The sociological concepts running throughout the text of “The Tattoo” were addressed and summarized in the final chapter through a dramatic and deeply intense ending to this tragic tale. The fate of the characters, although almost expected, was in many ways rationalized by their interpretations of reality, driven by the worlds in which they were surrounded. But was this fate that the characters experienced, or was it self fulfilling prophecy based on their views of love, life, culture, and people?
In the final chapter, Ken and Claudia move their lives to Ken’s “home turf” on the windward side of the island. With the prospect of a new child on the way and no where else to turn, Ken and Claudia fell that going to live with Ken’s father and save money is their only way off of the island. Upon their arrival, Ken learns of the downhill road that his best friend Koa has taken, immediately allowing peer pressure to override his boundaries. The story delves into one of violence, racism and conflict around every corner. Ken, Claudia, Koa and Kahala all find themselves intertwined in lives they despise, full of trauma and hate.
In the final chapter of the book, race and gender roles are again a common theme. In addition to this, we come to see where the perceptions and ideologies of each of the characters ultimately led them. Throughout the chapter, there are instances where gender roles become apparent. Both Koa and Ken are dominant males in the household, who expect the women to care for the kids, and often times, keep their mouths shut. There is definitely dominance and masculinity present within their personas. In addition to this, race is addressed on a whole new level in the end. Two instances really speak as to the character’s ideas of race. The first shows discrimination at its peak. This is when Claudia and Ken’s father get into a heated “race war (pg. 196).” His father is attacking her for being Korean and “haole,” and she spats back at him about being Japanese. On both sides there were racial stereotypes and ethnophaulisms- derogatory terms about another race (Parrillo, pg. 91). In addition to this, they attacked each other’s respective native countries as a whole. It truly portrayed the way that history between people of various ethnicities embeds itself into our minds and is passed from generation to generation as a matter of conflict.
Another aspect of race that is visited in the novel is when Ken actually is speaking his thoughts on the different races. This was an afterthought that Ken was telling his cellmate Cal, as he reflected on all of the things that led up to his incarceration:
“I can say race, but it’s not that simple, especially in Hawai’i. It’s not just black and white, it’s Hawaiian, haole, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Filipino, Samoan, Vietnamese. I could go on and on. Hell, look at you, you’re white, but you went through the same kind of shit……It’s funny, I think about race and sometimes feel that it would be a lot easier if we were actually that different from each other. I ain’t here because of race, I’m here because I’m human (pg. 216-217).”
I felt that this excerpt was quite insightful. It is a shame that Ken did not come to this realization until later in life. Ironically, he spends his time in prison, where racism is a prevalent (and almost necessary) aspect of everyday life.
Another sociological concept that I wanted to touch on was only briefly addresses, but definitely noteworthy. Ken and Claudia reconnected with an old friend through Kahala. They went to dinner with this girl. It turns out that after high school, she had become a lawyer. Apparently this “superior” position in society made Kan rather uneasy. As he wonders why he had no sexual feelings for her, he thinks, “But why didn’t she tempt me? Maybe because her position as a new upper-class attorney kind of made her the enemy (pg. 194).” Just as race and gender were prevailing divisions in his life, so were class divisions; a clear indication of his feelings of inferiority.
As far as relating to the story at this point, my experiences are limited. When I think of how the novel parallels my life, I can more relate to Claudia than the others in the end. I have been often considered one of the more “successful” people in my family, in that, I have never been jailed or on drugs, etc. I have pretty much watched my entire family destroy their lives, until now, where they almost all sit at rock bottom. I, on the other hand, am completing my degree and raising my two, beautiful children in a healthy and loving home. I can relate to Claudia, in that she is a mother, as well as seeing those you love destroy their lives, and themselves. She got away, to care for her child and separate herself from that scene, just as I have done.
All of the outside influences and ideas in Ken’s life were deeply internalized in him. His ideas of race, gender, and socio-equality, were engrained in him, through both the people he was surrounded with, and his own personal experiences and relationships with people. Given many of the hardships that Ken was faced with, along with the relationship he had with his father (and loss of mother), one can wonder what was left to chance or fate, and what was truly a “self fulfilling prophecy.” He recreated the world he had grown to know.
Works Cited
McKinney, Chris. The Tattoo. Honolulu: Mutual, 1999. Print.
Parrillo, Vincent N. Understanding Race and Ethnic Relations. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon, 2008. Print
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Monday, November 29, 2010
America's Next Top Model: Glamorization of Violence and Degradation
In analyzing a form of popular culture from a sociological perspective, one television show immediately popped into my mind: America’s Next Top Model (ANTM). After only seeing a few episodes of the show, I was amazed that the issues presented in the show are an acceptable part of mainstream media. Further research on past episodes left me disgusted, to say the least. The show, created by supermodel Tyra Banks, is nothing short of shocking and controversial, chock full of racial and gender issues, stereotypes, violence and the degradation of women.
