Patricia J. Williams
While most pundits of America's social and political discourse are either beating dead horses or tilting at windmills, Patricia J. Williams seeks out the racist, sexist, heterosexist, and classist forces that underlie a number of socio-political pathologies. Williams' regular Nation magazine column, "Diary of a Mad Law Professor" is curious in that it often evokes visceral negativity in casual readers. It certainly affected me that way. At first it was difficult to get beyond the name of her page; thumbing through each issue I sheepishly wondered what this crazy lady would get bent out of shape about this week. Though I generally agreed with her ideas, it struck me that Williams was too radical (as if there really is such a thing in a mainstream media culture that chooses to wear blinders). Williams vigorously uproots conventional wisdom as she strips away the "rich-white-male"-centric viewpoint; power and a voice are given to those who simply are acted upon. Like Howard Zinn who has promoted a view of history through a populist lens, Patricia Williams promotes a viewpoint that examines and judges the treatment of the marginalized.
Williams is clearly not the only contemporary essayist with a broad-minded viewpoint on social issues. Katha Pollitt, E.L. Doctorow, Gore Vidal, and Alexander Cockburn, among many others, are similarly progressive in their opinions on society, politics, and culture. Williams, however, has a modified gestalt upon which her liberal commentary about socio-political affairs is based. The way in which the mechanics of society can be explained is a relationship of dominance and submission, a pornographic association. As described in "Clarence X", pornography, on a level greater ...
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...aracterization like the Nutty Black Feminst Ultra-Liberal Professor. The key to accessing Williams is the key she teaches us for accessing a more equal society: a society in which pigeon holes are eliminated, since clearly, neither we nor Patricia Williams can be so categorized without losing our humanity.
Works Cited
Williams, Patricia J. The Alchemy of Race and Rights. Cambridge: Harvard UP, 1991.
"Clarence X," Rooster's Egg. 121-136.
"Fire and Ice." Alchemy. 133-145.
"A Hearing of One's Own." Rooster's Egg. 137-149.
"Little House in the Hood." The Nation. 19 Jun 2000: 9.
"Mirrors and Windows." Alchemy. 166-178.
"The Pain of Word Bondage." Alchemy.146-165.
"Racial Ventriloquism." The Nation. 5 Jul 1999: 9.
"Radio Hoods." Rooster's Egg. 42-56.
The Rooster's Egg. Cambridge: Harvard UP, 1995.
"Teleology on the Rocks." Alchemy. 55-79.
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In Michelle Alexander’s article The New Jim Crow, she addresses the importance of educating people on the harsh reality of racial caste in America. As a civil rights lawyer and with previous work experience at the ACLU in northern California, Alexander knows the importance of getting relevant information to the public in order to inform them of important information. In The New Jim Crow Alexander uses a specific wring style through rhetorical devices to convey her message that the US justice system is turning into the modern day laws of Jim Crow, outlawing African Americans and taking away their basic natural rights while creating a new racial caste system and the possibility of the system to change.
Historically Haiti’s government has not been a provider of services to its population. One study found that even before the 2010 earthquake, NGOs provided 70 percent of healthcare and private schools funded by NGOs accounted for 85 percent of the national education (Ramachandran, 2012, p. 2). Charities and NGOs have become t...
“To Kill A Mockingbird” is a wonderfully written book. One of the reasons why this book has reached the popularity that is has is that it is written as a child’s perspective on a “grown-up” topic. Scout is the character for my memory box because she is able to show the book through her eyes and you can see how much she has grown by the end of the book. Scout learns numerous lessons from school, from Atticus, and from watching Tom Robinson’s trial. The memory box is Mrs.Dubose’s candy box because she was a very strong woman to overcome an addiction and cope with the pain of being very ill. By the end of the book Scout was as strong as Mrs.Dubose, having gone through being made fun of at school and watching Tom Robinson be convicted of rape in the court. “To Kill A Mockingbird” is given a deeper meaning because it is seen through the eyes of young Scout Finch.
We start to see Lady Macbeth’s actions have a huge impact on Macbeth’s character as he transforms from a decent being to an overly bitter creature. The cause of his alteration is due to the fact that Lady Macbeth is constantly excreting heartless information into his mind. "Art thou afeard to be the same in thine own act and valour as thou art in desire?" (I;vii;39-41) "And, to be more than what you were, you would be so much more the man." (I;vii;50-51) Lady Macbeth uses these quotes to push her husband beyond limits and is therefore responsible for his dramatic change in attitude. She is constantly feeding his thoughts with negative comments and later on Macbeth realizes that he has another side to him. As he moves along to discover the concealed side of him, Macbeth falls in love with himself and begins to be drawn towards his evil desires. Because Lady Macbeth was the main cause of his new hidden discovery, she is fully responsible for opening up the door and letting the darkness in. This results in Macbeth committing both murders.
