Letter From the Editor
by Ginger Stickney

Dear Readers,

Welcome back to a new school year (Hurray, it's my last year!). This issue is filled with papers from the three Women's Studies courses offered last semester (Intro, Mothers and Daughters, and Feminist Theory). Each paper explores how individual students changed, grew, and learned over the course of the semester. In my opinion, this is one of the most important aspects of Women's Studies. Within these classes, we are given the chance to evolve in our thinking and we are challenged to stretch our minds beyond what we know. This was certainly the case for me last semester in many areas. This process was often difficult and painful and at times not entirely welcome. What I discovered about myself is that I do not and nor do I want to stand on a solid, foundation of personal beliefs, ideas and opinions. I have found that my beliefs are a stream. I flow in and out of ideas, expanding or; discarding, and adding. My belief system is fluid with a rock bed of open-mindedness. This does not mean that I have become wishy-washy but rather that I have opened myself up to being wrong.

My most dramatic change has come in my attitude towards racism. Quite early in the Feminist Theory class the issue of racism arose. This was inevitable because the history of feminism (all waves) is filled with stories of white woman rejecting and even actively working against women of color. I was quite content in my own attitudes toward race. After all, how could I have racist attitudes, I was Ms. P. C. I knew the language. Could exclaim, "Why, some of my best friends have been African-American, Native-American, etc." I protested, "I don't even notice someone's color anymore, just their humanness." What I didn't realize was that, I was kidding myself and thus not facing the issue of racism.

My first inkling that I might not be quite as perfect as I thought rose when we began to read This Bridge Called My Back. As I read, I experienced a great deal of discomfort. These women were saying that I did racist things. My next reaction was to think that they were being way too sensitive. I just silenced them in my own mind by not accepting what they were saying. When this was pointed out to me by a wonderful professor (Thanks, Sue) I got defensive. "I didn't know" and "Women of color can be racist too!" I started to bury these feelings rather then examine them. I focused on being helpless, "What was I supposed to do about it? There were lots of complaints but not a whole lot of solutions". I buried everything so well, that eventually I just forgot about it. Instead, I concentrated on what my roommates and I have dubbed "Big Brain Moments," you know, the sudden, gratifying intellectual revelations. This was much more comfortable than wrestling, chewing, fighting for insight.

There I am being blown away by feminist theory and all of the brilliant women and brilliant writers and every night racism comes up and every night I just pretend that I am okay. Along come Lee Sharkey, Missy Trout and Cora Smith, with readings from Audre Lorde. My safe little world built around helplessness is shattered. Lorde marched into my world and started smashing everything up with the power behind her words. Sister Outsider started the change that would affect everything I believe about racism. What I learned from Lorde is that African-American women deserve to be angry, very angry, and that is wrong of me to try to deny that anger, to silence those voices by ignoring their message. I learned that rather than ignoring the differences and being afraid of them, I should be welcoming them. Lorde counteracted my defense of helplessness with a solution: "Now we must recognize differences among women who are our equals, neither inferior not superior, and devise ways to use each others' difference to enrich our visions and our joint struggles.@

I was armed with new knowledge, but, instead of using it, I crept into another defense mechanism, guilt. I was an awful person, worthy of beatings most severe. I decided to take African-American Women's Literature with Dorothy Harris; I am still not sure if the guilt drove me or if somewhere deep inside I knew that this would bring me to the answers that I needed. Dorothy, with the help of some fabulous authors, changed my life. Through reading the works of these women, I was allowed a glimpse of their world and their minds. By making myself put down my defense mechanisms, I found myself open to their words. It was a painful experience for most of us in the class. I actually walked out one night during break because I was angry. When I sat alone in my room at night, listening to the wind, I'd start to cry just because of the pain these women had endured. But as the weeks went by, I realized that the guilt was leaving. I was naked, in a sense, to the lessons Dorothy and the authors had to teach me. I had to learn that my voice just wasn't going to get me where I needed to go in this area that for once I needed to just shut up and listen really hard. And I did.

What I learned is that it is not true when I say that I don't notice color. I do. I can't help it. It's the same way I notice the color of someone's eyes or if they're overweight or thin. The key is in what Lorde taught me: these differences shouldn't make me call up stereotypes. Rather I accept and acknowledge the difference and wait to see what that person has to say. Through authors such as Toni Morrison, Gerda Lerner, and Zora Neale Hurston, I learned that I had built up stereotypes of African-American women, and I learned how to let go of those stereotypes. Also, I have accepted that I am part of an oppressive ethnic group and society, I have white skin and that allows me certain privileges. I cannot change my skin color, but I can be aware of the privileges that I have and I can speak out against them. In fact, I feel that I have a responsibility as a white woman to ensure that African-American women are included in feminist movement. As a member of the Anglo race, I also have a responsibility to ending racism. Lee said something very important to me last semester, which I will pass on to all of you: "Perhaps it is better to say 'I am against racism rather then I am not racist'.@