The show is a “reality” contest on which young women compete to become “America’s Next Top Model,” in hopes of becoming a model professionally. Each episode, the women are eliminated based on the opinions of a panel of judges. Throughout the show, the ladies are primped and prepped and then faced with a challenge of completing some sort of themed photo shoot, often which is degrading or humiliating, not to mention the harsh and generally unfounded comments provided to them by the judges.
The overall context of the show places huge emphasis on gender roles and ideologies, infused with a glaringly obvious sexual sentiment. The bulk of the photo shoots consist of little clothing (in some instances nude, with paint “covering” certain parts), and sexually provocative and even explicit subject matter. The girls picked to compete on ANTM are the typical tall, thin, waif-like supermodel types; apparently the ideal body type for portraying fashion. In fact, there has even been recent controversy over a promo for the show, in which the woman depicted was excessively thin (an apology from Tyra Banks followed the airing of the promo). In one season, the height standard for the women was lowered to give “short” women the chance to model. The woman in this season were required to be under 5’7”, which is really not all that short, given the fact that the average height of women in the United States, according to the National Center for Health Statistics is 63.8” (5’3”) [CDC, 2006]. It appears that most of the women in the United States will never be a ‘super’model in accordance with these acute beauty standards. Aside from setting these generally unobtainable beauty standards to even audition for the show, the women selected are subjected to a full makeover in order to be supermodel beautiful, as set by the standards of Tyra and the other judges on the show. It is a truly remarkable example of gender roles in today’s society.
Although the overall context of the show seems to be a montage of stereotypes, gender typing, and beauty ideals, it is what is in the individual episodes that is strikingly unsettling. There have been many photo shoots on the show that portray death, violence, objectification of women and even homelessness as “art” and “fashion.” These issues are glamorized in a way that is both offensive and degrading. There have also been shoots in which the women are nude, except for some paint on their bodies, posed next to nude men, as well as ones where the models were “transformed” to a new race through costuming and makeup. The latter included the use of “blackface” for the lighter women to make them appear darker. The idea was to make the woman look bi-racial, with the races chosen for each woman based on things such as their bone structure. The only woman whose color was not altered was the African-American woman; apparently she already appeared to be bi-racial. To many, this idea that race is a costume is troubling, not to mention the excessive stereotyping that goes into a shoot such as this.
The show features a blatant overemphasis on sexuality throughout, while at the same time “addressing” topics such as bulimia and homelessness. Yes, a model was actually asked to pose as if she was a bulimic who had just purged, sitting on a toilet with vomit in her hands. Some were posed as homeless people amidst some high fashion extras. It I almost a mockery of the societal problems we face today. The money for the homeless shoot alone probably could have made a substantial impact in those less fortunate, rather than capitalizing on their circumstance. On top of this, almost every photo shoot on ANTM is very sexual in nature. Sex is an icon of the fashion industry, and the show is no stranger to this. Even the theme song’s lyrics say, “You wanna be on top?” For a show that is aired on mainstream television, the message is clear to young viewers: You must look like a beanpole, while humiliating yourself and selling your body to be beautiful. When did this type of message become tolerable, even accepted?
The most disturbing scenes from the show are those which glorify violence against women. In March of 2007, the show did a photo shoot that involved the girls being “dead” and placed in a murder scene. They were provocatively dressed, with makeup on and bruises, cuts, etc. on their body. They were the laid out in a crime scene with the instruction to look dead. The photos depicted models as electrocuted, decapitated, and stabbed, among other things. Even more disturbing was the judges comments to the photographs. “Miss J,” the stereotypically flamboyant judge on the panel told one model that “death becomes her,” and spoke about another saying, “What’s great about this is that you can also look beautiful in death.” Other comments about the photos of the already frail looking models, laying their lifeless, as victims of a horrible crime included words such as “amazing,” and “beautiful.” This particular show was truly a dehumanizing and disgraceful rendering of violence against women.
The consequences of such a controversial display of women as victims and objectification of them can have profound effects on viewers and society as a whole. Although I do believe some of the intent is positive, trying to create art and portray beauty, as well as give young women an opportunity at a career in the modeling industry, the latent, negative consequences far outweigh this. I do feel that part of the manifested consequences are derived from trying to create “shock value,” and entertainment based on curiosity as to what they will do next. Even as intended consequences, these contribute to the negative impact of the show. In terms of latent consequences, I feel that people watching the show are being bombarded with images of women being victimized and discriminated against. In addition, things such as violence, homelessness and extreme thinness are being glorified. It sets standards and expectations for women that are unobtainable, as well as immoral. This show is creating a niche for women in society that permits them to be degraded and abused.
