Notes:
Lorelai embodies the values of a third-wave feminist: a feminine feminist
Rory represents a dangerous "faux feminism" because her "Romantic relationships are marked by dysfunction and inequality, her life decisions are often shaped by patriarchal influences, and her lifestyle becomes more and more dependent upon money and privilege. In this way Rory represents the many women today who claim to be feminist but actually exhibit qualities that are in opposition to feminist ideals, making one wonder if, as feminist scholar Toril Moi asserts, feminism today really is 'languishing'" (36).
Apparently Rory is the ultimate "woman in waiting", she acts like a "kept mistress" to Logan
According to McCaffrey, because Rory never initiates nor ends relationships she has no real sense of agency... obviously this fails to account for EVERY OTHER decision that she actively makes in her life that have nothing to do with men... am I to believe here that it is only her relationship to men which can grant her or deprive her of agency?
Response:
To be frank, I found this essay both offensive in content and appalling in form... I don't remember the last time I had such a visceral reaction to an "academic" piece of writing (I use the term loosely). First of all the author makes sweeping statements that are based upon unfounded claims and short-sighted thoughts and second, her approach seems frighteningly limited. According to McCaffrey, Rory is a "faux feminist" in that she consistently defines herself by the traditional standards of patriarchy... she makes the claim that because Rory defines herself in terms of her romantic relationships, she is an anti-feminist. Ironically, the author falls into the same trap that she accuses Rory of... the entirety of the essay details Rory's romantic relationships. Thus, the author (a self-declared feminist on at least every other page) likewise insists upon limiting Rory to the same patriarchal standards she is judging her for adhering to. Her analysis of Rory's wardrobe proved equally absurd- apparently there exists a link between "fashion forward" females and a willingness to submit to oppression. The only thing that seems as trite then, is an analysis, done by a feminist with a capital F, of a filmic text in which fashion and sex are apparently the only grounds upon which to examine a female character...
Friday, March 19, 2010
Progress
Being without a computer over spring break (both my laptop and my family computer fell victim to the fire...) meant that I was unable to update my blog, so instead I did it the old fashioned way. Pen and paper. I am in the process of typing and transferring my notes now, so my progress is as follows...
Finally the book "Gilmore Girls and the Politics of Identity" arrived from ILL and so over break I was able to read all 15 essays, some of which were predictably inane but there were several surprisingly stimulating pieces.
Also, I have set up a meeting with Dr. Nathanson and have already gotten some good suggestions from her as to where to go from here.
Finally the book "Gilmore Girls and the Politics of Identity" arrived from ILL and so over break I was able to read all 15 essays, some of which were predictably inane but there were several surprisingly stimulating pieces.
Also, I have set up a meeting with Dr. Nathanson and have already gotten some good suggestions from her as to where to go from here.
"Good Girls, Bad Girls, and Motorcycles" (Alicia Skipper)
1950’s sitcoms became a means of coping with a world in which women were ill equipped to change
June Cleaver, Donna Stone, even situation comedies like One Day at a Time and Alice…these independent women are not thriving or prosperous without a male counterpart
Representations of single motherhood on television are few and far between- even less are unwed mothers, regardless of the fact that they are clearly present in the population…And the gap between THEORY and PRACTICE prevails… why is that these days film theory seems to represent a paradigm that has shifted? Why doesn’t it seem as applicable and poignant as it once was?
Despite the changing face of the American family, television shows still insist upon representing the traditional American family unit with a mother and a father…
MUST READ LISA JOHNSON: “ Portraying women as either domesticated victims of male patriarchy or angry man-hating feminists doesn’t permit the nuances of real women’s lives to continue to come into clear view, just as assumptions that single women who long to be married must be ‘unfeminist’ obscures a more complete picture of contemporary women’s psyches” (pg 83 “Good Girls, Bad Girls, and Motorcycles”)
As of late I have been having an immensely difficult time attempting to reconcile with these concepts. Unfortunately, I feel myself becoming increasingly skeptical of the foundations upon which the film theory that I have been so personally invested in is founded upon. In the context of academics it seems to ring true but when applied to the situation of real life, of real people, of my life, of my experiences, it feels so contrived. There is a blatant disconnect that I can’t ignore anymore… I feel like feminist discourses are stuck, they seem to be still so invested in notions that were prevalent in the 50’s and 60’s but have since changed and it seems the fundamentalist approach that the subject seems to require doesn’t allow for the recognition of that change…
The binaries of feminist and anti-feminist seem archaic, I believe that now more than ever the notion of gender and sexuality as a spectrum is being embraced… What does it mean to be a contemporary feminist? What space am I supposed to occupy, as a heterosexual upper class white female, within this discourse? It’s becoming increasingly obvious to me that there might not be one…
June Cleaver, Donna Stone, even situation comedies like One Day at a Time and Alice…these independent women are not thriving or prosperous without a male counterpart
Representations of single motherhood on television are few and far between- even less are unwed mothers, regardless of the fact that they are clearly present in the population…And the gap between THEORY and PRACTICE prevails… why is that these days film theory seems to represent a paradigm that has shifted? Why doesn’t it seem as applicable and poignant as it once was?
