Taylor Swift, Cut Out the 'Nazi Barbie Routine'

Girl squads are hot news this year and may indicate a new female power surge in Hollywood. But Camille Paglia—the biting cultural critic and feminist icon—seems a bit annoyed by Taylor Swift and her gal-pal crew wagging tongues at the paparazzi. "With gender issues like pay equity for women actors and writers coming increasingly to the fore, girl squads can be seen as a positive step toward expanding female power in Hollywood," writes Paglia in the Hollywood Reporter. But "given the professional stakes, girl squads must not slide into a cozy, cliquish retreat from romantic fiascoes or communication problems with men, whom feminist rhetoric too often rashly stereotypes as oafish pigs."

Women today have lost "the natural solidarity" they had in the "agrarian world, where multiple generations chatted through the day as they shared chores, cooking and child care," writes Paglia. To bond and excel in modern times, Paglia suggests women take inspiration from the male model of collaborating on "innovative joint projects." What to avoid: "the tittering, tongues-out mugging of Swift's bear-hugging posse. Swift herself should retire that obnoxious Nazi Barbie routine of wheeling out friends and celebrities as performance props." Calling girl squads "an early learning stage of female development," Paglia urges women to "cut down on the socializing and focus like a laser on their own creative gifts." Click for Camille Paglia's full piece. (More feminism stories.)