Jezebel: caitlin moran

Female Radio Exec: Chicks Don't "Think" About Music

Dodai — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 14:00:00 EST

Do men and women listen to music differently? Over at the BBC, Lesley Douglas, who coordinates the pop music, says that men respond to music on an intellectual level, whereas female listeners have an emotional reaction to songs. George Lamb, a Hottie McHotterson "personality DJ", was introduced to BBC 6 Music's digital rock station, as a lure to attract the ladies. Says Ms. Douglas, "Men tend to be more interested in the intellectual side of the music, the tracks, where albums have been made, that sort of thing." (Apparently Lamb doesn't talk about track listings, production techniques and stuff like that.)

In the Times of London today, writer Caitlin Moran claims that while men love discussion music trivia in a "some secret nerd-battle", women, on the other hand, "prove that they love a song by either screaming: 'I love this song!' and getting up and dancing to it, or wailing: 'I love this song!' and bursting into tears."

Continues Ms. Moran:

Women make jokes about the band's hair, drink a shot of tequila for each time Rihanna sings the word "umbrella," and work out in which order they would have sex with the band lineup... That is, quite obviously, the more pure response to music. After all, no bands form with the dream of being speccily rowed over by trainspotting blokes in the no-fun corner of the pub. They form to make ladies drink, dance on tables, and want to have sex with them. On this basis, we can see that women understand rock music in a way men never will.

But while we can probably all agree that both women and men get emotional about music, is it true that women don't think intellectually about what they're listening to? As a music enthusiast, I started writing down the lyrics to Prince hits at a tender age; I love rare covers and random reggae/ska versions of pop hits and discovering that Neil Diamond wrote one of my favorite Monkees songs. I know I'm not the only woman who feels this way. Maybe I don't know what kind of amp Jack White uses or feel the need to frame vinyl covers. And what's so cool about intellectualizing pop music? Most people listen with their ears, brains and hearts anyway.

Are Women And Men On Different Tracks When It Comes To Their Favourite Music? [Times]
Related: BBC Chief: Male Musical Tastes More 'Intellectual' [Guardian]
6Music Boss Thinks You're An Idiot [The Lipster

British Writer: Bring Back Big-Bottomed Undies!

dodai — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 12:00:00 EST

In the wake of the story about how a pair of generously-sized underwear put out a fire, writer Caitlin Moran has written an amazingly funny piece for the Times of London on the "practical superiority of big pants." Is it time that big pants — or "granny panties", as they're known on this side of the pond [I call them "period panties" -Ed.] — made a comeback? Moran says she is "pro big pants" and argues that underwear is no longer something people don't talk about; unmentionables are totally mentionable! "In 2008, knickers are no longer a secret," she claims. "Pencil skirts, skin-tight jeans and leggings - they all allow us to witness an exact outline of the wearer's pants." The problem, Moran argues, is that "Instead of having something that, sensibly and reassuringly, contains both the buttocks — what I would call a good pair of pants — they're wearing little more than gluteal accessories, or arse-trinkets."

Moran pleads with women to try out granny panties:

'Why are we starving our bottoms of the resources - like an extra metre of material - to stay comfortable? Why have we succumbed to pantorexia? It is, of course, all a symptom of women's continuing, demented belief that, at any moment, they might face some snap inspection of their 'total hotness,' and have to reveal their underwear to a baying crowd, possibly featuring George Clooney. In this respect, women have communally lost all reason. Ladies! On how many occasions in the past year have you needed to wear sexy pants? In other words, to break this right down, how many times this year have you suddenly, unexpectedly, had sex in a brightly lit room, with a hard-to-please erotic connoisseur? Exactly. On those kind of odds, you might just as well be keeping a backgammon board down there, to entertain a group of elderly ladies in the event of emergencies. It's more likely to happen.'

She continues by noting that guys really do not care what kind of underwear women sport. "They're really not that fussy." (Didn't Hugh Grant's character in Bridget Jones' Diary still shag Bridget despite her pillowy panties?) So women have no one to blame but ourselves! And she clarifies that she's not promoting the horrible flesh-colored briefs you may be imagining. Instead, think "bright teal French knickers in silk, ribbony bloomers, frilly cancan scanties and amazing satin shorts from the 1950s."

So how 'bout it, girls? You ready to ditch the thongs?

Coming To A Bottom Near You: Pantorexia [Times of London]
Earlier: Pants On Fire

Can You Maintain Feminist Ideals in the Real World?

Jessica — Fri, 26 Oct 2007 10:45:00 EDT

In the November Elle UK, London Times columnist Caitlin Moran offers a primer on "how to stay true to your feminist ideals when you long to be Daniel Craig's sex slave." Though it's an admittedly tongue-in-cheek article (it's classified under "Humour" — love the British spellings), Moran touches on real life scenarios that would certainly test the pro-lady principles of any Second Sex-carrying feminist. For instance, what should a woman do when the only way to get ahead at her job is to make use of her feminine wiles? Moran suggests that while "writhing around on top of piano like Michelle Pfeiffer in the Fabulous Baker Boys is definitely out...you could certainly allow yourself to be a little bit extra 'charming' in that rather tight Moschino sweater."

Even more interesting is Moran's exploration of the desire to be submissive in the sack, even if you're in charge of everything else (a fantasy with which Jezebels are well acquainted).

The Theory: sex-positive feminism. Women's sexual fantasies often centre around subjugation and masochism. This is possibly due to the physical actuality of heterosexual sex (the woman abandoning herself to penetration), or because pain (due to menstruation or childbirth) is an irreducible part of being a woman. Often, part of humanity's way of coping with traumatic events is to sexualise them - bondage, spanking, the movie Crash. It might also simply be because you're quite tired and like the idea of lying there having a bit of a rest while someone else does all the hard work.
The Reality: mmmm, being Daniel Craig's sex slave. Totally natural.

What's particularly notable about this article, even though it is meant to be satire, is that the assumption on Moran's part that her readers aspire to feminist ideals in the first place. Not to be an annoying Anglophile about it, but I sincerely doubt that any American women's magazine would build an entire article around the premise that all of its audience is feminist or struggles with maintaining vaunted standards. Yeah, wearing the tight sweater to get ahead at the office is probs not the best idea, but questioning dogma is always encouraged 'round these parts. No wonder she's inspired the Facebook group I Want To Be/Have Sex With Caitlin Moran When I Grow Up.

Elle of a time [Girl with a Satchel]
Elle November [Elle UK]
One Rape Please (to go): I Paid a Male Whore to Rape Me Because I Wanted To [Vice]
I Want To Be/Have Sex With Caitlin Moran When I Grow Up [Facebook]