What???

But but but… Isn't Brisk iced tea? Which is…caffeinated? I could never deal with the stuff because of the sodium benzoate, which I have the misfortune of being able to taste. So awful.

Let's just say gumption and leave our reproductive parts out of it?

OMG, I didn't even know Anne Bronte wrote another novel! Exciting news! I'm going to have to try and find it online - apparently my regional library only has the audiobook. :(

I agree. This book is valuable exactly because of the reasons you outlined. The only way it could be construed as propaganda is if you somehow read it with no cultural context and no awareness of actual historical facts.

He's pretty milquetoast in the novel; movie Ashley is a lot more masculine, assertive and balanced as a character. The novel Ashley is an inbred, day-dreaming, spineless lame-o and all but says that, repeatedly, throughout the book.

Great comment. I recognize that GWTW is racist, but that doesn't make it any less valuable as a work of art. I love it for so many reasons; it's one of the few books which allows its characters - all of them - to be flawed; it's an amazing coming of age story, as you mentioned; it's an amazing snapshot of the mindset…

He also threw Scarlett down the stairs. And was kind of a manipulative d to her for most of their first interactions. He's kind to those of lower status, but I always see that as coming from a place of privilege, whereas Scarlett's tenuous position in the world makes her more hostile.

I would agree that the movie is framed as a romance, but the book, not so much. In the book, Rhett is not nearly as present. About 80%+ is just Scarlett figuring out how to get by and take care of her family.

Which drink is less gross?

I had a pretty similar reaction… I was hoping for a lot more realism/accuracy, but they took *so many* liberties with all the characters. Plus it felt just like I was watching a British Underdog Movie for a lot of the film.

I never thought there would be a worse twitter publicity misstep than the NYPD one last spring.The internet has proved me wrong yet again.

I don't think Pixar is sexist and I doubt other women believe it is either. However, conversations about this topic are valuable because they fuel conversations across gender lines and give people opportunities to understand the experience of others.

The Bechdel test is a tool for analysis, not judgement. It is not a measure of quality.

We'll probably continue to see a gradual shift as society continues to equalize and women become just as 'visible' as men are in the public sphere. I don't think the underrepresentation of female relationships in movies is specific to movies, I think it's reflective of larger culture as a whole.

I think that words like 'pass' and 'fail' might be the problem here. Pixar is not bad. Their movies are not bad. The AvClub is not suggesting you stop watching Pixar movies. I'm curious as to why you have such a strong reaction to this story. I myself was a bit surprised, as I'd never thought about it before, but then…

Why would anyone want you to boycott a film? It's just an awareness thing. You don't have to do anything. If you were feeling particularly ambitious though, I guess you could say to yourself, "Relationships between women seem to be somewhat underrepresented in cinema, eh?" But unless you're a famous film maker…

The Bechdel test evaluates whether there are named female characters in a movie who talk about something other than a man. That's it. It's not some huge cinematic evaluation of equality. It doesn't pretend to talk about anything else. Make your own test and then we can all talk about that. Right now, we are talking…

Yeah, the point of marriage was first and foremost a property laws thing, historically. And regarding monogamy, in many cases men were expected *not* to be monogamous (eg. polygamous marriages, soldiers at war, general high society fuckery).

This is a large part of what troubles me about this show. It's demeaning to men as much as it is to women. The attitudes towards sex are frankly baffling, yet its super popular and widely viewed. Disturbing stuff.