When and Why did this world turn so black and white?

It’s amazing how much society shapes us into these figures. I know that I do it all the time. I will watch a movie where Clint Eastwood, Russell Crowe, or Brad Pitt walks around in their own ways. All of them showing off their toughness in various ways and I sit there and wonder what makes them different from me. Why can’t I be like them? I change my personality just a little bit more after watch the next blockbuster movie about a “man”, who gets the ladies, has the friends, and beats the bad guys so that I may be like them one day soon. But instead of asking myself what I can do to be like these men in the movies, I should be focusing on what makes me the man that I am and be happy with my looks and my personality. It seems that it is all too often that we stereotype and write people off when they don’t fit in with the way society perceives the right way to be a man or women. Who created these standards to begin with? When did women start wearing skirts that reveal more than my underwear does? When did mean start spending more time at the gym than they did looking in text books? Is this all thanks to Arnold Schwarzenegger and Brad Pitt, or is there more to it? “These are really caricatures. These images have been drilled into us through popular culture and education over the years” (Feinberg,3). This author hit the nail on the head, but over what years? When are we most vulnerable to accept these “norms”, and cave into the idea that women are to be 85 pounds and have long slender legs and men are to be these jacked stocky guys with a 24-pack (abs, not alcohol)?
Looking back into my childhood I never really noticed at any point watching a Disney movie wear the prince or main male character showed off his boulder shoulders and biceps that are larger than his head. I never noticed that they were incredibly “manly”, so at what point does it snap into a boys mind that men are big, strong, assertive creatures? Also, I think the biggest question is why do we care to judge when a man or woman does not fit the typical definition of what they are? Why must we show no mercy to those who view life a little more different than we do? We say that same-sex marriage is a terrible thing because it’s against religion, but why do we care? By allowing these men and women to get married, it doesn’t condemn us to eternal damnation. It does not affect us in any way at all. But we still do not allow it. “Bigotry exacts its toll in flesh and blood. And left unchecked and unchallenged, prejudices create a poisonous climate for us all” (Feinberg,3). Feinberg was never more educational than when she wrote this. Looking back at her reading, you cannot even begin to believe what had happened at that hospital. Why does this doctor care? What difference does it make to treat someone like this? People like this are the reason why everyone is picketing and fighting eachother.

The Abuse of women in our culture today

This subject is one that I wish was never an issue. It is the kind of issue that makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up and my whole upper body shiver as if a cold draft was to blow down my neck. It is the point in the war movies or action tragedies, where you sit there with your fists clenched and wish that you could jump through the flat screen in front of you and hit the man back or worse. The thought of rape and physical abuse against women is a subject that is a "take no prisoners" problem. By this I mean, regardless of the reason or excuse for the action, these men should be taken out back and slowly beaten to death by the women that have been harmed, in order to get a taste of their own medicine.

While reading Dorthy Allison's piece, I found myself in a love-hate battle with the memoir. I never thought that women in America faced violence and abuse at such a young age as she did with her father, which made me extremely angry. A life that becomes shattered at such an early age and left for only that unfortunate soul to pick up the peices and try to mend her life back together. I was unhappy that this story spoke primarily on the hardships of lower, blue-collar, women because growing up in a blue-collar family is an inherit trait that I am proud I have. This story certainly put a strong stereotype for the blue-collar man and I am sure that many women who have read this would assume any man of this class to abuse their wives.

However, all the readings we did for this assingment had a common bond of how inflicting fear through violence on women, certainly gave men the power to use and abuse females of all races, and in some instances even the males. In "War Crimes", men, women, and children were raped and battered by rebels in order to inflict fear and establish dominance in the villages. Citizens were afraid to go out in the fields to work because the rebels would ambush them and have their way. The numbers of people that would go to the local hospital for sexual assault and violence made my temper flair. These authors also showed differences in the views of life after rape. Women in the jungle would go to hospitals to be treated, while Dorothy Allison spoke of her mother be in an actress. She said "She was an actress in the theater of true life, so good that no one suspected what was hidden behind the artfully applied makeup and carefully pinned hair" (Allison, 26). Was this because society in America was too like the one of the jungle, where women were somewhat afraid to admit to being raped because society would act like they were ruined women? It is said that "the stigma of rape leads some men to abandon their wives" (Clarkson, 1). Do women keep this bottled up in fear of what society will think of them? Or is that the way they assume it is to be, since you rarely ever hear word of a friend or family member being raped. Do they keep their mouths shut because everyone else is afraid to open theirs as well?

My Job This summer is working for GE Aviation down in Cincinnati.

Not Who, but what am i?

When you look in the mirror every morning while you brush your teeth, or possibly shave for the 5 guys in this WMS201 course, you possibly ask yourself "WHO is this person I see?". Have you ever realized that this is the only face that you ask 'who' to instead of 'what'? Walking down the sidewalk to class, or sitting in your office cubicle, even entering class, people don't look at you and wonder who you are. They look at you to see what you are. Are you male, female, tall, fat, or skinny? Are you cute, ugly, black, white, or grey? These are the questions that flood peoples brains.

The readings that were assigned covered the realization of these "gawks", and they covered all their expectations and observations of what people seemed like as they stared. Some worried about their stereotypes, while others embraced them. In reality, we are not just one person, we are many. Lauren Martin nailed this idea when she said "Not "just" Lauren, but many Laurens, different versions of who I am, not competing with one another, but all of them calmly residing inside" (Martin, 5). The tie that linked all these writers together was their coping with these stereotypes. They did not fight it in the end, they embraced it. They realized that people will judge you for what you are, instead of who you are. They slowly came to realize after being judged many times, that they can simply embrace their own self-knowing and not fight others views.

Eli Clare's essay was very powerful in the fact that he stated that others "Think I'm(Eli) that pane of glass" (Clare, 225). Eli Clare looks for those he can relate to. He looks up to the circus acts and the drag queens for a search of his own identity. But not just a single name to relate to, like 'fag' or 'freak'.

We all would like to be identified uniquely, not just by our gender, skin color, height, weight, and everything that our eyes depict. We want to be identified by who we are and not what we are. Maybe one day all skin types will look the same. Maybe one day everyone will have a little white, black, hispanic, asian, jewish, catholic, muslim, etc., in all of us and physical stereotypes will diminish. Then maybe one day we will be viewed as WHO we are instead of WHAT.

I, myself, know that I judge based upon looks. I also know that many people judge me based on my looks. However, looks can be perceived in different ways through different eyes. This point was made very clear in Alsutany's piece, when she explained that to some she is Iraqi, while to others she is American.

We view others based off of how we view ourselves. To us, each of us are the control group to an experiment based entirely off of appearant observations. To people at Miami, I am a "red-neck" a "meat-head", or even a "frat-guy". But when I go home, I am a "prep", I am a "role-model", and I am an "athlete". No one has it right when they view me though. No one, expect me.

Below is a link to Brian Burke (father of Brendan Burke), speaking out against homopohobia. His son, who was killed in a car crash this past semester announced he was a homosexual not long ago and his father, who was the General Manager for the US hockey team and his players, back Brendan up with his decision. Brendan was also a member of my fraternity (Sigma Phi Epsilon) at Miami.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/keeping-his-sons-voice-alive-brian-burke-joins-fight-against-homophobia/article1572404/

3 things about me

Three random things about me...
1) I like long walks on the beach
2) I like reading books by a fire
3) I like Coldplay

FALSE.

1) I like Dave Matthews Band
2) I like to Hunt
3) I like to play guitar

http://www.oxfordpress.com/news/crime/miami-sorority-suspended-for-wild-party-702774.html