Despite the changing face of the American family, television shows still insist upon representing the traditional American family unit with a mother and a father…
MUST READ LISA JOHNSON: “ Portraying women as either domesticated victims of male patriarchy or angry man-hating feminists doesn’t permit the nuances of real women’s lives to continue to come into clear view, just as assumptions that single women who long to be married must be ‘unfeminist’ obscures a more complete picture of contemporary women’s psyches” (pg 83 “Good Girls, Bad Girls, and Motorcycles”)
As of late I have been having an immensely difficult time attempting to reconcile with these concepts. Unfortunately, I feel myself becoming increasingly skeptical of the foundations upon which the film theory that I have been so personally invested in is founded upon. In the context of academics it seems to ring true but when applied to the situation of real life, of real people, of my life, of my experiences, it feels so contrived. There is a blatant disconnect that I can’t ignore anymore… I feel like feminist discourses are stuck, they seem to be still so invested in notions that were prevalent in the 50’s and 60’s but have since changed and it seems the fundamentalist approach that the subject seems to require doesn’t allow for the recognition of that change…
The binaries of feminist and anti-feminist seem archaic, I believe that now more than ever the notion of gender and sexuality as a spectrum is being embraced… What does it mean to be a contemporary feminist? What space am I supposed to occupy, as a heterosexual upper class white female, within this discourse? It’s becoming increasingly obvious to me that there might not be one…
Thursday, February 18, 2010
The embodiment of melodrama, the Gilmore Girls utilizes techniques ... The essential paradox of the genre of melodrama exists in the fact that Melodrama endeavors to work within the confines of patriarchy- it attempts to dismantle the master's house with the use of the master's vocabulary- but it remains to be a "gynocentric genre". Melodrama's are "woman's films". They are "weepies". Thus, they cater to an audience and a demographic which not only expect but demand the subversion of phallocentric conventions, they are preaching to the choir. The Gilmore Girls thus exists as revolutionary- it has exploded the genre of melodrama to reach an audience that is in need of exposure to alterity... It invites the heterosexual male gaze without doing violence to the female subject by compromising feminine subjectivity and autonomy. The self-reflexivity of the genre... offers a world in which a strong female and male can coexist, recoding heterosexuality... the solution is here!
Wheras much of feminist film theory denies the heterosexual male gaze as the ultimate oppressor, where does this leave the options for feminine sexuality? In lesbianism? Harkening back to the traditional term of melodrama is it existed before its containment to a single genre- indulges in a realist voacbulary, seizes upon its context, refuses to be denied the tools of patriarchy and instead embraces them to create an alternative language that is not reliant upon the suppression of the Other
Wheras much of feminist film theory denies the heterosexual male gaze as the ultimate oppressor, where does this leave the options for feminine sexuality? In lesbianism? Harkening back to the traditional term of melodrama is it existed before its containment to a single genre- indulges in a realist voacbulary, seizes upon its context, refuses to be denied the tools of patriarchy and instead embraces them to create an alternative language that is not reliant upon the suppression of the Other
The WB
The Encyclopedia of Television (http://www.routledge-ny.com/ref/television/wbnet.html):
"The WB Network is widely recognized as the first television network to capitalize on the trend toward increasingly fragmented television audiences. By targeting programming specifically to teens and to young adults, the WB has established a focused and successful broadcast network... The network, which reaches 88% of the U.S. audience through both broadcast and cable channels"
"The network was able to turn its slide around the following year, and for the first time in 2001, the network reached the coveted 5th place in ratings among overall TV households and in the 18-49 demographic. Adding to the strength of its continuing series, the WB rolled out Gilmore Girls, the critically acclaimed, multigenerational and multiethnic drama about a single mother and her teenage daughter (played by Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel) created by Amy Sherman-Palladino. Gilmore Girls was the first program developed by the Family Friendly Forum, an initiative launched by Procter & Gamble, Johnson & Johnson, IBM, and other major advertisers in cooperation with the WB, in an effort to develop programming that families could watch together...The 2001-2002 season was another strong one for the WB despite the move of two of its programs, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Roswell, to rival network UPN. Gilmore Girls and Angel achieved increased ratings..."
"In addition to its programming focus on teen angst and its strong young female leads, the good fortune of the WB can be attributed to its aggressive, innovative, and largely successful marketing ventures...The WB has also experimented with product placement and advertiser funding for script development. Yet while Gilmore Girls was a successful example of the latter, not all advertiser/network innovations have been so well-received."
