Part I: Introduction to Industrial Engineering
I joined Virginia Tech as I wanted to pursue a degree in Industrial & Systems Engineering. One of the roots of engineering lie in the interest an individual has in math and science. In 1992, the amount of girls which took math and science courses was very low compared to the boys. But this trend has changed since then as there is not much of a difference in the amount of math and science classes they take. But the amount of boys taking advanced science courses is yet significantly higher than the girls.
Let me briefly explain what consists in Industrial Engineering. This is the least technical engineering as it focuses on management, optimization, statistics, facilities planning and focuses on a wide variety of problem solving when it comes to finding probabilities. Even though this is an engineering degree, many under-graduates from this field enter fields not associated to engineering at all. The reason is that what we learn from this field can be applied to anything as optimization and correct management is required everywhere. The only technical aspects in this field are absorbed by learning the basics of other engineering departments. To complete this degree successfully it is very important to have a strong base in mathematics and logical reasoning. This is the reason Industrial Engineers are hired for a variety of purposes from finance, management, sales and specifically the manufacturing department. Since this engineering has so many different uses it is highly preferred by those individuals with a business background or inclination. Since we learn the basics of other engineering fields, very often we are involved in the role of coordinating with engineers from different fields. The reason I am stressing about this field is because of its nature, women are very open to entering it.
Since I have been in Virginia Tech, I can confidently say that the ratio of men to women in our department here is 55-45. Many of my female friends in the department are doing very well and have also got great opportunities to participate in co-op’s with companies like UPS, GE, Boeing, Accenture and many others. So, from ‘my personal’ experience I can say that there is no issue with regards to coping with the material at hand.
Part II: General and Industrial Engineering Trends
I think I am entering a partially male-dominated field. I say partial now because previously Industrial Engineering was specifically associated to optimization of the factory. The situation is very different now. The average salary for a male in ISE is $44,100 while the average for is $41,300. But another statistic which I found (from Bayer) is that Industrial Engineering is the last in the bottom five natural sciences and engineering occupations for women. My views were based on the amount of international women students who are enrolled in the ISE program at VT. The following are the top five natural sciences and engineering occupations for women:
1. Biological scientist (16,010)2. Postsecondary teacher, Life science & related (7,310)3. Computer & Information scientist (5,280)4. Chemist (except biochem.) (3,420)5. Postsecondary teacher, Physical science & related (3,130)
I also found some additional information on women in the Industrial Engineering field from www.engineeringsalary.com This information does contradict the previous information and I thought it was important to mention both as we can view how different trends are analyzed.
“ Among engineering specialties, industrial, chemical and metallurgical engineers were the only occupations in which women were better represented than the overall percent of total women engineers. “
Patricia Daniel’s an engineer from Berkeley makes an important point when she was working as a TA in the ISE dept. that, “Women in engineering still have to be better than average. They’ll be watching for that first mistake.”
From this statement I realize that many women have been prevented directly and indirectly from society and gender formation which made it uncomfortable for them to think of entering a technical and man-dominated engineering field. Another aspect she pointed out that even if a woman gets an A- in a course she doesn’t think she knows enough while her male partner is flowing with confidence when he gets a C- in his course.
The following is some general data on women in the field of engineering and sciences which further highlights the fact that in engineering equality has not been achieved. (from Bayer)
“
Only 62,060 of the nation's 384,610 Ph.D. natural scientists and engineers are women, just 16% of the total. In no field of science or occupational category are there equal or greater numbers of women and men. Only 10% of natural scientist and engineer Ph.D.'s over 50 years old are women. 25% of the natural scientist and engineer Ph.D.'s 35 years old or under are women. 56% of the natural scientist and engineer Ph.D.'s who are women report having no children at home. More women hold Life and related sciences Ph.D.'s than other broad areas of natural science and engineering (66%). Fewer (4,450) women hold Engineering Ph.D.'s than other broad areas of natural science and engineering. Women Ph.D.'s in natural sciences & engineering fields receive an average of $8,000 to $12,000 less in salary than men in the same fields. Women Ph.D.'s in Engineering receive the highest average salary, $58,300. Women Ph.D.'s in Life science & related receive the lowest average salary, $44,000. Women constitute 39% of the students enrolled in graduate science and engineering programs. The numbers of women enrolled has been increasing steadily since 1980.”
I also came across that in 1996 11,316 women became engineers while 51,798 men became engineers. Women were 19 percent of total undergraduate enrollment in engineering programs in 1997, up from 15 percent a decade earlier. The Society Of Women Engineers says that in 2000 there were 159,440 male ISE’s compared to 31,380(16.6%) female ISE’s.
