We’ve a new development in one of the millennium’s most boring questions: Boobs—feminist or nah? Recently actress Emma Watson—a grown woman—appeared in Vanity Fair wearing an ensemble that exposes parts of her breasts. And now certain individuals are demanding that she hand over her Feminist Card for this most unseemly display of nudity.
Here is the photograph in question. Watson dons a white crocheted stole that reveals the curvature of her breasts. And frankly, she looks fantastic.
Alas, we’re still clinging tenaciously to the binary of “feminist/not feminist” and, consequently, far too preoccupied with what behaviors and body parts fall under either category. Some, like British radio presenter and commentator Julia Hartley-Brewer, clearly believe that posing in a state of undress diminishes Watson’s feminism.
What an absurd remark. In response, Watson told Reuters, “It just always reveals to me how many misconceptions and what a misunderstanding there is about what feminism is.” She continues, “Feminism is about giving women choice. Feminism is not a stick with which to beat other women with. It’s about freedom, it’s about liberation, it’s about equality. I really don’t know what my tits have to do with it. It’s very confusing.”
More to the point, if we belabor these attempts to essentialize feminism as a specific set of traits and behaviors, we’re going to trudge through an elliptical—not to mention deeply unproductive—conversation. We’ve covered boobs (so to speak). It’s safe to say that 21st century Western feminists can move on from the topic.
Watson even has an endorsement from social and political activist Gloria Steinem. “Feminists can wear anything they fucking want,” she told TMZ while at Los Angeles International Airport.
So then, the matter’s settled! We don’t have to return here ever again, right?
[Vulture]