The magic of saying
Another actor who has fame and fortune entirely because of Joanne Rowling but chooses to turn her back on her in public anyway.
And, again, the claim is a crock of shit. The formula “trans people are who they say they are” is true (but obvious) if she means trans people are trans people if they say they are, but it’s not true if she means (as of course she does) that trans people are the sex they are not if they say they are. I’m not a llama if I say I am, you’re not an armchair if you say you are, they’re not the delegation from Planet Remulac if they say they are. Saying isn’t a guarantee of truth. Saying is just saying. Other things being equal, sure, we trust what people tell us unless we have a reason not to, but that does not translate to a rule that people are what they say they are, no questions asked, period, you’re an evil demon if you disagree.
That’s disappointing. I’d thought better of Watson given her staunch defence of feminism and stance against porn etc.
Apparently she espouses that form of privileged feminism that says since she need never be in a vulnerable position unless she chooses to put herself there, no other women need ever fear being vulnerable either.
Why is it about “who” they are, instead of “what” they are?
If someone questions “who” I say I am, they’re claiming I’m an imposter. I’m pretending to be someone I’m not. But if it’s “what” I say I am, then I could be mistaken. I could say I’m a great writer, or an ugly loser, or the oldest person in the room. All sorts of errors could creep in, and yet I’m still me. And a Trans Man could be a woman who considers herself a man, and still be who she is.
This “who they are” language is yet another attempt to smuggle extreme life-and-death gravity into the issue, and pairs well with “denying their existence.”
Yes, that, and also the sentimentality the language triggers. There’s a whole mystique around the idea of Being Your Authentic Self and Embracing Who You Truly Are and yadda yadda. The annoying “who you are” taps into that and makes everyone go all misty-eyed.
In some ways the whole trans thing is a bastard child of the Self-esteem Is Everything movement.
Watson making a pre-emptive reiteration of Orthodoxy to ensure that her timeline is not flooded by the flying monkeys of Woke Twitter Inquisition, no doubt. Maybe Ms. Watson, Mr. Radcliffe and Mr. Redmayne (or their publicists) could point out exactly which parts of Rowling’s posts are transphobic? Just to clarify it for those of us who do not see it. I would also like to see their responses to the longer piece she published on her website in which she states her reasons for speaking out on the subject at all.
If TAs actually had any actual arguments beyond “BURN THE WITCH” they could be using this moment to put them forward, thereby reaching more people and increasing support for their cause. What an opportunity! They could be reaching people like me, and the readers of this blog. Someone on the TA side of the aisle could be using Rowling’s tweets in the same way that Dr. Jane Clare Jones will pull out her coloured pens to deftly dissect and dismantle poorly argued pieces put out by trans activists (truly a wonder to behold: highly recommended!) Instead, they’re throwing this chance away, engaging in nothing more than reflexive, vituperative abuse and emotional blackmail of their opponents, real and imagined. The only conclusion I can draw from this is that they have no such arguments, otherwise they would have made them. Calls to “educate yourself” will only take people so far, and I’ve yet to se anything put forth by TAs that shows where gender critical feminists have gone wrong. They will not say because they cannot say exactly how Rowling, Forstater, Jones, Bindel, Berns, Stock, Benson, Hilton, et al. are wrong, what points about which they are mistaken only that they are evil and must be shunned and ignored. Their views must not be discussed, debated or analysed lest more people become exposed to them: they are to be silenced and condemned.
Obey, and recite the holy mantra, TWAW TWAW TWAW…
And the moment you raise that you will be hit with a barrage of:
Educate yourself.
It isn’t my job to educate you.
Do your own research.
I know, I’ve been there and got the scars.
At one point in life, I thought I was lower than pond scum and deserved to die. If my therapist had validated my identity, I would not be here today. If the doctor who pumped my stomach had been properly validating my identity, I would not be here today.
