And the thing is – the continual thing about the damn book cover, the Feministing logo, the “unseriousness” of that one Guardian article, the need of some commenters here to devalue the fact that Feministing DOES cover issues related to class, disability, race, trans experience: to me, that’s just exactly what Valenti’s blog post was talking about. It’s the need to compensate for someone being more widely known than you are by telling yourself that you are More Serious, more of a Real Feminist, whatever. It’s the need to create a feminist elite, and to tell yourself that whoever is the easiest to like or to know about must be non-elite. It’s some indie hipster record-collector shit, but politicized, and it’s fucking stupid.
Um, right, that's exactly what this is about -- indie hipster record-collector shit, in the guise of an accessible vs. elitist faux debate.
I've been reading Tiger Beatdown for almost a year now, because it's smart and sharp and funny, but I think Doyle's on the wrong side of this one, to the extent that accepting the "Jessica Valenti vs. Nina Power / accessible vs. elitist" framework in the first place is the wrong side.
For me, Power herself comes off best of them all in her own blog post -- her blog infinite thought makes her seem pretty cool in general, even if she is big on Badiou (my lack of thoughts on Badiou) -- and reviews of her book like this one (which, surprise!, doesn't mention Valenti at all) make me think that her book's well worth reading. (See also this interview Power did with taz).
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chasethestars
chasethestars
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Personally I think there's a place in feminism for both Power's and Valenti's way of doing things. Valenti's approach is practical in terms of bringing young people to the movement; Power's is a vital reminder that it is systems, not individuals, that keep women down. Synthesis of the two viewpoints is difficult, but not impossible.
For myself, a white cissexual TAB American woman, there was a definite trajectory from Valenti-style feminism (in my teens and twenties) to Power-style feminism (in my late 30s up to now). I wonder if that's true for many women of my background.
But I'm very sure that Valenti (followed by Doyle & Hess) does a serious disservice to Power by casting her as a dour elitist -- that's such an easy and cheap card to play, and it's so far from the mark. And, really, I just expect better from Tiger Beatdown.
(It's weird, but reading I Blame the Patriarchy just hasn't quite been the same for me ever since Jill retired Twisty Faster.)
I agree with you that the "dour elitist" comment is unwelcome and inaccurate. How can it be elitist to encourage and support collective resistance of the disenfranchised against power structures? I guess they're talking about tone rather than content, but the remark is not helpful.
I miss Twisty, too. Her blog has changed a lot since I started reading it 6 or 7 years ago.
...okay, that's not really true, but I wanted to encourage you.
"...proceeds to mock Nina Power, who she seems to assume is a) old, and b) dour, and c) just jealous."
So much for one of the tenets of feminism being not to resort to attacking a woman's age and/or appearance, when you disagree with her. :-/
(Actually, my aunt's and my favorite self-epithet is "grouchy left-wing crank," which is...kinda what I want on my tombstone.)
slaughtering my enemies, dumping their bodies on my dungheap, and lighting their corpses on firefeminine curmudging.I'd offer you haggis and whiskey for Burns night, but feel free to substitute.
I think I have to wait until I get home from class tonight to break out the whiskey, but I am increasingly certain that there will be whiskey happening.
"dour" you may have, if you insist.
See, she had me at the title...anyone building on and adding to Marcuse is great in my book....yes, the badiou loving, i don't quite get either, so i hear that anyone who's anyone in continental philosophy loves him :) but the rest...i wanna read that book now!!!
(I like the idea of your math department as a hotbed of leftism.)
The lack of science/math knowledge in the humanities always struck me blatantly because the opposite was so not true!
But yes, hotbed of leftism indeed (the 60s hadn't left even in the 80s yet :)
OMG SQUEEE!
That is all.
It's so nice to see you around! I hope you're doing well.
Likewise, glad you're still posting even in the midst of policy chaos.
I'll be back in DC this week, and I'm expecting the mood to be grim. Obama's going to announce a 3-year freeze on non-military, non-entitlement spending, even as states are still cutting budgets & programs left and right.