Let me explain.
From the day I graduated NYU nine years ago with a shiny new BFA in Dramatic Writing, I started submitting plays. There are many ways one can build a resume as a playwright, and submitting to calls for scripts was the one I chose. A few months in, I started keeping a list of all the submissions I was doing. Part organization, part paranoia—I wanted to have a record of where I’d sent my stuff.
6 comments:
I think that what Kagan is doing is a really interesting idea, and I'm definitely interested in seeing what the results. Considering that currently only twenty percent of script writers are female it would be very significant if her scripts got accepted more under a male pseudonym. That would mean that the few women who have broken into the industry are being looked over purely because of their gender. For that reason I hope that there's no difference in how much she gets published, but I have a bad feeling that there will be.
This article also reminds me of a study that I read about awhile ago based around gender bias in hiring. Employers were given two identical resumes with the only difference being the gender of the name on top. The male resume was almost always chosen over the female. Gender bias was unfortunately shown in this case, so it's entirely possible that it applies to script writing as well. I hope that Kagan continues to post updates about this experiment so that we can see how much of an impact a male name can have.
I’m curious how this project will turn out. Things similar to this have been done in many studies in the past by submitting two near identical resumes with the only difference being the gender associated with the name, and from what I’ve seen, those studies have shown a clear bias in favor of male applicants. I am curious what she will do if the plays she submits under the fabricated male identity are selected. I also can’t help but wonder if any of this is breaking any of the rules playwrights agree to by submitting. I’m do some creative writing, and I remember the most recent anthology I submitted work to stating that we each needed to include our full name, even if we intended to publish under a pen name. In terms of the project overall, I think it is a cool idea. Afterall, even though it isn’t scientific, if a large number of the re-submitted plays are selected, especially if it is a larger number than Kagan’s usually acceptance rate, it will definitely say something.
Kagan is exposing a larger problem in our media by going out on this venture. The thought that submitting as a man to get work is Shakespearean in nature, but frighteningly current in ramifications. In the comedies of Old Bill, once the girl was unmasked, everyone would laugh and drink and be merry. However, in the modern day, if a script with a man's name is accepted and a woman walks into the writing room, there is a very real chance she would get sued for plagiarism, as the men in the room would be so confused. Even though she says her name is androgynous and all the facts are the same, there is a very real chance this could have negative consequences for her that reach far past this one venture.The thought that a man could do the same thing and get away with it is also one that should make media corporations reevaluate how they choose projects. Only 20% of writers being female is a sin, since they have just as much of a reason to write as anyone else, and just as much voice behind their words as any man. Kagan's acknowledgement that this experiment isn't scientific in nature is a sad one, she should have no reason to explain herself. The numbers speak for themselves.
I am definitely curious to see the articles that follow up this one. I’m glad that Kagan is acknowledging, and making her audience acknowledge that if that this is not scientific and plays get chosen for all sorts of reasons but to think that there is no gender bias at all is extremely naive. A lot of women still feel that in some ways working in theater is “breaking into a man’s world”, left over from years ago when even the female characters were played by young men. And realizing that only 20% of the stories we seen told onstage are by women, we can see how this discrimination might not really be the relic of an old time we all would like to think it is. I wish Kagan all the best and I hope that the experiment she is doing will be able to shed some light on the biases of our industries so that we can work to overcome them.
Although I would like to hope that this experiment will not turn out the way I expect it, I have a feeling that a significant number of the author's rejected scripts will be accepted or at least reconsidered. Similar studies are gaining more and more popularity and attention as people demonstrate the inherently sexist results they achieve, such as the resume experiment the author mentions. It reminds me also of the studies and observations of transgender people in the workplace before and after their transition, which found that transgender men were listened to more and considered for promotions faster than transgender women conducting the same experiment. Such experiments serve to highlight the absurdity of gender bias and sexism in the workplace, since the only thing that had changed about these individuals was the way people perceived their gender. The resume name experiment produced the same result and I have a feeling that this experiment conducted by the author will also produce similar results. That said, I am still interested to see the results of it, particularly in what plays do get reconsidered or accepted and which ones still get rejected, and what that says about the overall process of considering plays to be performed in particular organizations.
I am definitely curious to see how this turns out. This article reminded me of a similar experiment I saw, where a hispanic guy changed his name to a typical white male's name for his job applications. After changing his name on his job applications, he got a lot more interview offers. Sadly, I am expecting similar outcomes for what Mya Kagan is doing in this article. Especially considering that she has a pretty solid education and pretty prestigious degree from NYU, it is surprising to see that 85% of her play submissions got rejected. As someone who is neither male nor white, this is also something that I am slightly concerned with in my future - unlike office jobs that can be done behind a laptop, theatre production does include hands on work that doesn't solely rely on "brain power". Pre-existing preferences for a certain gender and race is probably even further maximized in this field. Hopefully, the outcome of Kagan's "experiment" does not turn out confirming those concerns.
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