At globeandmail.com. It has to do with her views on what it takes for women to gain the credentials be elected U.S. President. In doing so, she touches on Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra, a biography of the Egyptian ruler Hatchepsut, and Ibsen's Hedda Gabler. As far as general audience columns, this is Camille at her best.
6 Comments:
By Tom |
11:48 PM What a brazen hatchet job done on Hillary! Paglia describes Hillary as her father's "true son." Describes the reign of Hatchepsut -- who wears men's clothes and a fake beard -- solely to tie THAT in with Hillary. And then Paglia ends her piece -- and 'piece' it surely is -- with "Hillary Clinton shrewdly got herself appointed to the Armed Services Committee."
Yeah. "Hillary Clinton. Shrew." We get it. And with the implication that Hillary connived to get on the committee, rather than merely doing what senators always do, which is using what influence they have to get on whatever committee they want to be on.
The column is a disgrace.
By MD |
9:13 AM Tom, I'm afraid you are badly misreading. The point of Paglia's column is to make an argument for what women have to do (historically as well as in literature) in order to succeed in the usually man's world of politics. You are taking her points far too literally, missing the forest for the trees, here. You ought also know that "shrew" means something quite different than "shrewdly".
md
By Tom |
8:28 PM I do not think that I'm misreading anything, md. The column begins with the word 'Hillary,' mentions Hillary along the way, and ends discussing Hillary.
It reinforces the stereotype about Hillary in the meanest possible way. It makes a cartoon of her and drills home the idea that if we elect her president we'll have a circus freak on our hands and, from there, things will go very badly.
Regarding the word 'shrewdly,' I think it was chosen intentionally to deliver a double punch.
C'mon, md. The whole article was written in a, ahem, 'certain way.' Paglia was holding a sharp object behind her back the whole way through.
By MD |
10:18 PM Tom,
To call someone shrewd in this day and age is usually a compliment. And Paglia means it as one, since Clinton getting on the Armed Forces Committee in part fulfills Paglia's point -- that women who want to be the American president have to master military strategy and foreign policy (not gender studies). You are way, way off in how you are reading Paglia's column.
md
By Tom |
1:24 PM Explain to me what was shrewd about Hillary getting on the Armed Services Committee? When a man gets on that committee is it called 'shrewed?' There is this implication in the word that Hillary is using her wiles; she connived to get on the committee.
It reinforces the 'bitch' thing -- as does the whole of the opinion piece, IMO. Paglia writes of "Hillary's hard-edged militancy (disguised by cheery smiles and pastel hues)." What's THAT all about? The women that Paglia offers as examples, between mentions of Hillary, are each going through "male territory," and each are disasters as leaders.
By MD |
7:13 PM Tom,
Capital letters are not appreciated, if you please. I can read just fine.
Getting on the Armed Services committee gives Clinton some degree of foreign policy cred. That is what is shrewd. Committee assignments are never foregone conclusions, and from what I hear there is always wheeling and dealing to see who goes where. Historically speaking, it is unusual, if memory serves, for freshman senators (man or woman) to be put there. In any event, she had several options, as any senator would, and she deserves credit for going there, especially since it is clear for quite some time that she wanted to be president.
You complain about "Hillary's hard-edged militancy (disguised by cheery smiles and pastel hues)."? Pretty accurate if you ask me. If you have a different opinion, that's fine.
Yes, Tom, in Paglia's view each of the examples didn't go well. Which is why she emphasizes studying military history and strategy, and why she compliments Clinton for being on the Armed Services committee.
Paglia's case here falls into place pretty well if you give the piece an honest reading.
RSS
