A lesson in vocabulary.
So I'm reading this little blurb about how Cobie Smulders' now husband introduced her to comic books when I happen upon this line:
"[Smulders] plays feisty Shield agent Maria Hill in Joss Whedon's comic book blockbuster Avengers Assemble."
Can you spot the problem, here? The problem, the word that my brain catches on and balks at is "feisty".
"Feisty", friends, is what you call a dachshund with attitude. "Feisty" is what you call a nine-year-old with a smart mouth and a decent upper-cut. "Feisty" is not what you call a capable adult human, much less a highly trained and heavily armed government agent.
Cobie Smulders is a grown-ass woman with a solid career and a starring role in a popular television comedy, along with a pivotal supporting role in one of the highest grossing films in entertainment history. I believe the word you're looking for, here, is "successful".
Maria Hill is the Deputy Director of a global para-military organization, a former member of the United States armed forces, and a crucial participant in a number of major events in the Marvel comics universe. Oh yeah, and she has a motherfucking jetpack. I believe the word you're looking for is "badass".
Notice how "feisty" just doesn't quite seem to cover it.
What has me up in arms, though, is not that this is an understatement. What has me up in arms is that this particular kind of understatement, which is diminutive and dismissive, is used almost exclusively in reference to women and female characters. Have you ever seen an article refer to Nick Fury as "feisty"? Would you call Captain America "spunky"? Can you imagine Thor being described as a "firecracker"? Is Iron Man a "spit-fire"? Sure, Coulson's a little sassy, but Hill outranks him.
The point is, given that the female heroes are just as strong as the male heroes - which they are, so don't even start - why do they get smaller words? Why does some random fluff writer on an entertainment news site immediately go for a word like "feisty" when there are so much better words, and why do most of us just gloss right over it? Why do these associations persist when they are so obviously inadequate?
Check your words, folks. They mean a lot more than their definitions.
Source via howimetyoureffingmother
"[Smulders] plays feisty Shield agent Maria Hill in Joss Whedon's comic book blockbuster Avengers Assemble."
Can you spot the problem, here? The problem, the word that my brain catches on and balks at is "feisty".
"Feisty", friends, is what you call a dachshund with attitude. "Feisty" is what you call a nine-year-old with a smart mouth and a decent upper-cut. "Feisty" is not what you call a capable adult human, much less a highly trained and heavily armed government agent.
Cobie Smulders is a grown-ass woman with a solid career and a starring role in a popular television comedy, along with a pivotal supporting role in one of the highest grossing films in entertainment history. I believe the word you're looking for, here, is "successful".
Maria Hill is the Deputy Director of a global para-military organization, a former member of the United States armed forces, and a crucial participant in a number of major events in the Marvel comics universe. Oh yeah, and she has a motherfucking jetpack. I believe the word you're looking for is "badass".
Notice how "feisty" just doesn't quite seem to cover it.
What has me up in arms, though, is not that this is an understatement. What has me up in arms is that this particular kind of understatement, which is diminutive and dismissive, is used almost exclusively in reference to women and female characters. Have you ever seen an article refer to Nick Fury as "feisty"? Would you call Captain America "spunky"? Can you imagine Thor being described as a "firecracker"? Is Iron Man a "spit-fire"? Sure, Coulson's a little sassy, but Hill outranks him.
The point is, given that the female heroes are just as strong as the male heroes - which they are, so don't even start - why do they get smaller words? Why does some random fluff writer on an entertainment news site immediately go for a word like "feisty" when there are so much better words, and why do most of us just gloss right over it? Why do these associations persist when they are so obviously inadequate?
Check your words, folks. They mean a lot more than their definitions.
Source via howimetyoureffingmother