#i am skeptical of barbie movie i dont know how its gonna handle this yet. its def a thin line of enforcing femininity vs elevating it

[tahwarts]

i think ppl kinda miss the point of why pink femme girl power aesthetics are empowering to some women, and this isnt specifically about the barbie movie bc i havent seen it so idk how its gonna pull the whole thing off, but it has definitely sparked a lot of discourse around this. but its not about "telling girls its ok to be feminine" because of course the society already pushes femininity onto women. its just that women are devalued, and women are devalued no matter what they do, however femininity is FOR women and it is because of that association with women that femininity is also devalued (regardless of gender, but even when performed by women). it is an expectation, but it is taken for granted. like for example it is expected for women to do makeup and care about fashion, however it is simultaneously taken as something shallow and frivolous to have as an interest or hobby, and people who point out that it actually takes a lot of skill and artistry are dismissed and brushed off. and again this is a skill that is just expected that all women will have! and celebrating femininity, in for example movies like legally blonde, is saying that no, there is inherent value in this thing, there is inherent value and skill and use in having traditionally feminine hobbies, feminine women had to work and femininity doesnt make someone lesser. and when we accept these as their own skills, hobbies, interests, hopefully we can also separate them from womanhood, and we can accept women as, yknow, their natural state. femininity is an action and it has value but women should damn well opt out of it if they want to.