issue 27 // volume 40

 

Elliot Chan

.. Opinions Editor
= Mopinions

=) @theotherpress.ca

 

[I customary to start a piece
concerning Game of Thrones
by stating that there will be
spoilers in this article. You have
been warned.

Now with that being said,
as an avid fan of the show
and the novels, the most
stunning news for me to hear
in the aftermath of the Purple
Wedding was Jack Gleeson’s
retirement from acting. Joffrey
Baratheon, perhaps one of the
most disdainful characters to
ever transition from page to
screen is finally dead, and that
means that 21-year-old actor
Gleeson will no longer be a part
of the show as it heads into the

: latter-half of the fourth season
: and beyond.

While some actors have

used Game of Thrones as

: a launch pad to fame after

: their characters’ unfortunate

: demise—for example: Richard

: Madden who played Robb Stark
: recently starred as the lead in

: Discovery’s highly publicized

: mini-series Klondike, and Jason
: Momoa who played Khal Drogo
: currently has five new movies

: in the works in addition to

: his television series The Red

: Road—Gleeson is choosing to

: step away at perhaps the most

: marketable phase of his acting

: life.

For the past four years,

: Gleeson has allegedly

: been harassed in public

: and online due to the fact
: that he was playing such

: a despicable character on

opinions // 15

Jack Gleeson as Joffrey Baratheon of Game of Thrones // By www.buzzsugar.com

: television. Whether that was

: a determining factor to his

: retirement is unclear, but a

: young man losing his passion

: for a career many would die for
: is something I can’t ignore.

Many actors have chosen

to take breaks from their

: acting careers to pursue other
: activities. In an interview after
: Game of Thrones season four

: episode two, Gleeson told

: reporters that he will perhaps

: go back to school and get a

“post-graduate of some kind.”

: But some actors have taken a

: break for a reason that many

: consider risky, since well-paying
: jobs are so rare.

Dismiss it however you

: like, but I believe that Gleeson’s
: retirement is connected to the

: fact that he does not want to be
: typecast. After he has played

: such a horrible character, it is

Femen: for men or feminism

» Why sextremists are attracting the wrong supporters

lloradanon Efimoff
Contributor

Fen. is a militant feminist
organization, labelling
themselves as “sextremists.”
They protest topless (and bra-
less!) for a variety of issues.
As you can imagine, the

page range from horny boys
to angry men, and from
supporters to fanatics.

There are many things
to criticize from this
movement—the fact that it is

: overwhelmingly young, thin
: white women is one.

However, I do think these

women are incredibly brave.

: I can imagine it would be

: quite difficult to be naked

: in broad daylight in front

: of strangers. In fact, cliché

: nightmares surround this idea.

: Talso think they are fighting
commenters on their Facebook :

for several good causes: they

have protested for gay rights
: in Russia, and against child
: marriage and pedophilia in
: Iraq.

Now for the whole breast

thing... What does that really

; mean? Many of their slogans,
: which they paint upon their
; bare bosoms, say things like

“naked war!” or “free woman!”

So what's the big deal with
: being naked?

While they fight for

(mostly) noble causes, their

: message is probably not

: getting across. As my fellow

: feminist friend, Sarah Khan,

: mentioned to me, “People

: forget the point of the protest
: and only remember to ogle.”

: Td have to say I agree with this
: opinion. Being naked is pretty
: taboo in Western society, but

: that’s how it is. Bare breasts
are necessarily a part of that

: naked taboo, but even more

: so, because they’re so hyper-

: sexualized, at least in Western
: cultures.

: hard for the public to see him
: as the hero or even a likeable
: supporting character. He isa
: talented actor, but sometimes
: the audience determines the

performance simply by the

: actor’s appearance. :
: Ifyou may recall in the late :
: ‘gos, Leonardo DiCaprio went
: ona slight hiatus after Titanic
: sothat he could diminish his:
“pretty boy” persona. Since then :
: numerous other actors in their
: prime have followed that model :
: of breaking their stereotype. :
: The ability to say no to big- :
: name production companies
: gives power to the actors in
: the long run. I think we can
: all learn a lesson from what
: Gleeson is doing, even if it is
: an upsetting loss forthetime :
: being. Saying no is important— :
: scary, but important. If an
: actor or any other professional

So, even though flailing

The worst thing
that can happen is
to be living a role
that doesn’t make
us happy.

: wants a career with longevity,

then they must not only

: understand how to do the job,
: but understand why they are
: doing it. The worst thing that

can happen is to be living a role

: that doesn’t make us happy.

We must all look at what

: we do and ask ourselves why we
: are doing it: is it for the money,
: or for the art, or simply because
: We want recognition? You can

be the villain or you can be the

: pretty boy, just as long as you
: are being yourself.

: probably not the best tactic

in the current era. The female
: body is so objectified and

: sexualized that the underlying
; message of freedom and

: liberty probably doesn’t reach

; many people—and probably

; them around may be liberating, :
: it doesn’t seem like it would get :
: amemorable message across.
: Individuals will probably

: remember seeing breasts as

: opposed to the words written
: on them. I do think that

: sometimes drastic measures

: are required to get messages

: across, but being naked is

wont. Society has a long way
to go before it can take naked

: women seriously.

That being said, sexism

in society is a very important

: issue. It affects everyone and

: should be treated seriously. So
: check your privilege, and think
: more about the message than

: the delivery.