Persepolis

A few days ago I went to see Persepolis the film based on the graphic novel by Marjane Satrapi which I hope wins the Academy Award. It is absolutely beautiful in every way: the animation, the story, the music. I was struck by the fact that the main character is at the same time a survivor and witness of the Shah's dictatorship, of the Islamic dictatorship and of the first Gulf War, she was however, also a grandchild of someone that suffered repression under the Shah, and was the child of someone suffering such reprisals as well. So one person occupies all of the generational positions discussed in analyses of family transmission of trauma simultaneously. One of many scenes that moved me took place early in the film where Marjane goes to visit her uncle in jail. Incarcerated for being a Communist under the Shah, his brief bout of freedom comes to an end as the Iranian revolution consolidates its power. He tells her to remember always their family's political struggle for justice, and to live a life of integrity. Marjane's grandmother also reminds her again and again to keep her dignity as a woman and to refuse to live in fear or succumb to her internal censor, to look the other way in the face of sexism and injustice.

Even though she is a young child, she seems to realize the great responsibility her uncle places on her, to keep his memory alive and to testify to others about the values he and his father fought for, like her grandfather before him, the uncle is killed, in this case, by the Iranian revolutionary government.

This scene and the entire movie made me reflect on my own family history and reminded me of my responsibility to write my book and to dedicate more of my publications to the memory of my grandfather and other family members who fought, were incarcerated, suffered repression and died fighting for social justice and against Franco.

FILM WEBSITE: http://www.sonypictures.com/classics/persepolis/

UPDATE: I am OUTRAGED that "Persepolis" did not win the Oscar. I can't believe that a movie about rats won out over Marjane Satrapi's masterpiece. But then, that's the US of A for you, isn't it?

Mr. Darcy

I have been watching "Pride and Prejudice" again. (is this my third time?) I love it when Jane Bennett tells him off, letting him know that he has "behaved in most ungentlemanly manner." And then Mr. Darcy realizes the error of his ways.

What a housewife's work is worth

I saw this on BBC news while drinking my coffee today and this reminds me of the flurry of comments related to my post "The Good Wife's Guide" (see below, under REAL NEWS) in particular the fantastic and right-on comment by "Taina" which listed jobs where being a woman is regarded as an advantage. This, in response to my original account of several recent conversations I have had with my very accomplished women friends about the dilemmas faced by us, the fallacy that we can "have it all," the struggle for parity with men including partners or husbands, and finally, the fact that some men suffer from a sense of entitlement that often coincides with a misguided arrogance.


From BBC News: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7252504.stm?lsm

Nearly three-quarters of those polled said it was a full-time job

Housewives would be paid more than the average worker if they received the going rate for their household chores, a survey has suggested. A poll of 4,000 housewives for networking website alljoinon.com suggested that the average mum worked for nearly nine hours a day every day.

The website said a housewife would earn almost £30,000 a year if she was employed to do all the same errands.

The average annual UK wage is £23,700, according to official figures.

Some 71% of those polled agreed that successfully running the family home was a full-time job.

"The survey clearly demonstrates that not only do housewives deserve a wage for their efforts, they also need a break from the daily grind," said Carolyn Morris, spokeswoman for alljoinon.com.

The chores are yours

An average mum would spend 273 minutes every day looking after the children, according to the poll. Based on an hourly rate of £8, a nanny would earn £36.80 a day for the same job.


The survey claims 71 minutes a day is spent cleaning and tidying
Cleaning and tidying for 71 minutes would net a cleaner £7.10 a day. For more than an hour of cooking a head chef would get £17.30.

Fourteen minutes making the beds is worth £1.29 for a chambermaid, and a kitchen assistant would be paid £2.57 for a housewife's typical 28 minutes of washing up.

The poll said the average mum trawled the family finances for 39 minutes, which would cost £12.50 if an accountant did it.

A taxi driver would earn £2.53 for the 23 minutes of ferrying children around, and a mystery shopper £2.10 for the 18 minutes a day of grocery shopping.

Single women 'do less'

HAVE YOUR SAY
Would you really want to put a price on your wife? I'd rather pitch in and do my fair share.
James, Belfast
Send us your comments
Last year, a study said that employed women living with their employed partner spent more time doing housework than single women.
Labour economist Helene Couprie, of Toulouse University, concluded that on average, an employed woman does 15 hours a week of housework when she lives with her employed partner, up from 10 hours when single.

Men, on the other hand, see the hours they commit to housework decline once they begin living as a couple, she found.

In the year to April 2007, average earnings of full-time male employees were £498 per week, while for women it was £394, according to the Office of National Statistics.

Panda porno

As usual, I woke up to NPR and to the BBC news. This story of an experiment to encourage the dwindling population of pandas to mate, using panda porn videos, made me smile. (rare event lately) If only humans had how-to videos to show them how to treat mates with respect, what roles to take, when and when not to give up on someone of interest....


Here is the BBC story (photos above, also BBC):

Sex videos fail to engage pandas
By James Reynolds
BBC News, Chengdu, China


Pandas are only sexually active for a few days each year
The video is pretty graphic. Qing Qing and Ha Lei tangle and slither about awkwardly on the floor of their panda enclosure.

Their encounter is filmed by one of the keepers. And scientists at the Chengdu Research Base for Giant Panda Breeding now play this mating tape to other pandas in the hope that it will encourage them to do the same.

"Here you can see the female is very co-operative," says reproduction specialist Hou Rong - who is known here as the Goddess of Fertility. She watches the video closely.

The two pandas writhe about for a bit longer. Then they untangle. It may be best to stop male pandas from watching what comes next.

"The female is not co-operative," says Dr Hou laconically.

That is an understatement.

The tape shows the female, Qing Qing, attacking the male, Ha Lei. He runs off to the corner, looking sheepish.

Qing Qing looks angry. Apparently this is normal behaviour for pandas after mating.

Still at least Qing Qing and Ha Lei get their job done. That is quite something.

Crucial timing

Some species cannot seem to stop mating, but pandas cannot seem to start.


Females commonly attack males after mating
Female pandas are only interested in reproducing for two or three days a year. For males it is the same.

Luckily for the survival of the panda species, these days of interest happen to coincide.

Scientists here have to make the most of this brief mating season. There are only around 2,000 pandas left in the world - including about 250 in captivity.

So the trick for everyone here at the Chengdu reserve is to get their pandas together on the right days, and then nudge them along a bit by playing them the video of Qing Qing and Ha Lei.

No one here can remember who came up with the idea - it was possibly a behaviour specialist from abroad, they say.

And there is one problem - no one is sure whether or not the mating tapes make any difference.

"We don't know if its useful for pandas or not," says Dr Hou. "Some pandas are interested. Others are not interested. They prefer to eat or rest - and not pay attention to the video."

So the reserve lets us play the video to the pandas ourselves.

Headache?

We get together a small monitor and some loudspeakers, put some plastic bags onto our shoes and head into a small enclosure.

One panda lies on its back among piles of bamboo leaves. Another is asleep. It does not look like they have mating on their minds.

We set up a small TV screen in front of a seven-year-old female panda called Shu Qing. She is busy crunching her way through an apple.

We play her the tape of Qing Qing and Ha Lei. Shu Qing shows no interest. She is much more concerned about finishing her apple.

After a couple of minutes she glances over at the TV monitor. Then she seems lost in thought. She vaguely waves a paw, but nothing more.

So the video does not appear to work. Perhaps Shu Qing has a headache, or perhaps she just prefers apples to adult videos.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7250657.stm