think about this?

I'm Just A Sweet Transvestite ;)

So this is my first time ever blogging so if something doesn't work out I apologize. Anyway, since we started out the class discussing the concept of gender through the socially sordid concept of gender-bending I had to go with an American classic; The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Initially I wasn't quite sure what I'd do with it, only that Tim Curry's absolutely fabulous. It's only when I went to google the scene with Dr. Frankenfurter's introduction that I was struck by something I absolutely wasn't expecting. Looking for better picture quality, I went to hulu for the video only to be told that I would need to sign onto an account because the video withholds mature content. As anyone that watches it can see, no one's half naked, no one's humping anyone (or as we like to call it, "dancing"), and at no point is there any lewd or foul language involved. We can only assume that what categorizes this as inappropriate for a younger viewing audience is the fact that the main character's a transvestite and gay (and damn proud of it too.)

The fact that in our society which is supposed to be so modern and progressive we still feel the need to "shelter" ourselves from people, who despite their choices in attire or lover are still people, is absurd. And when compared with the fact that we find it more acceptable to broadcast videos for songs like Rihanna's "Rude Boy" ( with such fashionable lyrics as "I like the way you touch me there; I like the way you pull my hair. Baby, if I don't feel it I ain't faking no, no." or the even more tasteful "I like when you tell me kiss it there; I like when you tell me move it there. So get it up; time to get it up.") there is clearly something wrong with our culture's understanding of morals and values.

To handle our fear of the unknown and its dangers, we have a rampant need to understand and categorize things. Though this may work for rocks and trees when we attempt to categorize people and what's right and wrong behaviour for people, I think we all know there no way to come up with one set answer. So why do we keep acting as if there is one?

--Jheanelle G.

Implicit Associations

So I took this quiz a while ago called the Implicit Association Test, which basically gauges how inherently biased a person is. They have a wide range of demonstrations including Age, Weight, Disability, etc. but the two most popular and relevant to this blog are probably the Race and Gender IAT. Essentially what the test does is measure the strength of someone's automatic association and bias towards certain stereotypes by a computer-based detection. So the IAT will require the test taker to immediate categorize two concepts, usually an image, with an attribute such as "male" and "female". It's sensitive enough that the faster responses as classified as easier pairings and are therefore more strongly associated as a bias. Personally, it was really interesting to take the series of IATs because even though I see myself as an open-minded and impartial person, a lot of my results showed that I had some unconscious prejudices. It's crazy to think that so much of our social constructs could be built around the biases that we are, in a way, unaware of, but still affects that kinds of impressions and conclusions we draw without thinking about it. In his book, Blink, Malcolm Gladwell actually referenced an instance in which interestingly, a test taker took the racism test and it showed that he had a strong preference for whites, but upon taking it again he showed he had a slight preference for blacks. The only thing he did differently was that he had been watching the Olympics earlier that day.

I guess it's not all too unsettling though because while social factors might magnify a lot of prejudices, I can see from the posts that as a society, we're realizing the value in breaking these stereotypes down (I love the new J. Crew catalog with the boy with his nails painted pink!). Anyway, by no means is the test fully reliable but it's pretty interesting so you can take any of the tests for yourself and check out your results: https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/demo/takeatest.html.

Idaho Abortion

I came across this video this morning and thought you might be interested to see it. It's from The Young Turks online news show from today and is about a woman in Idaho who used abortion pills that she bought off the internet to have an abortion when she was 5-6 months pregnant because it was so difficult for her to get an abortion in her state. She is now suing a state prosecutor.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cU5gtxpooEc&feature=player_embedded

In this post Roe v Wade world, should women still have to go behind closed doors to get an abortion? Although this case was very late in the pregnancy, it was difficult for her to find a way to get an abortion earlier, and isn't this exactly what Roe v Wade was trying to protect? Part of me thinks it's very dangerous and crazy, for both the fetus and herself, to take these pills when she was nearly in her third trimester of pregnancy, however, she obviously couldn't take care of a child. In a case like this, I feel like the mother was doing what was best, however, she now looks like a criminal because the state made it too difficult for her to get a legal abortion. Is that really fair?

