Urban dictionary defines pontification
as “posturing… speaking to people that don’t care what you say one way or
another,” and “a speech or written communication that is generally pointless
except to cast a favorable light on the speaker or author, as if the message
were a pronouncement from on high,” ending with “usually full of shit.”
Seriously, is there a better way to describe a blog?
My name is Kira Pontiff (hence the title) and I, like so many others, have
decided to start writing a blog! So here’s my obligatory “Who am I? Why am I
writing this?” post:
I want to share my thoughts on gender issues in pop culture, simply because I have a lot to say. I graduated from college a year ago
and majored in theater. The main thing I learned with my degree was how to
analyze things to death. Since graduation I have found myself working two
retail jobs and (as anyone who’s worked retail can tell you) these jobs leave
you with a lot of time to let your mind wander. Being the movie lover and
self-proclaimed nerd I am, I tend think about pop culture A LOT.
During these hours spent musing about the last movie I saw, I often get mad about the gender roles I see in the media. I
was raised in a liberal home surrounded by socially conscious family and
friends. From a young age I began identifying discrimination and attempting to do my part in fighting it. But as passionate as I have always been about social justice I sometimes
feel that I talk the talk but don’t walk the walk. In other words, I spend a
lot of time watching/discussing TV Shows and movies and less time actually
making a difference in the world. However, I like to think that the time I
spend on the latest pop culture craze is not completely pointless because these
movies, songs and shows shape the world we live in whether we like it or not.
Not to say that if you are a fan of a sexist piece of media that you are
automatically sexist, but I often worry that if we fail to identify
inequalities in the things we watch and listen to we run the risk of failing to
see it in the real world.
What I want to do with this blog is name the inequalities I
see in pop culture, have discussions with you about how this effects the world
outside the movies and maybe find out how we can change these problems. Hopefully these
pontifications of mine can serve as some baby steps in walking the walk.
