Movie: THE PROPOSAL (Release Date in Singapore: 20 August 2009)
Movie Trailer site: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPgZcW8MCaA&feature=fvst
A comic romance is ultimately the perfect way for a person to get that tingly feeling all over. When I first saw the movie trailer for “The Proposal”, I found that something very much stood out or deviated from a common traditional norm: The boss (a WOMAN) proposing to her secretary (a MAN). It seems like the woman (Sandra Bullock) took on the role of the usual male authority figure. This twist, indeed, indicates that the glass ceiling has been raised to a considerable height for women in the world of business. Apart from that, the movie shows very well, the interchanging “power play” between the two main characters.
Well it’s really tempting, but I’m not all out to go and ruin the movie for all those who haven’t yet watched the show, so don’t worry. =)
Now, what made Hollywood decide to film a movie that totally puts men in that rather humiliating position? The show does raise some issues, and brings to light that women today hold more power. But proposing to men? (Wow she’s got some guts.) The 21st Century Singaporean woman is often seen or perceived as one who intimidates men. I had a guy friend who said once that he would rather look for a wife from a foreign country. When I asked him why, he just said: “Singaporean girls are scary!” Certainly, the empowerment through education and various media influences have definitely helped to push women’s standing in society, to what it is today.
Besides the fact that our female population is highly educated, the culture of the media, which plays on our psychological perspective, has somewhat contributed to our wanting to be more than just the lady that stays home to look after the kids and cook for their husbands. (We’ve got ambitions too, you hear!) This form of linear interaction (linear model) through the television, radio, newspapers and magazines, has helped to influence the characteristic of being very competitive high-achievers. While movies depict more women in positions of power in the workforce, magazines that mainly cater to women encourage them to be confident and mature in society. At the same time, the radio screams: “IF MEN GOT PREGNANT, WOMEN WOULD TAKE OVER THE WORLD!” Note: We’ve got women’s rights movements because most societies have been dominantly patriarchal all along.
But seriously, are we THAT intimidating? Perhaps the male perceptions are slightly flawed. Because if that’s the case, why are we still fighting so hard against male chauvinism and discrimination?
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WATCH OUT!! Women taking over! haha.
ReplyDeleteI personally prefer the lady who cooks for me and washes my clothes. It's really a respectable and wonderful job a woman can provide for her man.
ReplyDeleteIn return, guys should reciprocate their love, care and respect towards the girl they love.
After all, the world has been balanced this way for a long period of time before these talks of equality surfaced? =D
Havent watched the show...
ReplyDeleteBut Yujie's comment is definitely going to spark off debate. It is a perception thing.
No WAY I'm washing clothes (well we have the laundry and washing machine!) and cooking is no longer exclusively a 'homemaker' thing. Chefs in restaurants are mainly males. It is also a fact that even though we all had home-economics lesson, cooking will not become a forte for many females out there. Especially career-oriented ones.
While it is played on by the media that roles are becoming increasingly reversed (house-husbands), it remains a fact that the role of both gender has been predefined by God. Females as the bearer of the child (well u cant expect pregnant women to work in the field!) and males the 'breadwinner' of the family.
Erm.. i don't really want to offend anyone.. but this is soley my personal opinion.. i just feel that it is a rather biased world out there.. we only see women fighting against male chauvinism and discrimination.. but is it really always men? Just last week i came across this article where a woman was filmed humiliating her boyfriend in public. she hit his groin with her shoe then slap him with her shoe and then grabbed his groin afterwards.. The boyfriend however did not retaliate even when his diginity was shattered.. now in this situation, how should women be seen? unfortunately not much was discussed about the woman's behaviour.. instead it was the boyfriend who got insulted.. Netizens called him a coward for not standing up against his girlfriend.. but if so, would society have judged him as ungentlmenly for striking back at her?
ReplyDeleteindeed education has given women power and pushed their standing upwards in society.. but will there really be a balance between men and women? or is it at some point women have already gone ahead of men without even being noticed?
i guess articles published similar to the one that i have mentioned have been trying to show us that powerful women indeed can be scary and that maybe singaporean women can be seen as a symbol of women's authority..