Fashion Style as a Form of Expression

I was on Facebook just browsing through my News Feed, and came upon this post. At first, I laughed at this picture, but the more I thought about it, this picture expresses a problem that is present in America.

America is known to be the land of freedom, where people have rights, including the right of freedom of speech. Just as words and art are a form of freedom of speech and expression, fashion and style are too. However, some styles are criticized and greatly frowned upon in society. In this image, the two males are wearing the exact same type of clothing, but are getting different responses with the only difference being the difference in location.

Korea is known to be have more conservative views, opinions, and principles compared to America, as it is an Asian country. Here in America, the topics of homosexuality, sexual activities, and etc. are more freely and openly expressed than they are in Korea. However, in Korea, the same style of clothing frowned upon when worn by males in America, is looked highly upon and is even idolized as can be seen through the fashion of Korean celebrities.

So, why the difference? How is it that in Korea, which is known to have a more conservative culture than that of America, people are more accepting of styles that are looked upon as "gay" in America? Since when did style have gender labels? When was the transition from it being acceptable for males to wear skirts, or togas (which are a lot like dresses) to it being frowned upon and laughed at?

NPR: The End Of Gender?

So the first thing that I thought to post was this picture I found on google that is the epitomy of the gender sterotypes in our society... the masculine male depicted as the strong, althetic, independent man....and the feminine woman depicted as the frazzled, dependent and helpless mother....

The other thing I have decided to post is this really amazing article I found in the NPR website:

http://www.npr.org/2011/06/27/137342682/the-end-of-gender

The article is titles: The End of Gender? and asks readers the question: Could we be heading toward the end of gender? The article begins by defining gender according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary as being "the behavioral, cultural, or psychological traits typically associated with one sex- in other words the cultural expectations that go along with saying that someone is a boy or a girl."

The text has some amazing quotes that stuck out to me that I listed below in an effort to summarize the article:

"Sex differences are real and some are probably present at birth, but then social factors magnify them,"

"Does gender matter? In a country with the ideal of treating everone fairly and equitably,do we really need t know if someone is a boy or a girl?"

"Tagging someone as female or male 'enforces binary gender norms and it pretends that gender is a more stable category of identity than it actually is.'"

"we designate and segregate gender in public 'starting with the idea that there are two-and-only-two genders--a constuction, and a myth in our society that excludes many.'"

"if parents did not buy into gender stereityping of children's toys and clothes, kids would stay open-minded longer during childhood."

My Bike

So, I live at West 27th Place with my brother. The apartment management team had promised us free rental bikes if we were to rent an apartment here, but they're terribly evil people and they lied. They're known for being a certified eco-friendly building that loves animals and saving the world. That's there thing. But really, the only green they care about is money. I never got that free rental 'cause it would be to expensive for them. So I had to get a bike somehow.

I ended up calling my dad and asking him if he could buy me a bike (I really needed one because it was taking me 20 minutes to get to class and I was almost always late). The next day he showed up with this white, sparkly bike. I was all, "thanks dad..."

It's interesting how a collection of colors can be "feminine." If this thing were all black no one would be laughing at me. Also, the fact that it's a women's bike makes it, well, womanly. I've seen this bike all around school and I think I'm the only guy who owns it.

And so here I am, slightly ashamed of my means of transportation all thanks to some group of people who chose what colors are girly and what colors are manly. Colors are weird. Whatever, I'm gonna keep riding it.

Kids thoughts on Gender Norms

http://youtu.be/x6bVN1i18Y8

This video is about a group of kids reaction to a makeup tutorial. The video is intended to be funny, but at one point (3:00), the adults ask the kids why it is standard for girls to wear make up and not boys. I thought this tied in perfectly with the idea of how society and our culture cause us to grow up and think one specific way. Even at this age, these kids have already been taught that guys don't wear makeup and girls do. Many of them are even unsure of why this is the case. It is possible that if we just get today's youths to think about topics like these, they will be more willing to break the current gender norms our society has created.