In my opinion, this show is an absolute disgrace, and an insult to women. Although I do appreciate the beauty of photography, I see no justification for parading women around as victims of violence and alternate races through the use of paint, and coining it beauty. The over-sexuality of the show is only adding to a problem embedded deep in our society. As a woman, it saddens to see these women allow themselves to be subjected to such an atrocity. Most importantly, I feel that shows of such extreme natures should be kept off of basic television, as they are not acceptable for young viewers. It is difficult enough to find anything decent on the television today.
Source Cited:
"FASTSTATS - Body Measurements." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 02 Apr. 2009. Web. 30 Nov. 2010..
The show is a “reality” contest on which young women compete to become “America’s Next Top Model,” in hopes of becoming a model professionally. Each episode, the women are eliminated based on the opinions of a panel of judges. Throughout the show, the ladies are primped and prepped and then faced with a challenge of completing some sort of themed photo shoot, often which is degrading or humiliating, not to mention the harsh and generally unfounded comments provided to them by the judges.
The overall context of the show places huge emphasis on gender roles and ideologies, infused with a glaringly obvious sexual sentiment. The bulk of the photo shoots consist of little clothing (in some instances nude, with paint “covering” certain parts), and sexually provocative and even explicit subject matter. The girls picked to compete on ANTM are the typical tall, thin, waif-like supermodel types; apparently the ideal body type for portraying fashion. In fact, there has even been recent controversy over a promo for the show, in which the woman depicted was excessively thin (an apology from Tyra Banks followed the airing of the promo). In one season, the height standard for the women was lowered to give “short” women the chance to model. The woman in this season were required to be under 5’7”, which is really not all that short, given the fact that the average height of women in the United States, according to the National Center for Health Statistics is 63.8” (5’3”) [CDC, 2006]. It appears that most of the women in the United States will never be a ‘super’model in accordance with these acute beauty standards. Aside from setting these generally unobtainable beauty standards to even audition for the show, the women selected are subjected to a full makeover in order to be supermodel beautiful, as set by the standards of Tyra and the other judges on the show. It is a truly remarkable example of gender roles in today’s society.
Although the overall context of the show seems to be a montage of stereotypes, gender typing, and beauty ideals, it is what is in the individual episodes that is strikingly unsettling. There have been many photo shoots on the show that portray death, violence, objectification of women and even homelessness as “art” and “fashion.” These issues are glamorized in a way that is both offensive and degrading. There have also been shoots in which the women are nude, except for some paint on their bodies, posed next to nude men, as well as ones where the models were “transformed” to a new race through costuming and makeup. The latter included the use of “blackface” for the lighter women to make them appear darker. The idea was to make the woman look bi-racial, with the races chosen for each woman based on things such as their bone structure. The only woman whose color was not altered was the African-American woman; apparently she already appeared to be bi-racial. To many, this idea that race is a costume is troubling, not to mention the excessive stereotyping that goes into a shoot such as this.
The show features a blatant overemphasis on sexuality throughout, while at the same time “addressing” topics such as bulimia and homelessness. Yes, a model was actually asked to pose as if she was a bulimic who had just purged, sitting on a toilet with vomit in her hands. Some were posed as homeless people amidst some high fashion extras. It I almost a mockery of the societal problems we face today. The money for the homeless shoot alone probably could have made a substantial impact in those less fortunate, rather than capitalizing on their circumstance. On top of this, almost every photo shoot on ANTM is very sexual in nature. Sex is an icon of the fashion industry, and the show is no stranger to this. Even the theme song’s lyrics say, “You wanna be on top?” For a show that is aired on mainstream television, the message is clear to young viewers: You must look like a beanpole, while humiliating yourself and selling your body to be beautiful. When did this type of message become tolerable, even accepted?
The most disturbing scenes from the show are those which glorify violence against women. In March of 2007, the show did a photo shoot that involved the girls being “dead” and placed in a murder scene. They were provocatively dressed, with makeup on and bruises, cuts, etc. on their body. They were the laid out in a crime scene with the instruction to look dead. The photos depicted models as electrocuted, decapitated, and stabbed, among other things. Even more disturbing was the judges comments to the photographs. “Miss J,” the stereotypically flamboyant judge on the panel told one model that “death becomes her,” and spoke about another saying, “What’s great about this is that you can also look beautiful in death.” Other comments about the photos of the already frail looking models, laying their lifeless, as victims of a horrible crime included words such as “amazing,” and “beautiful.” This particular show was truly a dehumanizing and disgraceful rendering of violence against women.
The consequences of such a controversial display of women as victims and objectification of them can have profound effects on viewers and society as a whole. Although I do believe some of the intent is positive, trying to create art and portray beauty, as well as give young women an opportunity at a career in the modeling industry, the latent, negative consequences far outweigh this. I do feel that part of the manifested consequences are derived from trying to create “shock value,” and entertainment based on curiosity as to what they will do next. Even as intended consequences, these contribute to the negative impact of the show. In terms of latent consequences, I feel that people watching the show are being bombarded with images of women being victimized and discriminated against. In addition, things such as violence, homelessness and extreme thinness are being glorified. It sets standards and expectations for women that are unobtainable, as well as immoral. This show is creating a niche for women in society that permits them to be degraded and abused.
