Seems like there might be enough traction, so here we go!
Our first "book" shall be “The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas” by Ursula K LeGuin.
It is a short story that is readily available online. If you cannot purchase it, rent it, or find it online please let me know and I will provide more information on how to get it.
Trigger warnings: emotional abuse, grooming, and child abuse
I would like to include some discussion questions that are community specific, and not generic book club questions, so these will likely be questions I ask regarding every work, subject to change of course.
Some things to think about while reading:
- Do you think this work is told from a feminist perspective? Why?
- Do you think the authors gender or gender identity affected their choice of subject, writing style, or perspective character?
- Does the narrators gender or gender identity affect the work? If so, how?
- Did this work change your opinion on anything? If so, what and why?
I don't know if I'll start adding generic book club questions, but if you'd like more general discussion questions of the works going forward, please let me know and I can include some. There's just a lot of discussion available already for this specific piece and I don't want answers to common questions to overshadow more nuanced discussions that center women which is why we're all in this community. Also, this is not a homework assignment. You can choose to address any or none of the questions posed here, or talk about your general thoughts or whatever else. Please feel free to pose your own questions in the comments as well. These should serve as a handy springboard if needed, but not a mandatory outline.
Our first movie will be Kpop Demon Hunters. There were some other suggestions, but I wanted to keep it a little lighter considering this months book has some serious trigger warnings and I wanted people to be able to participate in at least one of the two, even if they would rather not engage in heavy topics. This is an animated movie available on Netflix. I know this is a little exclusionary, but there are some other ways to watch it as well.
Trigger warnings: animated violence/gore, discussion of demons and the afterlife
Same as above: I would like to include some discussion questions that are community specific, and not generic movie club questions, so these will likely be questions I ask regarding every work, subject to change of course.
Some things to think about while watching:
- Do you think this work is told from a feminist perspective? Why?
- Do you think the authors gender or gender identity affected their choice of subject, writing style, or perspective character?
- Does the narrators gender or gender identity affect the work? If so, how?
- Did this work change your opinion on anything? If so, what and why?
I don't know if I'll start adding generic questions, but if you'd like more general discussion questions of the works going forward, please let me know and I can include some. There's just a lot of discussion available already for this specific piece and I don't want answers to common questions to overshadow more nuanced discussions that center women which is why we're all in this community. Also, this is not a homework assignment. You can choose to address any or none of the questions posed here, or talk about your general thoughts or whatever else. Please feel free to pose your own questions in the comments as well. These should serve as a handy springboard if needed, but not a mandatory outline.
Comments are spoilers territory. If you want to use spoiler tags in the comments, please do, but it is not required. If you venture into the comments please keep in mind this is a discussion thread for media so there will likely be spoilers.
Going forward This is a community project. I would like to get input regarding written works and tv/movies that would be a good fit for this. I will leave a comment on this thread that you can respond to if you'd like to offer a suggestion. One suggestion per comment please. You can comment multiple times though. I'd like to make sure the selections are widely accessible, so please add that information if you know for sure something is in the public domain or available online, as that makes it easier to recommend. Please vote on the other comments you see there. I'd like to pair heavier topics in one media with lighter topics in the other, just in case you're wondering why a specific piece was not chosen. Things like language or availability may also affect the selection. I'm also open to changing or adding discussion questions.
Thank you all for your interest. Excited to hear your perspectives!
PS: Even if you have seen or read the media before, I would encourage a reread or rewatch to best participate in the discussion!
The ones who walk away from Omelas
I will start by providing my interpretation while reading through a feminist lens. I don't necessarily think that is the most helpful lens for this particular work, but that is the lens I plan on using when I read works and analyze them for this community. I think it is interesting to know that the author mentions that the children are raised community, but the children are still referenced as walking with their mothers, and the child being tortured still calls for their mother. The author also refers to "workmen". I'm not sure that this is supposed to be her commentary on the inherent relationship mothers have with their children, or if even in her imagined utopia where she challenges us to examine our own preconceptions, even she cannot imagine a world wearing mothers are not the primary carers for their children.