Part III: Action!
From my understanding of the textbook and my research online I have not found situation where there is inequality at the workplace. I think the most important aspect is about equal opportunities. I don’t think that in this age women in professional fields are treated unfairly and that their salaries have a big difference. The social constructs have created restrictions and biases which do not give equal opportunities to progress in the workplace. For example, suppose there was a project available to implement the ERP program (software) into the factory, statistics say that a man would be preferred for the job as the factory environment does not match a woman. There is also another case of bias against women. Statistics say that during an interview when a man negotiates a higher price, 34% of the times the company agrees. Generally women do not try to negotiate, but the ones who do have a success rate of 9%. In the previous case, the person (whether male or female) who takes the interview of the woman find her to be unprofessional.
The amount of women in Industrial engineering is increasing on a rapid pace and their position in the workplace is getting more diversified and stable. I think this change is not only based on the changing attitudes but also comes from the history of bias against women in the engineering field.
The preferred field in engineering is Computer and Electrical as it is the most in demand and it also yields the highest salary. Many women who are interested in financial research and a flexible work-option after graduation also consider ISE (can work part-time or from home).
Organizations making Contributions:
EngineeringGirl.Org – This website gives the basics and an introduction to engineering for women. They also have many advice tools prospective students can use to decide which courses or their field of interest. They also have a section which highlights the
Society of Women Engineers – It is the driving force that establishes engineering as a highly desirable career aspect for women. They have local help situated in certain locations to advise prospective students.
Even though Title VII was created to remove gender as a criterion for a job, we will never really know why a person was rejected from a particular job. The only way to battle this is to continue to penetrate different segments which are male dominated to keep reducing the difference.
Changes:
Teachers should try to make their course-work relate to actual careers and to challenge students ideas about gender-appropriate careers. (from AAUW)
Schools should increase the number science classes taken by girls.
Certain science classes should be made compulsory until the completion of high school.
Sources:
http://blog.phds.org/2007/7/30/negotiating-equal-pay
http://blog.phds.org/women-in-science
http://www.iienet2.org/Default.aspx
http://www.swe.org/SWE/ProgDev/stat/earnbach_table.html
http://www.coe.berkeley.edu/forefront/fall02/women_p2.html
http://www.engineering.tufts.edu/wieo/collegewomen.htm
http://www.bayerus.com/msms/news/background.cfm?mode=detail&id=199804a
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Monday, August 6, 2007
CRJ 3
Social construction of gender consists of adjectives intentionally placed to emphasize the notion of femininity and masculinity. These adjectives/attributes have been created social processes that reflect the various workings of power in society. These notions do change through history and different cultures. Lorber says that since gender is central in shaping our lives , much of what is gendered we do not recognize, and it is made normal and ordinary and occurs on a subconscious level. As an example the basic notions attached to femininity are passive, dependant, intuitive, emotional and masculinity are strong, independent, in control and out of touch emotionally.
First I will look at sexual violence associated with masculinity. Over time men have been associated with the machismo element, which revolves around potent sexuality and an affinity to sexual violence. We have heard about stories girlfriends and wives getting raped by their boyfriends and husbands. From the data I found on rape, over 25% of rape cases are by someone intimate. This can occur in a variety of situation. For example when in a relationship if the girlfriend refuses to cross a certain limit in the extent of sexual activities, this can cause a violent reaction from the boyfriend. There could be situation where the girl is made to submit to his wants. I also consider this sexual assault. In the case of marriage many men think that they own their wives and they have the right to have sex with them when they want. In case the wife refuses, there have been many incidents where the husband will beat the wife and she will eventually have to give in to his violent behavior. Rape by family members is also more than 25%. We all have varied sexual urges. In case of family members, they have no control over their urges and they feel they can dominate the victim. The reason they can so easily dominate the victim is because they know that for the victim to come out in the open is going to cause a lot of embarrassment and pain to the entire family. There are also cases when a man cannot persuade the girl into a relationship or a sexual encounter and anger builds up inside him. He feels that he has the right to take revenge against him being rejected and will rape that woman. These are some of the ways I feel that masculinity has been involved in sexual violence.
When I think about femininity I don’t think those attributes directly contribute to sexual violence. I think that sometimes the strength of masculinity actually forces upon or results in the attributes associated with femininity. Another statistic I would like to look at is that 60% of sexual assaults go unreported. This shows that our society does not welcome such victim and in fact looks down upon them instead of showing more concern.