Lastly, i would agree with seraphina..
Hi Audrey, Edwina here!
ReplyDeleteI watched the movie and i loveeee it!
Haha, yes yujie's comment will probably spark off a small debate.. But well, that's his own personal views. Women are often being regarded as 'small', when compared to men. How many sexist comments about female drivers have you guys heard? -.-
but we are now living in the 21st century, the modern world.. an era where we can see women being as successful as men. i love how the movie also focus on sandra bullock being the dominating figure.
i have also heard cases of men who forces their wives to give up careers and stay at home to cook, wash and make babies.. are we ladies only destined to do that? ladies can do things as good (or even better) as men! :D
Well I guess women are being misunderstood most of the time. We may come across as bossy and intimidating probably because we are letting our maternal instincts to take over. The traditional role of the woman was to stay at home and to care for and nuture the young. Now in the 21st century much of that have not changed. We are still as nurturing it is just that the context is different now. We are no longer scavangers and gatherers but instead women are now allowed more freedom to be able to choose our path in life. Our gender roles have changed but this has not changed our instincts to nurture and care for. So i guess men should be more understanding and pardon me...ALL U MEN OUT THERE STOP BEING A SISSY~!
ReplyDeleteI think male chauvinism these days has evolved from "girls can't do maths" into more of "we're afraid that the girls will do better then us".
ReplyDeletealso, I think the concept of a "lower achieving" husband is usually a conclusion leap across many assumptions. if a husband brings less money home but spends alot more time nurturing and raising the kids as a result of more free time from work, I'd think he's doing his part for his family too.
handling an inordinate amount of children at my weekend job makes me realise how difficult it is raising a kid in times like these.
Plus some guys might have a higher tendency towards caring and nuturing then what is expected of a man. and y should that not be accepted?
Good grief... the girl proposes to the guy?... sheesh... that says alot about who wears the pants in this relationship.
ReplyDeleteHonestly if guys would not find us intimidating if they have not stepped on our toes, not all of us are hell on heels.
It really is a woman world out there now, women now do hold many leading positions and the world today and the do well there despite the seedy male chauvinistic dissidents in their back everyday. In deed if men were pregnant women would take over the world... but then again... we already have.
Actually why are we debating on gender superiority here? I mean... we're all the same aren't we? The only thing that makes us different is tradition and even in some cultures the women are the bread winners of the family not the men. So whats all the spoof about who has the higher standing in work or play?
ReplyDeleteAw come on! forgive me for my unsubtly you can't be serious that men and women should be of equal standing.
ReplyDeleteMen don't face the same whirlwind of emotion that women do, that makes us all the more reliable in the workplace in comparison to women, so just stick to tradition I mean its been there all along so who are we to change a winning formula? Men belong in the office women belong in the home. Thats that.
Fiction novels has come a long way. Rarely do you see a new book talking about a lady who stays home. Even the woman who is portrayed as the most homely, holds a job.
ReplyDeleteJodi Picolt potrays her women as strong figures, the Mothers who kills the supposed men who assulted her children (in Perfect Match and The 10th Circle), the 13 year old who sues her parents for the right to her body (in My Sister's Keeper).
Wendy Holden introducted a wife who cleans, cooks, takes care of the children and works a full time job in 'School of Husbands'.
The protaganist in 'Wicked" who believes that a school can be saved despite the chauvinistic suits who are ready to close it.
And this list goes on.
If these popular fiction portrays this idea, the idea of a strong charactered capable woman is already in play.
The men just have to love us, respect us and help us for what we are becoming and what we are achieveing instead of discriminanting. Like what happens every now and then still today.
hmmmm.. personally i think many people still have the stereotypic view of men being the superior gender. When a woman displays even the slightest sort of power or superiority, it would seem to be out of the norm. But i guess pple should realli start to change their mindset.
ReplyDeleteIn today's context, gender superiority doesnt matter anymore. More and more females are taking over high positions in the various jobs and i guesss tht "male superiority" only applies to the pple in the past where females arent realli educated, or should i say given very opportunities to educate themselves. If females can prove tht they can be as capable, we not jus accept the fact? Givin them the respect and support that they require shouldnt be that hard.
