ugh. i saw like an excerpt of the vagina monologues like two years ago and was NOT impressed. feminism can be expressed in better ways than repeating the word “vagina” over and over again.

@Dene: I would argue that the Vagina Monologues has little to do with outright feminism. The idea behind the performance, from my understanding, was the idea that women should and could be more comfortable within their own bodies. I’m not sure which excerpt you saw from the show, but I’d encourage you to see/read the whole thing. Some of the women interviewed were grandmas who had never even allowed themselves to think about their vaginas, let alone ponder the experiences they had undoubtedly had with them. Some of the girls interviewed were very young and had innocent, refreshing ideas about vaginas. All of the women were honest, and that’s the point of the show. I think the show obviously takes on a feminist nature by virtue of its respect for women, but I don’t think it should be categorized as ONLY a feminist project, and I think the idea that the show goes in for shock value and only repeats the word over and over is misleading. I missed the show this year because I’m abroad, but I’ve seen it before at NYU and other college campuses and I’ve always been very impressed–I’d give it another shot.

(The mission the show teams up with, V-Day, I would say is a feminist organization. But I don’t think the show in and of itself needs to be declared a “feminist work.” Hopefully that makes sense.)