You get to take your pick today. I had two different ideas for posts so I decided to do them both.
Heaven help me that the "Da Vinci Code" actually made me think about something. I still didn't care for the book and a couple of times I just wanted to scream. Robert and Sophie weren't the sharpest knives in the drawer. But anyway, Brown did explore an interesting concept with his ideas about the expunging of the feminine from the world view. While I don't think the ancients had a utopian paradise of equal rights for men and women, it was far from it, the importance of the feminine was at least recognized through goddess worship.
Giving birth and caring for children became a weakness. Women were relegated to the home because they were too weak to deal with the fierceness of the world. The power of the female was seen as weakness.
I do have a point with relation to modern times and modern fiction.
The sphere or romance novels has been slammed since its inception. In the 18th century when writers tapped into the female market, the books were vilified as fluffy, silly books which catered to the weakness of women. Books that put feminine softness at the forefront were and are considered less than their male counterparts.
Romance writers have tired of the basement treatment so they've created female stories which the heroines have take advantage of their masculine traits. The heroines are tough and willing to do what needs to be done. She can shoot a gun, throw a punch and get along fine without a man. She suppresses her feminine side and gains the power of the masculine. We call them kick ass heroines and they are a lot of fun. I enjoy reading them. They are fun to write as well. She has wide appeal.
Writers have done something interesting with this character. She fears the feminine, fears the weakness she perceives it gives her. In the end, most of the time she is able to embrace the feminine, finding she can be in a relationship without giving up her power. But it says something about the value of female traits in society. We still don't see the softer feminine characteristics as powerful.
I do wonder if we as a society will ever recognize the power of the feminine. Can we not appreciate the true power of nurturing? The ability to raise a human from infant to adult is powerful indeed. It goes against our nurturing nature (both mothers and fathers) to see our progeny destroyed by violence. Our feminine half of our nature wishes to mold the world in softer ways.
I look out at the mountains, appreciating the fact that they have been molded over the millions of years not by violent explosions but by the erosion of countless streams of water. Certainly it took longer to create the landscape through such means as opposed to an immediate cataclysm like a volcano. But it was done none the less.
I suppose the whole point of this meandering post is the lack of appreciation of the feminine, the downplay of its power in society. There is an imbalance in the world and until the power of the female is recognized, the world will remain out of whack.
Now onto the Boss. Or the Sacred Springsteen as he is thought of in our house. My hubby loves Bruce. Do you know how many times I've heard "Rosalita" cranked up to full volume? *shudder* It isn't anything I really want to think about. But I have to tip my hat to the man. He writes some of the most depressing songs in all of music. So depressing, I have to laugh. We were listening to "The River" the other night. A quick rundown about the song is that the man gets his girlfriend pregnant, marries her, gets a crappy job and gives up his dreams. He goes to the river although he knows the river is dry, symbolizing the death of his youthful dreams and ambitions. I suspect there is another stanza where the dog dies too but Bruce cut it because the song was so damned depressing as it was. And he has more. "Nebraska" is an album dedicated to misery. Same could be said for "Tunnel of Love."
What is the most depressing song you've ever heard? Do you like depressing songs?