In conclusion I would say that masculinity of the social constructs of gender have a direct effect on sexual violence. When a man associates the thoughts that to be real man he has to be dominating and in control (e.g of his wife) the chances of forced sexual assault increases. In few cases it can also happen that the woman chooses to be submissive as she thinks she has no way out.
First I will look at sexual violence associated with masculinity. Over time men have been associated with the machismo element, which revolves around potent sexuality and an affinity to sexual violence. We have heard about stories girlfriends and wives getting raped by their boyfriends and husbands. From the data I found on rape, over 25% of rape cases are by someone intimate. This can occur in a variety of situation. For example when in a relationship if the girlfriend refuses to cross a certain limit in the extent of sexual activities, this can cause a violent reaction from the boyfriend. There could be situation where the girl is made to submit to his wants. I also consider this sexual assault. In the case of marriage many men think that they own their wives and they have the right to have sex with them when they want. In case the wife refuses, there have been many incidents where the husband will beat the wife and she will eventually have to give in to his violent behavior. Rape by family members is also more than 25%. We all have varied sexual urges. In case of family members, they have no control over their urges and they feel they can dominate the victim. The reason they can so easily dominate the victim is because they know that for the victim to come out in the open is going to cause a lot of embarrassment and pain to the entire family. There are also cases when a man cannot persuade the girl into a relationship or a sexual encounter and anger builds up inside him. He feels that he has the right to take revenge against him being rejected and will rape that woman. These are some of the ways I feel that masculinity has been involved in sexual violence.
When I think about femininity I don’t think those attributes directly contribute to sexual violence. I think that sometimes the strength of masculinity actually forces upon or results in the attributes associated with femininity. Another statistic I would like to look at is that 60% of sexual assaults go unreported. This shows that our society does not welcome such victim and in fact looks down upon them instead of showing more concern.
In conclusion I would say that masculinity of the social constructs of gender have a direct effect on sexual violence. When a man associates the thoughts that to be real man he has to be dominating and in control (e.g of his wife) the chances of forced sexual assault increases. In few cases it can also happen that the woman chooses to be submissive as she thinks she has no way out.
Friday, August 3, 2007
These are the statistical facts I told my friends:
Every two and a half minutes, somewhere in America, someone is sexually assaulted.
One in six American women are victims of sexual assault, and one in 33 men.
In 2004-2005, there were an average annual 200,780 victims of rape, attempted rape or sexual assault.
About 44% of rape victims are under age 18, and 80% are under age 30.
Since 1993, rape/sexual assault has fallen by over 69%.
60% of cases are not reported.
About 44% of rape victims are under the age of 18
About 15% are under the age of 12
1 rape occurs every 8 minutes.
Verbal info on vaginal mutilation which takes place in tribes in Africa.
Reaction (male friends):
My friend was shocked with information especially with the amount of sexual assaults that take place. They were even shocked about the rape statistics. They don’t get to hear about such statistics in the media and the information was very revealing. One of my friends said that we need to questions ourselves as a community.
Even though one of my friends was from Kuwait he did not have any personal stories to share.
The reason he thinks violence against women takes place and more specifically sexual violence is because of lust, mental and psychological problems and the society.
He thinks that the government needs to step up and take drastic actions to reduce such occurrences. United and strong family values should spread amongst society. The family and society should create awareness in different groups. Parents should discuss these matters openly with children and make them feel comfortable to talk about a matter if something has happened. Schools should have classes informing students of the risks. Communities should be notified immediately if a registered sex offender is going to live close to their area.
Reaction (female friends):
Their initial reaction was sadness and that they hope it changes. Cher said that she hopes the class is not wasting time and looking at numbers but investing and practicing creative ways to change the number and help specific women.
Cher had a personal story to share about a close friend. Her friend was raped either by her father or her uncle at the age of 12. Now her relationship with guys is very casual. Sexual intimacy also comes very easily to her, and by this I mean she has multiple partners. She also has trouble getting close to boys and girls and she finds it difficult to build friendship. She is very suicidal and the surprising part is that she blames herself for it. She seems like a normal girl until you catch her on moody days.
Cher and Prachi felt that men should be the leaders in the relationship, but many times men use this too aggressively. They think that men should be submissive too and that being submissive should be equal. Women do not know how to be assertive. Families should be aware of aggressive personalities. People should be educated and men should create awareness and talk to buddies about respecting women. Also to create more opportunities within communities to reduce aggression.
