The Achilles Effect explores gender bias in the entertainment aimed at primary school boys, focusing on the dominant themes in children’s TV shows, toy advertising, movies, and books: gender stereotypes of both sexes, male dominance, negative portrayals of fathers, breaking of the mother/son bond, and the devaluing of femininity. It examines the gender messages sent by pop culture, provides strategies for countering these messages, and encourages discussion of a vitally important issue that is rarely talked about—the impact of gender stereotypes on boys.
large collection of academic essays; "such diverse topics as art, architecture, race, Internet studies, sexuality, drama, design, multimedia, and current social issues. Also hypertext and streaming audio and video recordings."
large site, attractive new design as of 11/06. essays, links, delving into popular culture and playing with it, theoretical explorations and savvy; highly recommended
Braidotti is a theorist combining the insights of Donna Haraway with postcolonial theory; this earlier (1998) essay still has relevance today. Useful in teaching.
an important essay building on the work of Donna Haraway, emphasizing the kinds of empoverishment that come with globalization, and the possibilities for new forms of collective identity in cyberspace, while eschewing utopianism.
...to strive for a structureless group is as useful, and as deceptive, as to aim at an "objective" news story, "value-free" social science, or a "free" economy. A "laissez faire" group is about as realistic as a "laissez faire" society; the idea becomes a
...to strive for a structureless group is as useful, and as deceptive, as to aim at an "objective" news story, "value-free" social science, or a "free" economy. A "laissez faire" group is about as realistic as a "laissez faire" society; the idea becomes a