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11
Question
How does a woman in a public position of power cultivate an image of competence and leadership without being dismissed as a “bitch?”
Double
Bind
Double bind between femininity & competence
1. Women who speak out are immodest and will be shamed while women who
are silent will be ignored or dismissed.
2. Women are subordinate whether they claim to be different from men
or the same.
3. Women who are considered feminine will be judged incompetent and women
who are competent are unfeminine.
The term itself
How the term “bitch” relegates her, puts her back in her place
1. Woman
a. Woman considered to be spiteful or overbearing; lewd
b. Myth that women’s power is unnatural or threatening
2. Animal
a. Domesticated sexual play things
"The idea was that a woman being called a bitch was being accused of being worse than a prostitute because at least a prostitute stood to gain financially from the broad distribution of her sexual favors” (Hodgson 2008).
b. Exotic and appealing
Tool of Containment
Used to contain her, which reinforces the hegemon (us v. them) AKA THE DOMINATION OF THE OTHER
Throughout the evolution of its meanings, "bitch" consistently connotes the presence of outsiders (women, queer folk) in mostly straight male scenes.
It makes machismo accessible to anyone who utters it with enough authority.
More frequently it's used by men to contain women or shore up their own status.
The
Emasculinization
of America
How did HRC challenge the convention?
She exerted power in the public sphere, so she needed to be contained back to the private sphere where it is acceptable to exert power – “sexual power as a weak substitute for political power” (Vasby Anderson 609).
Effects?
Have we thrown around the word so much that it has lost its offensive meaning?
Does the use of the word strengthen the word’s power to degrade women, or does the word’s meaning and impact change when used by different speakers or in new contexts?
Does prohibition of the word unintentionally strengthen its power?
Media framing
2016
How was HRC "contained" in 2016?
"A woman emerging from the transition of perimenopause blossoms. It is a time for redefining and refining what it is she wants to accomplish in her third act."
"Biologically speaking, postmenopausal women are ideal candidates for leadership" (Holland 2015, np).
hot flashes as "power surges"
Trump's
Strategy
Now what?
Now what?
If a strong, intelligent woman who embraces and exerts power threatens the American masculine image, yet politics is one of the most hyper-masculine arenas, what is a woman to do?
https://www.makers.com/documentary/womeninpolitics