CFP: Princess Cultures: Mediating Girls’ Identities and Imaginations

My colleague Miriam Forman-Brunell and I are co-editing an anthology about princesses. It will be published by Peter Lang, the same academic press that published my previous book. Please let me know if you’d like to contribute an essay; and please spread the word to others who might be interested in writing something for us. Thanks!

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CALL FOR PAPERS:
Princess Cultures: Mediating Girls’ Imaginations and Identities 

BOOK EDITORS:
Miriam Forman-Brunell, Ph.D., University of Missouri-Kansas City
Rebecca Hains, Ph.D., Salem State University

PUBLISHER:
Peter Lang Press
“Mediated Youth” series, edited by Sharon Mazzarella

DESCRIPTION:
Princesses are significant figures in girl culture, and they have been for at least the last two centuries. This anthology brings together international and interdisciplinary perspectives on the meanings of princesses in girls’ lives historically, currently, and comparatively: We consider how and why princess culture continues to play a role in girls’ lives.

Encompassing pop culture princesses (such as the Disney Princesses and Princess Barbie), fairy tales (and their more recent feminist revisions), and contemporary royal figures (such as Princess Diana and Kate Middleton), among others, this book illuminates the many forms that princess culture has taken across time and space—continuously redrawn and recast, but always enjoying a prominent and privileged position in girls’ everyday lives and fantasy worlds and women’s collective memories.

CALL FOR PAPERS:

The editors are seeking additional scholarly essays that examine the princess as mediating figure in the imaginations and identities of girls in the US and around the world. We are especially interested in essays by scholars researching:

1) princess cultures outside the US
2) historical or contemporary royal figures

Please send a 300-word proposal, a brief bibliography, CV, and contact information to: Miriam Forman Brunell at forman-brunellm@umkc.edu and Rebecca Hains at rhains@salemstate.edu by July 15, 2012.

DUE DATES:
July 15, 2012: 300-word Proposal deadline

August 1, 2012: Notification of accepted proposals

January 15, 2013: Chapter drafts (7,000-9,000 words)

It’s no joke: The Lorax trailers make punchline at women’s expense

The Lorax by Dr. Seuss is classic tale of environmental conscience, and it is a story that my three-year-old son enjoys. In fact, it was one of the first longer children’s books that managed to keep his attention for the entire story. Something about it just captivates him.

Today, I saw the trailer for the new Lorax movie for the first time. It’s a computer animated feature film based on Dr. Seuss’s book, and I smiled at the quality of the animation. There was a dream-like beauty to the Truffula Trees.

But as the trailer came to a close, it wiped the smile off my face.

Why? Because it ends with a joke that I don’t find funny at all.

Jump to about 2:20 in the above video, and you’ll hear the following exchange:

WOMAN: So who invited the giant furry peanut?
THE LORAX [gesturing threateningly]: I’ll go right up your nose! [He begins walking towards her, punching at the air. She leans towards him aggressively]
MAN: You wouldn’t hit a woman!
THE LORAX: [Incredulously:] Hoo! That’s a woman???

The “joke,” if you can call it that, is that the Lorax–voiced by Danny DeVito–doesn’t recognize his antagonist as a woman. After all, she is heavyset and not conventionally attractive, and she is behaving in a combative rather than demure way. So she’s gotta be a guy, right?

In other words, it is misogynistic and fat-shaming

The other trailer at the Lorax Movie’s official web site ends the exact. same. way.

Because it’s “just a joke,” it may seem like a small thing–but it isn’t. The comment demeans women whose bodies and behaviors don’t fit our culture’s overly narrow definition of feminine beauty. And when messages like these are relayed over, and over, and over, it becomes a really big deal. This “joke” reinforces the idea that it’s okay to objectify women–that women’s value is in their appearance–and that women who don’t fit the cultural ideal don’t deserve to be regarded as actual women.

