As follow up to Ms. Pollitt's op-ed column yesterday, Jessica Valenti of Salon conducts an interview with Ms. Pollitt over the phone.
“Strident” and proud Columnist Katha Pollitt blasts feminism's new timidity and says, “This 'girls just want to have fun' feminism is a very shallow approach to life.”Salon: Ana Marie Cox's review of your new collection in the New York Times Book Review riled a lot of people by using the words “strident” and “tacky” to describe feminism. What was your reaction to the piece?
You know, to tell you the truth, I didn't study the review closely -- because I'd like to maintain my cheerful disposition! But I think a review that begins “strident feminism” is pretty much declaring that we are in the land of backlash cliché. If you read my book you'll see that I support sexual freedom, I support freedom of speech, I'm not a family-values person at all, and I am not the sort of Dworkinite fuddy-duddy of Cox's imagination. I think the resentment that some younger women feel -- and I don't know how old Wonkette is, or how old she presents herself -- toward older feminists is very interesting. I don't quite understand it except as kind of a kill-the-mother thing. What is this “girls just want to have fun” feminism? It's a very shallow approach to life. And I can't think of another social movement where “strident” is a bad word.
Exactly. Since when is feminism supposed to be all sweetness and light and politeness?
Well, do black people, do Latinos, do workers go around saying, “Oh no! Our leaders are so strident! Someone just wrote a strident book defending my rights!” Even if they themselves are more moderate, they're happy! So I think it's sort of an odd combination.
“Virginity or Death! : And Other Social and Political Issues of Our Time” (Katha Pollitt)
Tom Tomorrow adds, among other thoughts:
Okay, I think I’ve figured it out: Ana Marie Cox is the female David Brooks. Actually, that’s not quite fair to David Brooks, who’s positively insightful by comparison. Reading Ana Marie’s review of Katha Pollitt’s new book is more like reading Britney Spears’ thoughts on Noam Chomsky. “Like, whut is he so uptight about?”...
This isn’t very clear writing, so just in case you glossed over her point: silly strident Katha is the sort of feminist shrew who gets upset about women voluntarily amputating their little toes in order to more comfortably wear ill-fitting designer shoes. Fun-loving Ana Marie, by contrast, is intrigued by the possibility of self-mutilation in pursuit of a fashion ideal!
What a chucklehead.
Yowsa.
