WHY I LOVE CAMILLE PAGLIA

As I stated recently on Twitter, in honor of Manuary I am re-reading The War Against Boys: How Misguided Feminism is Harming Our Young Men, by Christina Hoff Sommers. This compelling book explains how the feminist establishment, aided and abetted by the government and our public schools, has succeeded in aggressively indoctrinating our children with the ridiculous notion that we need to achieve "gender equity." This cabal uses false statistics and psycho-babble to perpetuate and promote the idea that girls are disadvantaged in our schools due to a mythical, conspiratorial paternity hell bent on keeping women subjugated.

The reality is that the disadvantaged in our schools are the boys. In every category except standardized math testing and sports, boys are at a distinct disadvantage. Moreover, our children know it. Girls consistently are surveyed as happier and better adjusted in school than their brothers. Additionally, girls report that they feel their needs are met in our schools, while boys say the opposite. Yet, the canard that girls need to be protected from male domination persists and serves to "justify" all kinds of ridiculous programs designed to achieve "gender equity," thereby wasting precious resources chasing the hobgoblins of sexism invented by militant agenda-driven feminists who have no grasp of or interest in reality.

In my reading I recently came across a passage where Sommers quotes Camille Paglia extensively. I love Camille! I discovered her in college. Reading her words is like finding an oasis in the middle of a vast wasteland of lock-step adherence to trite liberal dogma. Camille is a self-described feminist with little tolerance for the insipid feminism of the "gender equity" crowd. She is a liberal who courageously argues that one cannot be intellectually honest in opposing the death penalty while supporting abortion rights. She is an atheist who recognizes and values the concept of religion. In short, she is a free-thinking, honest, hysterically-funny iconoclast unafraid of alienation from the left, as well as the right. She is also a lesbian who likes men.

Here's a passage from Sommers' book (pp. 63-64.):

It is very rare these days to hear anyone praising masculinity. The dissident feminist writer Camille Paglia is a refreshing exception. Her observations are effective antidotes to the surfeit of disparagements. For Paglia, male aggressiveness and competitiveness are animating principles of creativity: "Masculinity is aggressive, unstable, combustible. It is also the most creative cultural force in history." (1) Speaking of the "fashionable disdain for 'patriarchal society' to which nothing good is ever attributed," she writes, "But it is patriarchal society that has freed me as a woman. It is capitalism that has given me the leisure to sit at this desk writing this book. Let us stop being small-minded about men and freely acknowledge what treasures their obsessiveness has poured into culture." (2) Men, writes Paglia, "created the world we live in and the luxuries we enjoy." (3) "When I cross the George Washington Bridge or any of America's great bridges, I think--men have done this. Construction is a sublime male poetry."(4)

What a refreshing antidote to the shrill feminist dreck pervading academia! Camille is reviled by the liberal and feminist establishment- you know, the proponents of tolerance- because she refuses to join in the goose-step parade of short-sighted and self-interested political drivel. I have read most of Camille's books. I also follow her too infrequent, in my opinion, column on salon.com. We need more voices like Camille's. I may not agree with her on everything, but I never doubt her sincerity, nor her uncompromised scholarship. Spread the word: Camille Paglia understands and even reveres men. Thank you, Camille.

NOTES:

(1) Camille Paglia, Sex, Art, and American Culture (New York: Vintage, 1992), p. 53.

(2) Camille Paglia, Sexual Personae: Art and Decadence from Nefertiti to Emily Dickinson (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1990), p. 37.

(3) Paglia, Sex, Art, and American Culture, p. 24.

(4) Paglia, Sexual Personae, p. 37.

The Princess and the Frog – A Homage to Classic Disney With a Modern Twist

Like many little girls growing up in the 80’s and 90’s, Disney Princesses were my obsession. One of our family’s favorite home made videos stars a 4 year old me confessing to my grandfather that I would literally die if Santa did not give me the Little Mermaid hand-held game for Christmas. I can remember twirling around my room in my yellow dress and deciding that when I grew up I wanted to live in a castle, have a talking tea pot, and a massive library of books like Belle. Disney has made a modern empire out of princess related movies, dolls, costumes, band-aids, and pez dispensers. The new film, The Princess and the Frog, provides a much-needed update to the outdated Disney Princesses, while returning to the original animation and musical style of the classics.


My favorite thing about The Princess and the Frog is the more modern and empowering message behind the main character. Many of the past Disney Princess movies are based on classic fairytales. While I appreciate that Disney has tried to maintain the integrity of these stories, many of them portray century old messages for young girls that are contrary to modern beliefs about the roles and abilities of women. Lets take The Little Mermaid, based on Hans Christian Andersen’s story. Sixteen year-old Ariel is a mermaid who pines over a human prince named Eric. Ariel trades her voice for legs in order to be with Eric. Ariel literally changes herself for a man she doesn’t know and is married just days after actually meeting him. Other Disney Princess stories, such as Snow White, reflect similar images of women who do nothing but sit around all day and wait for their prince charming to save them from their “difficult” lives and the ball and chain of something no woman should ever have to do…. work.




The Princess and the Frog, however, depicts a strong young woman named Tiana who has a dream of her own, starting a restaurant in New Orleans. Tiana makes efforts to achieve this dream by working multiple jobs and saving money. Along the way Tiana meets a prince in the form of a frog. After kissing the frog, Tiana is also transformed into a frog and the two fall in love. Without revealing too much of the story, Tiana is able to stumble upon true love and still pursue her own dream of owning a restaurant. This is a major change from previous Disney Princess movies by the addition of a strong female character. The writers even go so far as to add a character, Charlotte, who is a complete mockery of the traditional Disney Princess image of a girl waiting for her prince. Disney hit the mark by adding to their family of princesses a woman with strong work ethic and meaningful goals who stumbled upon love, rather than spending her life waiting for prince charming. The plot is fun and the frog couple meets a variety of loveable characters who add a good dose of humor to the film.


Another thing I loved about the Princess and the Frog is the good ol’ fashioned 2D animation. While I enjoy the work Pixar has been doing and am fascinated by the recent boom in 3D films, the classic, no gimmicky, 2D animation used here is both nostalgic and refreshing. Randy Newman catches the spirit of New Orleans in the many memorable blues and jazz influenced music sequences throughout the film. Ray the firefly’s sweet, though delusional, ballad “Ma Belle Evangeline” is easily one of my favorite cartoon musical moments. Overall I really enjoyed the Princess and the Frog. I was impressed by it’s more modern message, classic animation, and catchy soundtrack. I recommend it to both children and adults!