English 1102: Television and Feminism

Dr. Casey Alane Wilson • Georgia Institute of Technology

Tag: The Bold Type

Jane Sloan in The Bold Type: What?

From questions about sexuality, in-office hookups, missing $5,000 pieces jewelry in cabs, fashion shows, and very forward conversations about female anatomy, The Bold Type seems to have everything that a young millennial audience could wish for in a Freeform show. The show has gained much popularity due to its classic storytelling of three young female best friends who live and work together at the Cosmopolitan spinoff magazine Scarlet.

It is true that The Bold Type escapes television’s “norm” of conversation topics; however, it seems to have failed at representing certain aspects in the women’s jobs. Don’t get me wrong, in a Freeform show, you would expect everything to work out for the protagonists and their careers… but with it being such a forward show, you would also probably expect some more relatable struggles for the characters.

And then there’s Jane.

Image result for jane sloan in the bold type gif

Can you say yikes?

She’s a writer at Scarlet whose job was to produce articles that ranged from female doctors to rape victims to the BRCA gene for cancer development. Respectable. However, during the writing of these articles, her character experienced no problems with the actual process of writing such delicate stories (Syme).

She is always met with the supportive guidance of her editor, Jacqueline, and always is successful in her deliverance of a popular article. Even during her short unemployment stint in Season 2, her most notable struggle was simply making a barista mad by only ordering a mini biscotti at a coffee shop.

Jane makes constant comments that seem to propagate from a lack of political awareness, markedly. At one point, she matter-of-factly explains to Kat and Sutton that “Judaism is more of a lifestyle choice in New York.” Question mark?

Anyways, it’s not quite clear as to what moral comes from the character of Jane throughout the two seasons. While Kat and Sutton respectively struggle with a homosexual relationship and nonstop errands in the fashion department, Jane is met with a lack of character development and career struggles.

As the other women are met with rewards from their hard work and success in the workplace, Jane leaves her job, finds another one, gets fired from that, goes unemployed, receives an award for her writing, and then is rehired at Scarlet. Her “struggles” effectively disappear into thin air, and she is happily back with her two best friends in the end. Big whoop.

 

Works Cited

Syme, Rachel. “The Tough Issue The Bold Type Won’t Tackle.” The New Republic, 31 July 2018. https://newrepublic.com/article/150293/tough-issue-bold-type-wont-tackle-season-2-review, Accessed 13 November 2018.

Silence and Emotional Maturity in The Bold Type’s Writing

The season one finale of The Bold Type provided yet another topic of interest that isn’t much discussed in modern television — the lasting effects of sexual violence. In contrast to our class’s viewing of Sweet/Vicious a little while ago, “Carry the Weight” provides viewpoints that aim towards recognition of sexual assault survivors instead of their revenge.

At the very beginning of the episode, the show’s three protagonists, Kat, Sutton, and Jane, are seen running through Central Park. The upbeat music quietens as Jane sees a woman standing under a gazebo-something-or-another (it was weird, okay?), and the focus switches from the three protagonists to the serene woman.

The woman, Mia, holds two weights in her hands, which the audience later learns to be representative of the emotional trauma that she still endures from her assault. Later in the episode, Jane asks Jacqueline, Scarlet’s editor-in-chief, if she can write a story about Mia and her mission. Jane later notes that this story was indeed her first pitch as a writer at Scarlet.

Image result for the bold type carry the weight

Jane and Kat speaking with Mia (middle, right, and left, respectively)

Here with Jane’s writing topics and the implied rekindling of Sutton and Richard’s romance in the elevator, Sarah Watson, the writer of this episode, completes a full circle within the realm of The Bold Type. Watson also wrote scripts for the show’s first and second episodes, “Pilot” and “O Hell No” respectively. However, a key difference in Watson’s earlier scripts and that of the finale is the repeated use of silence.

In this episode specifically, silence is used to portray the importance of certain scenes. Here it is implied that the three women — usually acting upon happy, go-lucky whims, mind you — fully understand the emotional maturity and development that stem from their encounters with Mia, their past lovers, and even with Jacqueline, who decides to finally come forward as a rape survivor, twenty years after her assault.

On a similar note, the theme of extended silence is further mirrored in the episode’s soundtrack. For example, when Jacqueline symbolically takes the weights from Mia, MILCK’s song “Quiet” blasts the lyrics “I can’t keep quiet!”, a nod towards Jacqueline bringing light to her past. The episode later ends with Brooke Candy and Sia’s “Living out Loud”, another play on the breaking of silence.

