Finally! With Dorthy Parker's "The Waltz" a comic has put some responsibility on women for this "condition" we're in.
I guess it could have been there subtly before, but the repetitive themes of the stand-up were getting a little grating. Boo-hoo women feel fat. Boo-hoo men don't appreciate us.
I guess it could have been there subtly before, but the repetitive themes of the stand-up were getting a little grating. Boo-hoo women feel fat. Boo-hoo men don't appreciate us.
Don't get me wrong. I do not think that equality for the sexes has suddenly been solved and I whole-heartedly support the feminist movement. But it needs to be just that: a movement. Complaining about the existence of these gender differences does not really do anything about them.
Parker's "The Waltz" does a great job of pointing out the fact that women need to take responsibility for their own happiness.
I loved looking at the incongruity between the narrator's thoughts and her words. I loved the irony that the narrator, though occassionally questioning her decision to dance, doesn't really recognize that her current misery is entirely her own fault. Instead, she calls her dancing partner a "creature [she's] chained to" (261) and assures herself that she should "kill him this instant, with my naked hands" (260).
Brilliantly, Parker's story works on many levels. First of all, the narrator is clearly illustrated as the product of her own demise. There is nothing wrong with the man asking her to dance, and it is only her fear of stepping outside of social boundaries that has put her in this situation.
Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, Parker subtly illustrates that the stereotypes about women are not necessarily true. This woman in certainly not docile, meek, and well-behaved (at least not in the privacy of her own mind). Those who could think such vicious thoughts about their dance partners should be able to hold their own in the tough world around them.
I read "The Waltz" as both a call to action and a (more subtle and therefore more palatable) affirmation of women's strength. Yes, Parker seems to be saying, we are strong and capable, so stand up and do something about it.
I definitely agree with your reading. What's interesting, too, is that it could be applied to almost anyone--regardless of gender--in a socially uncomfortable situation, for it points out how we (as humans) may have the *option* for autonomy or, in some cases, even agency. To invoke the old school anti-drugs/anti peer pressure campaign, "Just say no!"
ReplyDeleteMight it also be that female stand up acts are not only judged by "male" standards, but also that the humor depends upon what particular women find salient in their own lives? Women who are more independent by nature will not have a contextual background for humor founded on male superiority in the home and work force. The opposite is also true. I think that if you have founded your life on female independence and autonomy, you become quite impatient with jokes that fail to assert what you believe to be true about m/f relationships. Perhaps the female audience (stand up is almost always more general) has changed enough, at least in our own context, to "date" these admittedly shorter clips sooner than usual. While you can go to Blockbuster or some other venue and purchase complete 90minute shows for men, women stand up acts are generally only available in the format of these short clips with more performers (with a few exceptions). Do we see this as a marketing choice (not enough people want to buy) or as a choice based on primarily male standards?
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