Personally, the essay that gave me the most to ponder on from an intellectual/philosophical standpoint was Atwood's "The Female Body." (I adore Atwood's novels, and happily, have now found that I love her nonfiction writing as well.) In "The Female Body," Atwood presents the vignette about the Great Barbie Debate and the parents' relieved reaction when they find Barbie tatooed, punked out, and thrown. What struck me about this is that this girl took a nonfeminist pop-culture icon and reimagined her for her own needs and desires. I think this brings up the question of creative resistance. If we're being bombarded with all of these messages about the body from our consumerist society, what are some creative ways we can subvert the messages we're given and create our own meanings? I hope that this topic of creative subversion/insurrection/resistance is a thread of discourse that we can continue throughout the course.