I know I was supposed to continue the whole 'Phuket' whatnot, but I really can't be bothered. Especially after I've spent DAYS trying to upload pictures on to Facebook, I think I am way past even talking about the trip. Which brings me to this point.....hmmm. What exactly do I feel like blogging about? I was surfing the net a few minutes ago (yes, I
do have work,it's not all parties and pillowfights at BluInc...although I did go around putting blue mascara on people..but checking out different websites felt more interesting and validating at that moment) and I clicked on
this <----click please. I actually 'favourited' this website a while ago when I first stumbled upon it because the ongoing debate surrounding women's magazines has always been an interesting topic to me. As we all are well aware of (I'm sure) most feminists find women's magazines demoralising, patronising, idiotic fluff..or to put it simply, complete trash. I have a confession - I used to be one of them. Okay, maybe I'm being a tad dramatic - I didn't use to completely diss women's magazines, but during my years in Uni (when we had to analyse every single thing that moved or did not move) I wrote about women's magazines and how misleading and sometimes demeaning they were. So when I scanned through the posts in 'Glossed over' (see above link - if you haven't clicked on it, CLICK NOW la dey) it felt like I was reading my past assignment papers, without the grammatical errors and stupid ^*&%*#* referencing. I totally get this woman. It's like a sense of
dejavu washed over me, and I feel that if she had marked my assignments she would have given me an A++++ with little gold star/rainbow stickers and named me her star student. Damn, why didn't she go to Melbourne Uni! Anyway, before I start daydreaming about the sushi in our Union House (the Cali rolls are like little pieces of heaven, I SWEAR), I know some of you must be thinking I'm two-faced. At this point, you must be going "Tsk tsk. That Aainaa is a hypocrite! She used to slag off women's magazines and now she's working for one? She should be ashamed of herself!"
Allow me to explain myself. Ever since I can remember, I have been a fan of magazines. As soon as my grubby little fingers were expert enough to flip the thin little pages over, I was reading 'em. Dolly during my teeny bopper years, right up to Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Cleo (the international editions mostly)..and yes I would occasionally read female. Anyway, when I was criticising these magazines - Australian magazines only, because I was studying in Melbourne - I was analysing every...single...line. I would nitpick titles, how sentences are phrased, skinny models (of course), topics, pictures, the cover..you named it, I criticised it. Just like the writer of Glossed Over. But why was I doing this?
Because I was writing a frikking paper. I feel that feminists are a tad too emotional when it comes to this issue - why are they analysing
every single word in a magazine when obviously, people know that glossies are purely for light reading and entertainment? Do you really pick up a magazine to find out who you are as a person? Do you see glossy reading material with Katie Holmes on the cover as some kind of self-help guide? Because if you do, then I really think something is wrong with YOU. Heck, when I was criticising these magazines, of course I knew I would find fault with them because I was honing down on every
itty bitty little thing. Which is EXACTLY what our dear writer at Glossed Over is doing, isn't it?
She then goes on to state that the latest issue of Glamour is trying to reinforce a kind of "normal" that women should squeeze into, forcing unreasonable standards women everywhere should meet. Oh come on! Are you really
THAT naive? Don't people already know to read magazines with a pinch of salt? How exactly is Glamour trying to force you to be someone else? Dude, it's a MAGAZINE. It's called "GLAMOUR" forgodsakes. Which is exactly what most magazines will offer you - an escapism from your normal, everyday life. At the end of the day, after a hectic and tiring day at work, wouldn't it be great to flop down on the bed and go "ooh" and "aaaah" over this season's gorgeous shoes or read about "Ten things men love in bed" and "Hey it's OK"? Of course there are some of you who prefer reading Shakespere rather than trashy tabloids, but who are we to judge other people's reading choices? If I want to kick back after a stressful day by reading a bloody cookbook, who are you to say I can't? And aren't magazines a form of entertainment, like movies? At the end of the day, when I'm tired with all the bullshit that's happening in the world, is it wrong for me to watch a brainless movie like
The Anchorman? In an ideal feminist world, women's magazines would probably be filled with serious women's issues, straighforward headlines, and no pictures. EXACTLY the fun thing I want to read when I'm on the beach, getting a suntan.
My dear feminists, I think you should really give this whole 'women magazines are out to change women all over the world into brainless idiots' a rest. Because, if anything, I think YOU are insulting us women who actually find them harmless and entertaining. If you really think we are as wise as impressionable, pimply 13-year-olds who will do what a magazine tells us to do, then really, who is undermining women here? And come on, a lot of magazines (like female..ahem) really feature advice on financial, emotional, fashion and BEAUTY topics which we can all learn a thing or two from, without compromising our identity or turning into a dumble blonde. And for your information, as a writer in a magazine, we ARE supposed to make our headlines catchy or fun, so when we say "Copy Her Look" for example, we are not FORCING you to look like someone else, but rather merely stating where her lip gloss shade or sunglasses are from, should you be interested - all in three punchy words. Again, pinch of salt people.
Ok, I'm done. All this venting makes me want to flip through a magazine.
p/s: in case you can't click the link above, here's the url: http://www.glossedover.com/glossed_over/