My reactions:
I thought the reaction from my male friends was the standard thought process against violence to women. But I shocked with the reaction and story which Cher and Prachi shared. I felt good when they said that learning about a matter doesn’t stop there until you actually implement or take actions towards that. She is the first person I have spoken to someone who has a friend who’s sexually assaulted. The manner in which she told me the information made me really think about the long-lasting effects of violence. I had heard stories and read in papers that a high percentage of family members are involved in sexual assaults. This just makes me think that we cannot trust because of blood-relation but just leave it on character.
Every two and a half minutes, somewhere in America, someone is sexually assaulted.
One in six American women are victims of sexual assault, and one in 33 men.
In 2004-2005, there were an average annual 200,780 victims of rape, attempted rape or sexual assault.
About 44% of rape victims are under age 18, and 80% are under age 30.
Since 1993, rape/sexual assault has fallen by over 69%.
60% of cases are not reported.
About 44% of rape victims are under the age of 18
About 15% are under the age of 12
1 rape occurs every 8 minutes.
Verbal info on vaginal mutilation which takes place in tribes in Africa.
Reaction (male friends):
My friend was shocked with information especially with the amount of sexual assaults that take place. They were even shocked about the rape statistics. They don’t get to hear about such statistics in the media and the information was very revealing. One of my friends said that we need to questions ourselves as a community.
Even though one of my friends was from Kuwait he did not have any personal stories to share.
The reason he thinks violence against women takes place and more specifically sexual violence is because of lust, mental and psychological problems and the society.
He thinks that the government needs to step up and take drastic actions to reduce such occurrences. United and strong family values should spread amongst society. The family and society should create awareness in different groups. Parents should discuss these matters openly with children and make them feel comfortable to talk about a matter if something has happened. Schools should have classes informing students of the risks. Communities should be notified immediately if a registered sex offender is going to live close to their area.
Reaction (female friends):
Their initial reaction was sadness and that they hope it changes. Cher said that she hopes the class is not wasting time and looking at numbers but investing and practicing creative ways to change the number and help specific women.
Cher had a personal story to share about a close friend. Her friend was raped either by her father or her uncle at the age of 12. Now her relationship with guys is very casual. Sexual intimacy also comes very easily to her, and by this I mean she has multiple partners. She also has trouble getting close to boys and girls and she finds it difficult to build friendship. She is very suicidal and the surprising part is that she blames herself for it. She seems like a normal girl until you catch her on moody days.
Cher and Prachi felt that men should be the leaders in the relationship, but many times men use this too aggressively. They think that men should be submissive too and that being submissive should be equal. Women do not know how to be assertive. Families should be aware of aggressive personalities. People should be educated and men should create awareness and talk to buddies about respecting women. Also to create more opportunities within communities to reduce aggression.
My reactions:
I thought the reaction from my male friends was the standard thought process against violence to women. But I shocked with the reaction and story which Cher and Prachi shared. I felt good when they said that learning about a matter doesn’t stop there until you actually implement or take actions towards that. She is the first person I have spoken to someone who has a friend who’s sexually assaulted. The manner in which she told me the information made me really think about the long-lasting effects of violence. I had heard stories and read in papers that a high percentage of family members are involved in sexual assaults. This just makes me think that we cannot trust because of blood-relation but just leave it on character.
Monday, July 30, 2007
Activity #5
I loved the short film. This film has a great message and it delivers it with intensity. It talks about how our perception of beauty got so distorted. The movie shows the transformation of a woman into something which is not realistic to the common man. The beauty ideal talks about the increasing standards and pressures which have been set for women. The short film hits the point making all of us realize that what we see in movies and television is all fake.
We are very influenced by the media, and we have started to idolize the celebrities for the wrong reasons. From this movie we should realize how easy it is for a person to have a temporary make-over. I have generally thought that we should be strong within ourselves and not be moved. But I realize that this has crept into many forms of society and we have become accustomed to certain things. As long as it doesn’t harm the general population it seems to be fine.
But we never know of the individuals who may be affected by the peer pressure of having to look up to date in all terms. But I will not agree to the fact that corporations and money making organizations have created perfect looking individuals to affect us. I think it’s a joint effort, weakness and domination, like yin and yang.
We are very influenced by the media, and we have started to idolize the celebrities for the wrong reasons. From this movie we should realize how easy it is for a person to have a temporary make-over. I have generally thought that we should be strong within ourselves and not be moved. But I realize that this has crept into many forms of society and we have become accustomed to certain things. As long as it doesn’t harm the general population it seems to be fine.