If I were as stupid, ugly, and untalented as I grew up believing myself to be (because I am what I say I am, right?), I would not be where I am today. It took me a long, long, long time to get here, because I thought I was something I was not, and NO ONE, I repeat, NO ONE validated my identity, so I overcame my delusions, and now recognize that I am sort of okay, if you don’t look too close at my brains, my looks, or my talent. (Hey, okay, so I didn’t get over it totally…that’s why I am seeing a therapist again….sigh. And she won’t validate that identity, either, so I guess I should dump her and go on Twitter where men are almost certain to be willing to validate me by calling me names).
I am currently re-reading a book* that has nothing to do with this issue yet I have just been struck by a passage that seems to sum up the TRA (and allies – mustn’t forget them) mindset.
The passage was about the rhetoric issued by post-American Civil War defenders of slavery. Odd, huh?
* Battle Cry of Freedom. The American Civil War. James M. McPherson
which of these people have children? what experience do any of them have with guiding young people through the weirdness of puberty?
each of their “acting” careers are effectively non-existent outside of the twitter/potter-verse, and they’ve all chosen to heed the loudest twitter-bullies voices – or more likely their “agents” chose for them.
from their agent-gated outlook, if they want another acting pay cheque, they have no choice but to obey the sickness that is twitter?
so what can sane people do? utterly ignore the films they manage to get hired to perform in – which really isn’t all that hard
it’s a twisted re-take of marlon brando do all over again
And they will not accept your assertions that you have indeed educated yourself, that’s why you reached the position you have on the issue. Nor will they listen to any suggestions for educating themselves. “Educate” means “read something hand-wavy that reaches a conclusion I like” in their view.
sorry about all the previous typos . . .
to address the possibility of simple insecurity – so far, in the realm of stage and film – despite some of them baring their bits, none of them are seriously regarded as actors. but they themselves “self-identify” as actors . . . maybe they think that requires them to be empathetic with others who “self-identify”?
I’m waiting for a TRA to posit seriously the idea that the entire premise of the Harry Potter series is an allegory for biological essentialism. Isn’t it terribly unfair… you know, colonialist even… that a Muggle can’t become a Wizard simply by deciding to be one?
No need to wait; I’ll say it:
George Lucas had the same problem with the force in Star Wars.
(But I still enjoyed the books, and the movies.)
After reading the recent posts on this subject, and after deep soul searching, I have decided that identifying as male/man is sex-essentialist and exclusionary, and commits actual violence against the trans* community. I am inow identifying as an ejaculator and penis-and-testicles haver.
Being over 60, I am also an enlarged prostate possessor as a bonus.
AFAIK, so far I am the only AMAB to take this brave stand. I’m sure others will soon follow my example.
I’m sorry, Bruce, but identifying as a penis-and-testicles haver merely highlights your creepy, unhealthy, and unquestionably perverse obsession with genitals (yes, I know they’re your own but them’s the trans-rules, I’m afraid), which means that you are to be doubly shunned as a transphobe and a pervert.
Sastra @ 2: Really good point. Using the word “who” is the same sort of sneaky as asking, “Well, smarty-pants atheist, who created the universe?”
Ophelia @ 3: I can definitely see the self-esteem movement’s enabling this shit. It certainly made kids more fragile, since they can’t handle not having their self-image stroked.
iknklast @ 6: That’s something that never ceases to boggle the mind. We don’t affirm people’s disordered beliefs about themselves in any other case. Whether it’s depression or anorexia, affirmation is not the way. I suspect it’s related to the switch from calling it gender identity disorder to calling it gender dysphoria. The former locates the problem in the self; the latter, in society (for making the person feel bad).
If You had made a serious effort to educate Yourself, You would know why I’m right, so the fact that You still don’t agree with me, means You still haven’t made the effort.
@Bjarte #16
And it’s not my job to educate you. In fact, expecting me to educate you is further oppressing me.
Yeah, stop trying to extract mental labor from marginalized people.