Overall, writer Sarah Watson effectively wraps up the show’s first season by tying the earlier episodes to the last one. A few more plots are opened, like Kat deciding to go travel with Adena. (Mixed thoughts about Kat to come in the next blog post, perhaps.) But until then, the audience can count on The Bold Type refusing to play clean with what “should be” discussed on television. Watson’s recognition of effective measures that can be used to bring light to and empower sexual assault survivors serves as hope for society’s future conversations on- and off-screen.

 

Works Cited

Shoemaker, Allison. “We Need The Bold Type, and This Finale Proves It.” AV Club, 6 September 2017, https://www.avclub.com/we-need-the-bold-type-and-this-finale-proves-it-1800019688. Accessed 6 November 2018.

“The Bold Type Official Music Guide Season 1.” Freeform, 2018, https://freeform.go.com/shows/the-bold-type/news/the-bold-type-official-music-guide-season-1. Accessed 6 November 2018.

A Brief Overview of The Bold Type’s Focus on Gender and Sexuality

Freeform’s The Bold Type is assuredly a classic interpretation of three female best friends struggling to make their way through their early adulthood. However, the show has gained much popularity due to its increased modernism and forwardness. (I mean, look at its name.)

The relationships, personalities, and decisions of Jane, Sutton, and Kat dominate the show’s storyline with as they work at the fictional women’s magazine Scarlet. Though the three women work in the same building, each has her own respective struggles that she must overcome, and this focus on their differences builds a strong, diversified viewership. The show rarely places focus on characters other than the three women and their romantic interests or professional jobs. For this reason, it has established itself as a concrete medium for the portrayal feminism in the working world.

Even within the first episode, it is evident that the show solely focuses on the female gender. Topics from relationship drama and falling outs to fashion expertise and upward mobility struggles draw in predominantly young, female audiences by providing them with relatable themes. Male characters exist heavily in the background of the show; they are always seen to either submiss to female characters’ decisions or act as an obstacle that blocks the females’ progress.

However, the audience has yet to be introduced to a nonbinary or trans character (as of S1E8, that is). Non-heterosexual topics are addressed as the show monitors the workings of Kat’s personal life, but this seems to be the only insight into the existence of LGBTQIA+ themes on the show.

Image result for the bold type kat and adena gif

Adena (Left) and Kat (Right)

Kat is seen to first question her sexuality upon befriending Adena, a lesbian photographer who challenges Muslim stereotypes. The show focuses on the slow establishment of their relationship, and it has gained immense accreditation for outright ignoring television’s norms of not discussing homosexuality-dependent conversation topics (Gilchrist).

Despite a lack of characters whose sexualities and gender identities differ from those most visible in television in general, the focus on an openly bisexual character is a step in the right direction. The Bold Type has room for further recognition of more gender identities and sexualities, but its work so far has provided a good starting place. Its focus on women, especially those of the LGBTQIA+ community, makes it a top contender for primetime television.

 

Works Cited

Gilchrist, Tracy E. “The Bold Type’s Frank Oral Sex Talk is Breakout TV for Queer Women.” The Advocate, 18 June 2018, https://www.advocate.com/television/2018/6/18/bold-types-frank-oral-sex-talk-breakout-tv-queer-women.

How Shallow Depth of Field Builds Intimacy in the Bold Type

One constant element of The Bold Type is its use of shallow depth of field in nearly all of its shots. Many of the scenes in the show have a sharp focus on the characters while blurring out their surroundings. This film technique seems prominent in most tv shows today, but it specifically serves as an important tool in shaping The Bold Type’s overall premise. I was inspired to analyze The Bold Type’s use of shallow depth of field after watching a video essay by Evan Puschak of Nerdwriter on how The Handmaiden’s Tale uses shallow focus to convey the oppressive nature of Gilead. The Bold Type, likewise, not only uses shallow depth of field for aesthetic purposes but also to build intimacy within its character conversations. The show places a heavy emphasis on the daily details of its three lead women. While the show is set in the big city of New York, it is clear that the character’s lives are given a larger spotlight. Conversations are a huge factor in the show, and the use of shallow depth of field creates the illusion of a more intimate relationship between the viewer and the show’s characters. Character’s facial expressions and body language are given spotlight during a conversation. This extra focus helps draw the viewer into the discussion.

