Kai Myers
9-17-14
Professor Soyoung Park
Women's Studies

What is Gender?

     According to modern society, gender is divided into two separate categories: male and female. This, however, is not the case. Gender is much more fluid; people can express multiple genders regardless of biological features. In sum, genitalia does not determine gender. "...It is really impossible to speak of a fixed biological sex category outside of the sense that a culture makes of that category", (Shaw and Lee, 125).

    What is truly disturbing is that most people in the United States believe that the strong implications between masculinity and femininity (a result of the gender binary) is considered to be a natural state of human development instead of a social construction. Gender, in truth, cannot be categorized into two separate boxes. It is something that cannot fit in any box, any form. Gender is constantly fluctuating throughout a person's life. "...Gender is a process that involves multiple patterns of interaction and is created and re-created constantly in human interaction" (Shaw and Lee, 126).

    The strong distinction between masculinity and femininity and the genders that perform these actions form stereotypes. Males are categorized as active, powerful, aggressive, while females are passive, nurturing, and emotional. These notions behind physical males and females create limitations that ultimately leads to the barrier between the definition between masculinity and femininity. 

    Those who do not follow the narrow divisions constructed by the gender binary are considered to be gender deviant. Who are these types of people? Transgendered people, lesbians, gays, masculine women, effeminate men, and honestly anyone who has had felt annoyed that there are no unisex options or that they are judged for wearing or wanting whatever they choose. 

    The gender binary is a social system that has given additional power to the patriarchy's ideals. It enforces the strength of males and the delicacy of females without considering that it is human nature to not fit tightly into a singular category.

Kai Myers

9/10/12

Professor Soyoung Park

Women's Studies

Homophobia and its Relation to Feminism

      Feminism, according to most, including prominent writer and blogger, Jessica Valenti, has more to do with the desire for equality among all people. Based on the influences of the third wave of feminism, this idea is considered to be a more modern day approach, as the earlier movements tended to focus on white, upperclass, heterosexual females. Thankfully, feminism today considers all types of people, specifically, all types of women from all walks of life as essential parts of the movement (gender deviants, lesbians, those in third world countries and so on). It is crucial that the topic of homophobia is discussed when it has such close ties to the dispute of true equality.

      Suzanne Pharr, in her article Homophobia: A Weapon of Sexism, goes to say that homophobia and the emphasis on its counter part, heterosexism, is another method of keeping the systems of power, the imbalance of status between men and women, in check. "Homophobia works effectively as a weapon of sexism because it is joined with a powerful arm, heterosexism. Heterosexism creates the climate for homophobia with its assumption that the world is and must be heterosexual and its display of power and privilege as the norm" (Pharr, 87). Most of what this is all boils down to scare tactics and the urge to conform as to not stand out or be under pressure from society. 

      These scare tactics have flaws, however. In homophobia, they create stereotypes. For example, not all lesbians may like to work on cars, only wear flannel, and have short hair. People are more complex than that; no one can accurately label someone else by using a word that already has meaning behind it. Really, there shouldn't be a race to label everyone anyhow, but, hey, modern society does not work that way. Everyone is obsessed with labels and how they fit into them.

      Homophobia creates labels with negative connotations; the people of this nation are buying into them. Slurs such as "gay", "faggot", and "lesbian" are used as insults and not as markers of identification. So how does feminism come play with all of this?

      "...We know that so long as the word lesbian can strike fear in any woman's heart, then work on behalf of women can be stopped; the only successful work against sexism must include work against homophobia" (Pharr, 91). So, in order for feminism to be successful, the removal of homophobia must also be included. It is as much an issue as the differences in the wage-gap between men and women.

Kai Myers: Valenti (Pages 1-60)

Kai Myers

8-27-14

Professor Soyoung Park

Women’s Studies

 Full Frontal Feminism

        Full Frontal Feminism by Jessica Valenti holds nothing back in its approach (in that regard, its title is very appropriate). Valenti debunks the myths behind feminism and applauds its open availability to the public with modern innovations such as the internet. The widespread use of social media has increasingly exposed the concept of feminism to young, impressionable women across the globe with a single click of a button. “And this is what’s amazing about online feminism— ten years ago, if a woman was reading a feminist publication it was because she already identified as a feminist. Now, young people find feminism accidentally or randomly— through online searches and social media— all the time” (Valenti, 6). Women no longer have to be feminists in order to be informed, and they are more likely to make informed decisions based on the information they come across. 

        As a result of this new source of knowledge, myths such as how “feminism is seen as super anti” (Valenti, 7) should be more easily disproven. The word feminism has such a strong negative connotation, however. Feminists are supposedly seen as ugly, hairy, and just overall unattractive women. Is this the case for all feminists? Of course not (and for the record, it is totally cool to look just the way you want to, if it makes you happy). 

        Still, Valenti writes that being called ugly is a type of fear-tactic that is very effective in keeping women away from feminism and feminists alike. Being ugly, in a lot of terms, means being unwanted, and no one wants to feel that way. As for feminism being dead? If women are still being treated like sexual objects, feeling unwanted, stressed to perform for men, underpaid and under-appreciated, then there is still a need for feminism, more specifically, radical feminism.

        Please, take a look at the video above.

This is an extremely recent video. Is there still a need for feminism? You bet.

                                       Thoughts on Reading: Shaw and Lee (1-22)

         The first few pages of this reading discuss the definition of women's studies. So, what is it exactly? Surprisingly, to a few, women's studies is not simply about the study of said women.

         It is to be noted that it has a much more broad scope of topics and intermingling components. The different cultural, historical, and ethnic upbringings that people are exposed to can create several layers of conflict with the subjection of women. Women's studies concern a wide spectrum of classifications, ranging from gender studies as well as research on what it means to be a human, man, woman, or otherwise, in society. 

        For example, modern society as a whole believes that the way people treat and portray women as objects women is absolutely normal. The United States is no exception, although there are less large amounts of violence towards women; it is more common to see quantities of targeted individuals than groups. Still, while the theory that this nation's treatment of women greatly contrasts with that of outside countries is somewhat misleading. As an American citizen, I see the unjust treatment of women through a nation that is more materialistic as well as individualistic. Women will alter themselves, physically, mentally, and so forth, for the approval of (a) male figure(s). Why is this? At least in relation to the United States, the media has set the standard that such behavior is completely normal for women.

        How did this all begin? It could be said for all that the abuse of women and their rights as human beings was created by historical events and is now defended by cultural norms (such as the enforcement of the gender binary). 

       As a woman, I cannot help but feel frustrated that society has allowed itself to become a structure which give men, specifically white males, the most privilege. The specific term for this concept is called patriarchy. "A key term for women's studies writers and activists is patriarchy, defined as a system where men dominate because power and authority are in the hands of adult men", (Shaw, Lee, 6). This is not to be said that men do not have struggles of their own and that they do not suffer from oppression. They do. Regardless, the gaps of privilege between men, women, ethnic minorities and those who consider themselves gender deviant are far too large to ignore.

       From these divisions of power came movements of human rights, and from those came feminism. Not surprisingly, feminism is also not what most believes it to be. The many misconceptions of it are as follows: "Many people, groups, and institutions have attempted to discredit feminism (and therefore women's studies) in other ways...  Feminists are angry, whiny women who have an exe to grind, no sense of humor, and who exaggerate discrimination against women; feminists hate men..." (Shaw, Lee, 16). This, of course, not at all true and is usually a ploy to frighten women and others away from becoming feminists. Ultimately, these scare tactics prevent people from learning more about women's studies.