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Friday, May 9, 2014
The Reasons Why So Many Female Celebrities Avoid the F-word, and Why We Should Care
Shailene
Woodley of recent Divergent fame has recently come under fire from all sides by various feminist bloggers
for telling TIME magazine in an interview she is not a feminist. An excerpt:
TIME: You've talked before about being conscious of the kind of messages that you're sending to young female fans when you’re taking on roles. Do you consider yourself a feminist?
Woodley: No, because I love men, and I think the idea of “raise women to power, take the men away from power” is never going to work because you need balance.
One of
the major reasons this matters, apart from the innate inaccuracies of her
interpretation of feminism, is because just two months before this interview,
TIME published a blatantly contradictory piece entitled Why Hollywood Desperately Needs ShaileneWoodley with a byline that proclaims: “The 22-year-old Divergent star turns
out to be the outspoken feminist role model we've been waiting for.” Perhaps not.
She is
not alone in her shying away from the “F” word. Just a handful of female
celebrities’ responses to, “Do you consider yourself a feminist?”:
Katy Perry: “I am not a feminist, but I do believe in the strength of women.”
Taylor Swift: “I don't really think about things as guys versus girls. I never have. I […] think if you work as hard as guys, you can go far in life.”
Bjork: “[I don't identify as
feminist] because I think it would isolate me. I think it’s important to do
positive stuff. It’s more important to be asking than complaining.”
Lady Gaga: “I'm not a feminist. I
hail men, I love men, I celebrate American male culture – beer, bars, and
muscle cars.”
Kelis: “Call it
what you want. I am extraordinarily happy to be a woman. I would not change it
for the world. I think men should run the world because if not there would be
no balance. […]All these titles are just so useless.”
In these statements is a pattern of a few things:
1.
“I’m not
a feminist but…[I do agree with key components of feminism”
2.
“I love
men and I like the way things are. I don’t feel the need to compromise that.”
3.
“Feminist
is an extreme word.”
Clearly, either these celebrities are very confused or feminism has an image problem.
Much of the tip-toeing around the term stems from its deep-rooted association
of a furious, high-strung, bra-burning, non-shaving, man-hating feminists of
the 1960s, 70s, and 80s. These hyphenated descriptors can seem intimidating and
unglamorous for your standard female celebrity.
 |
| The term "feminist" carries a lot of negative stigma from damaging and insulting stereotypes indicative of the extreme, sensationalist stories and images perpetuated by popular media. It's not helped by prominent figures in society who buy into the stereotypes as well. |
Fortunately, the likes of Ellen
Page, Natalie Portman, Wanda Sykes, Emma Stone, Zoe Saldana, and Amy Poehler
are among those who openly, fervently embrace the ideals of feminism. Beyoncé, who of course cannot be ignored in
any discussion of feminism, released her eponymous album late last year that
has been lauded for its power anthems that turn the conventions of male-dominated hip-hop
on its head.
“***Flawless” explicitly uses a sample of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’sTED talk on feminism that lays out the most straightforward definition of the term:
“***Flawless” explicitly uses a sample of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’sTED talk on feminism that lays out the most straightforward definition of the term:
“Feminism: the social, political,
and economic equality of the sexes.”
Beyoncé
in particular has always been controversial for her ever-evolving, and
increasingly sensual, persona. For some,
willfully and proudly reclaiming one’s sexuality is empowering. For others, traditional
subordinate woman roles is considered natural and therefore empowering. The
trouble is that when it comes to defining feminist values the contradicting ideas
can be confusing and thus, alienating.
 |
| Debate abounds about whether Beyonce is a "true" feminist. Either way she is considered one of the most successful pop icons of our time, and she recently penned an essay on the oft-mentioned wage gap and gender equality that can be downloaded here. |
The kind of feminism we should be striving to uphold is one that is
inclusive of all lifestyles, all races, all sexualities. Based on a definition
that emphasizes equality, women should be free to live and behave as they
prefer, whether as a politician or a housewife, dressed in short skirts or T-shirts, so long
as they aren't diminished or otherwise treated differently. It’s a call to obliterate
the oppressive virgin-whore dichotomy that pigeonholes young women everywhere
and a call that tells them they don't have to choose between identifying with
femininity or masculinity without ridicule. Feminism supports the idea that a woman's decisions should not be contingent on her gender. That’s the essential core of the
equality values of feminism. All other feminist issues such as reproductive
rights, working to abolish rape culture, reconstructing the way women are
portrayed in media follow suit.
Therefore,
when female celebrities say something along the lines of, “I'm not a feminist,
but I believe women are equal to men” they’re essentially saying, “I don't
agree with the exaggerated, distorted idea of feminism I understand, but I still
hold feminist views” should be observed as purely an issue of image.
What
the average feminist-identifying individual person can do to combat this is
publicly call out those (on social media or otherwise) who are reinforcing
hateful, unconstructive attitudes not central to the core of classic feminism.
That’s not to say that anger has no place in social justice activism or that we
should be primarily concerned with tone-policing, but rather sisters should be
helping sisters push for feminist issues in solidarity and correct each other
when necessary. Superficial as it may seem, the more positively received
feminists are, the more attention and support it’s going to get. Mainstream
media likes to focus on sensationalist stories that capitalize on instances of extremely
unsavory acts played out in the name of feminism. Small gestures witnessed by
peers will help to reinvent the public’s idea of feminism.
 |
| In her latest interview with TIME and further demonstration of her underdeveloped ideas regarding feminism, Woodley praised this summer's The Other Woman for its supposed celebration of sisterhood, but failed to recognize the inherently shallow, sexist cliches therein. |
No one
can force anyone to identify herself as feminist, and it’s inevitable people
are going to fall on various ends of the spectrum of feminist thought. Female
celebrities in general can’t be blamed for prioritizing their image over
accepting the responsibility of carrying the feminist cause on their shoulders.
Objectification
of women in popular media and the narrow range of roles women are offered in
television and film are pertinent to female celebrities. It’s natural for the
general public to want to know their general stance on these issues, hence why
they are frequently asked about feminism. Whether we like it or not, their
answers matter because celebrities often act as role models for the casual
audience. Even for the more critical viewer, celebrities can act as barometers
of where the general public stands on social issues. Celebrities exist to
entertain and fans consequently exist to want to relate to them. When a credulous
fan’s favorite singer says something along the lines of, “I’m not a feminist
because I love men and I like to be taken care of” and identifies with that statement,
it weakens the feminist movement as a whole and fosters an entire cohort of
young women who may equate feminism with hating men. A celebrity who distorts
the definition of feminism mislead fans from a mass effort that extends love
across genders.
Woodley
has three more installations of the Divergent films lined up and The Fault in
Our Stars coming out later this summer and is already being hailed as one of
Hollywood’s best and brightest young stars. Overall she seems to be socially
aware, articulate and well-spoken. Some of her views seem to align with
elements of feminism while others are up for debate. She’s young, not much
older than me, and has plenty of time throughout her career to develop her
stance. By no means is Woodley obligated to come out and identify as a
feminist. But for the sake of her clamorous and ever-growing fanbase of
impressionable young girls, I hope she does.
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