In the finale of season one of The Bold Type, Jane is tasked with writing a piece on a rape survivor’s art and activism. This episode is filled with deep conversations and plenty of extended close shots of the women talking.  During the final scene when Jacqueline takes the weights from Mia, the use of shallow depth of field is especially clear. Arguably it adds to the inspiring nature of the scene. Although the moment is between Mia and Jacqueline the focus still shifts from woman to woman. We see each woman’s facial expression at that moment, especially Jane’s. It’s a subtle effect, but this transition of focus works wonders within a show which revolves around character conversations. The shallow focus and the position of the camera cradled between the women’s’ shoulders gives the viewer a feeling of intimacy within the conversation. However, while the camera is constantly mobile, it remains looking over the women’s shoulders and never breaches their little circle, helping maintain a feeling of privacy within this crucial scene.

The camera looks over Sutton and Kat’s shoulders and focuses on Jane’s reaction to the moment.

The focus is on Jacqueline as she enters the circle.

 

 

Work Cited

Puschak, Evan. ” One Reason The Handmaid’s Tale Won Emmys Best Drama. ” Youtube, 31 August 2017, https://youtu.be/cY4aCnfrqss. 

Finding Power in Powerlessness

In a feminist show like The Bold Type, women empowerment is obviously a focal point. Women are the critical thinkers that make impactful choices. Women are the people in positions of power. Even though the male executive board may be mentioned as being over Jacqueline in ranking, they are not given a face, a personality, or any sort of defining quality at all.  Women are what matter. However, only showing women in power is not enough to empower women; it’s not realistic. Even in instances in the show where a female character felt powerless like Sutton after thinking she lost the fashion assistant job, or Jane when she had no choice on the subject matter of her articles, or Kat when Adena chose to try reconcile things with her girlfriend, they were not truly powerless. The show validates this point completely nullifying these moments of weakness with near-perfect solutions to all these issues (Sutton gets the assistant job. Kat and Adena become serious. Jane gets a new job with more freedom). It’s not realistic. Episode 10, finally, truly, embraces the essence of powerlessness. Jane’s final piece for Scarlet is about a rape survivor, Mia, who never got justice within the court system, so as peaceful protest and living art, she stands in public in New York City holding a weighted scale in each hand symbolizing lady justice. The attention on Mia’s cause had severely died down, so to generate support again Kat organizes a livestream event. Digitally plenty of people breathe words of encouragement and support, but Mia is alone. Jacqueline points out how the virtual support means nothing which motivates the girls to leave Scarlet’s big bash to support Mia. Many things happened to the girls that week, that day, but the biggest moment was right then when they stepped up, locked hands, and stood together. Jacqueline sees the girls on the livestream and makes the decision to join them. She takes the weights signifying that she too is a rape survivor.

Jacqueline carrying the weights is my favorite scene out of the entire season. This is what being powerful really looks like.

This moment is so crucial to the integrity of the show. Jacqueline, arguably the most powerful woman in the entire show, had experienced being completely, utterly powerless. The woman who was always sharp in tongue and dress, the woman with absolute confidence, the woman who called the shots, was once completely, utterly powerless. It is equally important to see women powerless as it is to see them powerful because without acknowledging this state of utter powerlessness that countless women find themselves in, it would be completely impossible to build a bridge from that place to a place of liberation. Painting a picture of powerful women is important because it exemplifies what we are working towards, but failing to acknowledge what we’re running away from gives the problem the upper hand, driving us deeper into powerlessness.    Jacqueline expressed how she could never go back to normal after that tragedy; she had to adjust and find a new normal. That’s realistic. That’s power.

Writing About “A Small Orange Blur”

I researched Lynn Sternberg  who wrote episode 9 of The Bold Type. By research I mean that I did a light Google search, clicked on her Twitter profile, and skimmed through her posts. For a writer, she doesn’t write many of her own tweets; the majority of her posts are retweets, and many of  her retweets are political in nature which is unsurprising in light of episode 9’s content. Excluding episode 1, The Bold Type always begins with a voiceover that  briefly highlights past events of previous episodes and introduces the main characters, Sutton, Kat and Jane. The voiceover is done by a female whose accent is hard to place. It doesn’t add anything to the story, but I have a feeling it was meant to sound powerful and refined. The voiceover’s only purpose is the introduction in the beginning, so its only value is in setting the tone for the episode, but it’s hardly memorable. What is memorable is the dialogue of The Bold Type; it feels so real and organic. I can see my friends and I having the same conversations, well maybe not the exact same conversations, but the feeling is the same. There is such an authenticity to the dialogue in every episode, and this episode is no different. Where this episode does stand out though is in its external references to the current political climate. With witty comments slipped in such as describing a glimpse of Trump as “a small orange blur” and Jacqueline referring to Trump as “Number 45”, Sternberg sure had her fun expressing her political beliefs.