In my opinion, this show is an absolute disgrace, and an insult to women. Although I do appreciate the beauty of photography, I see no justification for parading women around as victims of violence and alternate races through the use of paint, and coining it beauty. The over-sexuality of the show is only adding to a problem embedded deep in our society. As a woman, it saddens to see these women allow themselves to be subjected to such an atrocity. Most importantly, I feel that shows of such extreme natures should be kept off of basic television, as they are not acceptable for young viewers. It is difficult enough to find anything decent on the television today.
Source Cited:
"FASTSTATS - Body Measurements." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 02 Apr. 2009. Web. 30 Nov. 2010.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
You Are Beautiful If....
A discussion of the three articles linked below:
Link: The Saddest Story Ever Told
Link: Objectification of Women = Go Team!
Link: Sephora Defines "Light," "Medium," and "Dark" Skin
In discussing the beauty ideals of today’s society, there are many sociological concepts, as well as consequences that are prevalent. In many current cultures, the standard of beauty leads to a blatant prejudice and discrimination against those who do not fit that standard. On top of this, in places such as America, it has become so extreme that achieving the standards set is basically unobtainable naturally (without the use of cosmetics, surgery, etc.). Three articles from the “Sociological Images” website perfectly depict the effects of these “values.” Two of the articles portray direct discrimination to a particular group of women, whereas the third is more of an indirect discrimination, as well as a commentary of the effects of beauty ideals on women.
The first article discusses a banner that is being displayed at Louisiana State University in anticipation of an upcoming football game versus University of Alabama. The banner shows a picture of three female college students: Two (supposedly) from LSU and one (supposedly) from Alabama. On the top it reads, “Welcome, Bama Fans.” The significant (and disturbing) thing about the banner is the implicit message. The two LSU fans on the poster are in LSU bikinis and are the typical “ideal beauties,” whereas the Alabama fan, in Alabama swimwear, is heavy stature with pale skin; the underlying message of the poster apparently being that LSU has beautiful woman in their fan base, whereas Alabama’s are overweight, thus making them “ugly.” Not only is this cruel and discriminatory, but, as the article mentions, it is a “sexist, fat-phobic” objectification of women.
The second article discusses discrimination, not against overweight women, but against women with dark colored skin. The focus of the article is an advertisement in a Sephora email for women’s cosmetics. The advertisement allows women to choose their skin tone in order to find a perfect shade of make-up. The three shades to choose from are light, medium, and dark. Sounds inclusive, that is, until one looks at the models chosen to demonstrate the three shades of complexion. They are all quite a light skin tone. The “dark” model is probably the lightest skin tone one could consider as dark. The advertisement completely leaves out the many, many women whose various complexions are darker than those shown. Yet, they show two white women whose complexions are hardly distinguishable (when considering the vast scale of skin shades) as the “light” and “medium” models. Not only are then women all of a lighter skin tone, but as the article points out, they “all three have pretty similar, stereotypically Caucasian, facial features.”
The final article is somewhat different, yet related to the above two. It again discusses an advertisement, only this one was run in a newspaper in Singapore. The large, bold letter across the top of the advertisement read, “A True Sad Story.” It shows a woman sitting, sad and hunched over, as if devastation has hit. What is the sad story on which this woman is reflecting? She is upset due to the fact that she has small breasts. The advertisement goes on to tell about this woman’s “sad” story, and how their product has come to save the day. According to the article, the product is a breast enlargement cream. On a broader scale, this is indicative of the discrimination women with small breasts experience. More specifically, the article addresses the collateral of this discrimination. After reading the girl’s story, it is clear that the stereotypes, prejudices, and interactions prevalent in our everyday lives take a great part in building (or tearing down) our self-worth.
Discrimination is extremely evident in all of these articles. In addition to this are the concepts of prejudice, racism, and social norms. In looking at the idea of “beautiful” that these articles portray, there is a distinct population of women (the majority of them) who are not included. Women are continuously discriminated against based on their appearance, whether it is in the workforce, in a social environment, or even, as in this case, when just looking at an advertisement. In fact, as the final article alludes to, it is often times impossible to be “beautiful” or happy without seeking it from an outside source; anything from cosmetic surgery to skin lightening creams. Not to mention being accepted and loved. This in turn, leads to avoidance by women. They will become “fake,” sometimes to a great extent, to avoid being discriminated against because they are “ugly." As the third article discusses, the woman in the ad lost her boyfriend because of her small breasts. I thought it was an extremely valid point when the author stated, “The problem isn’t that you have a shallow boyfriend who would leave you just because the size of your breasts; the problem is that you couldn’t keep him interested.” We even face discrimination in our personal relationships.
