1.(b) In Heasley's reading, something that I found significant to me was when the ideas that someone that isn't performing their roles as in masculinity becomes problamatic to society, because they are automatically percieved as gay. From the readings and what i have realized is that no man wants to be challeged or be questioned in the aspect of being percieved as gay. They are seen as sissy and sensitive, as Heasley describes.
1. (a) In Hennen's article, something that was new to me was the Bear culture is 90% attitude and 10% show. When i read that, it changed my ideas that if it's more about the show than the look, then these men , to me, are trying to fit into heteroesexual culture. I have heard of the "Bears", but I never really understood what they were really about until Hennen's article made clear some aspects and attributes.
1. (a) Bergling's Article/study about sissyphobia was extremley interesting to me because of the differences in homophobia and sissyphobia. Men are afraid of the "acting" feminine. being a sissy is a problem for straight men. I think that the fear stems from people's forced upbringing, especially with men and having to be tough and hiding feelings.
2.(b) Bergling's article really hit home with my brother. My brother any my boyfriend both have a problem with gay people "acting" out and trying to get atttention, as so they say. I never unserstood why it bothered them but after reading Berglings article/study it made sense that my brother and my boyfriend constantly have been forced to see things a certain way and not deal with different aspects of masculinity or feminity.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Blog #2
1.
(a)"Act Like a Man Box":
An idea or a new perspective that I had while reading this article was that I've thought of how men have rules that they have to conform to in society. "Behing the bravura they are often confused, scared, angry, and wanting closeness with others." Wow, talk about interesting- thanks Kivel for that eye-opening quote. I guess in a way they have to conform like we do 24-7 too. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not justifying when they act like assholes, and I mean some, but it makes sense when you see that they kind of have too. They can't be "fags", or "sissys" by society's standards. The pressure that they have is constant, and I would believe that more violent than ours.
(c)"Patriarchy, The System"
What I didn't really understand about the reading by Johnson, was that is Patriarchy recognizing or not recognizing womens oppression? What I think I got from the reading was that we're all responsible for our actions and that if one doesn't change then there is no change in society. So is Patriarchy an ideology that men and womens roles are different in society, and that if we want to change these ideas then we all have to change as a whole?
(a)"Wanted: Men who Love" - Bell Hooks Ch.1
Hooks perspective on why we long for men's love was really interesting. It made sense when she said that we all long for love, in some shape or form. I think that her explanation can justify why women stay with men who are abusive. If women are longing for a man to love her and if any little that they recieve keeps them there, then I would understand why a women would stay with an abusive man, because she is longing for that love. I won't say that everyone needs a man love to be content with herself, because its not true. But it goes the same way for a man. Men want to be loved and since society is constantly telling them to hush and not show their feeling then it seems like a circle that we keep going roung and round. I loved when Bell Hooks said that we constantly ask me to talk about there feelings and as soon as they do it, we want them to shut up. SO then what is it that we want from men?? I know I do the same thing too.
(a)"Understanding Patriarchy" - Bell Hooks Ch.2
What I got from Hooks reading was that Patriarchy is to blame for societies ideas of what men and women should do. Bell Hooks writes, "Clearly we cannot dismantle a system as long as we engage in collective denial about its impact on our lives." We as a society deny a lot of oppression in both men and women. If we cannot recognize that we all suffer in this patriarchal system, then how we will ever change. Some feminists are to blame for thinking that men are at fault for everything, and I believe that we as women are to blame for some things too. The first step is to recognize and take responsibilites, and then we can change for the better. As Hooks puts it, Patriarchy as a system has denied males access to full emotional well-being [lives].
2.
How these readings relate to my life would be in the aspects of old relationship. When I was with him, I always wanted to feel loved and I wanted him to say it. I guess I felt that he had to say it to reassure me that he did love me. There were times were he would say really shitty things to me and in a way it was a form of abusive. There came times when he said that he would even hit me if he found out certain things about me or if I had lied or cheated. Why did I stay with him for so long? Because I wanted to be loved. I felt the need to be validated by a man who in no way, shape or form could express himself because of the way he was brought up.
Now within out relationship, I remember I would ask him to tell me how hie day went, and oh man I wish I had never asked. I guess what Hooks says is very true. I wanted him to share his feelings, but as soon as he did I wanted him to shut the hell up. As a women I can say that I do things like this all the time. I'm still trying to find a way to change this mentality.
(a)"Act Like a Man Box":
An idea or a new perspective that I had while reading this article was that I've thought of how men have rules that they have to conform to in society. "Behing the bravura they are often confused, scared, angry, and wanting closeness with others." Wow, talk about interesting- thanks Kivel for that eye-opening quote. I guess in a way they have to conform like we do 24-7 too. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not justifying when they act like assholes, and I mean some, but it makes sense when you see that they kind of have too. They can't be "fags", or "sissys" by society's standards. The pressure that they have is constant, and I would believe that more violent than ours.