 

What is Feminism?
by Cara McComish

This is a question I have been asking myself since I took my first Women's Studies course at UMF two years ago. Before I entered college, feminism was never a topic that had been discussed in any of my circles or life encounters; if anyone had asked me for my definition of feminism during my high school years I can't imagine what I would have said. I am sure I would have had a vague answer, most likely better than my friend Jamie's response to my question a few weeks ago, who answered the question what is feminism with, "Is that a person who acts feminine, or is very feminine looking?" I have found over the course of the summer that the words feminist and feminism evoke many emotions in both men and women, from confusion to fear to immediate stereotypes of what "this kind of woman" is like. Asking people for their definitions of feminism has been an interesting journey into the minds and assumptions of others. I have had a young man tell me, "Feminism is the struggle of women to break out of the roles that society has made for them, and learn about their history, " while a young woman told me that "Feminists are women who think they haven't been treated fairly...they are angry and complain about how men treat them." Even my own definition has evolved in the past few years as I have taken Mothers and Daughters, Feminist Theory, and many other Women's Studies courses, and now have finished my minor by going backwards and taking this course. Taking the intro course after taking all of the others was not what I had planned (I decided to become a Women's Studies minor after taking Mothers and Daughters the spring semester of my second year), but it has been an interesting way to bring together much of what I have learned in the previous classes, while sparking new interest and questions. I have found many definitions of feminism in the readings I have done over the past two years, all of which have helped me to have a base of knowledge to use in forming my own interpretations of feminism, which I am sure will change and vary over the many years of my life.

So many people have created definitions of feminism over the years that is hard to find one specific interpretation that can sum it all up in a few sentences; this would be impossible because the word feminism means so many different things to so many different people! In a society where we now have definitions for feminist literary criticism, feminist theory, feminist musical composition, feminist historical writing, and so on, how can we define the word that makes up all of these subgroups? One of the best definitions I have found this summer comes from the main text of this class, Women: Images and Realities: "The point of feminism...is to win women a wider range of experience"(425). This brief, simple statement makes a valid point, and forces me to think of other questions such as, "What is the range of experience for most women in my country? What about globally? And what can be done to win us a wider range of experience?" I am sure I could go off into a whole other paper in itself when pondering this definition, and I feel strongly that this is an important part of feminism itself--ASKING QUESTIONS. I believe that feminism involves asking many questions about our positions in society, our roles, salaries, standards of living, how we are treated by men, and how we treat each other. Feminism means not accepting "the way things are" by passively living our everyday lives. Once we find some answers to our questions the quest for knowledge doesn't end; feminism forces us all to seek out answers to new questions that were formed during our search.

So how would some start the cycle of learning about and forming an understanding of feminism? I feel that all of us need to begin our experiences with feminism by first getting to know ourselves. I have learned the importance of each woman's history in forming the base of her knowledge of what it means to be a woman. By learning about the women in our family who came before us, we can begin to build a solid base of who we are and understand our past. Once each of us has done this we can then move on and learn about other women in history, ourselves, and the experiences of women historically and globally. We can then go on, armed with this information and ready to make change happen. Feminism means literally working from the ground up, first by understanding and sharing our own personal experience as women with other women, then learning the history of women in our country, and then further branching out into the world, and into feminist theory, and then finally taking action to facilitate change. This is a relearning process that goes against everything we were taught as children and young women; we are important, our history and dreams for the future are important, and most of all, we can make change happen. One author in our textbook states that "To be a feminist is to integrate an ideology of equality and female empowerment into the very fiber of my life"(438). It is this act of empowerment that is a never-ending cycle; feminism is a life-long learning process, both through what we learn ourselves and in teaching others what we have learned.

Another definition I have found from our text states that "'Feminism refers to the belief that women have been historically subordinate to men, and a commitment to working for freedom for women in all aspects of social life"(9). When I first read this definition it made me think of my great-great-great-great grandmother, Sarah Flanders, whose life I researched last summer. Known as Sarah the Evangelist by people throughout New England, she traveled during the late 1800's to preach the gospel and do hands on healing work with those she met on her journeys. She refused to be subordinate to her husband and left her family to follow her calling, breaking the traditional molds of what was appropriate behavior for a woman of her time. I consider her to be an early feminist because she stood up for her beliefs, even when persecuted by people who felt she was crazy for leaving her family; in those days women rarely traveled, let alone to preach the gospel or heal other with their touch or words. When I researched her life last summer and read her journal, I learned that she was an early believer in the importance of gaining the vote for women, as well as the importance of having women who were religious leaders. When I went to find her grave site in Warren, NH, I found her husband and children buried together, but her stone was not with theirs. I later learned from a historian that she was buried in a nearby ravine by herself, obviously as a sign of the family's resentment. I plan to go to the ravine this summer and find her small stone to give my respect to this early feminist who is such an important part of my past.