There is unconcealed prejudice against overweight women and dark women in the first and second articles respectively. Unfortunately, the prejudice in our society against both dark and overweight women, among others, is what leads to this discrimination in all forms. Discrimination based on looks can be categorized into a certain type, called social discrimination. As discussed by Vincent Parrillo in Understanding Race and Ethnic Relations, 'social discrimination' is, “the creation of a ‘social distance’ between groups (pg. 108).” In this case, there is distance between those that are deemed beautiful and men, and those that are “ugly.” People that are beautiful are superior to all others. Men, apparently, are the principle judges of who fits in this category. This is the basis of the idea of social norms. “….a relationship exists between prejudice and a person’s tendency to conform to societal expectations (Parrillo, pg. 88).” Parrillo goes on to explain that conforming to these norms is the result of “accepting the prevailing prejudices.”
In addition to this, the principle of exclusion also applies. “Real women” are excluded from the media and advertising. Dark women are excluded from the Sephora ad in article two. Women of varying ethnicities are also excluded from the Sephora ad, where the three women depicted resemble those of Caucasian descent. Obviously, racism is another factor intertwined in these concepts. Advertising plays a huge role in the prejudice and exclusion of women. “Consumers may think that they are unaffected, but advertisers successfully create a false consciousness and teach young women that they are appetizing only when ‘plucked, polished and painted’ (Parrillo, pg. 97).” These advertisements tell us, you are only beautiful if you look like this, or, as in the case with the third one, it is truly a sad story to have small breasts.
Obviously, these patterns of prejudice and discrimination against women, unobtainable beauty ideals, racism, and social norms can be seen everywhere in today’s society. Just this afternoon, as I was “accepting the discrimination” in preparation of an upcoming military ball, I was in the make-up aisle of a store. The first thing I noticed upon entering the aisle was the lack of dark shades of make-up. Is it that the darker colored women are so naturally beautiful that it is not needed? If that is the case, where are all these beautiful women in the ads, movies, on television…? Or, is it that dark women are beyond the help of make-up in achieving beauty? These questions may seem ridiculous when posed, but one must wonder what the rationality is behind this discrimination. For both men and women, this idea of beauty, and the prejudice associated with it, has seeped into the very core of who we are. Many women will not even leave the house without “disguising” themselves, and most men look at “done-up” women as if it has become a learned reflex. It is imbedded in every aspect of society- this idea of beauty.
References:
Parrillo, Vincent N. Understanding Race and Ethnic Relations. 3rd ed. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon, 2008. Print.
Link: The Saddest Story Ever Told
Link: Objectification of Women = Go Team!
Link: Sephora Defines "Light," "Medium," and "Dark" Skin
In discussing the beauty ideals of today’s society, there are many sociological concepts, as well as consequences that are prevalent. In many current cultures, the standard of beauty leads to a blatant prejudice and discrimination against those who do not fit that standard. On top of this, in places such as America, it has become so extreme that achieving the standards set is basically unobtainable naturally (without the use of cosmetics, surgery, etc.). Three articles from the “Sociological Images” website perfectly depict the effects of these “values.” Two of the articles portray direct discrimination to a particular group of women, whereas the third is more of an indirect discrimination, as well as a commentary of the effects of beauty ideals on women.
The first article discusses a banner that is being displayed at Louisiana State University in anticipation of an upcoming football game versus University of Alabama. The banner shows a picture of three female college students: Two (supposedly) from LSU and one (supposedly) from Alabama. On the top it reads, “Welcome, Bama Fans.” The significant (and disturbing) thing about the banner is the implicit message. The two LSU fans on the poster are in LSU bikinis and are the typical “ideal beauties,” whereas the Alabama fan, in Alabama swimwear, is heavy stature with pale skin; the underlying message of the poster apparently being that LSU has beautiful woman in their fan base, whereas Alabama’s are overweight, thus making them “ugly.” Not only is this cruel and discriminatory, but, as the article mentions, it is a “sexist, fat-phobic” objectification of women.
The second article discusses discrimination, not against overweight women, but against women with dark colored skin. The focus of the article is an advertisement in a Sephora email for women’s cosmetics. The advertisement allows women to choose their skin tone in order to find a perfect shade of make-up. The three shades to choose from are light, medium, and dark. Sounds inclusive, that is, until one looks at the models chosen to demonstrate the three shades of complexion. They are all quite a light skin tone. The “dark” model is probably the lightest skin tone one could consider as dark. The advertisement completely leaves out the many, many women whose various complexions are darker than those shown. Yet, they show two white women whose complexions are hardly distinguishable (when considering the vast scale of skin shades) as the “light” and “medium” models. Not only are then women all of a lighter skin tone, but as the article points out, they “all three have pretty similar, stereotypically Caucasian, facial features.”
