Penis and the Pen

I know from my studies that there are feminist discourses that believe language is gendered male. I also know that there were writers, such as Mary Ann Evens a.k.a. George Eliot, that wrote under male names in order to get published. It makes perfect sense that in a world where men have decided just about everything, that language and authorship would be male as well.

The term “painful obstacle” seems to be harsh when used in the same sentence as gender. I agree that women writers have little to model their work. I also agree that it has been difficult for women to create a genre of their own in the hierarchy of patriarchal views of authorship, but every domain has been difficult for women. Rather than trying to break free of the male gendered language, it should be used to create an understanding that the male way is not the only way. After all, it would be said in a language they understand.

Full Circle

I have to say, I always believed the author was part of the work. Like Mark Twain, I think everything comes from something. Authors of each period in time write about what is happening around them. Beowulf (circa 1010) is a historic epic of a medieval hero. Marlow (1564-1593) wrote about the struggles of knowledge. Austen (1775-1817) wrote about class differences. Twain (1835-1910) wrote about racism. Ayn Rand (1905-1982) wrote about self-interest laissez-faire capitalism. Essentially, what they wrote about is what they lived. Part of what I believe to be the “author function” is sharing the vision the author has. Why else would the author publish the work? Surely not just for the money.

2 Minutes of "There is No News"

For the past couple of weeks we have talked about authorship when studying fan fiction and slash fiction. We are getting into a discourse community that has a set of guidelines within the genre and also a method of editing and determining the levels of superiority in the writing. I think from the last class discussion, we determined that there is possibly a level of quality in the actual text, but tossed around questions of credibility in the genre and the value of authorship.

Now, I know this class is sick of hearing how there is no difference between the authorship of Shakespeare (and his contemporaries) and the authorship of texts in the media we are currently studying. To be honest, I have no great love for Shakespeare. What I do find fascinating is that his work is so highly regarded in academic studies, but was nothing more than Pop-Culture of its time. I will not get into my usual mantra about how Shakespeare’s authorship was just a job. What I will point out are the differences between the people writing on fan or slash fiction sites and the people writing on Shakespearean sites.

Last week we were asked to write slash fiction. This is one of the sites I used:
http://www.futurama-madhouse.com.ar/
It was well organized and basically told you anything a person needed to know about Futurama. It even included some not-so-needed-to-know tidbits of information. Some of the writing is creative and clever and some of it makes no sense at all except maybe to the author. The site includes fan-photos and drawings as well. Comments can be posted for both the text and visuals. Although the writers of fan fiction are using what was originally created by someone else, readers can tell these writers have invested a lot of time putting their own spin on what they have become very knowledgeable on.

Now I would like you to take a look at this site dedicated to Shakespeare:
http://www.shakespearefellowship.org/news.html
Scroll to the 4/13/08 entry “Is Shakespeare Dead?” and click on the new video link. Now check out all the additional videos on the right-hand side. This site is organized and even informative. You can find Shakespeare Festivals all over North America. There are essay contests to enter and even materials that can be used in the classroom, but please tell me what “nose hairs” have to do with Shakespeare (except that maybe he had them). By the way, that guy has his Ph. D.

My point is that most readers, regardless of their education, have an expectation of certain genres. Being truthful to ourselves, we can admit that we expect something a bit more scholarly from the Shakespeare site. When looking deeper into the Futurama site, the work is categorized as “Fan Art” or “Crap Art.” Even if the genre may not be credible for some, the discourse community has a sense of pride when it comes to their work.

Futurama Slash

As they fought the robots Mom deprogrammed, Amy looks over at her companion in combat. Ponytail whipping in the wind, the high combat boots, and skin tight wife-beater; who wouldn’t go crazy over that? Amy’s thoughts drift to the men in there lives and reconsiders; what men?! They have all run away to leave the fighting to the girls. She looks again at the strength she battles along side of. The broad chest, muscular legs,

Leela: “Amy, look out!” (She drop-kicks the rogue blender about to dice Amy’s hand off)

Amy: “Thanks.”

Leela: “Thank me later. We have to get the remote away from Mom. That’s how she’s controlling the robots.” (She dodges more blows)

Amy: “I’ll distract the robots so you can get to her.”

Leela: “Good idea. You were always the brains of the operation.”

Amy began to wave her arms and pretend she was injured. The robots focused their attention on the damsel in distress. There was no Prince Charming to save her; just Leela. Again, Amy’s mind wandered to her unsung hero. ‘The brains of the operation,’ Amy reflected. That meant Leela was the brawn! They did make an awesome pair. What more could two girls need? Just then, the robots stopped dead in their tracks. Leela must have done it!

Leela: “Are you ok?” (Helping Amy to her feet)

Amy: “I am now, thanks to you.” (Hugging Leela hard)

Leela: (Whispering in Amy’s ear) “No, the thanks go to you.”