But we never know of the individuals who may be affected by the peer pressure of having to look up to date in all terms. But I will not agree to the fact that corporations and money making organizations have created perfect looking individuals to affect us. I think it’s a joint effort, weakness and domination, like yin and yang.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Critical Response #2
Critical Response #2
Gender is an important aspect of a person’s identity, shaping social life and informing attitudes, behavior and the individual sense of self. The author goes ahead to say that gender is a social script shaping the qualities of femininity and masculinity. Therefore, I think culture has a significant role in the gender attributes which have accumulated over the evolution of time. Simply put, gender is the social organization of sexual difference (biological and cultural). Sex has two meanings. The first is the act of intercourse between two individuals and the other is determination of the gender. According to me gender and sexuality, share many different relationships. By this I mean that sexuality generally means sexual orientation. If we consider gender as the attributes of a particular sex, generally the sexual orientation and the attributes of gender favor heterosexuality and especially men in heterosexual position compared to people in other categories. Hence, gender and sexuality impose limitations towards any direction a person wants to act or behave towards. This is one of greatest problems we face as a society with development at such rapid scale in all segments.
I’m not sure if I understood your question about explaining at least three different frameworks of making sense of gender, but my understanding is that on what grounds is gender justified into being biased or directed towards a particular gender. Social construction is based on previous experiences of different cultures. Another aspect is biological differences of man and woman. The biology of man supports the strenuous physical labor which is endured for the particular jobs. The third aspect would be giving in to the mass mentality. Many of us may have felt the bias towards a particular side, but we are afraid to go against it as we feel we will seem the odd one out.
I have a personal example to explain why I feel gender is socially constructed. (Just a recap) I am an international student from India who joined VT at the age 18 in fall’03. I was in a serious relationship since 3 years before with Sneha who was 4 years older to me(when I joined VT). During that time her elder cousin told her to reconsider our relationship. Her basis was that even when I graduate I would not be on my feet (monetarily independent from my father irrespective of him being able to take care of me till much later). Her cousin thought that the future with someone who is dependant on his father will not be helpful for her in the long run. I view this as the society around her who is cautious irrespective of the emotional attachments around us and has chosen to take the safer way out. This stands out more for me because the cousin was in an emotional relationship and chose the safer route out.
After reading “ Gender in A Transnational World I would prefer to answer the following questions from my personal perspective. Regarding the relationships between science/technology and sex/gender according to me are that, primarily the internet allows one to be transparent. By this I mean that we control most of the attributes we give out online regarding behavior or actual orientation. Therefore, we can view the internet as more open and flexible to one’s orientation or situational behavior without imposing a judgment with a final conclusion.(I am not sure if I have clearly answered the questions you posed. If you feel that I am going in the wrong direction to what you require I shall correct and repost my entry with the correct modifications.)
Gender is an important aspect of a person’s identity, shaping social life and informing attitudes, behavior and the individual sense of self. The author goes ahead to say that gender is a social script shaping the qualities of femininity and masculinity. Therefore, I think culture has a significant role in the gender attributes which have accumulated over the evolution of time. Simply put, gender is the social organization of sexual difference (biological and cultural). Sex has two meanings. The first is the act of intercourse between two individuals and the other is determination of the gender. According to me gender and sexuality, share many different relationships. By this I mean that sexuality generally means sexual orientation. If we consider gender as the attributes of a particular sex, generally the sexual orientation and the attributes of gender favor heterosexuality and especially men in heterosexual position compared to people in other categories. Hence, gender and sexuality impose limitations towards any direction a person wants to act or behave towards. This is one of greatest problems we face as a society with development at such rapid scale in all segments.
I’m not sure if I understood your question about explaining at least three different frameworks of making sense of gender, but my understanding is that on what grounds is gender justified into being biased or directed towards a particular gender. Social construction is based on previous experiences of different cultures. Another aspect is biological differences of man and woman. The biology of man supports the strenuous physical labor which is endured for the particular jobs. The third aspect would be giving in to the mass mentality. Many of us may have felt the bias towards a particular side, but we are afraid to go against it as we feel we will seem the odd one out.
I have a personal example to explain why I feel gender is socially constructed. (Just a recap) I am an international student from India who joined VT at the age 18 in fall’03. I was in a serious relationship since 3 years before with Sneha who was 4 years older to me(when I joined VT). During that time her elder cousin told her to reconsider our relationship. Her basis was that even when I graduate I would not be on my feet (monetarily independent from my father irrespective of him being able to take care of me till much later). Her cousin thought that the future with someone who is dependant on his father will not be helpful for her in the long run. I view this as the society around her who is cautious irrespective of the emotional attachments around us and has chosen to take the safer way out. This stands out more for me because the cousin was in an emotional relationship and chose the safer route out.