The final article is somewhat different, yet related to the above two. It again discusses an advertisement, only this one was run in a newspaper in Singapore. The large, bold letter across the top of the advertisement read, “A True Sad Story.” It shows a woman sitting, sad and hunched over, as if devastation has hit. What is the sad story on which this woman is reflecting? She is upset due to the fact that she has small breasts. The advertisement goes on to tell about this woman’s “sad” story, and how their product has come to save the day. According to the article, the product is a breast enlargement cream. On a broader scale, this is indicative of the discrimination women with small breasts experience. More specifically, the article addresses the collateral of this discrimination. After reading the girl’s story, it is clear that the stereotypes, prejudices, and interactions prevalent in our everyday lives take a great part in building (or tearing down) our self-worth.
Discrimination is extremely evident in all of these articles. In addition to this are the concepts of prejudice, racism, and social norms. In looking at the idea of “beautiful” that these articles portray, there is a distinct population of women (the majority of them) who are not included. Women are continuously discriminated against based on their appearance, whether it is in the workforce, in a social environment, or even, as in this case, when just looking at an advertisement. In fact, as the final article alludes to, it is often times impossible to be “beautiful” or happy without seeking it from an outside source; anything from cosmetic surgery to skin lightening creams. Not to mention being accepted and loved. This in turn, leads to avoidance by women. They will become “fake,” sometimes to a great extent, to avoid being discriminated against because they are “ugly." As the third article discusses, the woman in the ad lost her boyfriend because of her small breasts. I thought it was an extremely valid point when the author stated, “The problem isn’t that you have a shallow boyfriend who would leave you just because the size of your breasts; the problem is that you couldn’t keep him interested.” We even face discrimination in our personal relationships.
There is unconcealed prejudice against overweight women and dark women in the first and second articles respectively. Unfortunately, the prejudice in our society against both dark and overweight women, among others, is what leads to this discrimination in all forms. Discrimination based on looks can be categorized into a certain type, called social discrimination. As discussed by Vincent Parrillo in Understanding Race and Ethnic Relations, 'social discrimination' is, “the creation of a ‘social distance’ between groups (pg. 108).” In this case, there is distance between those that are deemed beautiful and men, and those that are “ugly.” People that are beautiful are superior to all others. Men, apparently, are the principle judges of who fits in this category. This is the basis of the idea of social norms. “….a relationship exists between prejudice and a person’s tendency to conform to societal expectations (Parrillo, pg. 88).” Parrillo goes on to explain that conforming to these norms is the result of “accepting the prevailing prejudices.”
In addition to this, the principle of exclusion also applies. “Real women” are excluded from the media and advertising. Dark women are excluded from the Sephora ad in article two. Women of varying ethnicities are also excluded from the Sephora ad, where the three women depicted resemble those of Caucasian descent. Obviously, racism is another factor intertwined in these concepts. Advertising plays a huge role in the prejudice and exclusion of women. “Consumers may think that they are unaffected, but advertisers successfully create a false consciousness and teach young women that they are appetizing only when ‘plucked, polished and painted’ (Parrillo, pg. 97).” These advertisements tell us, you are only beautiful if you look like this, or, as in the case with the third one, it is truly a sad story to have small breasts.
Obviously, these patterns of prejudice and discrimination against women, unobtainable beauty ideals, racism, and social norms can be seen everywhere in today’s society. Just this afternoon, as I was “accepting the discrimination” in preparation of an upcoming military ball, I was in the make-up aisle of a store. The first thing I noticed upon entering the aisle was the lack of dark shades of make-up. Is it that the darker colored women are so naturally beautiful that it is not needed? If that is the case, where are all these beautiful women in the ads, movies, on television…? Or, is it that dark women are beyond the help of make-up in achieving beauty? These questions may seem ridiculous when posed, but one must wonder what the rationality is behind this discrimination. For both men and women, this idea of beauty, and the prejudice associated with it, has seeped into the very core of who we are. Many women will not even leave the house without “disguising” themselves, and most men look at “done-up” women as if it has become a learned reflex. It is imbedded in every aspect of society- this idea of beauty.
References:
Parrillo, Vincent N. Understanding Race and Ethnic Relations. 3rd ed. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon, 2008. Print.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Life in a Dark World: A response to the novel The Tattoo, by Chris McKinney (Chapter 3)
Chapter three of “The Tattoo” delves into an extremely dark and sinister portion of the novel. The main character, Ken, has moved across the island to Honolulu to begin a new life. After first trying to attend college courses, he finds himself restless- “Suddenly, I found my life very boring and tedious…I began to long for something real, something threatening, something that made me feel alive again (pg. 99).” It doesn’t take him long to find the trouble that he is apparently seeking. He finds himself caught up in the underworld of Honolulu- bars and strip clubs, drugs, and many illegal activities become the norm. Given Ken’s built-up anger, past, and outlook on life, he finds himself adapting to this new sub-culture with ease. However, things begin to change as he falls in love with Claudia, daughter of Mama-San who is owner of the strip club that now employs him. Claudia is a different race than Ken; half Caucasian and half Korean. She is in school and pretty much keeps herself separated from the dark underworld of her mother. Their love affair complicates things for Ken, ultimately leading a pregnant Claudia and terrified Ken’s unofficial exile from the city.