Race, gender, class, and sexual ideologies and practices have been locked to institutional power, privilege, and oppression throughout history. More specifically so when focusing on the time period between the 1600s and 1990s. This statement has been proven true several times in various instances; from the discrimination of “fallen women,” or prostitutes to the discrimination against African Americans and other minority groups (the term minority referring to race, class, gender identity, religion; essentially any group that differentiates itself from the majority). The purpose of this paper is to provide an intersectional discussion of the ways these different identities are connected to mistreatment during the time period of the 1600s to the late 1900s.
The weather-van theory states that a free weather-vane and a stuck weather-vane are different. A free weather-vane functions correctly in that it can react to changes in the wind’s direction. The stuck weather-vane is malfunctioning because it cannot react to changes in the wind’s direction. Sober says that what the two weather-vanes do both have in common is that they are caused to point in a certain direction by something.
Iago is a powerful predator who exploits those around him by infecting their perceptions of truth with carefully chosen fallacy. His skill in finding the proverbial chinks in others' armor allows him to skillfully weave his machinations of destroying Othello into their minds and actions; by manipulating character's perceptions of Desdemona, Iago gains the leverage he needs to exploit each character. No one is impervious to Iago's seething purpose; even Othello falls prey to Iago's suggestions and insinuations about Desdemona. Iago's constant presence as the stager, as well as his ceaseless - but subtle - reinforcement of events through narration, allows him to be the pivotal force that directs Shakespeare's Othello.
Iago’s influence on others begins right way by having a pre-established trust between Othello and himself. It is evident beginning as early as Act II that the Moor’s trust of Iago is absolute. “What is the matter masters? / Honest Iago, that looks dead with grieving, / Speak. Who began this? On thy love, I charge thee” (II.iii.165-167). The reliance with which Othello is ready to believe Iago right away shows the power Iago truly holds upon his master. Iago’s observance and quiet intake of Othello in both battle and as a leader gave Iago the upper hand in realizing the Moor’s weaknesses. A.C. Bradley, who has studied the great tragedies of Shakespeare, believes that “...Othello's mind, for all its poetry, is very simple. He is not observant. His nature tends outward. He is quite free from introspection, and is not given to reflection. Emotion excites his imagination, but it confuses and dulls his intellect” (A.C. Bradley, Shakespearean Tragedy). Iago is well aware of Othello’s ‘quick to trust’ mentality, and uses this along with the hero’s passionate means of carrying out his business to break him down. Once the thought was repeated enough to Othello that his s...
On Being Young-A Woman-and Colored an essay by Marita Bonner addresses what it means to be black women in a world of white privilege. Bonner reflects about a time when she was younger, how simple her life was, but as she grows older she is forced to work hard to live a life better than those around her. Ultimately, she is a woman living with the roles that women of all colors have been constrained to. Critics, within the last 20 years, believe that Marita Bonners’ essay primarily focuses on the double consciousness ; while others believe that she is focusing on gender , class , “economic hardships, and discrimination” . I argue that Bonner is writing her essay about the historical context of oppression forcing women into intersectional oppression by explaining the naturality of racial discrimination between black and white, how time and money equate to the American Dream, and lastly how gender discrimination silences women, specifically black women.
Over the course of about a dozen weeks or so I have been exploring many facets of oppression. From literary work such as Malcolm X’s autobiography to Sherman Alexie’s novel The Absolute True Story of a Part-Time Indian, oppression is an issue for the majority of people who are not white, upper class males. Race, class, gender, sex, religion, all things that the 14th amendment are supposed to protect, seems to only stand for equality rather than enforcing it and educating people of it’s often damaging effects. Gender and sex roles seem to be the most relevant topic for the times, but also one of the hardest to understand. Cholly Breedlove is a prime example of male dominance in society. We know the how, so for now we’re going to focus on the why.
While not the only contributing factor, Lady Macbeth does play a substantial role in the downfall of her husband. She is a like a catalyst for Macbeth and essentially pushes him to do what he would not have been able to do on his own. Macbeth himself highly ambitious and determined, but his wife is even more so. At first he refuses to kill Duncan but she persists and eventually gets him to do it. It is important to note here that Lady Macbeth pushes Macbeth forward by manipulating him. In this sense, she can be related to Cathy Ames from East of Eden by John Steinbeck. Also, being a woman, she is confined by the conventions of society which prevent her from doing much. At what point she even wishes that she were 'unsexed' so she could commit the murder herself. Because of this, she pours her ambition and desire for power into Macbeth. Again she accomplishes this through manipulation. For example, at one point when Macbeth is disagreeing with her idea of killing Duncan, she questions his manhood: