Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture by Ariel Levy

Title: Female Chauvinist Pigs
Author: Ariel Levy
Publisher: Free Press
3.75 stars


I'm a sucker for documentaries, especially ones that lead me to other resources on the material. A few days ago I watched a documentary on porn and the effects it has on relationships and societies. They had people defend pornography and oppose it. I took notes on the references they used and they interviewed the woman who wrote Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture by Ariel Levy. FCP was an intense book, many parts of it made me angry and other parts made me feel ashamed for what I have done that, according to Levy, makes me a FCP and yet other parts made me question if what she was saying is really true to society. Her argument is that women are just as responsible as men are for creating a raunchy society where women are viewed as sex objects. Girls Gone Wild is a particular interest of hers and she cites that as one of the major ways in which women are subjecting their bodies as a viewing pleasure men and therefore backing up the common stereotype presented in porn and the sex industry, that women are sexual beings that only want to please men.

In the afterward section of the book she claims that she is not against porn though that was not the impression I got from reading the entire book. That note would have been better placed at the beginning of the book. Had it been in the forward I would have read the book differently. However, every point she raised was well thought out and well researched. She provided many literary analysis's on the subjects she addressed and even criticized the material that supported her argument when she felt it was going overboard. 

I was pleased with her writing and I checked out several other books from the library that were analysed in the lit review section of the book; ones that both supported her view and opposed it. I'll be reviewing a few of those books later. It's important to keep in mind that she is not fighting porn or women in it, she is simply analyzing the effect it has on how society views, treats, and values women. 

Catching Fire-not as painful as it sounds *spoilers*

5 stars

Last year I read the Hunger Games trilogy in succession over a period of four days. They are by far some of the better books out there. Not only are they well written, they are an easy read and they demand your attention. I'm re-reading them right now and the wait for Mockingjay is killing me. These are books that should be read immediately one after the other.

Catching Fire is the second book in the Hunger Games series and it is my favorite of the three, though not by much. Not because it isn't good, it's excellent, but because they are all so good it's hard to pick a  favorite. Chances are, I favor this book because it's much more intense than the first book. If I'd been watching it I would have been on the edge of my seat. As it turns out, I was sprawled on the floor for most of it, unable to tear myself away from the book long enough to take a seat.

In the second installment, Katniss and Peeta are thrown back into the Games and this time only one of them is going to come out alive. That whole Romeo-Juliet act is not going to fly again. The Capitol's image has been ruffle thanks to Katnisses awesome on-the-spot thinking and President Snow is not too happy with her. I wouldn't be either, especially since it looks like her time on-air started a Panem-wide rebellion.

I would imagine if you've already read The Hunger Games then it isn't going to take much convincing on my part to get you to keep reading. I'm going to say something I don't often say, so pay attention. The Hunger Games series may be just a step under Harry Potter. Do not take this statement lightly. You'll find out that I hold Harry Potter in very, very high regards. 

So many books

I realized something the other day. There are a hell of a lot of books out there and not all of them have enough people reading them. I like reading and I like writing. What better way to get the word out there for them but by writing about them?  I've never written a blog before and, consequentially, never had any readers.  I welcome your comments and suggestions. Let me know what you'd like to see and I'll do my best to give it to you. If you have any books you'd like to hear about or that you think should be included in any list or blog entry, let me know. If I havent read it, I will. And if I have, I'll add it for you.

Happy reading :)