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Created: September 3, 2002
Latest Update: September 3, 2002
jeannecurran@habermas.org
takata@uwp.edu
Lecture Notes and Comments: Tuesday, September 3, 2002.Site Copyright: Jeanne Curran and Susan R. Takata and Individual Authors, September 2002.
"Fair use" encouraged.
Questions on Phi Alphs Delta, law fraternity. Will get up an announcement for all of you interested in law as soon as the heat wave breaks.Started discussion on Lillian Rubin's book on mothers and daughters and aging. Spoke of her Worlds of Pain, in which she described her escape through education from the poor working class. I compared the world in which she saw nothing but the need to escape to the a different perspective of the working class, exemplified more by the writing of bell hooks, Alice Walker, and Zora Neale Hurston. Zora Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God, describes a Negro town in Florida. What comes through is the sheer joy and happiness she knew in that town with those people. Clearly, Lillian Rubin did not share such conviviality and joy in her homebase.
As an aside, I mentioned the death of the heroine's lover (husband) in Their Eyes Were Watching God, in which Alice Walker (of The Color Purple), finally conceded that Zora Neale Hurston killed him off in the novel because he had once beaten the heroine. I vehemently disagree. I thiink the heroine loved him and forgave him that transgression. And it did not recur. I attrribute what I consider inordinate attention to that scene to a misunderstanding of the extent and nature of domestic violence. Not every battle between man and woman fits into that category. The husband was dark in skin color. The heroine was light in skin color. She was being paid attention to by a light skinned man trying to win her away. The violence resulted from pent up angers in that all Black town in Florida over the social status characteristic of skin color. Janie, the heroine, understood that, and therefore did not fight back, though she was fully capable of doing so.
Now back to Zora Neale Hurston and Lillian Rubin. The one describes her pain. The other describes her joy. Both of these books are good examples of voices demanding recognition, in Maria Pia Lara's sense of that term. If any of you wish to read them as part of your evidence of learning, you are welcome to do so. Just let me know, because I'll need to put up study notes for the rest of us.
Then we spoke of the Venus of Willendorf, a small carved piece you could cradle in your palm, from the Paleolithic era, 30,000 - 25,000 years ago. You'll find most of my lecture on this at The Power of Images in Recognition and Authenticity.
Comments: jeanne's comments in blue. And they're not up yet. Tomorrow morning, I hope. jeanne
On Saturday, August 31, 2002, Marcus Pitts wrote:
Subject: Introduction
Women of all races throughout the centuries have been discredited (denied recognition?) for theircontributions to philosophical and abstract ideas. This may be due to conditioning physically and psychologically at an early age. Marcus, this is a giant intellectual leap. You're covering too much territory at once, and the generalization is what leaves you feeling like it's maybe garbage. You need to slice the topic, especially for a short paragraph, down to some detail. Let's consider, for example, that women have never been recognized as great artists. Then, let's go on to consider that there have been no great women artists possibly because they were discouraged at an early age and "learned" not to be great artists. This says a lot less than your first two sentences, but I can get hold of the detail in my head.
Women need to come forth and publicize their theories on race,religion, and gender. Yipes! From being discouraged at an early age to coming forth with theories on race, religion, and gender???? For instance, feminists such as De Lauretis DeLaurentis?, iterates Are you sure you mean to use this word? Or did you mean reiterates? And does she really say it again and again and again? that women are dominated by men due to the "Oedipal tale" which male dominance emerged during childhood experiences. Holy toledo, Marcus. Another great intellectual leap into the Oedipal complex. So there are no great women artists and maybe that's because they were somehow held back in early socialization. But how did we get to the Oedipal complex. You're leaving out steps in your thinking. Either fill them in, or just don't leap so far. This premise Which premise? The Oedipal complex? might be true. Little girls are taught submissive lessons such as don't play hard, aggressive sports such as football and baseball. Instead, girls are taught they should stick to dolls, and other feminine play. Girls are never in touch with self-identification and potential in "male dominated" activity. Would being in touch with male-dminated activity give them recognition??
Then added in another e-mail:
Is my introduction garbage or not? I find the books rather difficult to comprehend. Please help.
Marcus PittsNow, Marcus, this sounds like you. Impatient with me and with yourself. No, it's not garbage. But when you feel that way, it's good to let me know, because I can probably help you figure out why. In this case, you're using fancy language, like "iterates, and putting what you write to me in academic English, before you think it through. Say it first in plain English. Why have women received so little credit for their contributions? What text are you starting from? What's the point. Come into my office and tell me what you're trying to say. Then it will fall into place much more easily.