This is a good topic to start your blog, because it is quite timely to write this. Over the last decades, it was right to say that woman were subjected under the patriarchal rule of men ( at least that was majorly the perception ). However, slowly women started to become vocal and also rose to power. I believe this was how Women's Rights came about and set in place Women's Charter in most countries.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I believe that men are not entirely to blame for the gender superiority( maybe its just place in their genetics). They have come a long way and made room, in recognizing the rise of power in the female species.
Helllo! what i think is that although there is a rise in power for the women nowadays but i have to say that there will always be a glass ceiling in the society that prevent women from scaling to greater height due to the traditional social perspective that men will always be deemed as the superior gender.
ReplyDeleteTo darryl: LOL thanks for putting a comment! Indeed, women are taking over. Are you scared? =)
ReplyDeleteTo clouds: Thank you for your comment! Well everyone has their own ideals. Your's being that you would want a traditional housewife. However, personally, I don't think it would be easy to find a woman today, who would just stay home and cook and look after kids. Women are more liberal, and those who are educated have a higher tendency to be more career-minded.
ReplyDeleteI do agree that the world has been balanced pretty well in the area of male and female roles for a long time. But now, the scale has quite obviously tipped a little off from the norm.
To Yen Ling: Thank you for the comment! I'm glad this entry managed to spark off some kind of debate. I can see that you are quite against the idea of doing household chores =) There is a common misconception though, that all girls should know how to cook because we took home economics. Sure, the basic stuff we could probably handle. How well the dish turns out is a different story altogether.
ReplyDeleteCertainly, we can't change the fact the women are made to give birth, (how ever painful it is!) >.< You men are all LUCKY. Two years of pain in NS is NOTHING compared to the few hours of labour we ladies would have to go through.
To Jerome: Thank you for the comment! I feel that it is true that women have been on the rise, and have definitely in some way, surpassed the expectations of society and sometimes fair better than our male counterparts.
ReplyDeleteI guess it is up to a person to see how it is unfair that men get subjected to horrible treatment, and the fact that women do not get blamed for it. It is tradition and an understanding: The Gentleman would never strike back at a lady. The woman is therefore seen as having the "upper hand" and being more "powerful".
To Edwina: Thank you for the comment! Its a really good show yeah? =)
ReplyDeleteI very much agree with what you said about male drivers always making sexist comments about female drivers. (Like HELLO!?) Male drivers have a higher tendency to be more reckless and more hot-headed than female drivers. I think I could go on forever about my personal experiences with silly male drivers that do really silly things to intimidate me as a new driver.
Indeed there are cases where men force their wives to give up their career by getting them to settle down in their homes. But some would do it less willingly than the others.
Of course the thought of women having worked so hard to get so well educated, would seem almost like a waste if they were to give up their careers completely for a family. I think this trend is becoming increasingly common in the 21st Century.
Dear Anonymous: Thank you for your comment! I agree that part of the bossy and intimidating characteristics results from our maternal instincts. Women are all born natural mothers, so I guess it would be quite natural for any woman to be easily labeled as "bossy".
ReplyDeleteWe are now more free to choose our paths in life, and men should be able to "catch up" and see that we have the power to implement change.
Gee Whiz... the ever debated question of male/female superiority. Where do I even begin?
ReplyDeleteOk...Lets talk about the driving portion ...Men are known to be more reckless due thier fight or flight instinct that sets them off during road rages(It was a man that that made the window sticker "You Tailgate, I Jam Brake") They say women are bad drivers... now why is that? Just because we do not feel compelled like the men to speed off at exhilerating speeds that would send one into a coma upon crashing does not make us chicken... it makes us sensible...
As I like to say:
"Be a Man, Do the Right thing(at least what you Think is right at the time)
Be a Lady, Do the Smart thing(which we more often than not do)
We can say many many things about the changed status of women today. Alot of women today don't know how to cook, sew and some may not even know where to begin in cleaning. These are the things that todays society has changed for us. No longer have we the time to stay home and play house, we have school or work to keep us busy.