The second part of the above definition, "working for freedom for women in all aspects of social life," is another important part of the equation. I have learned just recently the importance of having a rapport with women from all walks of life; my experiences as a literacy volunteer this summer have given me just a glimpse of the lives of women and children who live in poverty. As feminist we need to remember that our class representations in college classes do not represent all women, and instead of just talking about the issues that affect us all as women we need to take action in whatever ways we feel are important. Working for freedom for women can also mean focusing on global issues such as female genital mutilation, poor working conditions, racism, and abuse of all kinds. Another excellent definition I found encompasses many of the issues I have touched on so far, and comes from the book Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center by bell hooks:

Feminism is the struggle to end sexist oppression. Its aim is not to benefit solely any specific group of women, any particular race or class of women. It does not privilege women over men. It has the power to transform in a meaningful way all our lives. Most importantly, feminism is neither a lifestyle nor a ready-made identity or role one can step into(20).

This answer to the question "what is feminism" is one of the best that I have come across in the reading I have done. hooks touches on the important point that ending sexism is one goal of feminism; this has been a problem for women throughout the ages. I was amazed to learn just how long it took suffragists to get the vote in our country; I had no idea how many decades were spent fighting this battle! Watching the video One Woman, One Vote gave me excellent insight into the history of the suffrage movement. I was lifted up by the songs and bravery of these women, yet felt ashamed by the racism I saw in efforts to get white women the vote, instead of all women. I really had no previous knowledge of this hard fought period in women's history; I am embarrassed to say that I recalled names such as Susan B. Anthony and Elisabeth Cady Stanton but had not remembered why I knew these names or where they fit into the years of history classes I had taken in high school (probably because these names weren't even mentioned, except for a paragraph blurb in a textbook). Names like Alice Paul, Lucy Burns, Rose Winslow, Dorris Stevens, Anna Howard Shaw should all be remembered as important in the history of our country. Most young women today don't feel that women were an important part of history at all because we aren't discussed in the books or classrooms of our schools. Feminism calls for the voices of these women to be heard, their lives and experiences to be remembered through reading, movies, and discussion.

I believe that we need to break out of our culturally and socially defined roles that have been created by men; up until now women have been defined by men. Even today it is a male majority in the higher business world who are selling us products through advertisements that make us feel inadequate. An important part of the feminist movement today is talking about these advertisements and products that bombard us on a daily basis via the television, magazines, billboards, etc. We need to have open lines of communication between young and old, white women and women of color, women of low socio-economic status and those who are privileged. Together we need to talk about things such as eating disorders, women's reproductive health, the so-called welfare reform, the shifts in public education that are affecting all of our children and grandchildren.

My definition of feminism involves redefining who we are and what we want out of our lives. This redefinition has to be done on a personal level by getting to know ourselves and our own herstory, as well as on a social level through reading books, classroom discussions, and other avenues of public awareness. As hooks states, "Feminism is neither a lifestyle nor a ready-made identity or role one can step into". Learning about feminism can't be done in a couple of days or by reading one or two books; it is a continuous cycle of learning that each individual needs to experience in her own way. Discussion of theory and readings we have done is important, but an equally important part of feminism is for women to each create their own definitions. We each need to form our own definitions of feminism, shaped by what we have learned from ourselves and others, as we decide what it means to be a feminist at the dawn of the next century.

 

What is Feminism?
by Susan Sterling

My sense of what feminism is has developed in two spheres. One is my personal sense of how feminism operates as a force and a presence in my life. The second is a broader sense of feminism as a vision to be shared by many.

This feminist vision is a mosaic of beliefs and values and ways of being. The picture I see includes freely sharing knowledge and abilities, cooperation, frequent episodes of creative expression, a soothing sense of community, a willingness to nurture, and a recognition of the many ways of knowing (including intuition).

There have been instances here at UMF when, through my exposure to Women's Studies, I have experienced the wonderful feeling of living inside this vision. The Mothers and Daughters class I took in the Spring of 1996 had all the elements. We shared books and ideas and words and theories and dreams and regrets and revelations. I can remember so many quiet moments during our evenings together when we all just sat there nodding and breathing, taking in whatever had just been revealed. I felt brave and capable and inspired in that class, and I want to live in that kind of reality more often.

Feminism in this broader sense is an atmosphere--unmistakable to me now that I have experienced it, but still a challenge to define.