(c)"Patriarchy, The System"
What I didn't really understand about the reading by Johnson, was that is Patriarchy recognizing or not recognizing womens oppression? What I think I got from the reading was that we're all responsible for our actions and that if one doesn't change then there is no change in society. So is Patriarchy an ideology that men and womens roles are different in society, and that if we want to change these ideas then we all have to change as a whole?
(a)"Wanted: Men who Love" - Bell Hooks Ch.1
Hooks perspective on why we long for men's love was really interesting. It made sense when she said that we all long for love, in some shape or form. I think that her explanation can justify why women stay with men who are abusive. If women are longing for a man to love her and if any little that they recieve keeps them there, then I would understand why a women would stay with an abusive man, because she is longing for that love. I won't say that everyone needs a man love to be content with herself, because its not true. But it goes the same way for a man. Men want to be loved and since society is constantly telling them to hush and not show their feeling then it seems like a circle that we keep going roung and round. I loved when Bell Hooks said that we constantly ask me to talk about there feelings and as soon as they do it, we want them to shut up. SO then what is it that we want from men?? I know I do the same thing too.
(a)"Understanding Patriarchy" - Bell Hooks Ch.2
What I got from Hooks reading was that Patriarchy is to blame for societies ideas of what men and women should do. Bell Hooks writes, "Clearly we cannot dismantle a system as long as we engage in collective denial about its impact on our lives." We as a society deny a lot of oppression in both men and women. If we cannot recognize that we all suffer in this patriarchal system, then how we will ever change. Some feminists are to blame for thinking that men are at fault for everything, and I believe that we as women are to blame for some things too. The first step is to recognize and take responsibilites, and then we can change for the better. As Hooks puts it, Patriarchy as a system has denied males access to full emotional well-being [lives].
2.
How these readings relate to my life would be in the aspects of old relationship. When I was with him, I always wanted to feel loved and I wanted him to say it. I guess I felt that he had to say it to reassure me that he did love me. There were times were he would say really shitty things to me and in a way it was a form of abusive. There came times when he said that he would even hit me if he found out certain things about me or if I had lied or cheated. Why did I stay with him for so long? Because I wanted to be loved. I felt the need to be validated by a man who in no way, shape or form could express himself because of the way he was brought up.
Now within out relationship, I remember I would ask him to tell me how hie day went, and oh man I wish I had never asked. I guess what Hooks says is very true. I wanted him to share his feelings, but as soon as he did I wanted him to shut the hell up. As a women I can say that I do things like this all the time. I'm still trying to find a way to change this mentality.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Blog # 1
1)
-How do you know?
(b) Something meaningful from this reading by Green, was the concept that society, from the dawn of time, has always tried to categorize us by being one of two genders; male or female. It's interesting to me that we have to follow the rules of gender or else we are isolated, degraded, or even chastised. One in One-hundred people have bodies that differ from those of standard male and female bodies, so what happens to them? Ignorance and fear takes over society and then that population is ousted from societies fictional representation of what being "human", "female", or "male"is. Green makes it clear that what is shown on the outside is often a veil for many, and that gender shouldn't always have to correlate with sex.
-"Night to his Day"
(c) It never dawned upon be that I was living by societies rules when i make assumptions about gender, and that I myself was doing gender without thinking it. Lorber states that gender is a "socially constructed [status]". I never imagined that others societies, other than Western, could allow other genders, or recognize other genders, but at a cost. What I don't understand that if we, a generation that is more modern, advanced and "somewhat" educated in a sense, can see that we are all different in many ways, why can't we allow ourselves to see that we don't have to fit into one gender?
-A Continuous Nonverbal Communication
(b) As I was reading Wilchins , a question came along that was meaningful to me. Why has it taken so long for gender's emergence as a civil rights issue? If we as a society are all one human race, why is there the need to have to discriminate or make less of others because of the way they choose to live their lives, and it is the fear of the unknown. For so long society has lived a certain way; either your male or female, act feminine or masculine, right or wrong. We don't have a gray area when it comes to gender. We have rules we have to follow, and if we don't follow those rules, we become unprivileged and lesser than human. It seems to me that even if there are rights that pertain to equality for men and women, what happens to those "equal" rights if you don't fit into the category of male or female, or if your sex is ambiguous. What rights do they get. Couldn't we just have rights for everyone without having to categorize them.
