Nick Dobbe

Working the Waters

Four women on the forefront of an ongoing war for equal rights open themselves up to the world.  This compilation of interviews take the blinders off at least my eyes to illuminate biases and stereotypes that I thought were dead and buried.  With images straight out of The Discovery Channel,’s “Deadliest Catch” these women risk it all and allow no special treatment as they take on an industry that has always been predominantly male.

            So what motivates them? Fields tries to paint the reader a picture of this undying love for the sea, for fishing, but I think it might be something simpler.  The prospect of adventure has motivated man for centuries for some unknown reason.  To be on the forefront of something that has not been accomplished by many.  For these women, I think it is just this that gives them the passion to go on.  

            The self-determination that drives us to do more than before, to go just a bit farther, this is what is at the base of the entangling net.  Although it is viewed through a lens that illuminates sexism, and tribulations to overcome these stereotypes, the deeper psychological message that I received was one that crosses gender lines.