When we were reading Finding the Movement the examples of safe, open, progressive, spaces for women were somewhat privatized (in terms of a contained space). It was grassroots. The women who ran the bookstores and the coffee shops were interested in feminist language and shared experiences. They were local and home grown. It made me wonder if the same ideals and desires could be placed into larger businesses or corporations. It seemed from the class discussions that the answer would be no. But I was still curious.
Take for example a bookstore. If a woman who wanted to publish a story sent it to an editor who was operating with the same desire to print materials for women to help create a sense of community. Then it was published by a company who solely printed these types of material. And finally it entered into a store like the Amazon Bookstore. Does a type of "horizontal integration" work for this?
This brings into question the idea of spaces for women. Does it have to be a physical space or can it be an intellectual space and do they even hold the same meaning?
I don't really have the answers to any of this. Maybe it isn't even feasibly possible. Just something to think about from our last reading.
This is a valid question. If these women tried to publish their books to the larger, more popular publishing companies, then their sexist upbringing would cause them to scoff at these authors and reject their stories. However, this begs the question: where did these editors and publishers originate from? In order for pro-women editors and publishers to exist, there already had to be a steady flow of pro-women authors to work with them. Let's be honest, an editor or publisher can't do their job if there's no authors to write novels.
ReplyDeleteI believe that when women take over physical spaces, it not to "own" that plot of land or establish dominance, but rather it's more of a refuge for women to be safe, share their ideas, discuss and write ways to improve their own lives, and make an impact on their society.