There's also a note that she makes a point to mention that they are in advanced society. There is something to be said about associating advancement with exploitation and disharmony, but through an exclusively feminist perspective, advancement is often considered the domain of men. In recent Contrapoints tangent video that I was introduced to by Dandelion, contra explores a book that proposes that women are not driven to scientific advancement because they live in harmony with nature. When she references the games children play, they are not just playing amongst themselves or playing catch or ball, they are racing horses. She mentions that the horses do not have any gear and their harness does not have a bit, which would indicate they are compliant, but there was no need to include horses. They are the only animals mentioned, and they often serve to represent men's harmony with or exploitation of nature when referenced in literature. I don't think this is necessarily a central theme of this work, but it is interesting that she thinks it is important that this society be advanced in order for us to believe it is a utopia. Perhaps there is a through-line here that implies that ignorance is not bliss. She poses that knowing about the child makes people value their happiness more, so perhaps this is a reflection of that concept that knowing about the world inherently expands happiness. Again, I'm not saying that is the intent, just an interesting perspective when looked at.
It is interesting to know that a lot of the textual "arguments" used to explain away why it is best not to help the child, are said to be in the child's best interest. From a feminist/historical perspective you often see people make that argument regarding why an oppressed class should stay oppressed. People said that slaves preferred slavery, and that women are better off not being able to work. Hopefully we as readers are able to see through that, but since it's possible many generations have gone without seeing the cycle of oppression in the text, do you think they would or should be as able to identify those as inherently untrue?
She mentions that when people are first introduced to the concept behind their utopia they are still children. According to her, some people leave immediately after finding out. Do you think this is an oversight, or an exaggeration, or that 10 to 12 year-old children are leaving their homes because of what they have learned? Apparently they would be about the age that the child is. Do you think that is relevant? Do you think that in introducing this concept so early serves as a kind of indoctrination? Do you think more or less people would leave if they found out later in life to begin with? Do you think they introduce it to children because if the children want to leave as soon as they find out they will have less power to actually affect change if they were to stay? It is interesting to think about this through the perspective of children and the feminist idea of children's rights. Is this indoctrination, or education? Are they also being exploited? Are they really old enough to consent? 
There seems to be several interpretations regarding if the author believes that leaving is the best thing to do, or if people should stay and free the child. She mentions that there are other places outside of this utopian city, but explains that when the people leave it is hard to imagine what they will face. She uses this idea of things being hard to imagine also in reference to a utopia that does not have a dark underbelly. Do you think this would indicate that there truly is no good option, in any society, even the one built by these people that leave, will be inherently flawed? Do you think she is being prescriptive in what the best course of action would be? I couldn't fit this in more naturally, so I will just tack it on here, but I think it would be interesting to analyze "leaving" through more modern context such as the 4B movement. I'm American, so I can't speak on it too much, but my understanding is that women are removing themselves from aspects of society that they deem are to their detriment, and they seem to be lampooned for it. Would be interested in hearing someone with more firsthand experience share their opinions and opine on any relevance or parallels to how the exploitation of women in society and the reaction to it could be paralleled by the people in the story.
Some additional things I couldn't fit in elsewhere: She mentions that there are 18 mountains that's around this city. Do you think that number has any significance? 18 is the age of majority in the US, but otherwise I don't know what else it would be referencing. It seems strange to use such a specific number and not have had an intended purpose for it. This is information from outside the text, but she got the name from reading Salem, Oregon on a sign in her mirror while driving. Interesting that she would choose the name of a town famous for scapegoating women as witches. This is an interesting video that touches upon this work and works it is in conversation with.
https://youtu.be/R_8vrTs_yDgK-pop demon hunters
It is far more natural to read this work from a feminist perspective, so I have less novel things to say here. A creator I recently followed for their arcane content recently posted a video talking about how there is potentially still an element of the male gaze present in this movie during the pig out scenes. That was one of my main focuses during my rewatch for this discussion. In earnest, I did not find that to be the case.
In preparation for this response I tried to binge all of contrapoints tangents videos (thanks Dandelion). I failed to finish them all, but she has a one where she touches upon how "feminist" works now deemphasize sexuality to almost the detriment of the women being centered. I wanted to add here that I appreciate how they balanced that in this work. It doesn't end with her and the demon kissing or anything, but it does acknowledge the sexuality of the girls and offers a view into each of their behaviors towards people they are attracted to. It was nice to see women like a man that is "bad" and not have to change him or fight against their feelings. They acknowledge their attraction but understand that they don't have to act on it and that there are larger issues at play. In the case of our main character she also develops a deeper connection with her counterpart and that adds value and depth to their relationship without needing to be explicitly romantic in nature. It was nice to see something that's a departure from older works where they would have ended up together, and newer works like frozen, where an underlying attraction just isn't addressed.