Your [Lee Sharkey's] presentation (a few days ago) of Adrienne Rich's poems as a moving map of feminism gave me a very special hour to spend in that atmosphere. It had been another morning of rushing around, trying to wrap up projects for school, running errands, and just being much busier than I am comfortable with. Somehow, I had managed to skip breakfast, which, since it was noon, made everything seem a little fuzzy. As I dashed around, looking for the right classroom, I started feeling really off center and wished I hadn't left my water bottle in the car (water always calms me down). I was a few minutes late again. I am so tired of being late. As soon as I walked in the door where the presentation was taking place, and saw the circle of faces looking back at me, I was flooded with a sense that in this room, I would be nourished. I can remember so well looking around the room after I sat down, at the collection of professors and students and active community members and thinking, "This is UMF's feminist network. This is a resource I can draw from and contribute to."

A few minutes later, another one of my feminist professors and the president of UMF joined the group. Suddenly, I didn't feel so bad about being late. They sat next to me and in the course of the group discussion of Adrienne Rich's poetry, you asked us where we thought "Transcendental Etude" was physically located. "New England, rural Maine," rang out voices from the group. "It's Vermont," said President Kalikow in a low tone of voice, clearly not meant to be heard by anyone. "Oh, you looked ahead," teased Professor Hepler. "I'm like that," grinned President Kalikow. I made eye contact with the two of them at that instant and the three of us chuckled. The boundaries of our roles as president, professor and student disappeared. We were like three chums having a little giggle. Then we flipped back to the enthralling discussion of Rich's poetry. The hour was over too soon, and outside, one of the students who had been in the room sighed and said to me, "Sometimes it is just so fulfilling being on this campus." Yes. There we all were, sharing ideas and impressions, appreciating the creative work of a woman, exploring, expressing, respecting. Again, I found myself wanting to live that way more often.

Although these two examples were supposed to illustrate my vision of what feminism is in the larger sense, they certainly impact me on a more personal level as well. This semester in WST 101 has helped me define much more clearly the ways that feminism can be practiced in my life. The more outstanding elements of my personal definition of feminism as an active force are: an awareness of the condition of women, an appreciation of the power of voice, a constant process of questioning, and a peace-loving approach to wrestling with issues of gender and life in a patriarchy.

Quite often, at the beginning of class, you would read statistics to us about women's lives in our world today. The images were usually sobering. Our explorations of women and welfare and women who are victims of domestic violence especially spoke to me of the popular misconceptions and myths that I (along with much of society) was buying into. I have come to realize that for me to deal realistically with myself as a feminist, I have to take an honest look at ways that women are still oppressed, devalued, and discriminated against.

Over and over again this semester, I have wrestled with the question of how to deal with these inequities. How do I carry out my peaceful, creative plans in this imperfect world? How do I stay plugged in to the feminist issues that need addressing? How do I make my influence felt without turning my own life upside down? The answer that has come to me this semester is voice. By seeking out feminist voices and by putting forth my own, I can be true to the activist and the pacifist within me.

I have learned that a feminist voice has special qualities. The voices that touched me this semester include those of Audre Lorde, Naomi Wolf, Carolyn Chute, and Adrienne Rich. As diverse as these women are, their voices share an authenticity. Feminist voices are personal. They are aware of their audience. They connect us and support us.

The first time I read Naomi Wolf's "The Beauty Myth", I was struck not only by the clarity of her ideas and the glaring implications of her message, but also by the fact that she and I are the same age. The words "born in 1962" jumped right out at me when I read the introduction to her article. Somehow, I was empowered to know that I have the same number of years of experience to draw from as this amazingly insightful woman.

My voice is my answer to this personal dilemma of balancing a peaceful existence with an unjust world. Just as these women have taught me with their voice, I can raise important issues and spread my own feminist vision with the power of words on paper. In between, I can still give myself permission to take naps in my hammock, where all I can hear are birds and crickets and the wind.

The questioning I mention in my list of personal aspects of feminism deals with information and how it is passed on. The time we spent discussing sexism in language opened my eyes about how we come to be aware of history. Throughout my public education, I pretty much just accepted whatever was handed to me. Now I know better. Now I ask myself questions like "When was this written? Whose interest does it serve? How are women portrayed? Has this information been filtered through a feminist or a masculist lens? Who might offer a different perspective?"

Finally, I listed as personal feminist priority "a peace-loving approach to wrestling with issues of gender..." Basically, I want to live somewhere in the middle--a place depicted so beautifully in the interview "Loving Another Woman" (conducted by Anne Koedt) from our textbook. The woman being interviewed is asked about her ability to "go back" to men after having had a relationship with a woman:

...At a certain point, I think, you realize that the final qualification is not being male or female, but whether they've joined in the middle. That is--whether they have started from the male or female side -- they've gone toward the center where they are working toward combining the healthy aspects of so-called male and female characteristics. That's where I want to go and that's what I'm beginning to realize I respond to in other people.

