Almost half of movies fail the feminist Bechdel test. That means that they don’t contain a conversation between women about something other than men!

Almost half of movies fail the feminist Bechdel test. That means that they don’t contain a conversation between women about something other than men!

The Bechdel test was created by Alison Bechdel as a means of putting numbers to sexist trends in movies. The requirement is basically a litmus test: does it or does it not contain two, named female characters who have a conversation about something other than men. 

It’s important to realize that the test does not necessarily say that a movie is or isn’t sexist based on whether it passes or fails the test. Rather it’s meant to be a way of analyzing movies in broader terms related to feminist themes. What’s truly incredible about this test is that it’s shown that 48% of movies don’t pass the test. 

In general, movies don’t show extended relationships between women. The fear is that most conversations between women characters in movies are superficial, dealing only with the closest hot guy. Basically, our movies might still be sending subtle, sexist messages. 

Movies such as the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Avatar, and the Social Network all fail the Bechdel test. Do you think the results of the Bechdel test are worrisome or irrelevant? 

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Ever wondered what the difference between a hobo, a bum, and a tramp are? Read on!

Ever wondered what the difference between a hobo, a bum, and a tramp are? Read on!

Today, the words are generally irrelevant by their original definitions and the homeless are typically just called homeless people or hobos. Today, we typically use “bum” to refer to a lazy, jobless person who lives at home, and use “tramp” as a denigrating term for a woman. 

The overarching term for these is “vagabond,” which we seldom hear at all now. By the proper definitions, though, a hobo is a worker with no home who goes from place to place looking for work. Hobos were typically the homeless people that would try to catch rides on trains. A bum, unlike a hobo, is a vagabond who rarely looks for work, or has very little worth ethic. 

A tramp is similar to a bum, but only works when forced to. Another interesting fact about hobos is the “Hobo code.” If you’ve seen Mad Men, you likely know about it already. 

During the Great Depression, hobos developed a code to mark homes or establishments one of many ways to tell other hobos if they should leave, should request work, could get free medical aid, etc. You can check out the Hobo code here: 

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