After reading “ Gender in A Transnational World I would prefer to answer the following questions from my personal perspective. Regarding the relationships between science/technology and sex/gender according to me are that, primarily the internet allows one to be transparent. By this I mean that we control most of the attributes we give out online regarding behavior or actual orientation. Therefore, we can view the internet as more open and flexible to one’s orientation or situational behavior without imposing a judgment with a final conclusion.(I am not sure if I have clearly answered the questions you posed. If you feel that I am going in the wrong direction to what you require I shall correct and repost my entry with the correct modifications.)
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Activity 3
I was not surprised with the results which were moderate association of male with career and female with family. This is true. I do feel the need of myself to have a stable career and would like my future partner to take care of the family. But, importantly I have absolutely no restriction if this scenario never happens and my future partner is a workaholic (I could enjoy this too).
This was a great exercise to start the class because this test is targeting the subconscious. The interesting aspect is that we may feel we are liberal or believe in equal rights, but this test can give us an indication about our subconscious which makes us realize how we think about the issue. I am not surprised by the results in which moderate association is there with most people.
It is very important to think about our biases because they cause narrow-minded thinking. With biases we are not able to view things as they are or are not able to learn more or go in depth into a particular matter. Yes, I have come to notice from person to person people are alright with certain prejudices but not with others. I think this is very variable and completely depends from person and situation and cannot be generalized.
Additionally I took the sexuality and skin-tone test. I faired moderately towards its prediction.
This was a great exercise to start the class because this test is targeting the subconscious. The interesting aspect is that we may feel we are liberal or believe in equal rights, but this test can give us an indication about our subconscious which makes us realize how we think about the issue. I am not surprised by the results in which moderate association is there with most people.
It is very important to think about our biases because they cause narrow-minded thinking. With biases we are not able to view things as they are or are not able to learn more or go in depth into a particular matter. Yes, I have come to notice from person to person people are alright with certain prejudices but not with others. I think this is very variable and completely depends from person and situation and cannot be generalized.
Additionally I took the sexuality and skin-tone test. I faired moderately towards its prediction.
Activity #4
Kate Bornstein is woman (she underwent male-to-female sex change oper.) who is a lesbian feminist writer among other things. Her aim is to break the gender system. She does not view gender by any biological factor. She does not like the restrictions posed to a particular gender.
After taking the test I was not surprised with the questions she asked. My result was Novice which shows that I’m flexible in most areas and reserved in certain. Some of the questions regarding falling in love with a same sex individual or a person with a sex change were asked to see if society perspectives affect our normal course of falling in love. I understand that she is getting down to the basic of a particular feeling and hopes that the feeling not get affected by social norms and thoughts. She feels that discovering one’s gender is a powerful path to enlightenment (from article).
This test was made to test how we are affected by gender assumptions and our gender role. More than the inference of the test I think the important thing is start of questioning within ourselves.
After taking the test I was not surprised with the questions she asked. My result was Novice which shows that I’m flexible in most areas and reserved in certain. Some of the questions regarding falling in love with a same sex individual or a person with a sex change were asked to see if society perspectives affect our normal course of falling in love. I understand that she is getting down to the basic of a particular feeling and hopes that the feeling not get affected by social norms and thoughts. She feels that discovering one’s gender is a powerful path to enlightenment (from article).
This test was made to test how we are affected by gender assumptions and our gender role. More than the inference of the test I think the important thing is start of questioning within ourselves.
Monday, July 16, 2007
Critical Response Journal No.1
Critical Response Journal No.1
I am going to begin this journal by explaining the concepts of the material I have understood in this class so far. The women’s movement began in the early 1900’s. During that time there were few women who were able to make an impact. In the 1970’s the feminist movement started picking up significant momentum. During this time the concern regarding the ill-treatment and the absence from powerful positions came to light. Because of this reason people from various fields concurred to start the Women Studies Department in many college campuses. I think at that time there was visible inequality in many aspects of life amongst men and women. Feminism refers to the equality and justice of women. From the 1970-1990’s there very various rebellions by the feminists in many different aspects of society. One of the most important changes can be noticed in the field of education. Chapter 2 starts with explaining the underlying racist factors in our society. These subtle acts of racism which happen are part of our daily lives. The chapter elaborates how white men, institutions favor the male gender over female. I don’t agree with the author over here. I think she is being very strict and expects a high level of perfection on how organizations should treat women fairly. I am not against fair treatment at all but not all organizations can change as quickly as women changed their position in society. I also did not agree with the author by hinting that the English Language is racist. It is not the language which is racist, but by people long time ago who started using a particular phase (in their time it could also be justified). We have chosen to continue to use that phrase because it has become a trend. I know I have stressed on trends many times but I think that they hold important information on the general pattern of behavior of a similar group.