I thought I might put a picture of Trump here, but I though I’d spare us all that pain, and just add a picture of an orange cat to represent “a small orange blur”.

In addition to subtle and not so subtle jokes, the episode explicitly showcased protests against President Trump. As another angle, this episode also took a softer more personal tone with Adena’s deportation. Of course, I do not know what it feels like to be deported, but the episode did its best in detailing certain aspects of deportation: the uncertainty, the powerlessness, the loss.

This is from when Adena calls Kat to tell her she’s being deported. It’s so sad when people who have nothing to apologize for feel like they need to apologize.

Balancing both the joking element along with seriousness is really a smart way to go about an issue such as this. Even in the midst of Adena’s hardship, a bit of humor surfaced when Kat called the Immigrants’ Rights Hotline and it put her on hold saying “our current volume is extremely high” which is just a humorous way to allude to the massive mistreatment of immigrants in the United States. Another bit of writing with a deeper meaning is when one of the characters says “the president has things totally screwed up out here” in reference to New York City traffic being completely gridlocked due to the president’s visit to the city. I have a deep suspicion that this statement was not only a reaction to some extra traffic in New York City but also to the president’s actions in the United States in general because “the president has things totally screwed up out here” too.

‘The Bold Type’ Changes Its Colors in for a More Somber Hue

During the binge-worthy first season of The Bold Type, the audience is constantly provided with an array of color and various objects in the background of the show’s predominant scenes. Light pastels and trendy patterns always seem to be floating around behind the characters’ faces and in their wardrobes. The show is filled with natural light and warm tones, and these entities add both interest and comfort while watching the show.

 

However, in “The Breast Issue”, the sixth episode of the series’s first season, this story changes. For example, Jane’s usual peppy, colorful-yet-professional outfits have been replaced by an all-black ensemble for this episode. This episode features more artificially-lit spaces, and there are definitely more struggles and personal issues presented across the board in this episode than in comparison to others.

 

In this episode, Jane has been assigned to write an article about a female health professional who is adamant about performing breast cancer-related tests on women at very early ages. The audience later learns that Jane lost her mother to breast cancer, and this provides an uneasy feeling as the episode progresses.

 

Flash forward, and Jane interviews the doctor in her office for the article. Careful observation of this scene gives a feeling different than in other episodes. The doctor’s office is a bland, off-brown color. This is a stark contrast to the abundance of color seen in the Scarlet headquarters building, a popular setting in the show. This purposeful occurrence changes the happy-go-lucky theme of the show, and the sheer importance of this scene is established by the lack of natural light. A cold manner is observed in the ambience of the room in which Jane and the doctor sit, and a coldness is equally seen in the women’s interaction.

 

On the other hand, the actual mechanics of the show change in this episode. This being a show about female empowerment and all, there is definitely enough extended shots to go around. However, in this episode especially, there comes a point where Jane loudly expresses her opinions to her boss. As the screen focuses on Jane, the manner in which she gets more and more upset as she cries builds upon the suspense that the shot places on her. This suspense is equally augmenting for the other characters as they come across struggles within this episode — Kat knows that she must fire a worker, and Sutton realizes that she misplaced a $5,000 necklace in a cab. The screen’s intentional, extended focus on the women in the midst of their struggles and fear connects the audience to their feelings and struggles throughout the episode.

 

Image result for jane the bold type crying gif

A drearily colored Jane apologizes to her boss after yelling at her in front of the rest of the company.

 

As compared to the previous episodes in the show, one ultimately sees that the unusually lengthy shots of the characters and their altered presentations through darker color schemes set this episode apart from the others in terms of importance and ominousness. But hey, of course, the girls resolve their issues as always, and we’re still on the hook for watching the next episode.

Power Play: Women Can Do It All

The Bold Type tends to turn gender representation into a battle of the sexes. Episode 6 is a perfect example of this.

There always seems to be a power struggle between women and men. This image represents that struggle.

