What's Wrong with This Picture?

[sherlockholmes]

The image below has been making the rounds on my Facebook. It originally popped up on my feed on the page for “It’s Okay to Be Takei”, and has been posted around by about five or six other people. Images travel fast on Facebook.

Comments

[kitanabychoice]

While I think there's a couple of problems here, I also think that there's a valid statement being made here when contrasting both cultures. Geek culture isn't any less misogynistic than pop culture, it only manifests differently. Instead of being overtly misogynistic (especially when you think of the Bella character in Twilight being absolutely useless and a cardboard cut-out of a teenage girl), geek culture can be much more subtle about it by setting up this dynamic where you get slightly more rounded characters in exchange for getting to see them, in the end, go the route of the damsel in distress. It's like a delayed gratification or something.

As far as real women being held up to fictional women, I'd be willing to bet that all of the reality star women (and even Lady Gaga) present separate personalities for public consumption. Still a problem in the context of this macro, but I guess I don't think of their TV show personalities as extensions of their everyday personalities. So that pings me less as being a problem.

[elialshadowpine]

Except that Twilight being a fantasy novel, it falls under the umbrella of geek culture.

[wildicycomet]

Except Twilight is a fantasy teen novel with a fantasy twist that is supported by pop culture. I'd argue that it does not fall under the geek label.

[elialshadowpine]

The same issues that exist in pop culture exist in geek culture too, which is kinda the entire point of this article.

[heico]

It makes sense, they're both manufactured at the same Hollywood studios. Like how the candy bar says "manufactured in a facility that also processes peanuts."

[kitanabychoice]

Simply, I would disagree. Harry Potter is no longer a nerd's playground, it's pretty deeply embedded in everyday life (thus popular culture) and I feel that Twilight shares the same fate. You can't walk outside without tripping over Twilight merchandise -- something you can't say about most of the media that falls under geek culture.

That being said, I know that pop culture and geek culture are both rampant with sexism and misogyny. I just wanted to point out that there is merit in discussing the differences in how the misogyny in these two cultures is executed.