"Despite its many successes, the WB is the only network that had not yet received a single Emmy nomination as of 2001. That same year, it was also the only network that had shown growth in every demographic when compared to the 1995-96 season when it was launched, and the only network to show an increase in upfront revenue and ad rates."
"The WB Network is widely recognized as the first television network to capitalize on the trend toward increasingly fragmented television audiences. By targeting programming specifically to teens and to young adults, the WB has established a focused and successful broadcast network... The network, which reaches 88% of the U.S. audience through both broadcast and cable channels"
"The network was able to turn its slide around the following year, and for the first time in 2001, the network reached the coveted 5th place in ratings among overall TV households and in the 18-49 demographic. Adding to the strength of its continuing series, the WB rolled out Gilmore Girls, the critically acclaimed, multigenerational and multiethnic drama about a single mother and her teenage daughter (played by Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel) created by Amy Sherman-Palladino. Gilmore Girls was the first program developed by the Family Friendly Forum, an initiative launched by Procter & Gamble, Johnson & Johnson, IBM, and other major advertisers in cooperation with the WB, in an effort to develop programming that families could watch together...The 2001-2002 season was another strong one for the WB despite the move of two of its programs, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Roswell, to rival network UPN. Gilmore Girls and Angel achieved increased ratings..."
"In addition to its programming focus on teen angst and its strong young female leads, the good fortune of the WB can be attributed to its aggressive, innovative, and largely successful marketing ventures...The WB has also experimented with product placement and advertiser funding for script development. Yet while Gilmore Girls was a successful example of the latter, not all advertiser/network innovations have been so well-received."
"Despite its many successes, the WB is the only network that had not yet received a single Emmy nomination as of 2001. That same year, it was also the only network that had shown growth in every demographic when compared to the 1995-96 season when it was launched, and the only network to show an increase in upfront revenue and ad rates."
Amy Sherman Palladino
American Television Writer and Producer/ Director, most famous for Gilmore Girls. Born in 1966, joined the L.A. comedy group "The Groundings". Also wrote for Roseanne and Veronica's Closet.
http://www.tv.com/amy-sherman-palladino/person/5898/biography.html?tag=mini;content_nav
According to IMDB:
Nominated in 1992 for an Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Writing in a Comedy Series for Roseanne
Nominated for Humanities Prize in 1993 for the 30 Minute Category for Roseanne
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0792371/awards
http://www.tv.com/amy-sherman-palladino/person/5898/biography.html?tag=mini;content_nav
According to IMDB:
Nominated in 1992 for an Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Writing in a Comedy Series for Roseanne
Nominated for Humanities Prize in 1993 for the 30 Minute Category for Roseanne
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0792371/awards
The Gilmore Girls Reception
History:
Executive Producer: Amy-Sherman Palladino (seasons 1-6), husband Dan Palladino
Pilot episode received financial backing from the script development fund of the Family Friendly Programming Forum (one of first network shows to get their help)
Was aired on the WB's prime time Thursday 8pm/7 Central time slot
Time slot competing with Survivor and Friends in its first season, ratings were not so successful in first season
Was moved to 8pm Tuesday slot and dominated in the ratings over time-slot competitor, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
By 5th season became WB's second most watched prime time show- fan base grew by double digits in all major demographics
GILMORE GIRLS, which was just named the best new drama by the Viewers For Quality
Television, improved its time period November-to-November in adults 18-34 (1.6), women 18-34 (2.1) and men 18-
34 (1.1) and also succeeded in broadening the network's Thursday audience by achieving its largest gains in adults 18-
49 (+25%, 1.5), women 18-49 (+19%, 1.9), men 18-49 (+11%, 1.0) and men 12-34 (+18%, 1.3) as well as in total
viewers (3.7 million).
... Time Warner Press Release in 2000
(http://www.timewarner.com/corp/newsroom/pr/0,20812,668053,00.html)
Season 7 Debut: "Gilmore Girls" built in the second half hour across all key demographics and viewers, increasing 15%
in adults 18-34, 16% in women 18-34 and adding more than 700,000 viewers at 8:30PM." Released by the CW...
