Gender equality
Gender equality is an issue constantly in conflict within societies of Eastern and Western countries. Although Vietnamese women living in the United States have equal access to jobs and education and are able to be independent, they still choose to “incorporate the new realities of their lives into the ideological confines of the traditional family system” (Kibria 109). Tradition mandates that women are the support system of principles and values of the traditional Vietnamese family system (137). While Vietnamese women are more reserved and submissive to their husbands, Vietnamese-American women have discovered the strength and power to be the central figure within the newly defined collective household in order to survive and provide for the children’s future.
According to Confucianism, the family line is patriarchal and the man is to be obeyed. Women were expected to follow the three respects—her father, her husband and her eldest son; if not, the consequences were severe. Having women stay at home with the children is a way of life in mainstream Asian countries. In Asia, a woman would not and could not leave her parent's home until she is married, then she would live with and care for her husband's family. An unwed woman living on her own would be considered shameful and disgraceful to her family in Asian culture.
Unlike the strict traditional ways of Confucianism, Vietnamese families are orderly and emotional (Freeman 88). Within the traditional Vietnamese family, the “disciplined authority of and obligation to the father, but also nurturance, sentiment and affection are associated with the mother” (89). Asian women, in general, are taught to be reserved and to keep thoughts and experiences private in order to avoid losing face and embarrassing the family; however, “more respect for the rights and powers of Vietnamese women” have contributed to a Vietnamese history inclusive of strong, intelligent and decisive women such as the Truong Sisters who fought and defeated the Chinese to regain Vietnam’s independence in 40 A.D.
Traditional femininity is to be expressed through modes of dress, movement, speech and actions; to an extent this is also true of Asian-American women in modern society. Although a traditional Asian women's timid behavior leads to a lack of individuality and self-confidence, Asian-America women have begun to shed the belief of fate, destined misery, and strived to speak their own minds. If women are given opportunities to pursue careers, they are expected to fulfill positions as nurses, textile workers, or teacher because women are supposedly more caring and nurturing.
The idea of racism has evolved and has become less prevalent throughout the last century. Schools and public areas are unsegregated, voting rights, racial slurs being considered as unacceptable behavior etc. American sociologist and race theorist, Howard Winant states that’s “The ensuing approaches increased recognition of racial injustice and inequality, but did not overcome the discriminatory processes” (Winant,2000)Although the United states has come a long way to try to end racism, one cannot ignore the fact that it still exists. It is something that may seem invisible in society, but everybody knows that it still thrives and that it’s racial attitudes affect the way our society functions. One of these invisible forms of racism is called microagression. Microagression is the theory that certain interactions between different races can be interpreted as small acts of verbal aggression. Racial micro aggression has caused many behavior and identity problems between races in today’s society. In the article, "Microagressions in everyday life", Dr. Derald Wing Sue states that “Microaggressions are similar to carbon monoxide - “invisible, but potentially lethal” - continuous exposure to these type of interactions “can be a sort of death by a thousand cuts to the victim” It is a common experience that many people of different racial groups deal within their every day lives. They are harmful to society, creating a hostile environment, dividing people apart, creating inequalities, and decreasing productivity in the work and school environment.
My knowledge of microaggressions prior to research was limited. Before discussing the topic in class, I had never even heard the term microaggression. As of now, all I know is what I learned in class; that microaggressions are snide, racist comments that are made repeatedly. Due to my limited knowledge, I decided this would be an interesting topic to explore and read about. Through all of my research, my goal is to learn more about the effects and different types of people that experience microaggressions.
Microaggressions are committed constantly, among numerous people without them realizing it. I must say I am completely guilty of also playing part in this act. These acts are done constantly and no one understands the affects it has on people. Miller and Garran (2008) states, “Racial microaggressions are similar to aversive racism. They are “subtle, stunning, often automatic,” verbal and nonverbal putdowns and social assaults that wound people of color unbeknownst to the perpetrator” (p.97). This is what produces pain and anger inside countless of people. Many individuals need professional help in order to surpass the neglect they have been summited to.
In keeping with that foundation, racial microaggressions can be defined as the brief and everyday slights, insults, indignities and denigrating messages sent to people of color by well-intentioned White people who are unaware of the hidden messages being communicated (CITE). These messages may be sent verbally ("You speak good English."), nonverbally (clutching one's pu...
Bobo, L. (1999). microfoundations of a sociological approach to racism and race relations. Prejudice as group position, J. Soc. Issues 55:445–72.
In today society, women are obsess with having a specific body type to make others find them attractive. They want to feed the society’s body type expectations. But what is a perfect body? Does it even exist? However, advertising, boyfriends, and family members often make women feel that skinny bodies are perfect bodies.