There is still so much to be done to put these plans and dreams in place--to live this feminist vision. I feel good about taking these first few steps toward understanding such a multilayered concept. I hope that next semester, I'll be approached by someone enrolled in WST 101 who wants to know my definition of feminism. I'm ready.

 

Motherhood Utopia: Future, and Now, the Revolution
by Abigail Curtis

I WANT EVERYTHING. Ginger has me almost believing that the revolution is the only way to go so that I have it all. But I'm not greedy or selfish. I don't want it just for my own enjoyment--no, I want to secure everything for all women. And since I'm not that sexist, either, why not let men in to have a piece of the action, too? Men have suffered (though not really, I would say, at comparable levels as women) under the patriarchy, too. They can share in the coming glory. But it is sanctioned that men cannot share in motherhood. So--I think women are mostly on our own in this mother-utopia. Here is, then, my wish list/mandate for the beautiful future of Motherhood. The ideas are bubbling in my head and it's hard to find a good place to delve in. So--I will try to start at the beginning of the cycle.

You are a baby. It is your right to have been born into a room full of sympathetic friends. You know you were wanted, because al children are wanted in this land, as in Herland. Your mother has the financial wherewithal to care for you, as well as a supportive social structure of friends and family. You were born in a comfortable birthing center in one of the country's Mothertowns. Here, your mother breast feeds you (as much as she's able & wants to), and herself has good nutrition, because there is sufficient Women, Infants, & Children-type funding in the land. (In my most ideal utopia, all food would be free and the society a supportive communist one--but we'll take things slow for now). Your mother gave birth to you with a midwife--a fully legal and accepted cornerstone of society, much like doctors and university professors. She and other experienced women were there at your birth to reassure your mother that all she was experiencing was normal. Your dad was there, too, wielding a camera and some sterile scissors. He is very proud and happy that you are a girl. If your other parent happened to be a woman, that would be fine, too. Everyone is very tolerant and accepting of different types of families and people in this utopia.

During your babyhood, your mother had ample time to do her own thing. the supportive mother structure did not collapse after you were a couple of weeks old. Your mother had choices, which were of utmost importance to her, in that she could choose whether she wanted to be with you, others, or her work from day to day and hour to hour. She is ultimately responsible for your well-being, but she and your other parent are not the sole care givers. The town in which you live contains a vast network of people who are as other mothers and fathers. Education is of utmost importance in your society. Above all, you are taught to respect and appreciate other people. You are still proud of your body and that you are a girl. The government of your country is pro-family...but not in a Christian Right, Ralph Reed-esque fashion. The laws are family friendly. Education is free and abundant, through college. The country's water sources are clean and protected, the land is well-managed, and there are large wild areas left. The cities are shining places of learning. the country is a safe place to be a child because the government appreciates how important safe childhood is.

You are not ashamed to grow up a citizen in your country. The government had to reappropriate some money from war industries and the military to create a safe clean place for a child to grow, but it was well worth it. The military is far smaller now than it has been. You are not ashamed of your country. You love your parents. What is more, you respect them; they were people before they were ever your parents. Some of your friends do not live with the people who engendered them; instead they live with alternative primary parents. This find and there are no hard feelings. Your country recognizes how important parenting is, and only those who are ready and really want to do it become parents, though they all can give birth. Birth control is safe, free, and widely in use. Abortions are legal and safe, though since giving birth is always a joyful thing and birth control is available, very few women need to have abortions. You are very healthy, both emotionally and physically. You are proud of being yourself. Coming of age is celebrated for boys and girls. You decide when you are ready to leave childhood. The same joyful system is in place for you as it was for your mother. All seems to be well with the world, and you have only dim history textbook memories of a time when this utopia did not yet exist. You are proud to be a woman.

 

"Diving into the Wreck": An Exploration into Adrienne
Rich's "Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence"
by Melissa Trout

Because I am an emerging feminist, because I am in a heterosexual relationship, and because I am becoming increasingly aware of the place I must make for myself among the ranks of revolutionists, it is vital that I dive into this wreck: compulsory heterosexuality.

Using the word-map that Rich has designed for me, I begin. First, I leave my definitions and assumptions behind because they will not allow me to move freely within her element. Then, I slip into my thick skin because truths do not always come in smooth dull pieces, often they arrive in shards as sharp as screams.

I go down
rung after
rung...

Compulsory Heterosexuality was not written to widen division but to encourage heterosexual feminists to examine heterosexuality as a political institution which disempowers women....
...it stands for me as an expression of my continuing belief that heterosexual feminists will draw political strength for change from taking a critical stance toward the system of coercion which demands heterosexuality..." (Rich, Foreword)

* * * *

I reach the entrance of the wreck: heterosexuality exists as an institution which disempowers women.

I enter and am met with darkness, chaos, confusion, accusations, evidence, immensity. My eyes plead with my mind: "Make sense of this! Order this!" My hands plead with my eyes: "Take what you need and let's go!" My mind tries to quiet them both: "But there come times--perhaps this is one of them--/when we have to take ourselves more seriously or die/No one who survives to speak/new language, has avoided this"(Rich, "Transcendental Etude"). My body feels heavy and my movements unnatural. Everything about me seems fumbling and desperate; am I afraid of what I may find? Down here things are dangerous and I am relieved at having dressed in my thick skin.

I begin to gather evidence. I find a doll. She is worn, her hair is knotted, her clothes torn, her face dirty, and her crown is bent and mangled. She must have been a princess or a queen of some sort. Why is this part of this wreck? Suddenly, I remember being four and having memorized Cinderella word for word. At that innocent age I had unknowingly begun the process of internalizing the fairy tale ideology: woman in completed by man; happiness comes when man rescues woman from a despair she might not otherwise recover from. I remember high school and being smothered by the weight of my impending future. A man tried to rescue me then, and I tried to let him. I put my whole self into his hands and waited for some magic to happen. I waited for that weight to lift and for my breathing to regulate. I made my time, energy, and affection available to him by stealing it away from my female relationships. In the end, I had severed one of the most intimate female relationships I'd ever experienced.

The doll belongs to the wreck because she represents a force behind compulsory heterosexuality and reveals a truth: From the very beginning of a girl child's consciousness, heterosexuality is romanticized in "fairy tales, television, films, advertising, popular songs, and wedding pageantry"(Rich 17). Most girl children are shown that a woman's happiness, her dreams, are fulfilled by a man. The gallant knight, handsome prince, or gentle beast will evoke those feelings which will "complete" the "incomplete" woman. This mode of no self-fulfillment is perpetuated during adolescence when young women become indoctrinated with the universal law of the "primacy and uncontrollability of the male sex drive" (Rich 17). The socialization of women into believing that male sex drive amounts to a right begins here. Henceforth, woman places "men above women, including herself, in credibility, status, and importance in most situations, regardless of the comparative quality the woman may bring to the situation...Interaction with women is seen as a lesser form of relating on every level" (Rich 18).

Out of the corner of my eye I catch a metal box. its belongings protected by a rusty padlock. I move curiously towards the box. Taking it in my hands, I battle with the rusted lock until it succumbs and breaks off. Inside, I find a hammer, a wrench, a chisel, and a thick piece of chain. At first I think "just tools", a little relieved. I was expecting something worse. Then my eyes focus on the chain; my mind races to make connections. "Why is this chain here? Why the chisel?" These are not building tools, they are destructive, violent, torturous tools. Their presence frightens me. I know why they are here. Men hammer their sexuality upon women "by means of rape (including marital rape) and wife beating; father-daughter, sister-brother incest; the socialization of women to feel that male sex 'drive' amounts to a right; idealization of heterosexual romance" (Rich 10-11). Through these processes--violence, socialization, internalization--woman, and her ability to woman-identify, are chiseled away. Woman's sexuality is wrenched away from her, most often violently, "by means of clitoridectomy and infibulation; punishment, including death, for lesbian sexuality; strictures against masturbation; denial of maternal and menopausal sensuality"(Rich 10-11). After the hammering, chiseling, and wrenching, what is left of the woman is emotionally, mentally, and physically chained to heterosexuality.

With this last discovery I am ready to go back. My thick skin cannot protect me from the coldness that has begun to creep up in me, or the vulnerability I feel down here, surrounded by all these truths and all this sadness. I take the doll in one hand and the metal box in the other, and exit the wreck. Swimming away, I turn back for one last look and notice the figurehead which I missed before. I move closer: "the drowned face always staring/ toward the sun/ the evidence of damage/ worn by salt and sway into this threadbare beauty" (Rich, "Diving into the Wreck"). This woman's eyes, nose and mouth are being wiped from her face; slowly she is being erased just as the lesbian existence had been erased from history, art, literature, and film (with the exception of pornography). Because of lesbian erasure women are left without any "socially acceptable" options for intimate relationships. The women who do choose to deny or reject heterosexuality are subject to job discrimination and on-the-job harassment, physical and mental abuse, and severe economic disadvantage. A reality that women have to endure is that their economic security rests on their ability to "market sexual attractiveness to men." Under these conditions the workplace acts to reinforce what pornography illustrates: Women are the sexual prey of men and maintain that self- perception. Pornography also implies that "sexuality and violence are congruent, and that for women sex is essentially masochistic, humiliation pleasurable, physical abuse erotic" (Rich 13). Just as the figurehead is powerless against the erosive elements with her eternal nakedness and vulnerability, so are women powerless against regulating their condition within heterosexuality.