(http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news.aspx?id=20060927cw01)
Syndication release, airs on ABC Family Network and Soap Net
May 2007 CW announced the series would not be renewed due to finances (apparently reaching deals with main cast members was a problem)
Creator Amy-Sherman Palladino has expressed making a Gilmore Girls Movie
Production Company: Dorothy Parker Drank Here (created by Amy-Sherman Palladino)
Target demographic adults 18-34
Awards:
American Film Institute Award
Named one of 100 best TV shows of all time by Time Magazine
2 Viewers for Quality Television Awards
Named New Program of the Year by the Television Critics Association
Won an Emmy in 2004
Won a Family Television Award for New Series
Named Best Family TV Drama Series by the Young Artist Awards
Listed on Entertainment Weekly end of the decade "best-of" list
Reviews:
http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,439216,00.html
"The WB's standout program" http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/orlandosentinel/access/790176391.html?dids=790176391:790176391&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Feb+08%2C+2005&author=Hal+Boedeker%2C+Sentinel+Television+Critic&pub=Orlando+Sentinel&desc=THE+GILMORE+GIRLS+GET+THEIR+GROOVE+%3B+TONIGHT'S+MILESTONE+EPISODE+SHOWS+WHY+THE+SHOW+IS+SO+POPULAR+AND+REMAINS+THE+WB'S+STANDOUT+PROGRAM.&pqatl=google
soap opera elements- http://www.smh.com.au/news/dvd-reviews/the-gilmore-girls-season-three/2006/07/27/1153816295082.html
Music critic mother and daughter morn of the end of the show- http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/article/213263
"We want to thank Amy for creating and nurturing this wonderful series for the past six years and giving us one of the most memorable mother-daughter relationships in television history," Warner Brothers Television said in a statement. http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2006-04-20-gilmore-girls-producers_x.htm
INTERESTING FACT: In 2001 a rumor circulated that Aaron Sorkin, writer/producer of the West Wing, was actually writing the Gilmore Girls- that Amy-Sherman Palladino was his pseudonym...
http://www.gilmoregirls.org/news/98.html
Executive Producer: Amy-Sherman Palladino (seasons 1-6), husband Dan Palladino
Pilot episode received financial backing from the script development fund of the Family Friendly Programming Forum (one of first network shows to get their help)
Was aired on the WB's prime time Thursday 8pm/7 Central time slot
Time slot competing with Survivor and Friends in its first season, ratings were not so successful in first season
Was moved to 8pm Tuesday slot and dominated in the ratings over time-slot competitor, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
By 5th season became WB's second most watched prime time show- fan base grew by double digits in all major demographics
GILMORE GIRLS, which was just named the best new drama by the Viewers For Quality
Television, improved its time period November-to-November in adults 18-34 (1.6), women 18-34 (2.1) and men 18-
34 (1.1) and also succeeded in broadening the network's Thursday audience by achieving its largest gains in adults 18-
49 (+25%, 1.5), women 18-49 (+19%, 1.9), men 18-49 (+11%, 1.0) and men 12-34 (+18%, 1.3) as well as in total
viewers (3.7 million).
... Time Warner Press Release in 2000
(http://www.timewarner.com/corp/newsroom/pr/0,20812,668053,00.html)
Season 7 Debut: "Gilmore Girls" built in the second half hour across all key demographics and viewers, increasing 15%
in adults 18-34, 16% in women 18-34 and adding more than 700,000 viewers at 8:30PM." Released by the CW...
(http://www.thefutoncritic.com/news.aspx?id=20060927cw01)
Syndication release, airs on ABC Family Network and Soap Net
May 2007 CW announced the series would not be renewed due to finances (apparently reaching deals with main cast members was a problem)
Creator Amy-Sherman Palladino has expressed making a Gilmore Girls Movie
Production Company: Dorothy Parker Drank Here (created by Amy-Sherman Palladino)
Target demographic adults 18-34
Awards:
American Film Institute Award
Named one of 100 best TV shows of all time by Time Magazine
2 Viewers for Quality Television Awards
Named New Program of the Year by the Television Critics Association
Won an Emmy in 2004
Won a Family Television Award for New Series
Named Best Family TV Drama Series by the Young Artist Awards
Listed on Entertainment Weekly end of the decade "best-of" list
Reviews:
http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,439216,00.html
"The WB's standout program" http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/orlandosentinel/access/790176391.html?dids=790176391:790176391&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Feb+08%2C+2005&author=Hal+Boedeker%2C+Sentinel+Television+Critic&pub=Orlando+Sentinel&desc=THE+GILMORE+GIRLS+GET+THEIR+GROOVE+%3B+TONIGHT'S+MILESTONE+EPISODE+SHOWS+WHY+THE+SHOW+IS+SO+POPULAR+AND+REMAINS+THE+WB'S+STANDOUT+PROGRAM.&pqatl=google
soap opera elements- http://www.smh.com.au/news/dvd-reviews/the-gilmore-girls-season-three/2006/07/27/1153816295082.html
Music critic mother and daughter morn of the end of the show- http://www.thestar.com/entertainment/article/213263
"We want to thank Amy for creating and nurturing this wonderful series for the past six years and giving us one of the most memorable mother-daughter relationships in television history," Warner Brothers Television said in a statement. http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2006-04-20-gilmore-girls-producers_x.htm
INTERESTING FACT: In 2001 a rumor circulated that Aaron Sorkin, writer/producer of the West Wing, was actually writing the Gilmore Girls- that Amy-Sherman Palladino was his pseudonym...
http://www.gilmoregirls.org/news/98.html
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