blog week 6

After returning from the World Cup, I have done a lot of reading on it and following it really closely and I as expected, there were only a fraction of females as compared to the males. Of course in our society, men have always dominated sports and the relevance they have in their lives however I was disappointed to see as few females there as we did. This does not mean that girls are not into soccer or sports in general however I wish it was not as surprising to people or society for that matter, for a girl to follow sports and actually be into them. I have always followed soccer and I really enjoy sports however in the past, conversations with my friends about sports have been dominated by mostly guys. It's frustrating that in this subject, girls do not seem to be taken seriously when it comes to their input or opinion and when they are right about something, or people think that it is a valid statement, there is almost an 'awe' of amazement that she actually knows what she is talking about.

week 5 response to nicholas

I find it very interesting that you point out that it was all something extraordinary for someONE to sail around the world at the young age of 16 however gender eventually became a topic. Because she is a girl, there are far more associations with negativity and danger as \i would expect the media to rather have with a boy. It is hard to say because this is not the case however as you mentioned, I agree with you in saying that she should be respected for her success thus far and not becuase she is a female who should not be out late and what not. I have one other sibling, a sister, and my father was always saying when we were growing up that it was unsafe for us to go out by ourselves or that we should respect our curfew more so than if he had ad sons! Unfortunately, I agree in thinking that it is somewhat less safe for girls to be alone especially in cities and at night rather than boys however, \i feel as though society projects that boys in general are to be trusted more on their own and to take care of dangerous situations over girls.

blog week 5

I just returned from a Safari Expedition in South Africa and I was able to see many wild animals in their natural habitat. In many instances, the groups of animals were the mother and children otherwise the males were primarily by themselves. I began to think about the discussions about how mothers should take care of their children and how they are more known to stay at home rather than go out into the workforce. In the animal world, the females are the ones to naturally take care of their children and to concern for their family. The guide today was telling us that the female was the head of the family in the group of elephants we saw and that when she were to assume this position until she died. Once she was no longer alive, the oldest daughter was to take over. I thought about this and was trying to relate it to humans and realized that it was more of nature’s way to have the mother take care of the children, not a sexist thing or a matter of who should or should not. In the ‘animal world’ this is simply done in terms of survival and I cannot see these roles changing, ever.

reply to Irene Post week 4

I found your blog really interesting this week. I see a lot of shows on television and wonder what it must really be like for parents to go through that. You brought up gay adoption and I am wondering if that was ever a thought in your mind? would you have been ok with a gay couple adopting your child? not even having anything to do with the fact that they are gay but the reasoning behind society influencing the fact that it takes a man and a woman to raise a child. I am curious to know if adoption agencies consider gay couples and what their reasoning would be to turn them away. Of course some states have not yet even legalized marriage let alone adopting a child however this is a huge argument that is going on today. Thank you for sharing this!

week one response to: Welcome Rider Students - Summer 1 Class

Danielle Jarrett said...

OL 1

Hi, I'm Danielle, I just walked at graduation last week and I am finishing up my degree this summer. I have a harder time accepting people who are very affectionate in public mainly because I, myself, am more shy and tend to not be as straight forward. It is of curiosity to me how gender in a sense does affect sexuality and how our society accepts the two genders and their approaches to sexual preference. I have a few relatives on my mother's side who are gay and I remember the night my aunt told us that she and two of her brothers, (my uncles) were gay. I was in forth grade and I was spending the night at our favorite aunts house, when her and her partner told me. I had never questioned the fact that they were two women who lived together; in fact I thought it was a perfectly acceptable scenario. At that age, I was still young enough not to really understand the pressures and conformities that society places on us and it did not seem like an unreasonable arrangement for two grown women to be living together; without husband or children. I think society puts such an emphasis on someone’s sexual orientation that starts when we’re apparently too young to even realize or know what this means.

MAY 19, 2010 10:04 AM

blog week 4

I arrived in Dubai this afternoon and I was honestly a little nervous about coming here. Not because I do not speak the language or because it is a new place I have never been to, but the fact that I am a woman and I have read in so many magazines and travel guides that woman, especially in their choice of dress, have to be careful not to disregard the rules. No one is to take pictures of them without their permission and the dress is extremely conservative covering most of the body, even in this 100+ degree heat. I guess I never realize how far women have come in America when we compare with the rest of the world. It is crazy to imagine the lack of rights that some women all over the world deal with daily. I came across a photo of a middle-eastern wedding and all of the women were wearing clothing from head to toe covering everything; you were not able to tell who was who. In many countries women are still not allowed to vote or go outside in public and it just boggles my mind to think that in the year 2010 this is the way it is for some people all because of their sex! Tomorrow we are going out to visit and I am apprehensive about doing something wrong or being frowned upon because of my gender role as a woman.

response week 3 -- to Lauren T

Even the job title is commonly referred to as bus boy and rarely do we see anyone call the position bus girl. That can sometimes be frustrating for me at my work as well because I am a bartender and all of the owners/bosses are men so when I work I am the only female. When I arrive at work I always need to prep the bar which is part of my job description--what they told me when I was first hired--yet the other guys at the job still try and do the tasks and always try and take the heavier items such as cases of beer when I am stocking or fill the ice in the coolers/buckets. I am perfectly capable of doing the work, nothing is too strenuous or heavy yet they still always insist on taking on my jobs. I never get offended that they think that a woman cannot do it, I think it is how they have been taught to treat girls and to think that it is polite to do these favors. I don't want them to think that I really cannot do something just because I am a girl. Then, when we need to set up for events, I will try to help out with moving chairs and tables around yet they always say they "got it" and "not to worry about it". I don't think it's as offensive as it is frustrating even though I know they are trying to help!

June 3, 2010 6:43 AM