Women make the decisions that matter while the men end up being the ones ignored even when they have valid points. For example, Sutton misplaced a valuable pendant that she borrowed from a fellow assistant of another company. Richard, Sutton’s forbidden lawyer boyfriend, advises her to come clean about the missing necklace strictly based on his legal expertise. Sutton ignores his advice, and Richard is left watching things unfold from the sidelines. Because this is a TV show, everything falls in to place so that Sutton gets back the pendant and is vindicated in her decision to dismiss Richard. If this were real life where things don’t always work out so rosily, not taking Richard’s advice would likely have been a tremendous mistake. The show glosses over these kinds of alternatives because women are right and men are wrong. Although I am all for women empowerment, the show could afford to work a little harder to strike a balance between how each gender is represented. Within the same episode, Kat is on a rampage to “take down the patriarchy” through a free the nipple social media campaign. She justifies her actions as fueling women empowerment and breast cancer awareness, but with Jacqueline’s wise words, she realizes that her fight was less about the cause and more about winning. Kat’s actions were stemmed in her need for control. Everything really comes down to power.

When I searched girl power, and this image came up, I knew that The Powerpuff Girls would be the perfect representation of the girls in The Bold Type. Sutton is Blossom. Jane is Buttercup. Kat is Bubbles. No further discussion is necessary.

Kat, Sutton and Jane make many impactful decision that affect the course of their individual lives and the supporting characters around them, but Jacqueline is a sun so massive that its impossible for them to escape her gravitational pull. Although Jacqueline exudes power, the looming male force of the executive board eclipses her power. In spite of the limitations of her control, no one can question that Jacqueline is the boss. Often times women in such positions of power are seen as cold, calculating and bossy which aligns with what Jane says to Jacqueline in a fit of fury.  Jacqueline invites Jane to see the other side of her which is when the show reveals that Jacqueline has a husband and two sons. Typically such a thing wouldn’t serve as a twist or a surprise in any capacity, but in all the preceding episodes Jacqueline was only shown as the woman in charge. The show establishes Jacqueline as a boss first and a wife and mother second as a weapon against gender roles. In traditional gender roles, women are supposed to be wives and mothers first otherwise they are neglecting their families for their careers. Being a good mother and wife and being a career women are not mutually exclusive. Jacqueline is a boss at work and at home. Likewise, every episode Jacqueline somehow manages to be the girls’ biggest critique and biggest cheerleader which just goes to show women can do it all.

This clip is not from the particular episode I describe in this post, but I think it perfectly sums up Jacqueline’s mindset as a boss.

Everyone Must Wear Black!

The color scheme of this show is easily characterized as black. The three main characters all wear black. Boss lady Jacqueline wears all black. Supporting characters wear black. Even blurry figured extras in the background wear black. Day in and day out, the characters dress as if they are going to attend a funeral. Occasionally, characters do run out of funeral attire and begin to experiment with other colors.

Are they at an office or a funeral? The world may never know. I can only provide guesses to why the characters in the Bold Type are so opposed to wearing colors.

Aside from what the characters wear, the background typically displays a normal color scheme (grass is green, water is blue, taxis are yellow, etc.); indoors typically favors more neutral colors. In The Bold Type, cinematographic decisions are made to keep the focus on the characters because it concentrates on character development. The characters likely wear black the majority of the time so that their outfits don’t outshine them. The typical shots, in episode four especially, are long and follow the characters as they move within their environment, the audience sees what the main character sees. By doing these long, sweeping shots, the show has a smooth flow and the audience can really connect with the characters. Another way that the show keeps the characters highlighted is by shooting in shallow depth of field, meaning that the foreground which typically contains the characters is in focus whereas the rest of the scene is blurry. In terms of the lighting of this episode, the company building is always shown glistening in the sun, and unless it is night time, the characters are always well lit. Episode four stands out due to the way that it manipulates the lighting and shooting style during several critical plot points. One example of such cinematography is when Sutton had just found out that she is likely out of the running for the job she wanted, the lighting changed in such a way that it washed her out with almost a screen of fog, and there was bokeh ( typically appears as circles of unfocused light) all over the screen.

The circles of light in this picture are called bokeh if my description in the parentheses was not enough to understand what bokeh is.

