Feminism In Beartown

"Feminist theory uses the conflict approach to examine reinforcement of gender roles and inequalities, highlighting the role of patriarchy in maintaining the oppression of women." To learn about feminist theory and more; click here. In Beartown, there were clear gender roles, that most of the town seemed to follow blindly. Those who didn't follow stereotypical gender roles were considered outcasts and were looked down upon.

The adults in Beartown are what some would call .... old school. We have the men who run the sports teams. They run the local businesses, big and small, and they're the bread winners. While the women stay home raise the children to be the next generation to be the exact same. Now the teenagers represent different yet equally offensive stereotypes. The boys play sports and don't have to be smart or accountable for their actions because they coast through school on their physical ability. And the girls are the ones who need to be smart but not too smart, they're expected to offer their bodies to the boys but not get attached, and they must understand that sports are more important than them. Realizing these teenage stereotypes are very much still a common reality is sickening. It's extremely demeaning. This makes girls that are no older than 16 or 17 already begin to feel like an object that is to be used by boys. 

This book was so well written. The way Backman portrayed the rape culture within the high school and the victim blaming was done very realistically. When discussing rape, he didn't hide away from the truth; Backman addressed male privilege, the ignorance, the slut shaming, and using his wonderfully diverse set of characters, he did each topic justice. To learn more about rape culture and how common it is, click here. 

Backman did a really good job portraying victim blaming, ESPECIALLY when the perpetrator is someone who is well known. We are seeing this in the media right now with the Time's Up movement. We have multiple women coming forward saying that were sexually assaulted/abused/raped by an actor/director/producer whomever. But first we need to know the entire situation from beginning to end, what she was wearing, if there was flirting, or if she had consumed any alcohol before the man receives any punishment or is even treated like a rapist. Really? It's so backwards, and I think Backman recreated a very similar situation with Maya and Kevin.

Backman also created extremely strong and loving female characters. Whether that is Kira; a mother, wife, business women, and most importantly a fighter, or Maya; a balanced and well minded, passionate and smart teenager, Ana; a forceful teenager who’s not afraid to be herself, or Ramona; a women who is a force to be reckoned with and who holds her own in a town run by men.