The two stand in the rubble holding each other. Neither one wants to let go. Both are lost in the moment now broken by the noise of the yellow figures that have decided to come back.

Fry: “So, are you two gonna mud wrestle now?” (Leela drop-kicks Fry in the chest)

Leela: “Guess who has clean-up detail. Yup, YOU! (Turning to Amy putting her arm around her) Let’s leave this mess to the boys. We have celebrating to do.”

Amy: “Yes we do.”

I Get It

When I travel, I try to incorporate visits to local museums. During my latest trip I was able to see an exhibit at the Museo de las Americas featuring some of the cultural histories of Puerto Rico. One of the rooms displayed this:

The artist used a photograph take in the 1920s that was originally used for documentary purposes to inform the world of the poverty and oppression in Puerto Rico. The artist painted a background and added color to the black and white photo. Adding color or changing the medium did not enhance or alter the meaning for me. Meaning making is within the individual. Each person will walk away taking something different with them whether they know the history or not.

I saw the Matrix movies, but have never played the video game. I thought the movies were an interesting view on the issues of the digital world and how far the world has been changing. That is the meaning I walked away with. On the other hand, my boys became obsessed with the link between the game and the movie and were constantly searching for answers within the two. Rather than investing that much energy into it, I decided "it is what it is" and that's how I "got it."

Food for Thought

My grandmother made the best potato salad on Earth! When I was a kid, she would let me help peel the potatoes. As my grandmother carefully put each ingredient into her huge mixing bowl I would ask, “Nana is that what makes your potato salad so good?” Her reply was always the same, “Now Tracy Lynn, you know I can’t tell you until you are grown. It’s a family secret and when you have a family, you can know the secret.” Eventually, my mother took over the job of making the potato salad at family gatherings. I continued to help. In time, I knew the recipe just from watching the process.

A few years ago, my brother had a party at his home and asked for my grandmother’s famous potato salad so mom and I went to work! At the party, one of my sister-in-law’s friends asked my mother for the recipe. I told her that it was my Nana’s recipe and couldn’t be shared outside the family. My mother gave me the craziest look. She took me aside and said, “Nana got the recipe from the Hellmann’s Mayonnaise jar.” I was shocked! My mother could not help herself and continued, “Her oatmeal cookies came off the Quaker Oats lid!”

The moral of this is that I don’t think recipes should be authored (or in this case trademarked?). Maybe they can’t be authored. It was very easy for a wide eyed little girl to name them her grandmother’s.

COUNTRY POTATO SALAD

2 lbs. all-purpose potatoes, cut into 3/4-inch cubes (about 6 cups)
1/2 cup Hellmann's® or Best Foods® Real Mayonnaise
1 Tbsp. white vinegar or apple cider vinegar
1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
1/2 cup thinly sliced celery
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 hard-cooked eggs, chopped
1/4 cup sweet pickle relish or chopped dill pickles (optional)

1. In 4-quart saucepot, cover potatoes with water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer 10 minutes or until potatoes are tender; drain and cool slightly.

2. In large bowl, combine Hellmann's® or Best Foods® Real Mayonnaise, vinegar and pepper.

3. Add remaining ingredients; toss well.

http://www.hellmanns.com/recipes.aspx

Hip-Hop

I loved the McLeod piece! I think I was about eight-years-old when my grandparents took me to my first block party. They lived in Queens and we stayed with them on weekends. I remember how cool it was to ride my Big Wheel in the middle of the street. I must have been about seventeen when I started “clubbing.” In those days (as if that were forever ago), the place was not as important as who the DJ was. That was about the time when Hip-Hop was going mainstream and some DJs had a huge following.

Hip-Hop always seemed to be original to me. My parents were “flower children,” my grandfather was a Jazz enthusiast, and my other grandfather was a violinist. I was exposed to an array of genres and did recognize that there were glimmers of these genres in Hip-Hop, but it was still a completely different sound. I can see the shady area of gray when McLeod discusses issues of copyrights and sampling. I also saw that the more popular Hip-Hop became and the more money Hip-Hop artists made, the more pressing the issue of ownership became. I agree with the cultural aspects of McLeod’s argument, but I also feel that Hip-Hop was not taken seriously in the beginning; at the very least not by the record industry. I think the fans pushed the importance of Hip-Hop making it clearly evident that it was profitable. The clubs were always packed!

I continued to have a steady diet of block parties while growing up in Brooklyn. I never imagined that history was being made right in front of my eyes (and ears). Like neighborhood Pizzerias and Bodegas on every corner, the smells of family owned Bakeries, and the even blend of Menorahs and Christmas Trees during the holidays; Hip-Hop was part of growing up in the city.