I would find this joke reprehensible anywhere, but it really has no place in a children’s film. Surely the writers and directors could have done better! But, no–apparently the producers thought it was comedic genius. Cuz, you know, when women’s bodies aren’t sexy, they’re funny.

Readers: What do you think?

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For further reading: “It’s just a joke“: a theoretical but interesting discussion of offensive jokes

Order my book, Growing Up With Girl Power, today!

I’m delighted that my book, Growing Up With Girl Power: Girlhood On Screen and in Everyday Life, is now available from my publisher, Peter Lang Press! Won’t you buy a copy?

You can order from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or directly from PeterLang.com. Orders placed now should arrive by the end of February.

Here’s a synopsis:

For more than a decade, girl power has been a cultural barometer, reflecting girlhood’s everchanging meanings. How did girl power evolve from a subcultural rallying cry to a mainstream catchphrase, and what meaning did young girls find in its pop culture forms? From the riot grrrls to the Spice Girls to The Powerpuff Girls, and influenced by books like Reviving Ophelia and movements like Take Our Daughters to Work Day, Growing Up With Girl Power charts this history. It considers how real girls who grew up with girl power interpreted its messages about empowerment, girlhood, strength, femininity, race, and more, and suggests that for young girls, commercialized girl power had real strengths and limitations–sometimes in fascinating, unexpected ways. Encompassing issues of preadolescent body image, gender identity, sexism, and racism, Growing Up With Girl Power underscores the importance of talking with young girls, and is a compelling addition to the literature on girls, media, and culture.

Professors: Are you considering assigning Growing Up With Girl Power in one of your classes? Request a free desk copy here, and check out my book’s companion website–it’s full of great content to prompt class discussion. If you adopt it for your course, I would be glad to visit or chat with your class via Skype. Email me for details!

Practicing slightly subversive parenting: Toddlers and gender

Gender representations in popular kids’ storybooks make me sigh. Books based on TV programs and movies seem among the worst offenders; yet they’re inescapably popular.

To manage them, I do two things:

First, I keep movie- and tv-based books to a minimum in our household. There are so many better books out there!

Second, I employ a slightly subversive strategy whenever my son and I read together: If I have a problem with how something is presented, I alter the story ever-so-slightly to improve it.

For example: My three-year-old son loves Disney’s Cars. It’s the story of an anthropomorphic superstar race car, Lightning McQueen, who overcomes his self-absorbtion to develop real relationships with other cars.

Unfortunately, the film’s only major female character, Sally, exists primarily as a love interest for Lightning McQueen; he even hits on Sally when they first meet. (Ugh.) But Sally is a lawyer, clearly much smarter than McQueen, and at that first meeting, she puts him in his place swiftly. (Thank goodness.)

My son owns a copy of the nicely illustrated Disney-Pixar Little Golden Book Favorites, in which the movie is retold. In the book, the plot is simplified. In the interest of brevity, Sally’s role is reduced so much that only five sentences refer to her. Three of these describe the occasion when she and Lightning first met:

“Then Sally, a blue sports car, arrived. Sally was a lawyer. Lightning thought Sally was pretty.”

For my part, I don’t appreciate the emphasis on Lightning’s perception of Sally’s appearance–and with no mention of Sally’s evident disgust at his smug approach, either! So when I’m reading this book, here’s what my son hears instead:

“Then Sally, a blue sports car, arrived. Sally was a lawyer. Lightning realized Sally was smart.”

This has been fun during playtime with my son’s toy Cars. He often plays Lightning McQueen while I, per his instructions, play Sally. If he drives Lightning up to Sally and says, “I’m a race car! Zoom zoom!” I respond, “I’m a lawyer! I’m really smart!”

His response? “No, I’m a lawyer. I’m a lawyer, too! Zoom zooooom!”

That’s right, honey. Lightning McQueen can be anything you want him to.

“Let’s go to law school together, Lightning! Zoom, zoom.”

“Okay!”

Mom: 1; Disney: 0.

Parents: Have you used similar tactics with your pre-schoolers? What works for your family?