When I check my emails, regularly among all
possible kind of web site marketing commercials, and library reminders (ok,
from time to time I receive real e-mails from my neighbors and friends) I get
one or two chain letters. Probably among all various ways of social-network communication,
chain letters are the most bizarre ones. The sympathetic content of the
messages, usually nicely designed and packed, are followed by a bizarre threat
to spread further the message or otherwise you are jinxed. I get confused if I
should concentrate on the letter or stay focused on sending it in 10 minutes to
10 friends. As foolish as these messages can be, they do not stop spreading out
there in the internet world.
Few days ago, again, I have received such a letter from a close friend. It always amazes me how highly educated, young, prosperous and bright people keep sending me chain letters. I guess each one of us says to ourselves: I don’t believe in these things, but still, better to send it further on, for any case. I guess the fear from a bad luck overcomes any sense of the intellect. In a highly profane society as our western European society, the mystery of the bad fortune continues to charm us.
Nevertheless, what I have received this time was a short, not so nicely designed, message dedicated to the perfect woman. The ending paragraphs were as always as usual warning me that there is no happiness for me if I don’t send it further on, to all good women that I know in my life. As a matter a fact, I know many, but I also know much better ways to express my gratitude, elation towards them and to cherish our friendship than to send them a chain letter. Besides, not all of them use internet.
The content of the message was as follows: For one perfect Woman; for one magnificent and mighty Woman. For the one who knows how to deal with stress, to deal with most difficult problems. She laughs when she would rather scream; she sings when she would rather cry. She cries when she is happy, she laughs when she feels fear. Her love is abundant. There is only one thing that is not right. She forgets how much she is worth. Send this message to every good woman you know and you respect. Remind her at the fact how unique she is. I love you….
What I have read in this message has frozen my blood. It is the scariest prison that I can ever imagine. And someone portraits this as a perfect and mighty woman. Unbelievable! Many times, I've heard that we live in a schizophrenic society. Without doubt, if that is the ideal of a perfect woman, than indeed, this claim is for real. What I've read in these words was a scared voice of a woman who is not allowed to speak up her mind loudly. She is not allowed to live freely her emotions, her thoughts, her life. She should bear the necessities of various natures, but she is not allowed to show or express any of her struggles. Thus, she should cry when she is happy and sing when she wants to scream. For such ‘perfect’ woman is not allowed to express her inner contents. If she wants to be ‘perfect’ than they should avoid clear expression.
I read these days again some awesome parts of the early 80s feminist critique. Monique Witting in her essay One Is Not Born A Woman says on one place: “what we take for the cause or origin of oppression is in fact only the mark imposed by the oppressor: the ‘myth of woman’ plus its material effects and manifestations in the appropriated consciousness and bodies of women”.
The mark, is the sheer physicality of the sex, to whom one belongs. The same goes for race “They are seen as black; therefore they are black; they are ‘seen as’ women, therefore, they are women. But before being seen that way they first had to be ‘made that way’”. So let make ourselves perfect women, right?
But we are not able to escape the oppressor’s ideology. We are just following passively, believing that we are on the right way. Monique Witting claims that we should radically question first the categories of ‘man’ and ‘woman’ in order to make the first step towards the real change of consciousness. “Simone de Beauvoir underlined particularly the false consciousness which consists of selecting among the features of the myth (that women are different from men) those which look good and using them as a definition for women. What the concept ‘woman is wonderful’ accomplishes is that it retains for defining women the best features (best according to whom?) which oppression has granted us, and it does not radically question the categories ‘man’ and ‘woman’, which are political categories and not natural givens”.
After reading such text, I get insecure if I am on a right way even if I only care to become better human being. Because the category ‘to be better human being’ might also be a construction imposed by the ‘civilization’.
Few days ago, again, I have received such a letter from a close friend. It always amazes me how highly educated, young, prosperous and bright people keep sending me chain letters. I guess each one of us says to ourselves: I don’t believe in these things, but still, better to send it further on, for any case. I guess the fear from a bad luck overcomes any sense of the intellect. In a highly profane society as our western European society, the mystery of the bad fortune continues to charm us.
Nevertheless, what I have received this time was a short, not so nicely designed, message dedicated to the perfect woman. The ending paragraphs were as always as usual warning me that there is no happiness for me if I don’t send it further on, to all good women that I know in my life. As a matter a fact, I know many, but I also know much better ways to express my gratitude, elation towards them and to cherish our friendship than to send them a chain letter. Besides, not all of them use internet.
The content of the message was as follows: For one perfect Woman; for one magnificent and mighty Woman. For the one who knows how to deal with stress, to deal with most difficult problems. She laughs when she would rather scream; she sings when she would rather cry. She cries when she is happy, she laughs when she feels fear. Her love is abundant. There is only one thing that is not right. She forgets how much she is worth. Send this message to every good woman you know and you respect. Remind her at the fact how unique she is. I love you….
What I have read in this message has frozen my blood. It is the scariest prison that I can ever imagine. And someone portraits this as a perfect and mighty woman. Unbelievable! Many times, I've heard that we live in a schizophrenic society. Without doubt, if that is the ideal of a perfect woman, than indeed, this claim is for real. What I've read in these words was a scared voice of a woman who is not allowed to speak up her mind loudly. She is not allowed to live freely her emotions, her thoughts, her life. She should bear the necessities of various natures, but she is not allowed to show or express any of her struggles. Thus, she should cry when she is happy and sing when she wants to scream. For such ‘perfect’ woman is not allowed to express her inner contents. If she wants to be ‘perfect’ than they should avoid clear expression.
I read these days again some awesome parts of the early 80s feminist critique. Monique Witting in her essay One Is Not Born A Woman says on one place: “what we take for the cause or origin of oppression is in fact only the mark imposed by the oppressor: the ‘myth of woman’ plus its material effects and manifestations in the appropriated consciousness and bodies of women”.
The mark, is the sheer physicality of the sex, to whom one belongs. The same goes for race “They are seen as black; therefore they are black; they are ‘seen as’ women, therefore, they are women. But before being seen that way they first had to be ‘made that way’”. So let make ourselves perfect women, right?
But we are not able to escape the oppressor’s ideology. We are just following passively, believing that we are on the right way. Monique Witting claims that we should radically question first the categories of ‘man’ and ‘woman’ in order to make the first step towards the real change of consciousness. “Simone de Beauvoir underlined particularly the false consciousness which consists of selecting among the features of the myth (that women are different from men) those which look good and using them as a definition for women. What the concept ‘woman is wonderful’ accomplishes is that it retains for defining women the best features (best according to whom?) which oppression has granted us, and it does not radically question the categories ‘man’ and ‘woman’, which are political categories and not natural givens”.
After reading such text, I get insecure if I am on a right way even if I only care to become better human being. Because the category ‘to be better human being’ might also be a construction imposed by the ‘civilization’.
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