Pen-Elayne on the Web

Estrogen Month - Day 24*

Hello, Laura G here. Elayne asked me to sort of fill in on Estrogen Month this weekend as she's going to be busy at I-CON and didn't want the extra stress. I'm not really good at very focused posts, unfortunately, because my mind never seems to settle too long on any one topic, but I'll give it a go for a couple of days, and you all can be just that extra bit happy when Elayne comes back!

As the topic is Estrogen Month in Popular culture, I thought I'd focus a bit on my favorite pop culture topics. First up is Feminism and Doctor Who, in which Susanne Saville discusses (on the Livejournal Doctor Who group) the way the new Doctor Who series is focusing less on adventure and more on the relationship between the Doctor and his companion, and not always in a positive way. In particular, the argument spotlights the episode that features the return of Sarah Jane Smith from the old series, and how we learn that her life revolved around the Doctor. As Susanne says, "That could have been the story of *a* Sarah Jane, but that wasn't *our* Sarah Jane." The consensus does seem to be that the new Who leaves a lot to be desired from a feminist standpoint, and sadly I can't disagree.

To finish today's post, I'm going to tackle the issue of Harry Potter. This thread at the Chamber of Secrets forum has been going strong for four and a half months. I haven't gotten through all of it, but it covers most of the aspects of the women of the Harry Potter universe, and how they are perceived by the people in our universe. Worth a stroll through, if you have the time.

I wish I was as good at this as Elayne, and if I fill in tomorrow, I'll try to get a little closer to her concept. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy my links, and here's Elayne's closer paragraph, so I don't look completely foolish:

The guidelines for nominating and voting for feminist pop-culture bloggers during Estrogen Month are outlined here. I'm also hosting the 12th Carnival of Feminist Science Fiction and Fantasy Fans on March 31. The deadline for submissions is March 29, and guidelines are outlined here (please send links via email or use this submission form).

*Substitute Estrogen Gal Post