ReplyDeleteOne may oft dream of the traditional house wife who will cook,clean, and bow to your every whim... All i can say to you is... PUAY LAYANG!!!!! THAT kind of girl don't exist no more so wake up and smell the take-out...
Dear Mr Ong: Thank you for the comment! Well, I guess the limitations on education for women last time did not allow us to show our full potential for subjects for math and science. Given the opportunity now, we are able to show ourselves to be as capable as males when it comes to such subjects.
ReplyDeleteIt is true and good that a husband knows how to care for his family. If the "lower-achieving" husband can do his part in the house, he should not be looked down upon. However, these men would be constantly driven to achieving higher standards to reach that of his partner. This is so that they would not suffer too much from an inferiority complex.
The problem today is: Women in Singapore are so highly educated now, that their expectations of a life partner have increased significantly. A poll done by the TODAY paper a few months back showed that:
-28% women said that they would be willing to date a man who earns less.
-25% women said they would be willing to date a less-educated man.
To austanite: Thank you for your comment! If you have seen the movie, you'll find the twist in the end on who wears the "pants in the relationship" eventually. But certainly, if the lady were to initiate everything in a relationship, it would be quite embarrassing for the man.
ReplyDeleteA women's world, it is today. The degratory remarks serves a purpose in making sure that we prove ourselves worthy of being title "as equally capable as men".
To meekmouse92: Thank you for the comment! That is a good question there: what's all the spoof about who has the higher standing in work or play? If men and women were treated equal in the first place, then we wouldn't have such a thing as gender discrimination now, would we? However, evidently that is not the case.
ReplyDeleteTo Mousehunt: Thank you for the comment! A winning formula you say? Why is that some women have risen so high (to CEO levels) in the workplace? I mean, obviously they are doing something right apart from their male colleagues. Emotion is what separates us from you, MEN. It just further emphasises that we have a higher level of maturity and we would be able to relate better to anybody in the workplace. There is nothing wrong with that.
ReplyDeleteWinning formulas can be changed ANYTIME, when another formlua has the potential to be highly successful.
To Welcome: Thank you for your comment! Those are really great reads by the way =) It is true that many books now portray an independent female protagonist. Which again highlights that women are, in fact, becoming more daring. It is then up to the opposite sex to see us as equal rather than put us down all the time. Then again, most guys would have realised that women are not just figures to stay home. We can't help the fact that some men are still pompous, authoritative and stubborn now, can we?
ReplyDeleteTo din: Thank you for your comment! Well, I think gender superiority, unfortunately, still matters. I wouldn't say that it was only a thing of the past. Mindsets are indeed changing rapidly, but the rate of acceptance and consideration of one another is a different story altogether.
ReplyDeleteTo Priscilla: Thank you for your comment! True, we can't fully blame men for wanting to be the dominant figures, because it is in their biological hardwiring. It is the same for women who are naturally born with maternal instincts. All in all, men have certainly made more room for women.
ReplyDeleteTo thelifeofachamp: Thank you for your comment! I agree with you that a glass ceiling will always exist, like the fact that working women, now holding the same positions as men, are actually still earning less. I guess that the glass ceiling can only rise a bit at a time.
ReplyDeleteTo Ariel: Thank you for the comment! Love the quote in the last line little sis =)Do you really want me to go on about the driving bit? It makes me mad just thinking about it. Persoanlly, in my circle of friends, I have never heard of any driving accidents involving the ladies. It is always the boys getting into trouble. While men would say that female drivers are not daring and are in fact slow, women drivers are safe and definitely more sensible.
ReplyDeleteTo leirA (Ariel's friend!): Thank you for your comment! Next time just leave your name there alright? That way I won't get confused or anything =S
ReplyDeleteCertainly, women are not as handy in the house anymore. Being more educated, we have forgotten the traditional roles of a housewife. I think it is quite sad that the only thing most girls know how to do nowadays in the kitchen is BOIL WATER. I think everyone should be equipped with the basics of how to run a household. Both men and women alike. It is a type of education that is useful and is definitely not a waste of time.