In the “F Word” activity I stated that I was a postfeminist. I stand by that because I think that no inequality exists. But I have realized I yet can’t say that equality among men and women exists. I think that the issue about inequality should be looked at very seriously in the developing and under-developed countries. For highly-developed countries the problem should be tackled by changing the mind-set of the future population. Something the author has not pointed out so far is that in many situations the woman is incapable of becoming independent and due to that reason is suffering ill-treatment. The support required should be available to women with this kind of need. In my personal experience, I have tried to closely observe many of my female friends when we talk about women. It tends to get very sensitive if the topic is about any bias shown towards women at the workplace. I have always disagreed with them. I am not narrow minded but I believe that one can’t have everything. My conversations with them have revolved around different salaries for the same job or more opportunities for a male colleague. These differences arise because as human over the years we have evolved by forming many biases (many of which are subconscious) and have become accustomed to many trends. This is not an excuse to not looking at a situation equally but the realization of the cause should be used to tackle these kind of thoughts.
The relationship between the person’s situation and their perspective is a very important factor. I come from India, where there is inequality among the sexes. I have witnessed 13-14 year old girls who are married off by their parents. But I think it very helpful that highly-developed countries are devoting efforts towards women studies. The reason is because nations all over the world can look at the model nation and hope to imbibe its changes.
I am going to begin this journal by explaining the concepts of the material I have understood in this class so far. The women’s movement began in the early 1900’s. During that time there were few women who were able to make an impact. In the 1970’s the feminist movement started picking up significant momentum. During this time the concern regarding the ill-treatment and the absence from powerful positions came to light. Because of this reason people from various fields concurred to start the Women Studies Department in many college campuses. I think at that time there was visible inequality in many aspects of life amongst men and women. Feminism refers to the equality and justice of women. From the 1970-1990’s there very various rebellions by the feminists in many different aspects of society. One of the most important changes can be noticed in the field of education. Chapter 2 starts with explaining the underlying racist factors in our society. These subtle acts of racism which happen are part of our daily lives. The chapter elaborates how white men, institutions favor the male gender over female. I don’t agree with the author over here. I think she is being very strict and expects a high level of perfection on how organizations should treat women fairly. I am not against fair treatment at all but not all organizations can change as quickly as women changed their position in society. I also did not agree with the author by hinting that the English Language is racist. It is not the language which is racist, but by people long time ago who started using a particular phase (in their time it could also be justified). We have chosen to continue to use that phrase because it has become a trend. I know I have stressed on trends many times but I think that they hold important information on the general pattern of behavior of a similar group.
In the “F Word” activity I stated that I was a postfeminist. I stand by that because I think that no inequality exists. But I have realized I yet can’t say that equality among men and women exists. I think that the issue about inequality should be looked at very seriously in the developing and under-developed countries. For highly-developed countries the problem should be tackled by changing the mind-set of the future population. Something the author has not pointed out so far is that in many situations the woman is incapable of becoming independent and due to that reason is suffering ill-treatment. The support required should be available to women with this kind of need. In my personal experience, I have tried to closely observe many of my female friends when we talk about women. It tends to get very sensitive if the topic is about any bias shown towards women at the workplace. I have always disagreed with them. I am not narrow minded but I believe that one can’t have everything. My conversations with them have revolved around different salaries for the same job or more opportunities for a male colleague. These differences arise because as human over the years we have evolved by forming many biases (many of which are subconscious) and have become accustomed to many trends. This is not an excuse to not looking at a situation equally but the realization of the cause should be used to tackle these kind of thoughts.
The relationship between the person’s situation and their perspective is a very important factor. I come from India, where there is inequality among the sexes. I have witnessed 13-14 year old girls who are married off by their parents. But I think it very helpful that highly-developed countries are devoting efforts towards women studies. The reason is because nations all over the world can look at the model nation and hope to imbibe its changes.
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Hello,
I interviewed two of my roommates as I just found how to go about completing the assignment. I will try and find one more person to complete the survey.
Advit Duddhu (Friend)
(Q1) His first reaction was ‘are you gay?’ Later he said he’s glad that I want to learn about women.