This change in lighting is not only for dramatic effect but also to symbolize how things are unclear for Sutton because she rejected the stable job, but now the dream job has rejected her. Another moment that stood out in this episode is the series of quick shots that flashed between Sutton working on her mood board and Kat in the city at night. It was done partially to create of sort of montage of Sutton completing her project and partially to create a sense of suspense and mystery around where Kat was and what she was doing because the short takes only gave slight glimpses. The last element of unique cinematography is when Kat and Adena kiss, a sort of heavenly light shines down upon them. The episode concludes with this scene, this light, but heavenly light in the middle of the night cannot be trusted…

This moment is super important plot-wise, character development-wise, and of course cinematography-wise.

Boldness leads to Backlash

In Episode Three: “The Women Behind the Clothes.” The Bold Type tackles the backlash that often arises from being “bold” and stating your opinions.

While the show is about strength in the face of adversity, it is realistic and makes one of its strongest and confident characters, Kat Edison, break down in tears when dealing with internet trolls. It does not simply tell the viewers to be strong when faced with these barriers rather it shows how to be strong. No matter how rewarding it would have been to have Kat somehow shut down the Twitter Trolls, it would have been highly unrealistic. Rather the show gives its viewers supportive relationships and sound advice “Not to Engage” – Jacqueline.  From Jane and Sutton comforting Kat in the fashion closet to Jacqueline’s sincere conversation with Kat about the haters, the episode juxtaposes the hate with these endearing interactions.

In this episode, the show pushes the age-old message about how love always triumphs hate. The creator of the show Sarah Watson mentioned that the inspiration behind this episode was to give women hope in the face of hateful misogynist comments such as the ones Kat is facing. In an interview, she stated that “I felt like I had the opportunity to give Kat a little bit of a win. I wanted to show women that.”1 As a result, the show writes Kat an empowering ending to the episode, with her banding together with other women to create a kindness campaign.

Jacqueline Comforting Kat

Jane and Sutton Comforting Kat

The episode highlights how one can feel powerless, in the words of Kat Edison “There is nothing [we can do]” when faced with faceless haters behind a screen. However, the show makes it clear that one kind message, such as the one Kat received from the CEO of a VR company, has a greater impact than the millions of hateful comments often circulating online.

 

  1. Highfill, Samantha. “’The Bold Type’ Boss Reveals the Inspiration Behind Our Favorite Moments.” com, EW.com, 15 Aug. 2017, ew.com/tv/2017/08/15/the-bold-type-sarah-watson-story-inspiration/.

The Bold Type: A Much-Needed Update to TV’s Outlook on Intimacy

Truthfully, The Bold Type is exactly what its title pokes at… B-O-L-D. Throughout the show, characters’ comments and voiced opinions are not necessarily what you would expect to hear while casually watching Hulu. Today we take a look at the show’s second episode; one that, to be frank, is chock-full of insight and social awareness.

Going into “O Hell No”, the viewer can automatically catch the episode’s subject before it even begins. Look out preconceived notions about women and intimacy, you’re in for a rude awakening.

The episode takes a general focus on the struggles of Jane, one of the show’s three main female leads. She has recently been promoted as a writer for Scarlet, a magazine whose nature can be inferred from its name. Jane has been assigned to write a sex column; however, she is not experienced with the subject matter and feels discomfort with the editor’s choice of topic.¹ This sets the basis of the show’s argument for social awareness of women’s sexual and emotional wellbeing. Several instances in the plot push the show’s message: everything and nothing should be accepted when it comes to conversations about intimacy.

As the storyline progresses, Jane receives some minor backlash from her friends and colleagues as she asks for advice on how to personalize her article when she is in actuality not connected to it at all. She even ventures out to see a sex therapist, and she attempts to become comfortable with the idea of intimate experiences. Eventually, she decides that the pressure of whatever “idea” that women should experience during their youth is too much to handle. She hesitantly writes her article — under anonymity, mind you — and she is visibly ashamed to have not been able to relate to the topic of the article.

Later, after some dramatic background music and heavy contemplation on Jane’s part, she confidently adds her name to the article before turning it in to her editor. This moment, arguably the most important five seconds of the entire episode, is a slap in the face to sexualized stereotypes in society. Jane is no longer ashamed to admit that she hasn’t had certain experiences, and in fact, she admits it to the magazine’s millions of readers. Bold move, yes? (I couldn’t help it.)

