With Jess and Kasey and Alex out of town this weekend, I've taken some time, predictably, to get some work done. I met with a student to catch her up on missing classwork, did some grading and planning, read a book on language and grammar instruction, cleaned the apartment, did some laundry, contemplated working out but didn't, went to church for the first time in a while, and watched some really crappy movies.
Right now, I'm watching Mona Lisa Smile. I've never seen it, but I read the book. The book that's based on the movie. It's craptastic, but I can't get enough of Julia Stiles application to Yale law school despite the pressure put on her to "just get married." Earlier this weekend I watched In Her Shoes, and totally identified with the lawyer sister with the poor dating skills. When the fun sister opened her closet and tried on all her shoes, despite the lawyer sister's notes telling her not to do so, my blood boiled.
The thing is, I'm a sucker for a story with a sensible woman at its center. As a little kid, my favorite movies were Mary Poppins and Sleeping With the Enemy. Though seemingly unrelated, both movies feature a woman who assesses a problematic situation, and then does something about it. They get shit done, if you will. My favorite books were those in Enid Blyton's Malory Towers series. These books, set in a girls' boarding school in England, tell the stories of all kinds of silly girls, but its protagonist is Darrell, one with a good head on her shoulders who makes mistakes but learns from them.
I love Natalie Portman, except for the her silliness in Closer, before the ending when you find out she's actually incredibly complicated and thoughtful. I'm absolutely convinced that Philip Seymour Hoffman is guilty in Doubt, but I could have told you that from watching the previews. Whatever you say, Meryl Streep. Don't get me started on Emma Thompson in Love Actually and Laura Linney in that and everything else, but especially Kinsey. Miranda Hobbes? Yes, please. I feel emotionally torn at the end of Grease because even though I love the "We Go Together" thang, it annoys me that Sandy changes everything for Danny. No backbone, and no good, sensible friends to speak of.
The other day in a meeting with some English teachers, one of them told us about a short-story unit she does using Kohlberg's theory of moral development. They learn the stages and then apply them to the decisions made in the stories they read. Finally, they write about the degree to which literature shapes our morals. Sort of interesting. It made me think about to what extent I am drawn to these characters because of who I am and what I bring to a book I read or movie I watch. Or maybe my repetitive reading and watching of these stories, set up to make the reader or watcher identify with the protagonist, shaped the way I understand what a "good" woman is. I don't know.
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