Wednesday 1 December 2010

Reading an anti-feminist...

... article and why the roles of men & women are getting "screwed up" due to an ever changing expectation of the roles that men & women 'should' play.

I remember coming from a 'macho' culture [Philippines] to Sydney in the mid-eighties; 'gallantly' giving up my bus seat to a young lady only to be stared at [no 'nothank you' just a cold stare]! One of my first tastes of feminism... from then on I only offer my seat to pregnant and old ladies [making sure they are pregnant or old enough to appreciate my chauvenistic gesture!].

Excerpt from Josephine Asher's "Confessions of a young anti-feminist."

""As a 29-year-old single woman, many of my peers don’t appreciate my traditionalist views. I’d rather dodge a flying pair of high heels thrown at me in anger than pin a man under a pair of mine.

Feminism has achieved victories for women, but could it be at the expense of femininity, chivalry and attributes of the opposite sex that instinctively attract us to each other?

In his book The Way of the Superior Man, David Deida describes attraction between the masculine and the feminine as “sexual polarity”, referring to varying degrees of strength and vulnerability.

“This force of attraction is the dynamism that often disappears in modern relationships. If you want real passion, you need a ravisher and a ravishee. Otherwise you just have two buddies who decide to rub genitals in bed,” he writes."

Read the lively comments as well...

Reading Leibovitz

Hopefully I can go and visit Annie Leibovitz's photographic exhibiton during the Christmas break. Below is an excerpt on Ashleigh Wilson's take on Leibovitz [at The Punch].

"In her book, Annie Leibovitz At Work, she tells how she came to reluctantly accept the truth about some of her subjects: some people just have an innate sense of charisma.

Nicole Kidman is one. Johnny Depp and Cate Blanchett are others. Marilyn Monroe, definitely.

This week, ahead of a retrospective exhibition in Sydney of her work, Leibovitz laughs when asked about the elusive art of being photogenic.

"When I was younger I used to think they were lucky to be in my photographs," she said. "But then of course as I got older I guess I was lucky to be taking their picture."

Her show, opening at the Museum of Contemporary Art on Friday, contains a deeply personal series of images. It’s called A Photographer’s Life: 1990-2005, and it takes us far beyond the glamour and beauty of Hollywood."