Instead of fully focusing on semiotics and be a good scholar I got myself some interesting piece of reading. (I think I just offended semiotics...)
Why Straight Women Are Marrying Each Other?
This is an article about a tribe in Tanzania where women are allowed to marry each other so they can keep their property in the absence of men. It is truly facinating how they manage even if it does not make a power relation between women and men in any way equal, it is still because of men and for men, and women can also be very abusive.
Yet, I got to think of one thing that with all those "but" and "if" gives me a very positive vibe. In her work "Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existance" Adrienne Rich, among other issues, brings up a very strong and complex notion of lesbian existance, addressing lesbianism as an extension of feminism. In lesbian existance she sees a possibility for women to break free from the dominating political institution that is based on compulsory heterosexuality therefore establishes male dominancy over women on a lot of levels. Her work was taken to an extreme point of "must" for radical feminism and lesbian existance became addressed as the only certain weapon against male domination and violence. To speak of it very briefly.
Most of the points that Rich brings up in relation to power and lesbian existance are hardly applicable to the tribe's right of the marriage between women. As it is written in the article, women do not have any sexual relationship with each other and even more, the sexuality of a younger woman in a family is always directed towards a man so she will be able to produce a heir.
Yet, one aspect of lesbian existance that shows its complexity fully and often gets lost in the overall discussion about sexuality and power, can be traced in the tribe's tradition. Here comes the positive - female friendship!
While reading the actual stories I could not help but think that most of it, when it works sucessfully for both (or more) women, based on their friendship. Even if this friendship is only coming from women's mutual understanding of danger and lack of possibilities. Rich sees friendship between women as an important part of lesbian existance. Ability to recognise yourself and understand another woman becomes a strong foundation against the institution of male domination. Even if female frendship is not the first thing that springs to mind when one hears "lesbian existance", it is in there, nevertheless, and Rich stresses it as an important element of women's resistance.
So, yes, my point here - my grandma is wrong! Surprised? Well, alright, I was not writing this all to say that my grandma is wrong (ha!) but it came to my mind during my struggle with editing. She used to tell me from a very early age: "Do not trust girlfriends! They will betray you! You should only be good friends with guys."
Needless to say that I did not listen. Even as a child I had a strong feeling that gender has nothing to do with betrayal and if all girls are bitches then who am I? I can say that I was also a very pessimistic child and thought that there is no safety in any gender (or sexuality... do not get me started on this!). Yet I had a strong will to believe in female friendship being powerful, trustfull and long-lasting.
It paid off!
Why Straight Women Are Marrying Each Other?
This is an article about a tribe in Tanzania where women are allowed to marry each other so they can keep their property in the absence of men. It is truly facinating how they manage even if it does not make a power relation between women and men in any way equal, it is still because of men and for men, and women can also be very abusive.
Yet, I got to think of one thing that with all those "but" and "if" gives me a very positive vibe. In her work "Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existance" Adrienne Rich, among other issues, brings up a very strong and complex notion of lesbian existance, addressing lesbianism as an extension of feminism. In lesbian existance she sees a possibility for women to break free from the dominating political institution that is based on compulsory heterosexuality therefore establishes male dominancy over women on a lot of levels. Her work was taken to an extreme point of "must" for radical feminism and lesbian existance became addressed as the only certain weapon against male domination and violence. To speak of it very briefly.
Most of the points that Rich brings up in relation to power and lesbian existance are hardly applicable to the tribe's right of the marriage between women. As it is written in the article, women do not have any sexual relationship with each other and even more, the sexuality of a younger woman in a family is always directed towards a man so she will be able to produce a heir.
Yet, one aspect of lesbian existance that shows its complexity fully and often gets lost in the overall discussion about sexuality and power, can be traced in the tribe's tradition. Here comes the positive - female friendship!
While reading the actual stories I could not help but think that most of it, when it works sucessfully for both (or more) women, based on their friendship. Even if this friendship is only coming from women's mutual understanding of danger and lack of possibilities. Rich sees friendship between women as an important part of lesbian existance. Ability to recognise yourself and understand another woman becomes a strong foundation against the institution of male domination. Even if female frendship is not the first thing that springs to mind when one hears "lesbian existance", it is in there, nevertheless, and Rich stresses it as an important element of women's resistance.
So, yes, my point here - my grandma is wrong! Surprised? Well, alright, I was not writing this all to say that my grandma is wrong (ha!) but it came to my mind during my struggle with editing. She used to tell me from a very early age: "Do not trust girlfriends! They will betray you! You should only be good friends with guys."
Needless to say that I did not listen. Even as a child I had a strong feeling that gender has nothing to do with betrayal and if all girls are bitches then who am I? I can say that I was also a very pessimistic child and thought that there is no safety in any gender (or sexuality... do not get me started on this!). Yet I had a strong will to believe in female friendship being powerful, trustfull and long-lasting.
It paid off!
