Putting a positive spin on it.

[amanuensis1]

I have decided that, if the film of GoF is uncanonically portraying Durmstrang and Beauxbatons as old-fashioned in their lack of co-educational status, this means that the homoerotica in both schools is rampant--and that Hogwarts is by comparison a hotbed of progressiveness and so there's even less homophobia there than we slashers pretend, in our giddy fandom brains.

So meh.

Comments

[verstehen.livejournal.com]

Also, this means Draco is a girl. Narcissa, in a fit of rage at his firstborn being a girl, raised her as a boy, hiding the secret assiduously under spells.

Draco/Harry HET OTP!!!!!! Draco/Luna FEMSLASH OTP!!!!!!!!!!

[verstehen.livejournal.com]

...that 'his' in reference to Narcissa was SO supposed to be 'her.' Uh. Though, really, it'd explain a lot about the fucked up that is the Malfoys, wouldn't it?

[prillalar]

I like your attitude. :)

[tocada.livejournal.com]

VEELA.

[adjectivegirl.livejournal.com]

However, it does ramp up some really anvil-icious OMG OPPOSITE SEX messages to such people who enjoy tracking about children's development.

It's as if Hogwarts employed hands on sex ed teachers. Seems like they already did, judging by Minerva. *snicker*

[marksykins.livejournal.com]

I thought Lucius wanted Draco to go to Durmstrang? And if he had, he would have been abused daily, by the looks of those boys.

[tocada.livejournal.com]

I think that depends on the Slasher's POV and country of origin.
And I don't want to say what I think of all-girls catholic schools in general.

[silentauror.livejournal.com]

OMG, yes!!!

Though I'm interested in finding out where the twinks boys who supposedly came along from Beauxbatons got to. Curious. And in one of those screen caps, the guy on Krum's right is totally checking out his package. Just saying. :)

[notrafficlights.livejournal.com]

as old-fashioned in their lack of co-educational status

I dunno. Co-education is an overblown load of shit based on some pretty old-fashioned and backward reasoning, as far as I'm concerned.

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

I can see some reasons for that; what are yours?

[rectpropagation.livejournal.com]

So maybe Newell's been reading the fanfic too? ('Cause you know Alfonso did. Oh yeah.)

[notrafficlights.livejournal.com]

Well, basically, the domination of teenage boys of the co-ed system. In the mixed-gender schooling, boys dominate the playground spaces, they dominate the classroom, they dominate teacher time in and out of the classroom, and 90% of the time school administrators spend on discipline is on boys. As much as the girls are a distraction for the majority of them (ie- an audience to display their burgeoning heterosexual mascuilinity to) the boys can also be a serious distraction to the girls (nevermind sexual harrassment in the classroom). This detracts from the education of both sexes.

I just think they need to be put someplace where they can do all that teenage-boy shit away from girls who are trying to grow up themselves and get a half-decent education. And yeah, this is both personal experience and research I have read into the phenomenon. This whole idea that "girls and boys need to mix to learn how to deal with the opposite sex" is a load of backward heterosexist patriachal bullshit. The only thing girls tend to learn when they're subjected to the co-ed system is how to allow boys to dominate (because of both flaws in the education system and serious social flaws in the wider cultures) and the only thing boys learn is how to get away with shit like that. All it does is perpetuate destructive gender stereotypes and, frankly, casts a rather negative and in most cases, incorrect assumption about girls and boys who don't attend co-ed school (eg - "So-and-so's school is full of lesbians/homosexuals because its not co-ed", "They're such sluts because they go to a non co-ed school and don't know how to act around boys" etc etc).

I'm not saying it's all 100% like this, but overwhelmingly it is. There are some schools (high schools, I'm mostly talking about) where it isn't like this, through both the certain backgrounds of the children and things taught by the school (eg - studies of gender classes alongside sex-ed classes that discuss things like homosexual sex, pleasure, and respect for partners). But sadly, they're the minority.

[satanbaker.livejournal.com]

Yeeah, that was a little strange.

I think it's just Viktor, Igor and (possibly) Filch in that one cap. :D

Actually, though, in the books did they mention any female Durmstrang students?

[ellid.livejournal.com]

"Old-fashioned"????

This proud alumna of a women's college resembles that. :D



*especially since we still have afternoon tea on Fridays. really*

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

I was this close to going to an all-female school myself, so, yes, I am duly whapped for that phrasing. I am simply put off by this inexplicable change in canon (women can't be Slavic and hardened? men can't be French and elegant?) and preferring to put a funny spin on it rather than bitch. ^_^

[ellid.livejournal.com]

Oh, I agree. And I wonder if there will be a dozen Beauxbatons girls, so they can be in two straight lines?


*which college? I went to Smith, myself*

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

Yes, I anticipated some of these reasons, because I've heard them and I believe there's much truth in it. It is hair-tearing, is it not, that both systems have their weaknesses and are criticized as though one was "right" and the other was "wrong," depending on how you see it?

I wish this were not so. I wish that dividing children on the basis of gender for their education was as ludicrous as dividing them on the basis of height or eye color or what have you--that gender did not matter. But it isn't ludicrous; it isn't simple. The saying goes, treating people equally does not mean treating them identically, and gender is one of those factors where educational needs may indeed be different.

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

*cracks up* Smith, believe it or not!

[ellid.livejournal.com]

AAAHHH!!!! Almost!!!!

[kissed-by-fate.livejournal.com]

Perhaps the director (or whomever) just saved us from the stereotypical 'unibrow' females and 'le pouf' males... but then again, in doing so, bought into a different stereotype of cranky slavic men and snarky french women?

Gah. Never mind.

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

I absolutely loved what I saw of Smith. I was all fired up to go, cuddling my acceptance letter, and then the school which ultimately became my alma mater...well, made me an offer I couldn't refuse. I'll leave it at that. ^_^ And I was very happy with my decision, but I still have fond thoughts for Smith.

[notrafficlights.livejournal.com]

It is hair-tearing, is it not, that both systems have their weaknesses and are criticized as though one was "right" and the other was "wrong," depending on how you see it?

Depends. In a lot of mainstream society (that perpetuates the sexist/heterosexist values children learn to conform to in co-ed schools so spectacularly) in Australia, co-ed is conisdered best for the stupid reasons I mentioned. In certain classes single-sex is considered better, mostly because single-sex schools are seen as somehow being of a higher standard than co-ed schools curriculum wise, which is also not always true. Single-sex schools can still be sexist. I know mine was, and I didn't mention that in my previous rant. But yeah, I found co-ed schools to be moreso because of the patriachal bullshit.

It matters, in the end, because gender matters, just as much as sexuality matters, just as much as race matters, because people make it matter. Not a nice thought, but *shrugs*.

[notrafficlights.livejournal.com]

Edit: Oh yeah, and by my school being "sexist" I mean it was pretty much a slightly watered-down version of movie!Beauxbatons. Y'know, we couldn't wear slacks or do manual vocational courses, I got shit even from the teachers because I didn't shave my legs, several lesbians were expelled in my time there, etc etc etc. They even tried to dictate what colour bras we were supposed to wear to school because they were too stupid to make decent shirts that you couldn't see through when it rained. *rolls eyes*

[malefics.livejournal.com]

To be honest, one of the things I was thinking about, oh- months ago, was how odd it was for a school as old as Hogwarts to be not only coeducational, but have been so for a long time. Wizards appear to have been a lot more forward-thinking than Muggles on SOME things.

But it occured to me, due to all the Durmstrang Sues, that there's really no canonical evidence to indicate that Durmstrang ISN'T a school for boys. Beauxbatons, on the other hand, I'm pretty sure is referred to as having male and female students.

Just my two cents. Bring on the homoerotica!

[tagore.livejournal.com]

Sorry, off topic, but your icon.... Are those two twins?