Editing Desire, Working Girl Wisdom, and Cupcakeable Goodness, Essay Example

In the two case studies provided, the authors use secondary data to support their arguments. For instance, in the article, “Lap dancer or hillbilly deluxe,” the author reiterates a 1905 report by Emma B. Miles on Appalachian culture contained in her book, “The Spirit of the Mountains.” In the same article, the author also provides statistical evidence collected for the Country Music Foundation by Simmons (Lewis, 1997). Similarly, Paula D. Hunt also uses secondary data in her article, “Editing Desire, Working Girl Wisdom, and Cupcakeable Goodness” to tell the tale of the triumph of Helen Gurley Brown, a liminal figure, and prototypical feminist celebrity. The author uses secondary because by fall, when he wrote the article, Helen had already died on August 13, 2012 (Hunt, 2012). Fall begins at around 22, September and therefore the subject was not around to provide primary data. Thus, it is one of the reasons which show that the author used secondary data to compile the document.

The main themes captured in the article Editing Desire, Working Girl Wisdom, and Cupcakeable Goodness include:

1. Feminism – where Helen gets appointed at the top of the Cosmopolitan Company.
2. Hard work –the theme of hard work appears where Helen proves her capability to resuscitate and transform the languishing company into a profit making organization, despite her having no prior magazine or management experience.
3. Gender roles – the fashion magazine shows women as homemakers, cooks and taking care of the family. The magazines also showcase women as sex goddesses, inferior and consumers.

On the other hand, in the article, Lap dancer or hillbilly deluxe, three major themes of discussion include;

1. Racism – the author states that whites exclusively consider country music as theirs’ despite the available evidence that it originated from West Africa.
2. Modernism – the author points out that most of the country music tells tales of the disruption of the traditional American values as the people increasingly embraced modernity.
3. Loneliness – according to the author, this is perhaps the central emotional theme that stitches together the entire American character. The other side of the restless mobility, the push westward to live abroad, pain that characterizes separation and loss of family and community and realization of being in an immigrant country.

The outline for “Editing Desire, Working Girl Wisdom, and Cupcakeable Goodness” would be best structured in the format of sample outline one. Right away, in the introduction to the paper, the reader learns the identity, roles, and importance of Helen Gurley Brown and her position at the Cosmopolitan. While learning more about Helen and the magazine, the author does a fantastic job of painting a picture of what life was like during the 1960s and 1970s. Also, the significance of Helen’s work and her image as a feminist, a hard worker, revolutionary, and a role model during the resurgence would make excellent points for the outline.

Feminism is the main theme featured in the article, “Editing Desire, Working Girl Wisdom, and Cupcakeable Goodness.” The article focuses on Cosmopolitan because it pulled rebellious women out of secrecy, advocating for acceptance of female independence and freedom. Moreover, it reignited confidence among women to join the Women’s Liberation Movement by proving that such women were not alone. Moreover, Cosmopolitan stood up for women at a time when most of them did not know of their suppression and domination by their male counterparts. During this period, the society had embedded female roles to the extent that most of them could not question the reason as to why they consigned to the position of a housewife.

The article also focuses on Helen due to her stance as the first devout feminist during her time. She represents an aspect of culture revolution that took place between the 1960s and 70s. She was a champion of feminism at a time when most people had not grasped that she constituted part of the women’s liberation struggle. Through conversing openly about relationships and sex, Helen was giving permission to the women to enjoy sex before marriage, why was quite controversial at the time, thus empowering them to make their decisions about their lives. However, sexual liberation merely represented a slight portion of a larger social movement that agitated for the equality and independence of women.

The topic is quite important because it ushered in feminism into the American society and throughout the world. While the author uses secondary data to relay her story to the readers, she also presents instances of direct quotes from Helen Brown, which adds credibility to the paper. It is through mixing the direct quotes with secondary sources that the accounts remain captivating throughout the text.

Sexism is one critical element in most country music. As a result, it would have been better for Lewis to incorporate it into the text. Most of the country music artists compose songs that depict women as sexual objects that should always be around to provide the much-needed pleasure by men. In many occasions, these songs do not address anything constructive about women but men’s lust for them. It would have thus been responsible for the author to capture this pertinent topic within the text. Sexism is a historical injustice to the women folk, however, since time immemorial, country music artists often portray women in this manner, ripping them of the dignity they have acquired over time through liberation movements and struggles for equality.

The historical perspective of country music illuminates its nostalgic bias, with lyrics that delve on orphaned children, grinding poverty, bereft lovers and lonely people working in the factories, far from home. These features add to the unique appeal of country music during the period of large scale shifts in population.

References

Hunt, P. D. (2012). Editing Desire, Working Girl Wisdom, and Cupcakeable Goodness: Helen Gurley Brown and the Triumph of Cosmopolitan. Journalism History, 38(3), 130.

Lewis, G. H. (1997). Lap dancer or hillbilly deluxe? The cultural constructions of modern country music. The Journal of Popular Culture, 31(3), 163-173.