And the books are difficult to read. So, at first, stick to the bits and pieces I've put up in notes. The bits that make sense to you. Don't tackle the academic language all at once. Are you talking about Maria Pia Lara? Yes, she's difficult. But let's start talking about recognition. What does she mean by recognition? Remember she says that those who have been denied credit and power must use narrative to tell their own stories and to make those who have denied them aware of the harm. Can you use that to explain what you were thinking about? Try it.
On Sunday, September 1, 2002, James Neal wrote:
social justice is a type of justice that tells how people in society meet the needs of people and treat each subgroup equally Good that you cc'd yourself. You might want to keep those cc's until you see that I've posted a response. jeanne
Not a bad definition, James. It's not detailed, but it tells me that you've got the idea. A for doing a good job of putting it in your own words.
On Sunday, September 1, 2002, Marlene ?lastname wrote:
Subject: Henry and MilovanovicSocilogy of Law: Moot Court: Society and Women: "Knowingingness, the power to make a difference in our own lived reality", what a great statement, and how much do women all over the world want to do this, but can't. Good definitiion, but not the one we'll use most of the time. Dictation still from cultural climates wherever we are, still hold a belt to us. When I read what Henry and Milovanovic say, I translate it as "we are (women) all working in sex trade to some extent". Are your referring to Chapter 2 in which the author speaks of the hookers' perceptions of choice? Who do we blame our complexity on? We as women are so complex--and yet if given our speech unto ourselves without having to fight our way out of something --we are as simple as the moon--You define the moon--what is God? Who is God? Women are still the tools of man to manipulate, until we are strong enough as a whole, a Greater Power, to control our own destinies. Why do we wait, why are we afraid, why is this great earth which is truly more in our control, giving birth, etc. so scary to women? Mother Earth did not get Her name being intimidated, She is to be respected. There is no man on earth, that should ever cross her path. Then why, do the rest of us take such a back seat?
Now, wait, Marlene. that's poetry, not theory. Let me see if I can be clearer about that. In class, I spoke of at least two conceptions of knowingness. One, the kind to which you refer, "the knowledge that enables us to make a difference in our lived reality." But another conception of knowingness is that referred to by Jonathan Lear: that of the arrogance of knowing, of being so sure that we know that we don't need to continue to search, to listen, to seek. In his reinterpretation of Freud, he speaks of how if we don't know why we do something, we imagine explanations, for we cannot accept that some of what we do we just do, not for rational reasons, but as simple reactions to the setting. We have a strange attachment to understanding, to knowing. And in the name of that knowledge, that knowingness, we often harm others by denying their reality, by refusing to hear their voices and their stories.
Now let's go back to the hookers of Chapter 2. Because they are accustomed to taking responsibility, to believing in their own agency, they ascribe to themselves more choice than they ever had in the lived reality of their lives. Henry and Milovanovic would have them recognize that theirs was a choice severely limited by the strctural setting in which they found themselves, and tell their stories with a voice that cries out against the exploitation and oppression that they have experienced. In that sense, Henry and Milovanovic would fully agree with your definition of knowingness as the knowledge to transform the reality of their lived experience.
Now I'll tackle your poetry, though I'd prefer tonight to just let it be. Women as complex. Yes, humans are complex. Males, too, I fear. Simple as the moon, if not forced to fight? Could we express that in terms of the primal values of survival in peace, in a world not in danger of self-destruction? That doesn't leave us much chance for simplicity, does it? Women the tools of man to manipulate? But isn't that what Henry and Milovanovic are urging us not to accept? the manipulation? the self-denial that colludes with the belief that we made the choices and now must live with them, even though we had very limited choices? Mother Earth never intimidated? Her ecology has been harmed. We see that harm, and we are fearful of the power that can wield that harm. Not women alone. All of us. For fear in this instance is reasonable. In the scientific dream humans sought to conquer nature only to find that we are our own enemy. And now we must not despair, but search on to find new ways to respect Mother Earth and each of us with her. The poetry offers conclusions; the theory tries to explain how the effects came about and tries to find some alternatives to undo the harm.
On Monday, September 2, 2002, Kelle Leduff wrote:
Hi Jeanne,My name is Kelle LeDuff and I am a student in your Sociology of Law class. I am submitting my first evidence of learning explaining just what I believe embeddedness is. I feel that a perfect explanation of embeddedness is society's expectations of women, as wives and mothers. It is embedded in many cultures that women should submit and be controlled by males. However, we have begun to evolve; finally, and we are looked upon as deviant because we are choosing to be in control of our own destiny. I hope that you do see that I am understanding the topic. I will go into further detail in the red room!!! (The Dear Habermas office? I like that. The Red Room. Someday I'll tell you about the Red people.)
Yes, I see that you have grasped the idea of embeddedness. Good example.
thank you,
Kelle R. LeDuffOn Monday, September 2, 2002, Tammy Starnes wrote:
Hello Jeanne,My name is Tammy Starnes. I am in your Women in Society class which meets TTH 11:30 am - 12:45 pm. I have a few questions for you: Is it o.k. to call you Jeanne, or do you prefer Dr. Curran? Also, I would like to know if you take roll, because I would like to make sure that I am enrolled in your class. You know sometimes the computer messes up and you're not enrolled in a course that you enrolled in.
Well, I read your "Evidence of Learning" and I have been to class everyday. But I still don't quite get it. I would like to know how often do I need to provide you with evidence of my learning?
Good questions, Tammy. No, I don't take roll. But I will try to check that all of you are enrolled. Yes, computers do mess up. Frequently. Especially when the humans running them mess up.
I'm not surprised you don't quite get it. It's different. And "IT" is simply my trust that you are here to learn and that you want to learn. So there is no test, no attempt on my part to catch you at doing less than your best. Think an essay, a paragraph or so, would give me asense that you understand what embeddedness means, or what Maria Pia Lara means by recognition, or . . . all I've done is give you the chance to write that as best you can, and to write on what you have learned instead of our playing Russian Roulette to see if I could pick out some esoteric piece of information you didn't learn so well.
Look at the lecture notes and comments I've put up. James Neal wrote a one-line definition of social justice. Now I know his name, his face, and that he has mastered social justice in his own words. That's not the same amount of learning as Michael Griffin's after class discussion about using education to find an alternative to transform our society into a more just one. I can't ascribe points to these two measures of learning. But as they add up over the semester, I will have a sense of the learning of both. How much for an A? That's really a matter of judgment, isn't it? And since I'll be giving you all regular feedback on what I know about your learning, between us, we should be able to figure out when enough is enough, and you have an A. To help you with that judgment, I tried to put some grades up on Learning Records. But I tired of it very quickly. I'm not really thinking in terms of grades, but in terms of helping you express your learning. Does that help? I hope so.
On Tuesday, September 3, 2002, Sabrina Johnson wrote:
I read the introduction to Moral Textures, your notes were really a big help in understanding Maria Pia Lara's point of view. The part that says, "Recognition involves becoming so visible that authorities are forced to become aware of the pain inflicted by their dominance" I agree because recognition to any situation is the key to solving it.
I was a little confused on the words " illocutionary force". Could you explain it's meaning?
Sabrina Johnson
Sociology 334
Women in SocietyOn Tuesday, September 3, 2002, Bridgett Jackson wrote:
Subject: Class Discussion Response 8/29/02
God's Gender in Text format. What a great phrase, Bridgett!
In the class discussion today, you gave your personal opinion of God. I was quite intrigued.
I think we should clarify for those who might have missed it. My personal sense of God is that S/He is all things. Sometimes I imagine him as a white male father. Sometimes as a woman. Sometimes as a black woman. Depends on the situatedness.
Although our belief in God's existence may be equally recognized, the part of God's gender is where we differ. I believe that God can be likened unto a rainbow. For He created all mankind and according to scripture, He made man in His own image and John 4:24 decribes Him as Spirit. With that in mind, the rainbow describes that various ethnicities, languages, cultures etc. I say this to say that gender has no bearing on his love, blessings, miracles and even tragedies that happen in our lives. For the bible talks about God as no respecter of persons ((Act 10:34) Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons:). Therefore, as previously stated, gender has no bearing upon the works or actions of God towards male or female.
Bridgett Jackson
Bridgett, little time; it's late. OK, I'll buy the rainbow. That's a nice metaphor. I'm willing to accept that I cannot know form beyond human life, and I can accept that ambiguity. We'll come back to this when we read Ruether's book on Sexism and God-Talk. My image of the white father fits in with the whole structural concept of paternalism. And the black female is my way of throwing in the face of those who would tell me otherwise that one must "know" such things about God, that I cannot "know." And that's OK with me.