- Sep 22, 2013
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This is a consumerism-oriented parable inspired by the offbeat fertility-controversy and gender-politics allusory films Species and Bandit Queen.
Cheers,
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The modern world was gauged by commerce, consumerism monuments, and of course tools and technology. Feminists were contemplating the archaeological value of kitchen-tools which would become symbols of consumerism 'consciousness' (since these tools were used by countless women preparing meals for their households). One feminist, an obstetrician named Dr. Pamela Ivy, was studying the cultural 'valuation' of the Indian 'boti' (a very rustic and basic blade-and-board item used to cut foods on the floor with hand-and-foot). Many women in India used the boti to prepare foods in the kitchen, but if the boti was not handled properly, it could become dangerous, and indeed, there were many stories of women cutting their hands and feet while using it. Dr. Ivy wanted to analyze how gender politics in India impacted the archaeological analysis of the boti, especially since gender-relations were strained in India because of age-old patriarchy-biased customs and practices (such as 'religious' dowry-burnings).
Dr. Ivy's theory was that the boti would be representative of an overall Indian consciousness regarding the feminine mystique, female contributions to general labor, and of course, Indian cultural valuations of cuisine and the culinary arts. Dr. Ivy published a paper in which she discussed the 'Body Feminine' as a para-phenomenon involving a meta-consciousness regarding a systemic overview of societal tools, arts, designs, technology, and therefore consumerism items (such as the boti!). Dr. Ivy suggested that the boti was like the 'scimitar-weapon' (a curved blade) of the Hindu goddess Kali (symbol of feminine power and rage) and could therefore be likened to a general cultural imagination of the 'generative' fertilization of both thoughts (feminine aesthetics) and actions (gender-specific tool use). After all, didn't women feel relegated to kitchen duties because they were considered the more 'hospitable gender'?
Dr. Ivy's biggest critic was an American science-fiction writer named Stanley Bubick who was working on a story about a planet (called Xanadu) inhabited entirely by female cyborgs who reproduced asexually. Bubick borrowed Ivy's analysis of the Indian boti and inserted into his female-cyborg story a 'sideshow tale' about Xanadu outlawing all botis (since they were deadly and could therefore be construed as unfeminine aggression-weapons!). Bubick's story won the Pulitzer Prize, particularly because he mentioned that the outlawing of botis on Xanadu frustrated the female cyborgs who truly enjoyed working in the kitchen with 'complex tools.' These 'rebellious robo-women' protested the Xanadu boti-boycott and insisted that if the boti disappeared, so would an overall feminine consciousness regarding 'anatomical reactivity' and 'technology spontaneity.' Dr. Ivy wondered if Bubick's newfound fame would draw needed attention to 'fertility-analytics.' It was the Age of Toys.
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Cheers,
====
The modern world was gauged by commerce, consumerism monuments, and of course tools and technology. Feminists were contemplating the archaeological value of kitchen-tools which would become symbols of consumerism 'consciousness' (since these tools were used by countless women preparing meals for their households). One feminist, an obstetrician named Dr. Pamela Ivy, was studying the cultural 'valuation' of the Indian 'boti' (a very rustic and basic blade-and-board item used to cut foods on the floor with hand-and-foot). Many women in India used the boti to prepare foods in the kitchen, but if the boti was not handled properly, it could become dangerous, and indeed, there were many stories of women cutting their hands and feet while using it. Dr. Ivy wanted to analyze how gender politics in India impacted the archaeological analysis of the boti, especially since gender-relations were strained in India because of age-old patriarchy-biased customs and practices (such as 'religious' dowry-burnings).
Dr. Ivy's theory was that the boti would be representative of an overall Indian consciousness regarding the feminine mystique, female contributions to general labor, and of course, Indian cultural valuations of cuisine and the culinary arts. Dr. Ivy published a paper in which she discussed the 'Body Feminine' as a para-phenomenon involving a meta-consciousness regarding a systemic overview of societal tools, arts, designs, technology, and therefore consumerism items (such as the boti!). Dr. Ivy suggested that the boti was like the 'scimitar-weapon' (a curved blade) of the Hindu goddess Kali (symbol of feminine power and rage) and could therefore be likened to a general cultural imagination of the 'generative' fertilization of both thoughts (feminine aesthetics) and actions (gender-specific tool use). After all, didn't women feel relegated to kitchen duties because they were considered the more 'hospitable gender'?
Dr. Ivy's biggest critic was an American science-fiction writer named Stanley Bubick who was working on a story about a planet (called Xanadu) inhabited entirely by female cyborgs who reproduced asexually. Bubick borrowed Ivy's analysis of the Indian boti and inserted into his female-cyborg story a 'sideshow tale' about Xanadu outlawing all botis (since they were deadly and could therefore be construed as unfeminine aggression-weapons!). Bubick's story won the Pulitzer Prize, particularly because he mentioned that the outlawing of botis on Xanadu frustrated the female cyborgs who truly enjoyed working in the kitchen with 'complex tools.' These 'rebellious robo-women' protested the Xanadu boti-boycott and insisted that if the boti disappeared, so would an overall feminine consciousness regarding 'anatomical reactivity' and 'technology spontaneity.' Dr. Ivy wondered if Bubick's newfound fame would draw needed attention to 'fertility-analytics.' It was the Age of Toys.
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