I let the doll and the metal box fall and my hands lunge at the neck of the figurehead. I brace my legs against the sides of the wreck and pull so hard that I'm not breathing. I want to free her; I have to free her. I want to clothe her and recarve the features of her face. I realize that I cannot bear the loss of this woman. She had endured, and she must endure. That worn drowned face represents hope to me, because it always stares toward the sun(to the wreck, and the forces of the wreck, she is nothing but a token, an object) She is bound to the wreck, and yet points to the light that will guide me to safety. Maybe she must stay to give hope to the others who will brave these revelatory depths. Maybe she exists to propel us to actions, change, a closer examination of our lives and our relationships. The freeing up of our thinking, acting, and speaking may be the only way to truly free the spirit of the woman figurehead; as she represents all of us, so must we represent her.

* * * *

I emerge from the wreck with a sense of urgency. It is vital that women explore compulsory heterosexuality. What leads us to the wreck, what truths we recover from it, and what designs we create for change once we emerge are personal and evolutionary; "We are, I am, you are/ by cowardice or courage/ the one who find our way" (Rich, "Diving into the Wreck").

 

World Wide Web Review
by Ginger Stickney

I have been "surfing the web" all summer finding new links to add to the Women's Studies home page (http://www.www.umf.maine.edu/~women) and have run into all kinds of interesting sites. The web is a different kind of world that I balked at at first, as I became frustrated quickly. Wading through the junk can be time consuming, but in the end I found lots of neat places that I liked and learned from. This column is intended to save you from time spent wading, thus giving you more time to just enjoy. Each month I will review different sites on different topics. Hopefully, this will be a useful tool for everyone. If you find a site that you think would be helpful, please drop me a line at Gstick61@maine.maine.edu. I will look into including it in this column.

This month, since I figured we need to ease ourselves into deep, scholarly thought, I am reviewing 'zines. 'Zines have been around for a long time and are now starting to make a place for themselves on the web. These newsletter-type sites offer people a chance to publish their own writings and share their thoughts, no matter how radical. This allows many kinds of voices and ideas to be expressed without censorship or toning down. As I read through the hundreds of 'zines on the web, I encountered everything from offensive to insightful, from the intelligent to the shoddy. I usually have laughed and occasionally have felt like crying. All of the 'zines have provided me with more insight into my generation and other generations as well as hundreds of different subcultures. From Riot Grrls to Grannies, these sites cover it all.

Bluestocking: Unabashedly Feminist. http://www.telelport.com/~bluesock/
This is an electronic version of a hardcopy 'zine. This site is referred to in almost every link page I could find, so I decided that it must be worth checking out. The graphics in the opening page are amusing(one is a Victorian woman with a whip) but don't click on them as you won't get anywhere. The essays included in the 'zine are thoughtful and interesting as well as well written. They are not too deep or radical but they are fun and contain some interesting prospectives. There is a good interview with Naomi Wolf that I recommend reading as it offers glimpse at the woman behind the books. They do accept writing so it may be a good chance to publish something (They mentioned looking particularly for material on abortion). Be careful of the links because they often lead to nowhere and it is a tad difficult to negotiate through the pages.

Brillo http://www.virago-net.com/brillo/
This is one of my favorites 'zines. It is funny and witty yet intelligent and deep. The opening graphic starts off with an attitude, a box of candy hearts with one of the hearts reading "Kiss Off."

There are several excellent essays on the site, particularly one about eraserism, which they define as willful blindness to gender, race, etc, on the net. There is also an interview with women working at the Survival Research Lab in nontraditional fields. The site is well-maintained: great photos, nice graphic, updated links. This site is easy to negotiate. Definitely worth the time to look through.

gurl http://www.gURL.com/
I immediately liked this site after reading the breasts essays. This site is funny and charming, albeit not very deep. The essays talk a great deal about body images sexuality, etc, all from a personal perspective. This is definitely a Generation Xnite type 'zine. They are marketing for girls in high school although, there is some nice college stuff. Great graphics in the traditional 'zine fashion: lots of cutting and pasting. This is a nice stop for getting a laugh and not having to think too much.

Catt's Claw: A Frequent Feminist Newsletter.
http://imageworld.com/vsp/istuber/catclaws.html
Of the four sites I have mentioned, this is the most informative and intellectual. Irene Stuber, the owner of the site, is a 67-year-old retired journalist with a sharp wit and an attitude. She covers local and global news with her own bias. Basically, each news item is a mini-editorial filled with an acid wit and a nice sense of irony. She also has records of women's history. The site is updated frequently and is well-maintained. This is a must see. Be warned: it is very difficult to negotiate through the pages.