-Gendered Bodies: Feminist Perspectives
(b) A gendered society, as Lorber and Moore puts it, is one where our lives are categorized into men and women, and based on your genitalia, there is a systematic allocation of people in gendered positions that are done through a social process, that might even be unrecognizable. It doesn't make sense that if I was born with a vagina I would have to live a certain way and fall into certain expectations and do certain things because I was born with a vagina. Because of this I feel that the oppression that women have gone through is never-ending. Yes, through time women have "earned" the right to vote, and "earned" the right to an education (in some ways), but we as women continue to follow the rules of how to dress or act to show that society is improving. If I didn't want to wear make-up, or fix my hair in the morning, I would be a hippy feminist that doesn't give a shit about what she looks likes and most likely be called a dyke because of it.
2)
(b)
My brother is sixteen, I think, and since I have started coming to CSUSM he has really noticed a change in the way I think. When I began taking Women's Studies, I think he really hated me, because in just about every conversation I could apply my learnings about oppression. When I was reading "How do you know?", by Green I wanted to ask my brother how he knew we was male. His answer, "You swear, I'm not a fag", and that was it. My brother says that he's all about equal rights at his sixteen years of life, and that he's pretty open to just about anything, but even the concept of gender and how being a "fag" really had nothing to do with him "knowing" he was a male wasn't really a valid rationalization was extremely ridiculous to me. Ignorance comes from fear, and he fear comes from society not being able to accept different views and understand that everyone is different. I thought that this really tied into the idea that people automatically assume that gender comes either in a male or female, and masculine or feminine. Society has made us believe that gender is only acceptable in two ways, and my brother automatically assumed that your either a boy or a girl, gay or straight.
-How do you know?
(b) Something meaningful from this reading by Green, was the concept that society, from the dawn of time, has always tried to categorize us by being one of two genders; male or female. It's interesting to me that we have to follow the rules of gender or else we are isolated, degraded, or even chastised. One in One-hundred people have bodies that differ from those of standard male and female bodies, so what happens to them? Ignorance and fear takes over society and then that population is ousted from societies fictional representation of what being "human", "female", or "male"is. Green makes it clear that what is shown on the outside is often a veil for many, and that gender shouldn't always have to correlate with sex.
-"Night to his Day"
(c) It never dawned upon be that I was living by societies rules when i make assumptions about gender, and that I myself was doing gender without thinking it. Lorber states that gender is a "socially constructed [status]". I never imagined that others societies, other than Western, could allow other genders, or recognize other genders, but at a cost. What I don't understand that if we, a generation that is more modern, advanced and "somewhat" educated in a sense, can see that we are all different in many ways, why can't we allow ourselves to see that we don't have to fit into one gender?
-A Continuous Nonverbal Communication
(b) As I was reading Wilchins , a question came along that was meaningful to me. Why has it taken so long for gender's emergence as a civil rights issue? If we as a society are all one human race, why is there the need to have to discriminate or make less of others because of the way they choose to live their lives, and it is the fear of the unknown. For so long society has lived a certain way; either your male or female, act feminine or masculine, right or wrong. We don't have a gray area when it comes to gender. We have rules we have to follow, and if we don't follow those rules, we become unprivileged and lesser than human. It seems to me that even if there are rights that pertain to equality for men and women, what happens to those "equal" rights if you don't fit into the category of male or female, or if your sex is ambiguous. What rights do they get. Couldn't we just have rights for everyone without having to categorize them.
-Gendered Bodies: Feminist Perspectives
(b) A gendered society, as Lorber and Moore puts it, is one where our lives are categorized into men and women, and based on your genitalia, there is a systematic allocation of people in gendered positions that are done through a social process, that might even be unrecognizable. It doesn't make sense that if I was born with a vagina I would have to live a certain way and fall into certain expectations and do certain things because I was born with a vagina. Because of this I feel that the oppression that women have gone through is never-ending. Yes, through time women have "earned" the right to vote, and "earned" the right to an education (in some ways), but we as women continue to follow the rules of how to dress or act to show that society is improving. If I didn't want to wear make-up, or fix my hair in the morning, I would be a hippy feminist that doesn't give a shit about what she looks likes and most likely be called a dyke because of it.
2)
(b)
My brother is sixteen, I think, and since I have started coming to CSUSM he has really noticed a change in the way I think. When I began taking Women's Studies, I think he really hated me, because in just about every conversation I could apply my learnings about oppression. When I was reading "How do you know?", by Green I wanted to ask my brother how he knew we was male. His answer, "You swear, I'm not a fag", and that was it. My brother says that he's all about equal rights at his sixteen years of life, and that he's pretty open to just about anything, but even the concept of gender and how being a "fag" really had nothing to do with him "knowing" he was a male wasn't really a valid rationalization was extremely ridiculous to me. Ignorance comes from fear, and he fear comes from society not being able to accept different views and understand that everyone is different. I thought that this really tied into the idea that people automatically assume that gender comes either in a male or female, and masculine or feminine. Society has made us believe that gender is only acceptable in two ways, and my brother automatically assumed that your either a boy or a girl, gay or straight.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)