I was reading my wife’s Cosmo again. I can’t help it. The darn things are laying around so I read them. Anyway, this month’s magazine has an interview with Sarah Jessica Parker who looks ridiculously good on the cover (good for her).
In the interview, she says she is not a feminist. She got on that subject by discussing Hillary Clinton and the idea that people discuss what HC wears even though it has no bearing on her ability to do the job she is applying for.
So then SJP says she is not a feminist she is a humanist borrowing a phrase from playwright Wendy Wasserstein. Do most of the women here feel the same way as SJP? Just curious.
To me:
Feminist = radical idea that women are human beings.
Humanist = a religion/philosophical idea that puts your “faith” in humanity rather than in a “higher” power
I really don’t read any magazines anymore (although I do occasionally read an article from a magazine) and it’s been years since I bought one, but somewhere, someone told me (maybe one of my daughters) that Cosmo has set some higher standards for themselves regarding journalism and are a different magazine that they were ten years ago. Anyone know if this is true (not that I’m going to buy it; I just think it’s interesting when periodicals try to redefine themselves)?
Although it seems like they usually go the other way, like Rolling Stone has been mediocre since they switched to the glossy format.
I hadn’t noticed Cosmopolitan even being sold at the magazine rack, I was flipping through while I was waiting for my prescription to be filled.
Perhaps the idea that Cosmo is classier, comes from the reality that we are trashier.
The link from Google looks like its probably similar to 40 years ago.
[quote]
Cosmopolitan www.cosmopolitan.com/
Targets contemporary women, featuring beauty, fashion, career and sex advice.
Sex & Relationships
Get advice from the experts at Cosmo about sex …
Beauty & Style
(and Nippliest!) Looks - Beauty Advice - Beauty …
Sex Positions …
Fifty Shades of Grey - The Best Sex for His Sign …
Here Are a Lot of …
Here Are a Lot of Photos of Celebrities Wearing …
Horoscopes
Everything you need to know to prepare for your …
Celebrity Hair …
Flip through Hollywood’s biggest … The 182 …[/quite]
I am a feminist. I think people are often afraid to call themselves a feminist because of the negative connotations that come with it. True feminists don’t want women to have world domination or anything, we just want to be equal to men. So no, I don’t agree with Sarah Jessica Parker. I agree with her argument on Hilary Clinton, but not the fact that she won’t call herself a feminist.
I imagine " Cosmo", is interviewing SJP because they imagine that she is what their readers idealize.
Perhaps it is. Reality Tv has to get their viewers from somewhere.
It bugs me when women are somehow afraid to call themselves feminist.
It also bugs me when people go bear baiting. @GoNoles85 - isn’t this the 3rd thread in a week where you’ve gone metaphorically bear baiting? Cosmo? I love it but mostly for the wacky sex positions that would probably land you in the ER. Remember the Olympics edition? I think they involved ski poles somehow.
No. It isn’t the third thread in a week where I’ve attempted to bait. Perhaps I post on topics that intrigue me for one reason or another and may create lively discussion. Is that baiting? I think not because there is zero intention on my part to tick other people off. I will read the link in #10 later, thank you, and answer when I can.
Okay, I scanned it now. I don’t see what’s wrong or anti-feminist with Cosmo running article after article advising women on how to have O’s or have better intimate relations with their guy or gal.
No big deal.
Does that subject make you uncomfortable?
I hope not.
There is nothing wrong with having a good sex life. At least not that I know of.
How me reading that article is supposed to help me define myself as a feminist or humanist is escaping me at the moment. Am I supposed to slam Cosmo because they discuss sex regularly? Should I be offended because women might enjoy intimate relations with men or other women as if that is a no-no?
I am almost certainly a humanist. I think that is perfect. Things like education and violence are not male or female issues. They are not conservative or liberal issues either. They can be looked at through conservative or liberal lenses but I tend to look at those issues from a humanist point of view. Violence should be criminalized it doesn’t matter whether it is against men or women.
@romanigypsyyes: Re Post #2: I totally, completely agree with your definitions. One can be both, one can be one, one can be neither, but they don’t have much to do with each other.
I don’t see why one has to be one of the other. I’m definitely a feminist, and perhaps being an agnostic makes me a humanist, though I’m sure it entails more than that.
Has this site been down? I’ve had trouble logging in to reply. Anyway, I did a tiny amount of research, to expand my own horizons, and ran across a website that said a feminist is one who advocates for women’s rights because women are subjugated (paraphrasing) whereas as humanist does not distinguish between gender when advocating.
The site also touched upon why a woman, especially a celebrity woman, would prefer to be known as a feminist. The reason given was the negative connotations associated with being a feminist (anti-men, disliking men or out right hating men).
Don’t shoot the messenger.
I’m sure you can be a feminist, and advocate for women’s rights and equality, without hating men.
I think people have many different views of what they think a feminist is. My view doesn’t have anything to do with hating men. I love men, and most importantly, without them, who would open up those spaghetti jars?
I think it’s a true testament to how much we still need feminism when people are quick to throw on a “man hating” label because someone dares to advocate for equality.
I am a feminist (in part) because I love men. Feminism is, for me, as much about breaking down barriers for men as it is for women. For example, it is because of feminism that Mr R can be a stay-at-home dad (because feminism made it so that I could have a career).
I’m a Humanist because I’m an atheist and I truly do have solid faith in humanity (humanists need not be atheists or agnostic and not all atheists and agnostics are humanists). I believe that people are fundamentally good and that by putting faith in each other, we can achieve remarkable goals.