Image result for jane the bold type gif

Jane from ‘The Bold Type’

This instance more or less establishes the backbone of The Bold Type. Small actions like putting one’s name on an article that deals with a lack of sexual experience form the argument of the show in general. The audience is taught that awareness and acceptance of all people are absolutely crucial. Through empowering its female characters, it demonstrates the acceptance of life’s circumstances, twists, and turns. Life is life is life is life. Why try to hide or be ashamed of one’s truth? The show’s push towards awareness for women’s health is most definitely a conversation starter on- and off-screen.²

Someone try ‘n stop it from changing viewers’ mentalities for the better. Good luck if you do.

 

 

Works Cited

¹Framke, Caroline. “The Bold Type, A Smart New Show About the Makings of a Women’s Magazine, Is a Total Delight.” Vox, 16 July 2017, https://www.vox.com/culture/2017/7/16/15973678/the-bold-type-freeform-review. Accessed 9 September 2018.

 ²Kaplan, Ilana. “How The Bold Type Is Changing the Conversation Around Sex and Sexuality on TV.” The Hollywood Reporter, 24 July 2018, https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/how-bold-type-is-changing-conversation-around-sex-sexuality-tv-1129016. Accessed 9 September 2018.

Paycheck vs Passion

Following your heart doesn’t give you an excuse to do stupid things.

This picture is a great representation of an important component of the theme of this episode: leaving your comfort zone.

Episode 2 of The Bold Type had the girls feeling its title “O Hell No”. Sutton was offered an advertising job that wasn’t anything close to her dream job. Jane had to write a sex column even though she wasn’t well-versed in such a topic. Kat had to face her romantic feelings for Adena even though she has always considered herself a “hetero”. The theme of this particular episode is easily summed up by a number of cliché sayings like follow your dreams, don’t let your head get in the way of your heart, don’t hold yourself back, etc. On top of serving up a very cliché theme, the episode presented the theme very explicitly; the  characters repeatedly regurgitated some form of the previous clichés. The show’s overall theme tends to take the form of women empowerment. Encouraging women to follow their dreams and take risks falls right in line with the show’s uber feministic standpoint. In terms of cultural conversations, following one’s heart is a cliché, but although it has proliferated in society, the majority of the population still chooses paycheck over passion. Where this episode succeeds is in its representation of why it’s so difficult to escape one’s comfort zone. For Sutton the appeal of settling for less than her dream job was high not only because of the money but also because she had grown up relatively poor and with an unstable mother. Money and stability meant so much more to her than its surface level value. Additionally, she felt stuck in a dead-end position and that she had ran out of time to fulfill her fashion industry dreams. The advertising job was her ticket out; even though it wasn’t a ticket to where she wanted to go, it was at least an escape from where she was. For Jane writing a sex column was not only difficult because she was inexperience and reserved, but also because she had just been promoted to join the writing team, so she felt excess pressure to succeed and to please. For Kat she proclaimed that she was hetero, but her feelings for Adena made her doubt herself. She was tumbling into identity crisis. Worst of all, at Adena’s art exhibit, Kat witnessed Adena kiss another girl, so she had to combat the fear of rejection infused with her struggle to address her feelings. Irony is this episode’s last bit of beauty. Kat is portrayed as the bravest of the three girls. The one with no fear. The one who takes risks. However, she was the one who had the most difficulty following her heart. Sutton rejected the job that promised security and released her safety net. Jane was completely honest in her article and made a last minute decision to use her real name instead of posting anonymously. Kat talked to Adena, but failed to confess or even confront her feelings. It just goes to show that someone doesn’t have to be the bravest person to do the bravest things.

Introducing Me

My name is Aaqila Faizer. I am currently a neuroscience major who will hopefully graduate by 2022. Over the summer semester, I took ENGL 1101 at Georgia Tech as well as LMC 2400, Intro to Media Studies, two courses which I hope will be helpful in this ENGL 1102 course on Television and Feminism. In terms of WOVEN modes, I have found that I enjoy utilizing my visual and electronic communication skills. These modes help me be a better communicator when my written and oral communication skills fail to do the job. I hope to farther strengthen my written and oral skills in ENGL 1102 through practice. While I have had experience with feminism and literature in high school, I would love to enhance my knowledge about the relationship between television and feminism. I would not consider myself a “TV fanatic” since I rarely binge watch anything or finish a series. Rather I tend to gravitate towards movies, and I have recently become interested in the field of cinematography. However, I have been obsessed with certain shows, such as BBC’s Sherlock and I am trying to catch up on watching classic series such as Grey’s Anatomy. For my blog, I have chosen to review The Bold Type, a show that revolves around the lives of three young women that work for a fashion magazine company in New York City. At first, the premise of the show sounded highly cliché and was quite different from content I usually watch, however after one episode I realized the show is less about the typical romance in New York City, and more about ambitious women navigating their careers and their personal lives. The show promises to showcase strong, yet complex, female relationships as well as empowering messages. Plus, I love emotional montages, which I heard will show up quite a lot in The Bold Type.  