 

Local and Global News

New Sex Ed. Policy For Maine
Gov. Angus King has given the go ahead to an application for $172,000 of federal money to be used for sex education in the public forum of T.V. commercials. His intention is to start a campaign with the message "Just Say No." King hopes the commercials will promote abstinence among teenagers.

King is using the money in commercials because of the catch attached to this federal money. In order, for a state to receive this money they must agree to teach abstinence; not just abstinence as an option but abstinence as the only option. If King brought this money to the schools, health classes would no longer would be able to teach contraceptive use or any alternatives to marriage.

King hopes to avoid controversy by using the money in a venue other then face to face contact. Family Planning is concerned that Right Wing groups will succeed in their pressure to get this money used in public high schools thus securing the message of abstinence only. Family Planning points out that Maine has the third lowest teen pregnancy ratio in the United States. They are concerned that this message of abstinence is naive and that teens will continue to have sex without the knowledge of contraceptives.

[A detailed article on this issue can be found in the Women's Studies Center]

 

APA Considers Opposing Anti-Gay Bill
The American Psychological Association is ready to consider a resolution that would restrict the circumstances under which so-called Reparative therapy@--aimed at converting homosexuals into heterosexuals--can be ethically practiced. Similar but stronger resolutions have failed in the past, but because the current effort does not define the therapy as unethical, it is expected to pass. The resolution is supported by hundreds of medical and psychological groups and is in keeping with the APA=s 1973 resolution that homosexuality is not an illness.

[Taken from Feminist Com at http://www.feminist.org/news.html]

Comic Strip Causes Controversy
The comic strip For Better or Worse will shift attention to the love life of its gay character, Lawrence, for a four-day series. The Universal Press Syndicate informed over 1,700 papers of the forthcoming series, and 20 or more newspapers have decided to use reruns from 1995. Lynn Johnston, For Better or Worse creator, faced similar controversy in 1993 when Lawrence revealed he was gay, but in each case the number of newspapers choosing not to run the strips has been very small compared to the total number in its distribution.

Although Johnston is displeased with this latest controversy, she stated AIt=s not frustrating for me but for the people who are harassed because they have to put up with this every minute of their lives.@

[Taken from Feminist Com at http://www.feminist.org/news.html]

Stats on Women Around the World
The United Nations Population Fund=s 1997 report, State of the World Population, makes an urgent plea for women=s human and reproductive rights. Some statistics:

[Taken from The Nation July 24/August 4, 1997]

 

Egypt: Court Asserts Doctors= Right to Perform Female Genital Mutilation(FGM)
On 24 June 1997, an Egyptian court overturned a government directive banning the practice by health workers of female genital mutilation (FGM), also know as female circumcision. The ban was instituted in July 1996 by health minister Ismail Sallam. In his decision overturning the ban, Judge Abdul Aziz Hamade stated that ADoctors= right to perform their profession according to the law--which allows them to do surgery-- cannot be restricted by a ministerial decree.@ Sheik Usaf El-Bawdry, the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit against the Minister of Health, immediately proclaimed that he would use the court's decision in another pending lawsuit against the Minister of Education, Ato have him remove from school books any mention of the negative impact of circumcision, and replace it with the correct teaching that circumcision is a must and that it should be practiced.@

Just four days prior to the decision, an 11-year-old girl died in Egypt at the hands of a doctor during the course of a circumcision. The Minister of Health has announced his intention to appeal Judge Hamade=s decision and has stated that them ministry will not allow FGM to be performed in hospitals while the appeal is pending.

[Taken from Feminist Com at http://www.feminist.com/outrage.html
Detailed article available in the Women's Studies Center]

 

Cassini Mission
NASA has announced plans to launch a new ship to Mars. The project, named Cassini after the Italian Astronomer who discovered the rings around Saturn, involves sending an unmanned craft to Saturn to explore the planet. The ship will be carrying 73 pounds of plutonium, an extremely dangerous radioactive substance.

The danger lies in the methods that will be used to launch the ship. A Titan IV rocket will be used for the initial launch, NASA has already experienced one of these rockets blowing up. The second phase of the ships movement will involve the ship, in two years time, swinging around earth to gain momentum to go to Mars, again bringing the plutonium dangerously close to Earth. Both methods are dangerous and risky, putting earth in danger of exposure to the plutonium. Less than a millionth of a gram of plutonium can cause cancer if inhaled. NASA has released a report saying that 2,300 people would die over a fifty-year period if there was an accident. Dr. Ernest Sternglass, professor of radiological physics at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, came to the conclusion, that NASA underestimates "the cancer risk alone by about 2,000 to 4,000 times...not counting all the other causes of death--infant mortality, heart disease, immune deficiency diseases.@