More than what we see

When I declared as an American Studies major, my advisor told me that no one would ever want to watch a movie with me again – and he was right. As an American Studies and English double major, I am constantly reading and analyzing texts; it is nearly impossible for me to watch a movie or a TV show, or read a book without getting antsy about constructions of gender and race, identity, power structures, etc. (much to the annoyance of my fellow movie-watcher). However, when it came time to seriously consider what I wanted my blog to be about, I was at a total loss; I wanted to write about something that I am passionate about and something that excites me, but nothing was really jumping out at me. After meeting with Professor Kersh and writing down different recreational and academic interests that I have, an idea for a blog began to take shape.

Although I am still considering exactly what I want to do with my blog, I plan to review books, movies, and TV shows. Though these posts will be conversational, I plan to review whatever I read or watch with a critical lens. I’m particularly interested in constructions of identity in popular culture, especially the identity of young women, and the messages we’re receiving through the media. There is so much more to everything that we read and watch, and I’d like to open up a conversation about it. I plan to post at least once a week, and hope to incorporate some of the texts that I am looking at in my classes, as well as what I read and watch for leisure. I would like the layout to be clean and easily navigable, but I also hope it can be a fun atmosphere.

I foresee two primary challenges with this blog. First, I’m concerned about the voice. I need to be conscious of not writing too analytically, as I am accustomed to doing for my classes. Further, while writing articles for The Square, I typically use sarcasm – a style that I do not think would necessarily be appropriate for this subject. So, I’ll have to work to create a balance between these two writing styles, and create a conversational space. My other concern is that I am worried that the blog will seem random and scattered. However, if I chose a particular lens to analyze these texts, this shouldn’t be a problem.

To get a better idea of how to address my concerns about voice, I looked at a blog called The Bloggess . I like that her writing style witty and humorous and that the way she provides commentary on everyday things makes them funny and relatable to other people. What I particularly admire about The Bloggess is that while reading her blog, it really feels as though she is speaking to the reader, rather than at him/her. Her posts are conversational, sometimes informative, and most importantly read like a conversation you would have with your best friend.

Bitch Flicks is a blog that reviews films and TV shows through a feminist lens. This blog is an excellent resource for learning to understand the balance between conversational and analytical writing. It is also a useful example of how I could organize my own blog; Bitch Flicks organizes their reviews in movies, TV shows, and themes, sometimes even just making lists. This layout is comprehensible and engaging. Further, to quell my fears about the randomness of my own blog, Bitch Flicks reviews movies old and new.