 

The cast of The Bold Type

 

 

Something (Not) Worth Reading

Hey, everyone. I’m Jessica Barber, and I’m a Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering student in the class of 2022.

This is my first English class here at Tech, but I took AP English Language during my junior year of high school. Looking back on it, that class was one that truly sparked my interest in rhetoric, and I saw beauty in not only the contents of literature but in the mechanics of it. That being said, I have a great appreciation for the effects of nonverbal communication, especially as seen in day-to-day conversation. On paper, I enjoy seeing an author’s voice and opinions present themselves through diction and formulaic structures ― I guess I’m a sucker for written communication as well.

For this semester, I hope to improve in verbal communication. To be frank, I’m one of those people who would much rather sit in the back of the room and internally comment on people’s remarks like Statler and Waldorf in The Muppets than be the one up on stage. But enough of the boring stuff.

When I have the time, I enjoy watching TV for sure. I’ve gone through a few binging stages over the years, but most recently, I enjoy Rick and Morty and, unfortunately, The Bachelorette. For this assignment, I’ll be watching and reviewing The Bold Type, a Freeform show about three young females who all work at a magazine company. I think. I’ve only watched the first episode and a half, so if anyone out there is already a big fan, please don’t be offended by my lack of knowledge. We’ll get there soon enough.

I chose to watch The Bold Type because I remember that a friend back home became an immediate fan when it first aired on TV. She was always impressed that the show mentioned the social issues that it did, so I was interested in watching something that would surprise me. Currently, I’m watching the show with one of my best friends, a lovely Sri Lankan girl who I had the pleasure of befriending on the first day of high school. I don’t know about her, but I’m really looking forward to having an excuse for watching Netflix all the time now that it’s technically for school. We’ll see how it goes.

Statler and Waldorf

A Bit About Me including Sweeping Metaphors, Elevated Vocabulary, and Ample Alliteration

My name is Jadah Peters, and I am majoring in chemical engineering. With finger crossed, I anticipate to graduate the year of 2022. This class is my first and last English class at Tech. In high school English classes, I did well, but I found them boring. In terms of the WOVEN forms of communication, I’m best at written and visual. The main benefit of writing is that I have significant control what voice I use. Most of the time for formal essays, I write in a completely different voice that is sort of pompous and dramatic. That voice has actually served me very well in several language arts writings. I find it humorous to write papers on thematic elements of literature because it’s my style to use sweeping metaphors, elevated vocabulary, and ample alliteration that would be utterly ridiculous to communicate in that way face to face. Another writing benefit is that I can edit it to make it as perfect as possible. With oral communication, when the words are spoken they can’t be erased. Another thing that is not easily erased, but is sometimes editable is visual communication. I took photography through high school; it became my main mode of expression. Every picture I created was a part of me. With other visual methods like posters and infographics, I have a god eye for color combinations and am very meticulous placement and details. On the other hand, I need to improve my oral and electronic communication. I’m very self-conscious when speaking in front of most people. I’m always afraid of saying something stupid, mispronouncing words, and being misinterpreted. However, I am fairly good at speeches because I have adequate time to prepare for them. Though, with day to day conversations or even interviews where I am unsure of what might be asked, I tend to fail to say what I want to. With writing that almost never happens. The mirror side of writing is reading which is what I tend to do instead of watching TV. Since I must watch TV for this class,  I have chosen to review The Bold Type for pretty superficial reasons: it was one of the only series that I had heard of before, it didn’t have too many episodes, and it seems like the characters will probably be relatable. Because  I wanted my opinions and analyses to be my own, I didn’t want to read too much about the show before watching it. Instead, I watched a portion of the pilot and it seems like the show will be a basic story about three best friends starting off their careers, attempting to adult, and following their dreams or something. From just 10 minutes of the pilot, I can already tell that the show will be very feminist forward and liberal leaning in its coverage of issues. I am looking forward to analyzing this show, and I may even be able to incorporate some sweeping metaphors, elevated vocabulary and ample alliteration.

This is a picture I took of myself for my photography class. I put my DSLR camera on tripod and then set a timer.

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén