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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:black'>Greg, I think a lot of those of us who teach, study, and write about Woolf’s work are “bothered by” the fact that Woolf’s suicide is so often cited and capitalized upon. In fact, many have written about this unfortunate phenomenon. I saw that exhibit at the NYPL as well, and I was definitely bothered by the fact that the curators found it necessary to link the walking stick to her suicide. Not <i>surprised</i>, since it’s such a common gambit, but definitely bothered by. It’s a <i>library</i>; how about a note mentioning the long walks on the Sussex downs she’d take with this stick while conceptualizing a novel? The result is that many students come into our classes knowing only that one fact about Woolf, just as they know that one detail about Plath. And yes, many of us are also bothered by the opening of <i>The Hours</i>, which capitalizes on Woolf’s suicide and aetheticizes it. I’ve seen the VICE spread, and it certainly was a (misguided, at the least) attempt to market fashion. (Were there captions running under Marlon Brando in <i>Apocalypse Now</i> informing viewers who made his clothing? Do we see that <i>anywhere</i> except when the clothing is being publicized as fashion? This fashion spread--as somebody on the list already said, I believe--was suicide porn.)<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:black'>Have you ever seen someone after they’ve committed suicide? It isn’t pretty. They’re not nicely arranged on the pavement in fashionable clothing unmarred by blood or dirt, as if they’d suddenly decided to lay down gently and take a nap. Woolf was nearly unrecognizable after several days under water. The VICE spread fetishizes and aestheticizes the suicide of female intellectuals. It also implies that intellectual gifts and artistic talents in women somehow lead to suicide, which has the obvious effect of discouraging women from pursuing their own gifts and talents. Further, it encourages people who suffer from psychological problems accompanied by thoughts of suicide to understand themselves as potential geniuses rather than to understand themselves as needing professional help. There is no way to recuperate any of that.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:black'>Brenda Helt<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='color:black'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'> vwoolf-bounces@lists.service.ohio-state.edu [mailto:vwoolf-bounces@lists.service.ohio-state.edu] <b>On Behalf Of </b>Gregory Jordan Dekter<br><b>Sent:</b> Wednesday, June 19, 2013 11:23 AM<br><b>To:</b> vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu<br><b>Subject:</b> Re: [Vwoolf] staging female author suicides<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=p1>Perhaps some of you were able to see the photographs on the VICE website before they were taken down. I had only been able to find a few out of context (without captions), and so reserved my response until I could get a copy of the print edition, which I have now done. I think I am somewhat informed now to discuss it. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=p1>Purely aesthetically, I would like to say that these are beautifully arranged and photographed images. They are dramatic, and evocative. They do not seem to me exploitative, or at least not in a way that is inconsistent with any other contemporary art. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=p1>Most importantly they are depictions of tragic events, with any narrative enforced only by the small caption stating the subject and a brief line about their death. For example, for Woolf the caption reads:<o:p></o:p></p><blockquote style='border:none;border-left:solid #CCCCCC 1.0pt;padding:0in 0in 0in 6.0pt;margin-left:4.8pt;margin-right:0in'><p class=MsoNormal>VIRGINIA WOOLF, 59<br><i>Born: January 25, 1882<br>(London, England)<br>Died: March 28, 1941<br>(Lewes, England)<br>Cause of death: drowning</i><o:p></o:p></p></blockquote><p class=p1>Kimberly, you had said the spread is being used to sell fashion. This is really not the case. Although this series is indexed in the magazine under "Fashion", I think that is an incredibly subjective term, and the general intention of the magazine needs to be considered. This is not a commercial fashion magazine. The entire tone of VICE is artistic and/or experimental (I don't know of many other free national publications that devote entire issues to contemporary fiction). It should not be considered along side Cosmo and the like. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=p1>It seems the primary reason this spread bothers most of you is that the clothing designers are specifically credited for the examples of their work that appear in each photograph. Let me clear up that these credits are minimal, and provide no information on how or where to buy this clothing. It is no more an advert than any other credit is an advert of the contributor. Clothing design is a valid medium of artistic expression, and it seems to me these designers were credited as artists, just as the models, stylist, and photographer were. There is nothing explicitly for sale in these photographs. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=p1>Let me put it another way. The clothing we wear, often overlooked, is an essential part of our existence. Every shirt, dress, or pair of pants you put on was designed and made by someone. Should a designer of something not rightfully be credited for their work if the thing they designed is for sale? Or do you all consider "fashion" too flippant a form to be taken seriously? Or, conversely, should no one involved in a particularly heavy subject be credited at the risk of distracting from, or devaluing their own work? (The film "Apocalypse Now" was originally shown without opening or closing credits for this reason--but it is a rare instance).<o:p></o:p></p><p class=p1>If the distaste is that the images use the theme of suicide as a point of interest, I am reminded of a recent experience I had. Last year I attended an exhibit at the New York Public Library that included some Woolf artifacts. One item was a diary. Another was her walking stick. Interestingly, the exhibit made particular note that the walking stick displayed was the one Woolf had with her when she walked into the River Ouse the day she killed herself. I wonder what additional enticement the curator felt describing the item by its final use would create. Was the simple fact that the walking stick was owned by Virginia Woolf not enough? Was some additional allure manifest in its passive connection to her suicide? I don't know the answer to this, but I also do not remember anyone being bothered by it. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=p1>Greg<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal>On 18 June 2013 19:55, Jean Mallinson <<a href="mailto:annaj@telus.net" target="_blank">annaj@telus.net</a>> wrote:<o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal>I'm glad it was taken down but the apology shows a failure to grasp jut how deeply offensive the whole scheme was. It is a kind of suicide porn and suggests a very depraved taste. It made me feel sad and angry.<br>Jean <o:p></o:p></p><div><div><p class=MsoNormal>On 6/18/2013 1:24 PM, Melanie White wrote:<o:p></o:p></p></div></div><blockquote style='margin-top:5.0pt;margin-bottom:5.0pt'><div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"'>Apart from VW, the characters in The Hours were fictional, and VW’s death was decades ago, whereas Iris Chang’s family and loved ones probably are still very much processing their grief over her suicide. The image of her was breathtakingly insensitive and offensive to me for that reason. </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"'> </span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'> <a href="mailto:vwoolf-bounces@lists.service.ohio-state.edu" target="_blank">vwoolf-bounces@lists.service.ohio-state.edu</a> [<a href="mailto:vwoolf-bounces@lists.service.ohio-state.edu" target="_blank">mailto:vwoolf-bounces@lists.service.ohio-state.edu</a>] <b>On Behalf Of </b>Kimberly Coates</span><o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal><br><b>Sent:</b> Tuesday, June 18, 2013 12:27 PM<br><b>To:</b> Gregory Jordan Dekter; Anne Margaret Daniel<o:p></o:p></p></div><p class=MsoNormal><b>Cc:</b> <a href="mailto:vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu" target="_blank">vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu</a><o:p></o:p></p><div><div><p class=MsoNormal><br><b>Subject:</b> Re: [Vwoolf] staging female author suicides<o:p></o:p></p></div></div></div></div><div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p><div><div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>Greg:<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>There is no comparison. The VICE spread is using suicide to sell fashion and in doing so it glamorizes and aestheticizes female bodies in pain. It also takes our attention far away from the amazing work all of these women accomplished. You would think that in an issue announcing itself as covering Women's Fiction that the work would be their concern. Whatever you want to say about Michael Cunningham and/or the film version of his novel The Hours, he isn't guilty of promoting suicide to sell shoes and vintage attire!<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>Kim<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>Kimberly Coates, Ph.D.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>Associate Professor of English<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>Affiliate Faculty Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies/American Culture Studies<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>Bowling Green State University<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>Bowling Green, OH 43403<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>Office Phone: <a href="tel:419-372-9189" target="_blank">419-372-9189</a><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div></div></div></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><b><span style='font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>From: </span></b><span style='font-size:14.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>Gregory Jordan Dekter <<a href="mailto:jdekter@gmail.com" target="_blank">jdekter@gmail.com</a>><br><b>Date: </b>Tuesday, June 18, 2013 3:08 PM<br><b>To: </b>Anne Margaret Daniel <<a href="mailto:daniela@newschool.edu" target="_blank">daniela@newschool.edu</a>><br><b>Cc: </b>"<a href="mailto:vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu" target="_blank">vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu</a>" <<a href="mailto:vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu" target="_blank">vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu</a>><br><b>Subject: </b>Re: [Vwoolf] staging female author suicides</span><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;margin-bottom:12.0pt'>I'm just wondering of those who oppose this, are you equally offended by the portrayal of the same event in "The Hours"?<o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>On 18 June 2013 15:03, Anne Margaret Daniel <<a href="mailto:daniela@newschool.edu" target="_blank">daniela@newschool.edu</a>> wrote:<o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>VICE has removed the online photos, not apologizing very much ("to anyone who was hurt or offended") and stating, defensively, that their "main goal is to create artful images, with the fashion message following, rather than leading." Taken down online, but still in print. <o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>Here is the Vice statement: <a href="http://www.vice.com/read/last-words-000741-v20n6" target="_blank">http://www.vice.com/read/last-words-000741-v20n6</a><o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>And here, still online at Inquisitr, is the photo of the model portraying Woolf, standing in water and holding a large stone. No words for it, really.<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><a href="http://www.inquisitr.com/793059/vices-suicide-fashion-apology/" target="_blank">http://www.inquisitr.com/793059/vices-suicide-fashion-apology/</a><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div></div></div><div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;margin-bottom:12.0pt'> <o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>On Tue, Jun 18, 2013 at 1:59 PM, Melanie White <<a href="mailto:melanie.white@comcast.net" target="_blank">melanie.white@comcast.net</a>> wrote:<o:p></o:p></p><div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"'><a href="http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/06/18/193014174/book-news-vice-draws-ire-by-staging-female-author-suicides?utm_source&utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=20130617" target="_blank">http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/06/18/193014174/book-news-vice-draws-ire-by-staging-female-author-suicides?utm_source&utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=20130617</a></span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"'>Someone said this has been taken down now. </span><o:p></o:p></p></div></div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;margin-bottom:12.0pt'><br>_______________________________________________<br>Vwoolf mailing list<br><a href="mailto:Vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu" target="_blank">Vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu</a><br><a href="https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/vwoolf" target="_blank">https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/vwoolf</a><o:p></o:p></p></div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><br><br clear=all><o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div></div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>-- <o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>Best,<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'>AMDaniel<o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'><a href="http://www.annemargaretdaniel.com" target="_blank">www.annemargaretdaniel.com</a><o:p></o:p></p></div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div></div></div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;margin-bottom:12.0pt'><br>_______________________________________________<br>Vwoolf mailing list<br><a href="mailto:Vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu" target="_blank">Vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu</a><br><a href="https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/vwoolf" target="_blank">https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/vwoolf</a><o:p></o:p></p></div><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:auto;mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto'> <o:p></o:p></p></div></div></div></div></div><div><div><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></p><pre>_______________________________________________<o:p></o:p></pre><pre>Vwoolf mailing list<o:p></o:p></pre><pre><a href="mailto:Vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu" target="_blank">Vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu</a><o:p></o:p></pre><pre><a href="https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/vwoolf" target="_blank">https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/vwoolf</a><o:p></o:p></pre></div></div></blockquote><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:12.0pt'><br>_______________________________________________<br>Vwoolf mailing list<br><a href="mailto:Vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu">Vwoolf@lists.service.ohio-state.edu</a><br><a href="https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/vwoolf" target="_blank">https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/vwoolf</a><o:p></o:p></p></div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></body></html>