(Q2) His first reaction was feminist sounded like a negative connotation. He thinks women use themselves to their advantage in good and bad ways.
Prachi Sharma (friend)
(Q1) Her first reaction was surprised.
(Q2) She thinks feminism is about politics. She has a neutral opinion regarding me being a feminist or having those thoughts.
I do not consider myself as a feminist, My friend Advit and Prachi have similar views for different reasons. Advit’s reaction saying that I was gay was surprising but it was his original reaction. He did not mean it in an offensive way. I really respect that Prachi being a woman knows how feminism is blown out of proportion.
I don’t believe equality can exist or that we can get everything we want. When we combine these two factors, I feel we reach a pointless struggle towards one’s right of being able to rebel or revolutionize.
My concern rises when I think about how the different cultures of the world treat their women. This does worry and affect me. But this does not mean that the most developed countries in the world cannot debate about feminist issues.
I am waiting to read more about the issues involved with feminism.
Speak to you guys soon.
I interviewed two of my roommates as I just found how to go about completing the assignment. I will try and find one more person to complete the survey.
Advit Duddhu (Friend)
(Q1) His first reaction was ‘are you gay?’ Later he said he’s glad that I want to learn about women.
(Q2) His first reaction was feminist sounded like a negative connotation. He thinks women use themselves to their advantage in good and bad ways.
Prachi Sharma (friend)
(Q1) Her first reaction was surprised.
(Q2) She thinks feminism is about politics. She has a neutral opinion regarding me being a feminist or having those thoughts.
I do not consider myself as a feminist, My friend Advit and Prachi have similar views for different reasons. Advit’s reaction saying that I was gay was surprising but it was his original reaction. He did not mean it in an offensive way. I really respect that Prachi being a woman knows how feminism is blown out of proportion.
I don’t believe equality can exist or that we can get everything we want. When we combine these two factors, I feel we reach a pointless struggle towards one’s right of being able to rebel or revolutionize.
My concern rises when I think about how the different cultures of the world treat their women. This does worry and affect me. But this does not mean that the most developed countries in the world cannot debate about feminist issues.
I am waiting to read more about the issues involved with feminism.
Speak to you guys soon.
Monday, July 9, 2007
Intro for WS class
Hey
My name is Anay Choksey, and I am an International Student from Bombay, India.
I came to VT in Fall’03 to pursue Industrial & Systems Engineering.
I’m not the typical engineer type; I only chose this major as it’s the least technical and associated to management, business, optimization (my fav.) and ergonomics.
I plan to join my father’s business (manufacturing of executive chairs and modular kitchens) after getting some work experience with furniture companies in Europe.
I am taking two other courses and staying in Blacksburg.
The two things I’m most passionate about are film direction and cooking. There is a European Lebanese chain which I want to bring to India besides starting a small restaurant in Bombay. I love cooking (especially when one has the freedom to be creative), so please let me know if you want me to prepare anything from Indian to Thai.
Now coming to WS, I am interested in the history of changes which have taken place regarding the treatment of women. I also want to know how different cultures have treated women in the past (Middle-East, Jewish, African Tribes). When it comes to equality, I have a lot of different thoughts which I'm sure we'll discuss soon. I am also eager to understand the reasons and issues associated with feminism.
My email id is anay@vt.edu and my MSN id is anaychoksey@hotmail.com.
This class is going to be fun. Speak to you soon guys.
Anay
My name is Anay Choksey, and I am an International Student from Bombay, India.
I came to VT in Fall’03 to pursue Industrial & Systems Engineering.
I’m not the typical engineer type; I only chose this major as it’s the least technical and associated to management, business, optimization (my fav.) and ergonomics.
I plan to join my father’s business (manufacturing of executive chairs and modular kitchens) after getting some work experience with furniture companies in Europe.
I am taking two other courses and staying in Blacksburg.
The two things I’m most passionate about are film direction and cooking. There is a European Lebanese chain which I want to bring to India besides starting a small restaurant in Bombay. I love cooking (especially when one has the freedom to be creative), so please let me know if you want me to prepare anything from Indian to Thai.
Now coming to WS, I am interested in the history of changes which have taken place regarding the treatment of women. I also want to know how different cultures have treated women in the past (Middle-East, Jewish, African Tribes). When it comes to equality, I have a lot of different thoughts which I'm sure we'll discuss soon. I am also eager to understand the reasons and issues associated with feminism.
My email id is anay@vt.edu and my MSN id is anaychoksey@hotmail.com.
This class is going to be fun. Speak to you soon guys.
Anay
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