Thursday, May 27, 2010
Week 2 comment on Jackie's blog
Actually, to me, it’s more understandable if a wife did not want to change her last name because she wanted to maintain her recognition in her profession, then it would be simply because she wanted to demonstrate her independence. I think I would change my last name if I got married and knew I wanted children. If I decided not to have children, then maybe I will consider keeping my last name. But I don’t think a woman should feel like she is losing her identity or feel like property because she takes her husband’s name. I had a friend who’s last name was different then her mother’s and every time her mother came to pick her up at school, the office would always refer to the mother as Mrs. Logan, which was my friend’s last name. My friend hated it, but her mother understood and never corrected them. I just think it could be frustrating on the children.
Week 2 comment on Jeffrey's blog
I remember the first time someone called me “bitch” as an endearing term. I was mortified!!! I was having a normal conversation with a group of people (both males and females) when one of the guys in the group addressed me as “bitch”. Well of course I went off!!! I thought to myself “The conversation was going well, what did I do or say to make this guy call me a bitch.” One of the girls saw how upset I was getting and quickly jumped in and told me that he didn’t mean it in the same context that I took it. She explain that it was sort of a term of endearment. I personally think that’s absolutely ridiculous. The guy was apologetic and said he didn’t mean any disrespect, but “that’s how some people talked now a day”. Regardless, I still think it’s disrespectful.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Week 2
As we’ve read in our readings this week, language defines men and women differently. A term which characterizes men and women differently is that of a “bachelor” and “spinster”. A spinster is a woman who has remained single beyond the conventional age for marrying, whereas a bachelor is an unmarried man, PERIOD! Our text discuss that “in Western culture, a woman who doesn’t marry historically has been viewed with sympathy or pity. For years, unmarried American women were called spinsters or old maids; contrast this with the nonpejorative term bachelor for men.” (p. 120)
Modern use of the word “spinster” evokes a mental image of a childless, frumpy, middle-aged woman who is depressed and desires to be like other “normal” women. She is considered a societal outcast who lives in the shadow of others. Our culture has produced generations of women who believed that their true and most important role in society is to get married and have children. Anything short of this role is considered abnormal, unfulfilling, and suspicious and contributed to our psychological profile of spinsters. Given that motherhood has been considered a natural part of a woman’s life, because spinsters don’t have children, they are viewed as abnormal. Something must be wrong with a woman who does not have or may not want marriage and children. Spinsters are pitiful because they cannot have true meaning in life if they do not have a husband and children. They are unfulfilled because they do not have what true women have, which again are a husband and children. Also, married women tend to be suspicious of single women and view them as either a personal or societal threat.
The words used to label the spinster’s male counterpart do not parallel in meaning. “Bachelor” typically implies that a man is young, virile, and available. It doesn’t have the same negative connotations as that of “spinster”. The word bachelor alludes to a healthier sexuality, more normal than the implication for the unmarried female. Unlike the spinster, the fact that a man is not married does not necessarily imply a deficiency in his character.
It’s bad enough women traditionally had been regarded as inferior to men physically and intellectually, but in our society they are also inferior if they are single.
Modern use of the word “spinster” evokes a mental image of a childless, frumpy, middle-aged woman who is depressed and desires to be like other “normal” women. She is considered a societal outcast who lives in the shadow of others. Our culture has produced generations of women who believed that their true and most important role in society is to get married and have children. Anything short of this role is considered abnormal, unfulfilling, and suspicious and contributed to our psychological profile of spinsters. Given that motherhood has been considered a natural part of a woman’s life, because spinsters don’t have children, they are viewed as abnormal. Something must be wrong with a woman who does not have or may not want marriage and children. Spinsters are pitiful because they cannot have true meaning in life if they do not have a husband and children. They are unfulfilled because they do not have what true women have, which again are a husband and children. Also, married women tend to be suspicious of single women and view them as either a personal or societal threat.
The words used to label the spinster’s male counterpart do not parallel in meaning. “Bachelor” typically implies that a man is young, virile, and available. It doesn’t have the same negative connotations as that of “spinster”. The word bachelor alludes to a healthier sexuality, more normal than the implication for the unmarried female. Unlike the spinster, the fact that a man is not married does not necessarily imply a deficiency in his character.
It’s bad enough women traditionally had been regarded as inferior to men physically and intellectually, but in our society they are also inferior if they are single.
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Week 1
Hi Everyone,
My name is Yesenia and I am a part-time student. I took a Gender course last fall and absolutely love it. I am new to blogging and a bit intimidate by it, but hopefully this experience will give me a new prospect.
One of the things I find very interesting about Gender and Communication is the normativeness of the male in our language. Society tends to use "he" or "man" for a neutral pronoun in sentences to include all human begins. One example is in the Declaration of Independence where it states that "All men are created equal". But how do we overcome the obstacles of using "he" or "man" as a generic term which refers to both male and female? I believe courses like this one is a very important start. I, for one have always used the expression "You guys" to refer everyone. No one ever bats an eye when someone refers to a group of males and females are "you guys", but try saying, "you gals" and see what type of reaction you'll get.
My name is Yesenia and I am a part-time student. I took a Gender course last fall and absolutely love it. I am new to blogging and a bit intimidate by it, but hopefully this experience will give me a new prospect.
One of the things I find very interesting about Gender and Communication is the normativeness of the male in our language. Society tends to use "he" or "man" for a neutral pronoun in sentences to include all human begins. One example is in the Declaration of Independence where it states that "All men are created equal". But how do we overcome the obstacles of using "he" or "man" as a generic term which refers to both male and female? I believe courses like this one is a very important start. I, for one have always used the expression "You guys" to refer everyone. No one ever bats an eye when someone refers to a group of males and females are "you guys", but try saying, "you gals" and see what type of reaction you'll get.
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