There has been a lot of hype this week about the casting of a woman as the new doctor on the television show Dr. Who. It seems like every basement redditor, "feminist," and basically human with a pulse has something to say about it. This follows a similar thread as the Wonder Woman feminism wave. In fact, The Guardian's Zoe Williams argued that the casting of a female doctor is is the "revolutionary feminist ideal we need" and that Wonder Woman was a "masterpiece of subversive feminism."
This type of analysis could not be more surface-level or lackluster. An even basic level of research regarding the underpinnings of these claims quickly reveals how faulty and illusory they truly are. For example, do you know who is going to profit off of all of your hype surrounding the female doctor? Well of course it's Steven Moffat, the current showrunner/writer of Dr. Who. Moffat has essentially built his career off of sexism. Moffat described himself as "disgusted" with his "boat" of a pregnant wife. He once thought that one of the actresses he hired was going to be "wee and dumpy" but was pleased to find out that she was actually "5'11, slim, and gorgeous." While Moffat believes that asexuality is "no fun," he knows women "only watch Sherlock because they are attracted to the main character."
The illusion that Moffat's decision to cast a female doctor had anything to do with progressive politics or feminism would be baseless, ignorant and frankly buys exactly into what Moffat wants to sell. Williams suggests that "a female Doctor is the watermark of gender blindness, the difference between tolerating modernity and embodying it." To say that this move embodies modernity is laughable (and certainly begs the question of whose modernity). Moffat would love for you to believe that this had something to do with modernity or feminism, that increases the marketability of it all. Thanks to citizens united, it's actually likely that the increased revenue Moffat gets will actually go to anti-feminist causes. Commodified and watered down feminism is not changing the world. This doesn't mean there is no victory in casting a woman in a traditionally male role. However, it certainly puts a massive damper on it that must be noted.
This damper is even more present within Wonder Woman. The movie was reminiscent of the celebration surrounding the Pentagon's announcement that women could now serve in combat positions. It echoed the boom of Hillary's laugh when she said "We came, we saw, he died," or when she backed women being forced to sign up for the draft. Let's be clear: integrating women into systems of patriarchy and hypermasculinity is not progressive. Sure, all employment positions should be open to people of all genders. This doesn't mean, however, that every new opening is a victory. Integrating women into genocidal systems is not a victory. Even if it were, the discussion often becomes a celebration of dangerous breeds of nationalism moreso than any actual celebration of resolving gender inequities. Just because "women can kill terrorists too" doesn't mean that they should.
The notion of wishing away militaristic tendencies in favor of the guise of progressive politics is not new. In fact, it's what Wonder Woman is all about. While mainstream news networks went wild with feminist passion regarding the film and its lead actress Gal Gadot, most of them failed to even mention that Gadot spent time in the Israeli army. Furthermore, she has frequently railed against Hamas and Palestinians on Twitter. It's not as if no one thinks it's important; Tunisia, Lebanon and Qatar have all banned the film from their theaters. These countries don't believe that the "normalization of ties with Israel" should occur, and they're right. The only thing they're missing is that this normalization is the status quo. It's the reason hardly anyone even knew about Gadot's past. It's the reason the United States can give Israel billions of dollars of weaponry each year without so much as a proverbial political mouse squeak in America. Trump promotes the importance of US-Israeli relations all while Israel slaughters thousands of civilians, demolishes Palestinian homes and even intentionally holds up ambulances so that Palestinians will die. The Israeli army is slowly committing an ethnic cleanse and a full capture of Palestine and its culture. This is unforgivable.
Even my conservative father was able to recognize feminist faux-paws in the movie. At the end of the movie he asked me why it was that Wonder Woman still had to wear tight revealing outfits? Of course that could be liberating, and I'm sure that there are those who would argue that it is. If that was the case, though, it isn't clear why there had to be multiple objectifying references. Even Zoe Williams (Guardian) recognizes these clear flaws. She herself notes the problematic nature of "when Wonder Woman hurls someone across a room and an onlooker says: 'I’m both frightened, and aroused.'" The movie is filled with these kinds of comments. Make no mistake that these are patriarchally dominating phrases. Think about it. These are the rhetorical tools which sap women's power and their capacity to be intimidating. Instead, moments that ought to be empowering are actually reduced to a sexual objectification which returns power to the man by implying that he's getting something he wants out of it. No matter how hard wonder woman fights or how many people she kills, these are still the comments which bubble to the surface. One would have a tough time imagining a film in which a man in a bar reacts similarly to Superman kicking someone's ass. Let's not even get started on the fact that for some reason Wonder Woman still has to be inspired by the death of a man (which she of course had to fall in love/have sex with in spite of her culture abandoning the practice) in order to attain her full power and win the fight.
It's not to say that Williams does not understand this argument. In fact, she cites it. She herself spends the bulk of her article recognizing problem after problem with the film. Yet after recognizing all of the problems she simply says that she "still loved it. I didn’t love it as a guilty pleasure. I loved it with my whole heart." This is the problem. Williams fails to provide a single coherent argument for why one ought to look past the multitude of problems. This gem is supposed to persuade us that the movie is progressive.
Credit: The Guardian
Or even "Yes, she is sort of naked a lot of the time, but this isn’t objectification so much as a cultural reset." No amount of handwaving excuses the numerous problematic ideals which underpin the production of Wonder Woman. One cannot simply fail to discuss the depth of the problems with a thing and then just say that the thing is good because they didn't mention the real issues.
There is no doubt that this argument will draw a lot of negativity and backlash from those who will suggest it is "progress bashing." I am reminded, though, of a famous quotation from Susan B. Anthony. "I will cut off this right arm of mine before I will ask for the ballot for the Negro and not for the woman." This certainly isn't on the same scale, but it is still unfair to celebrate these victories without recognizing the victims who are being trounced on by it. The women chastised and harassed by Moffat deserve better, female victims of the military complex deserve better and the tens of thousands of people whom the Israeli army commits genocide upon deserve better.
Frankly, I'm not sure what could be considered progressive about any of the above. It is absolutely wonderful to break precedents and society needs to emphasize the individual's ability (regardless of their identity) to play any role. However, we cannot do so without properly recognizing and refusing to be complacent with sexist and hypermasculine tropes within the film industry. Celebrate success, but do it in a way that recognizes the struggles to come, not one which claims to be the end all-be all of empowerment. Let us shatter the world's many glass ceilings, but let us do so in a way which does not rain shards of glass upon those who are less fortunate.
EntertainmentJul 24, 2017
Let's Stop Pretending Casting Women In Masculine Roles Is Progressive Politics
Because "Women Can Kill Terrorists, Too" Is Not A Perk
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