The dominant themes of crime and racism continue to seep from every page of the novel. In addition to these, there are concepts regarding dominant-minority relations that become quite prevalent, such as those of avoidance, deviance, and even a deeper insight into the in-group and out-group perceptions of Ken and the other characters. To explain these concepts, we must first examine the idea of ethnic-group identity, especially in Ken, who emulates this phenomenon. “Ethnic-group identity exists when individuals choose to emphasize cultural or national ties as the basis of their primary social interactions and sense of self (Parrillo, pg. 122).” This statement seems to describe much of Ken’s personality and behavior. He feels that his sense of self is based on the fact that he is Japanese and living in Hawaii. Almost as if this creates who he has to be. Parrillo further goes on to explain that, within this thinking, there are actually two self identities; the one that is a part of society as a whole as well as the identity of one within their own group (pg. 122). This idea bears a striking resemblance to the end of the chapter when Claudia and Ken are discussing moving to the mainland: “There was no way I was going to the fucking mainland…..a world full of people I can’t relate to….How many haole asses would I have to kick before I got any respect up there?” “Here, I’m somebody; here, I’m respected. Up there, I’m just a Jap….they’ll make me invisible… (pg. 149-150).” He feels as if he would have a completely different identity on the mainland- where he would be the out-group, rather than the in-group.
After looking at Ken’s ethnic-group identity, we can better understand the ideas of avoidance and deviance, and how they relate to his character. Ken’s idea of the mainland and his unwillingness to travel there (for fear of being a minority who has no place and cannot relate) is his personal avoidance of assimilation and cross-cultural relations. Although he may not be demonstrating avoidance in the traditional sense of being in a minority community among the majority of the mainland, it is avoidance nonetheless.
Deviance and crime are almost describing words for Ken in many parts of his life. Although sometimes it may seem as though his behavior is due to ignorance and poor judgment, there are clear indicators that some of his actions are fueled by things such as hatred for the majority and anger over his personal situation. On top of this, he has learned that who he is “supposed” to be as someone who is mean and tough, as this is the only way he will get respect (an issue of not only minorities, but also masculinity). This conditioning fuels his deviant behavior, leading to the cycle of fulfilling a negative stereotype.
As far as personally relating to this novel, in many ways it is difficult. Ken and the other characters in the story lead a life much different than my own. That being said, the one thing that I think most people can understand, either personally or through someone they know, has to do with this idea of a sub-culture. Ken lives in a world within a world. In other words, this lifestyle of drugs and hookers and crime is known to exist by those around him, yet many of them are never really exposed to it. The same is true for many people addicted to drugs or who have spent time in prison. I have both family and friends that have experienced both, which has exposed me to some of this dark world that so many people are oblivious to. When you see someone who is hooked on drugs, their life is only in dealing with drug dealers and others on drugs, often spending large amounts of time on getting them, even if it takes committing a crime. This, in turn, exposes them to things that are not typically seen by the “normal” population on a regular basis. The same is true for someone who is in prison (which can be seen with Cal and Ken in the novel). Although people know that prisons exist, few know what life is really like in the prison world. It is a complete sub-culture within society. These may be two more extreme examples of a sub-culture in society; however, there are many types. It goes hand in hand with in-groups and out-groups. The world as it is to one is completely different to another.
The concepts and themes throughout “The Tattoo” are only part of the story’s intrigue. It is a novel that is interesting and exciting, leaving you curious what will happen next. I am anticipating the final chapter as these character’s lives unfold. It is truly a great read.
Works Cited
McKinney, Chris. The Tattoo. Honolulu: Mutual, 1999. Print.
Parrillo, Vincent N. Understanding Race and Ethnic Relations. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon, 2008. Print.
The dominant themes of crime and racism continue to seep from every page of the novel. In addition to these, there are concepts regarding dominant-minority relations that become quite prevalent, such as those of avoidance, deviance, and even a deeper insight into the in-group and out-group perceptions of Ken and the other characters. To explain these concepts, we must first examine the idea of ethnic-group identity, especially in Ken, who emulates this phenomenon. “Ethnic-group identity exists when individuals choose to emphasize cultural or national ties as the basis of their primary social interactions and sense of self (Parrillo, pg. 122).” This statement seems to describe much of Ken’s personality and behavior. He feels that his sense of self is based on the fact that he is Japanese and living in Hawaii. Almost as if this creates who he has to be. Parrillo further goes on to explain that, within this thinking, there are actually two self identities; the one that is a part of society as a whole as well as the identity of one within their own group (pg. 122). This idea bears a striking resemblance to the end of the chapter when Claudia and Ken are discussing moving to the mainland: “There was no way I was going to the fucking mainland…..a world full of people I can’t relate to….How many haole asses would I have to kick before I got any respect up there?” “Here, I’m somebody; here, I’m respected. Up there, I’m just a Jap….they’ll make me invisible… (pg. 149-150).” He feels as if he would have a completely different identity on the mainland- where he would be the out-group, rather than the in-group.