Transgender in Reality TV

Chaz Bono, formerly known as Chastity Bono, has recently caused controversy in the world of reality television. Dancing with the Stars has decided to include Chaz, child of Sonny Bono and Cher, in their upcoming season. I came across an article on Perez about the current controversy of the decision to have a female-to-male transgender on the show. According to Dan Gainor, a member of the Media Research Center, “Whether it’s Glee or Dancing With the Stars, this is part of Hollywood’s insistence on tearing down traditional families. Parents now more than ever must realize they cannot let their kids watch television without supervision or risk advocating lifestyles that most families do not approve of." This quote really made me realize how uncomfortable Americans still are about the LGBT community, as if to say that it might be okay if it is "out of sight, out of mind," but causes much discomfort when it is publicized on television. Almost more shocking were the comments found below the article on Perez. So many people were calling Chaz a "circus freak" or the "bearded lady" which really made me question the ignorance of Americans. Is the cast of Jersey Shore really currently more socially acceptable? The members of Jersey Shore are on a reality show just like Chaz Bono and they flaunt their own stupidity and drunkenness, as if almost promoting the lifestyle and tearing down more "traditional families." If Americans are more comfortable watching shows where the men blatantly try to hook up with as many girls as possible because it is "the Situation," rather than watch one member of a show who is a transvestite, then I think Americans have a long way to go with gender acceptance in the LGBT community.

Lady Gaga who?

Kinda late on posting the blog, but I was surprised to see that you guys hadn't commented on how Lady Gaga brought out her alter ego Jo Calderone at the VMAs!

Like the response to a lot of other things that Lady Gaga does, people were shocked.
I feel like this appearance got even more attention than some of the other crazy things she's done, which is surprising because once

you think about it, it's one of the most understated she's been!

Beyonce, who also has an alter ego, Sasha Fierce, is not really talked about all that much because it seems to be just an extension of her.

Lady Gaga on the other hand, it's an entirely different character. It's interesting to see how she acts, the way she wants to portray that specific gender role, which was the very tough guy.

It was also reported that she used the men's restroom when she was in the role.

Skirts Unfair Prejudice against Transsexuals

Una, Lady Troubridge (1924) by Romaine Brooks. Androgynous appearance, don't you think? 

According to the UK government’s Equality and Human Rights Commission, requiring skirts for girls for school uniform attire is illegal. They argue that such a policy is discrimination against female-to-male transsexuals.

A report was published which stated “requiring pupils to wear gender-specific clothes is potentially unlawful…pupils born female with gender dysphoria experienced great discomfort being forced to wear stereotypical girls’ clothes—for example, a skirt.”

The Commission then proceeded to imply that schools which refuse to discontinue “discriminatory” uniforms may face “costly legal action” when the guideline becomes active.

The guidelines in question also extend rights formerly reserved for individuals diagnosed with gender identity disorders to all whom claim the symptoms, “regardless of whether or not they intend to undergo, are undergoing or have undergone gender reassignment.”

---
Dated, I know. But I thought it was an interesting read because of various reasons:

• Why are skirts being banned altogether? Can't we just let them decide whether or not they want to wear skirts? No need to resort to such drastic matters.
• On the other hand, what about boys who consider themselves females trapped in male bodies? Will skirts be provided for them?
• Doesn't extending rights previously reserved for those diagnosed with gender identity disorders to all who claim the signs encourage people who want attention to "cry wolf"?

-Jeremy Fu

Gender Stereotypes

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gspaoaecNAg

This is a video called Boys Will Be Girls and it's basically a comedic impression of the stereotypes of women today. However, it is portrayed by men. A friend just showed me this video yesterday and I thought it was interesting to see men's exaggerated perceptions of the way women act and the stereotypes that have resulted. It make me think: do women really act like that? But actually, in my experience the girls I know don't act like that, or at least not nearly to that extent. Do any of you actually see these stereotypes in your everyday life?

On the other side of these girl stereotypes, there are also gender stereotypes about men portrayed by women in this video called Girls Will Be Boys:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paNiEdFTvuA&feature=relmfu

What do you guys think? Is this video over exaggerated as well?