Women in the Jedi Order

Moyers: By having been the tempter, women have paid a great price because, in mythology, they are the ones who led to the downfall.

Campbell: Of course they did. I mean, they represent life. Man doesn't end a life, except by woman, and so it is woman who brings us into the world of polarities and opposites and suffering and all, but I think it's a very childish view to say 'No' to life and all it's pain, you know?

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My sister: Are you gonna post, or not? I wanna go to bed.

Me: Alright, alright. Um... hi, everyone on the web, here... I'm Jack, still kind of new to the Temple and still getting used to where I am, so let me know if I should have posted this elsewhere... I'm interested in learning something about feminism and how all of us in the Order would relate to it. Given that, statistically, half of us should be women and all of us have women in our lives we know and interact with, feminism has a role in our lives as people. And as Jedi...

My sister: Tell them about the comment war you had with the troller on youtube.

Me: No! I'm trying to start a serious discussion here!

My sister: She wants to know what kinds of feminists we've got in this Order, here, and how serious it is to all of you guys.

Me: Well, not just that, but views on what kind of importance it plays in our daily lives, as well as if it has significance to the Jedi Code. Is it necessary to a Jedi, like acceptance of others, in spite of their beliefs? Or do some of us think it isn't needed? Are there even some of us who would say that to be a Jedi is to be an activist of all sorts, with feminism being on the list?

My sister: There might be some out there who think that, by being a Jedi, the world is as it should be and therefore feminism has it's role, just as misogyny does, and that either of them prevailing in a fight to the death would throw everything out of balance.

Me: ...Thanks for that uncomfortable possibility.

My sister: The truth hurts, sis. Now, I'm going to sleep. Lemme know what people say in the replies.

Interesting you should bring this up. And to speak honestly as a female within these temple walls...how women live their lives if personal choice. In my own right, i am against the feminist movement. I grew up very religious in a very traditional family, but my parents were divorced, my mother raised me as a single woman and i joined the Marine Corps lol. Very feminist from an outside perspectivei can understand. But, now that i am married and we both work full times jobs, I find that very upsetting to my household. And so i am a firm believer of a womans place in the home rasing children and being the matriarch of the family.

As it appiles to me as a Jedi...from my teachings and path being a woman is very natural. I can only associate it with being like a mother of the earth. More in tune with nature, feeling greater empathy and having the knowledge to know how to love and nuture and maintain peace in a choas. Seeing the beauty of life and using that ability to feel the force in it's fullest.

I personally, do not associate my being a female warrior with being feminist. I consider MANY matriarchs and stay at home wives and mothers female warriors in their own right, just the same as a woman who would burn her bra or fight for equality in all matters.

Just because i have the option to be a coal miner, does NOT mean that is what i want to do.

Me: ...Um...

Angel on my right: You DID ask for other perspectives! Don't get mad just because someone has a different opinion from yours.

Devil on my left: She just said she was AGAINST feminism! I'd say that's as good a reason as any to start a fight!

Me: I'm really more confused. She says 'Against the feminist movement' but the rest of her post seems to tilt more towards a 'It's fine if YOU want to do it, but it's just not for me' attitude.

Angel: Maybe she's thinking in different terms than you are. Maybe the 'Feminist movement' she's thinking of is the radical, anti-men extreme. The viewpoint that Pat Robertson has made the stereotype.

Devil: You were TOTALLY clear! You even asked what kind of ideas they had, instead of just saying 'Are you a whatever, yes or no?'

Me: Okay, it was sort of my fault for not specifying. I guess I just want to be sure I'm not reading too deeply into something I shouldn't be... or not reading between the lines on something I should. And I also want to be sure I haven't made any offensive comments by doing so, at least.

Ah. My apologies. I misunderstood your original intent.

I agree that men and women are equals. We are not inferior nor are we superior. We are all simply creations of the force.

I live and work in a mens gun club. I get made fun of when I break a nail lol. But I do not let them become mentally superior to me and I do not think myself better than them. They call me overly emotional and sissy because I am a female...but I assert myself as a person who is just as capable as them and they respect me a lot more for it.

It is often shocking to men just how emotionless women can be while taking care of them like the bunch of cuddly mamma's bears they are.

Now..on the subject of actively fighting to make this point...I do not agree with. You are simply provoking a tiger who is truly uninterested in the fight and until provoked will just treat you like one of the tigers in the jungle.

This of course opens up the countless debates of human trafficking and violence against women...pimps and the like.

I have personal beliefs on all of those issues, but I dare not speak them here.

Am I sorta getting your question now?

Greetings Each

Yes men and women are equal ..and we men have permission from the women to say so lol

Yeesh I think someone popped a brave pill in my coffee...Have smiley day

The force guide us all

Yours in the spirit of Budo

Mike

Voice in my head: Huzzah! We got a reply from a dude on here!

Me: ...I wonder what he'd think if I initiated a 'Feminism is also a masculinism movement' discussion.

Voice in my head: Huh?

Me: Thinking about two books I read -- one was Full Frontal Feminism by Jessica Valenti, and it was everything about feminism and breaking apart sexist norms. But the other was Self-Made Man by Norah Vincent. And it spent a great deal of time talking about how sexist, chauvinist, misogynist roles hurt men just as much as they do women. It's always something that stuck with me: How do you balance fighting for equality for women without belittling the men, and somehow giving them the same chance?

Voice in my head: ...Great, now you've given ME a headache.

Me: You're welcome.

Sapadu wrote:

Voice in my head: Huzzah! We got a reply from a dude on here!

Me: ...I wonder what he'd think if I initiated a 'Feminism is also a masculinism movement' discussion.

Voice in my head: Huh?

Me: Thinking about two books I read -- one was Full Frontal Feminism by Jessica Valenti, and it was everything about feminism and breaking apart sexist norms. But the other was Self-Made Man by Norah Vincent. And it spent a great deal of time talking about how sexist, chauvinist, misogynist roles hurt men just as much as they do women. It's always something that stuck with me: How do you balance fighting for equality for women without belittling the men, and somehow giving them the same chance?

Voice in my head: ...Great, now you've given ME a headache.

Me: You're welcome.

Wow. Self-made Man sounds great!

I once heard a feminist woman sternly tell a man that he COULDN'T be a feminist. She made the whole thing sound like a secret little club, which could be argued is what rich men have been doing for years.

I'm very willing to admit that over the years men have done a lot of scummy things to women. I'll also admit that I myself have done scummy things to women.

I love the phrase \"The enemy of my enemy is my friend.\" There are a small group of rich men keeping us all down and they love to keep us distracted by making us fight amongst ourselves. We should be helping each other!

Greetings each

Self Made Man..Construction of a being by unskilled labour lol.

Jokes aside I look at men and women as the same . Take a nut and bolt for example one cannot function properly without the other as a unit they are complete.

As always it is just how the individual views men and women . A lot has to do with the society that people live in.

Some of us may not agree but we should at least respect that particular way of life.

My own view is that everyone should have
the right to do whatever they want in order to fulfill their goals in life.

Yours in the spirit of Budo

Mike