*Okay, it’s not a hard question. But hey, it’s Monday.
It’ll be here soon, so we really should ask…
Can a feminist really love Sex and the City?
For some, Sex and the City was a refreshing story of friendship and sexual freedom. For others, it was an orgy of consumerism and triviality. With the film version set to open, Alice Wignall asks if the series was good or bad for women.
What do you think? Do you think SATC is feminist? Vapid? Fun? Do you think it is in opposition to feminist ideals? Do you think it harms women or empowers them?
Digg
Facebook
del.icio.us
six comments
Like most of us, Sex and the City tries to be uniformly feminist, but falls a bit short sometimes. It is feminist in that it shows that it is ok for women to have sex drives, cold feet, careers and a lot of other things that men have long understood to be a natural part of their humanity. But, yeah, it is total fluff and not really a flattering view of women at times. The excuse is, I guess, that it is about life in NYC and the characters are meant to be part of a very specific environment. I don't want there to be no such thing as Sex and the City, I just wish there were many more varied rolls for women as well. We don't gain equality by all being identical, I guess, but by being accepted for all the different and interesting things that we are.
Posted by la pobre habladora
April 21, 2008, 11:14 PM
You are asking some excellent questions Stacey May. This is something I've grappled with as a long SATC fan.
When I say that I am a feminist, I'm really talking about the full scope of the good of humanity, which INCLUDES the advancement of women's rights. So while SATC makes several great episodes dealing with a number of different issues many television outlets wouldn't dare touch with a ten-foot pole (remember that one about Miranda's possible abortion?) it's also racist, classist, and prejudicial at times. And I ask myself, is that really feminist? True feminism to me encompasses equity for all and does not glamourize who it's most easiest for in society. I think that's what our challenge is in the feminist movement now, to make sure that we are against oppression and being cognizant of the bigger picture, otherwise who is feminism really for?
I don't personally feel like I am represented or can relate a lot of the time, but the show's marketing isn't lying with the imagery it puts out there. However for a show about single women, it should say "four single white upper-class women" so I'm not confused when I watch it.
Posted by Jessica
April 22, 2008, 2:10 AM
"it should say "four single white upper-class women" so I'm not confused when I watch it.."
I love that you pointed this out because as a working writer, I always laughed at the fact that Carrie Bradshaw, with her one column a week job, lived in that amazing NY apartment with her closet full of $800 shoes. The show even implied that she worked for a "lesser paying paper" at one point.
I haven't met anyone, ever with a column-gig that good. It's just not realistic. She writes less than 500 words a week and lives like that?
Posted by Stacey May
April 22, 2008, 10:02 AM
I do not think of Sex and the City as feminist. It was vapid and shallow. The portrayal of the women was sometimes unfortunately negative, as in the episode where the women talked about voting for presidents based on the way they look. The show excluded minorities for the most part and the few it did have were portrayed rather negatively (the fiery Latina lesbian who goes crazy during a lover's quarrel, the racist black restaurateur whose cowardly, black brother is willing to give into her racist standards rather than stand up to his sister and date Samantha, the black man who acts insane after Miranda dumps him, etc.); consequently, it represents a very limited female experience. Thus, to me, the show is a guilty pleasure, not a feminist perspective.
That being said, I do think the show was helpful in highlighting the social expectations that women face, and how socially constructed some supposedly female dreams are. It was refreshing to see a show where marriage and a family were not assumed desires for every woman, and a show that acknowledged that marriage is not a happy, fairy-tale ending, that women's lives actually continue beyond marriage. I also think it helped by portraying expressions of female sexuality as healthy and normal rather than slutty.
Posted by Angel
April 22, 2008, 7:48 PM
I have really mixed feelings about Sex and the City. I kind of love it, but it's totally my guilty pleasure show.
I think it does deal with some issues though - Miranda in particular is big on voicing the stuff women deal with in the workforce, and the various ways the world treats women differently. Around Samantha, there's this microcosm of the wars between feminist camps, because she empowers herself by sleeping with hundreds of men and Charlotte (and occasionally Carrie) are horrified by her escapades, because they think flaunting her sexuality sets the cause back.
Then there's that episode where Miranda buys an apartment and the guy she's doing the paperwork with asks if the downpayment is coming from her father because she's not married.
What does make me uncomfortable about the show is how they deal with other issues though. I agree about the representaions of minorities, and the queer people who make appearances in the show spark *so much* discomfort (apart from the lovable gay boys who tell Carrie she's fabulous). There's that episode where Carrie dates a bisexual guy and can't deal with how crazy and modern and sexually liberated all his friends are (and his friends are all way over the top, sleeping with one another right, left and centre, because obviously that's what bisexuals do).
So, yeah, mixed feelings.
Posted by Cate
April 23, 2008, 11:58 PM
Just wanted to say, these are great questions to raise and I'm really impressed with the discussion going on in the comments here. Many excellent points made. A really thoughtful analysis from many. Well done :)
Posted by Christine
August 21, 2008, 12:47 AM
Leave a comment
This blog post is older than 90 days old. All comments submitted regarding this post will be automatically held for review by the editors before posting. Your comment will not appear on the site until it has been approved.
Our comment policy
Shameless prides itself on the diversity of opinions expressed by our writers, and we encourage and appreciate different points of view. Our intention at Shameless is to foster community and to maintain a safe and positive blogging environment; we do not consider it our duty to give a voice to anybody with an opinion.
Discussion on this site is moderated. We will delete comments that:
(We get to decide what's discriminatory, hateful, attacking, or inflammatory).
In some cases, we will cap off comments on a discussion when we feel they are spiralling out of control and fostering an unwelcoming space for bloggers and readers. Comments will be closed by the Web Editor, unless the post is by the Web Editor, in which case the Editor in Chief will close them.
If your comments repeatedly make the same point, they may be deleted. This also applies to comments made by multiple members of the same organization.
Your comments should be about the topic of the post, not its writer—although we certainly encourage praise for our writers, if you want to say something nice.