"As kingfishers catch fire, dragonflies draw flame; / [ . . . ] Each mortal thing does one thing and the same: / Deals out that being indoors each one dwells; / Selves -- goes itself; 'myself' it speaks and spells, / Crying 'What I do is me; for that I came'." --Gerard Manley Hopkins

02 May 2005

Politically Correct Annoyances

I watch very little TV; I have little to no patience with most of it and would much rather read a book or work a crossword puzzle if I wish to relax. But there are a few shows I enjoy, and two of them supremely disappointed me this weekend.

JAG – how could they end this whole series with that silly coin toss, as if it were an impossible thing to let Mac decide she wants to be Harm’s wife and a mother to Maddie? Clearly, the show has been taking her that direction for some time, but then they wimped out. Letting fate decide their lives? Never, not once; their choices decided their lives all along. Silly. And further proof that feminism is not about women freely making any choices they want to; it’s about making the choices that the feminists value. Why else be afraid to let Mac make that choice?

But Sue Thomas: FBEye was a bigger annoyance to me. At least the coin toss was cute. But Sue Thomas has always been a show that didn’t shy away from being politically incorrect – until last night. The silliness of Darcy’s decision to go to LA to be an editor at the LA Times (never mind that with her new conservative mindset she’d never be hired there; it had to be a big deal and on the opposite coast) while basically telling Bobby that if he wanted her he’d have to follow along like an obedient pup was bad enough. But when he decided to give up everything he had earned there in DC because he loved her so much he didn’t want to live without her, her response was the ultimate in feminist political correctness: (sarcasm alert) “Oh, Bobby, you know I love you, but, Bobby, I’m scared to death that I might actually be dependent on you, so I have to go to LA by myself to prove that I don’t need you, and once I’ve proved that I don’t need you, then maybe we can get married someday, because you know I love you!”

Aargh! Why didn’t the guy just say, in the first place, “Hey, Darcy , I love you and I want to marry you, and I’m staying right here in DC. It’s up to you.” You know, men used to do that – a man proposed and the woman decided that if she wanted to marry him, she would be his helpmate, not an independent soul following her own career and making him follow along for her sake. And marriage is all about dependence, not independence. There’s nothing wrong with needing another person; God created us to need each other. The man was not complete until the woman was created – and she was not created as an independent being going her own way, but as his helpmate. So sad that even in the church we can’t say that anymore for fear of offending someone.

On the other hand, I read a review of the DVD version of The Incredibles, and apparently there is an alternate opening to the movie, in which Helen tells her neighbor that she gave up her “significant” career of fighting evil to raise her children, and no one could possibly tell her that raising children was less significant or important – YES! I’ve decided I may even want to see the movie now. Maybe there are actually a few shots of a contented housewife . . . what an anomaly that would be . . .

7 comments:

amelia ruth said...

okay, I want to hear what you think of The Incredibles if and when you see it. I was impressed that it was far above the usual cutsy, political disney stuff, and actually had some good themes. I think I'm watching it again tonight with some friends.

Anyway, no profound thoughts today. I have to go study.

Lucindyl said...

The Incredibles is fun. K and "the boy" will love it. The mom is, indeed, a contented (and determined) homemaker. One of the things I thought was neat was that the family worked together, kids and all. It's great fun.

Beth Impson said...

Two recommendations from folks I know I can trust -- that means we try to get the DVD next week!

I will let you know what I think.

Lucindyl said...

Ummmmm...You might keep in mind the sense of humor of this particular critic. :D We have been known to differ in taste. ('Cause, after all, you don't have a sense of humor, remember? ;))

::: ducking and running :::

Beth Impson said...

Ah, well, LuCindy . . . this is most true (note the deliberate ambiguity of the pronoun) . . . but I did actually enjoy Toy Store (more or less), so I might be able to tolerate this one . . . :)

Good thing you are out of state, huh? :)

Lucindyl said...

You luuuuuuuuuv me!

:D

Anonymous said...

I could not BELIEVE that lame coin toss. Tell you what happened, and that's the writers wimped out. Figured whoever gave up their career, someone'd get mad, so just punt.

Which made EVERYONE mad. Smooth move, there, guys. >:^(

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