Gender roles are a major theme in the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, in the main ways being what is expected of proper Southern lady, the critcization of women because of their hypocrisy, and the distrust of masculinity as whole. The novel is set in the 1930s during the Depression in the small traditional town of Maycomb, Alabama. Scout is the main female protagonist in the novel and Scout herself faces the gender conformity, as does many others, like Tom Robinson and other men, and the female gender as a whole.
Being a feminist today has altered from a political position to a more general position. Contemporary feminist is shaped by the past, but now is integrated in popular culture by popular figures. The definition of feminism is the belief of social, political, and economic rights, especially with regards of equality of the sexes. There are many dimensions to being a feminist and we have a tremendous number of people supporting the feminist movement. The need for feminist movements is because gender inequality still exist. Gender inequality is very broad and complex topic. Both men and women are unequal in various ways. However, the big question is why? The purpose of this paper is to understand gender inequality in the sociological framework of
When it comes to citizenship, equal rights for all members of the society are one of the attributes of many beliefs. Feminists, among others, believes that this conceals the reality of unfair nation on the foundation of class, ethnicity, race and, what this paper particularly focus on, gender, which can render women subject to discrimination (Meer and Sever, 2004). The outcome of this is inequality in society where because of the source of their divergence, some people are being excluded from their rights and responsibilities. Having understood the reasons why feminists criticize the notion of citizenship and inequality, this essay is going to do a specific case study on gendered nationality. This essay will first look at the current discrimination that women face in the form of nationality, how culture and religion play a huge role in relation and how women themselves have to fight for their own right to reduce gender discrimination in their laws. Lastly, in the conclusion, recommendations will be included in what I think would help in diminishing gender discrimination against women in nationality.
To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf is a story that centers around the the value of memory to self. The story does this by centering around the characters that Woolf writes about, and their thoughts pertaining to their memories of one another. Woolf’s writing in To the Lighthouse is rich in her characters, Mrs. and Mr. Ramsay, their kids, and their friends’ thoughts and feelings towards everything they are going through, and more importantly, their thoughts and memories of one another. The reader learns about the characters’ through the complex thoughts Woolf’s characters’ have.
Virginia Woolf's To the Lighthouse examines the role of women or more specifically, the evolution of the modern woman. The two main female characters in the novel, Mrs Ramsay and Lily Briscoe, both represent different views on life and follow different paths on their search for meaning. Lily Briscoe transcends the traditional female gender roles embodied by Mrs Ramsay; by coming into her own as an independent and modern woman, she symbolises the advent of modernism and rejection of traditional Victorian values.
When considering gender and sex, a layman’s idea of these terms might be very different than a sociologist’s. There is an important distinction: sex, in terms of being “male” or “female,” is purely the physical biological characteristic differences – primarily anatomical differences. (There are also rare cases of “intersexual” individuals as outlined in the Navarro article, “When Gender Isn’t a Given”.) Gender, on the other hand, is an often misconstrued concept that is commonly mistaken as synonymous with sex. A non-sociologist might surmise the following, “men act masculine and women act feminine, therefore, it must follow that gender is inherent to sex,” however, this is not necessarily the case.
In Virginia Woolf’s To The Lighthouse, Mr. Ramsay, a professor, philosopher, and father to eight children, is the husband to a beautiful and very admired woman, Mrs. Ramsay. He uses her as his support against his crippling doubt and constantly needs her to coddle him. However, he finds her compassion towards others annoying and cannot fully respect her because of her gender. With Mrs. Ramsay’s presence, his ego grows, and while she seems to be helping Mr. Ramsay, instead she is normalizing his outbursts of harshness and insecurities by praising him. And because she rarely directly goes against him, he paradoxically cannot respect her as a wife but depends on her too much to function normally. After Mrs. Ramsay passes away, Mr. Ramsay is forced
Society’s version of a “perfect body” has driven this generation wild. It has corrupted the minds of everyone making the people think they have to be skinny and fit, but not too skinny and not too fit; this is especially true for women. Women and men have had to hear how their bodies need to look all their lives for example, how they need to have curves but not too many curves, and if you are flat chested, you need more. Society has contradicted how all generations appearances need to reflect their opinions of a right or wrong body, and it has caused many issues for the people themselves, such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa.
The teachings of Confucius put order, hierarchy and social harmony over individual egoism, that is, the person is subject to the strict system of laws, obligations and rituals. Social relations are based on the criteria of age, sex and generation: in the political sphere, the governed render their maximum loyalty to the governor, while in the family, the children obey the father, the younger brother obeys the older one and, finally, the wife obeys the husband. In the different stages of life, women are always under masculine authority. As a young girl, she must obey her father, when she marries, her husband, and finally, when she becomes a widow, her