After looking at Ken’s ethnic-group identity, we can better understand the ideas of avoidance and deviance, and how they relate to his character. Ken’s idea of the mainland and his unwillingness to travel there (for fear of being a minority who has no place and cannot relate) is his personal avoidance of assimilation and cross-cultural relations. Although he may not be demonstrating avoidance in the traditional sense of being in a minority community among the majority of the mainland, it is avoidance nonetheless.
Deviance and crime are almost describing words for Ken in many parts of his life. Although sometimes it may seem as though his behavior is due to ignorance and poor judgment, there are clear indicators that some of his actions are fueled by things such as hatred for the majority and anger over his personal situation. On top of this, he has learned that who he is “supposed” to be as someone who is mean and tough, as this is the only way he will get respect (an issue of not only minorities, but also masculinity). This conditioning fuels his deviant behavior, leading to the cycle of fulfilling a negative stereotype.
As far as personally relating to this novel, in many ways it is difficult. Ken and the other characters in the story lead a life much different than my own. That being said, the one thing that I think most people can understand, either personally or through someone they know, has to do with this idea of a sub-culture. Ken lives in a world within a world. In other words, this lifestyle of drugs and hookers and crime is known to exist by those around him, yet many of them are never really exposed to it. The same is true for many people addicted to drugs or who have spent time in prison. I have both family and friends that have experienced both, which has exposed me to some of this dark world that so many people are oblivious to. When you see someone who is hooked on drugs, their life is only in dealing with drug dealers and others on drugs, often spending large amounts of time on getting them, even if it takes committing a crime. This, in turn, exposes them to things that are not typically seen by the “normal” population on a regular basis. The same is true for someone who is in prison (which can be seen with Cal and Ken in the novel). Although people know that prisons exist, few know what life is really like in the prison world. It is a complete sub-culture within society. These may be two more extreme examples of a sub-culture in society; however, there are many types. It goes hand in hand with in-groups and out-groups. The world as it is to one is completely different to another.
The concepts and themes throughout “The Tattoo” are only part of the story’s intrigue. It is a novel that is interesting and exciting, leaving you curious what will happen next. I am anticipating the final chapter as these character’s lives unfold. It is truly a great read.
Works Cited
McKinney, Chris. The Tattoo. Honolulu: Mutual, 1999. Print.
Parrillo, Vincent N. Understanding Race and Ethnic Relations. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon, 2008. Print.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Immigrants in Germany
German President to Speak Before Turkish Parliament
This article discusses the plan for German President Christian Wulff to address the Turkish Parliament. This is a significant trip for the President, because, despite the two country’s close ties, there has been a lot of controversy over the integration of various cultures into Germany, the largest group of which is Muslims from Turkey. One of the key players in the debate is Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor. She has made some divisive comments regarding the “failure” of Germany’s multicultural integration such as, “Those who want to take part in our society must not only obey our laws, but they must also master our language (para. 5).” The President on the other hand, has not adopted the same viewpoint, and is visiting Turkey to discuss issues pertaining to economics and social issues. One subject that will be avoided is that of the admittance of Turkey into the European Union, which is another sensitive topic.
The underlying factors that are being outlined in this article are the same issues that are faced among multicultural societies worldwide; things such as assimilation, and cultural diffusion, as well as ethnic stratification and subcultures. The immigrants in Germany face the same hardships and challenges as minorities elsewhere; they are often in neighborhoods that are of lower class, and lack the resources for things such as healthcare. Many of the immigrants do not speak the language upon their arrival to the country, and tend to associate with others who share similar ethnicities. Furthermore, often times they immigrate to an area where there are already some family and/or social ties, a phenomenon called “chain migration” (Parrillo, p. 40). All of these factors assist in creating ethnic subcultures throughout the nation, much like those that are seen throughout the U.S. Having just recently moved from Germany, I have seen many of these “Turkish neighborhoods” (as they are often referred to) firsthand. Generally they are areas of high crime and low income, a clear example of ethnic stratification. Not only are they pretty much exclusively populated with minorities, but even the shops and restaurants are reflective of the Turkish culture. We were even warned as “visitors” to the country (American military stationed there) to avoid these particular areas.
To further exacerbate the situation, there are many Germans who view the immigrants as people who move to the country only to take advantage of their system. Sadly, one man even published a bestselling book echoing these sentiments. According to the article, author Thilo Sarrazin published a book where he spoke of the immigrants in Germany “…particularly Muslims….” And how they “…sponged off the German welfare system or were unwilling to integrate (para. 8).” This mentality is detrimental to Germany’s efforts to integrate the minorities and create a multicultural society.
Aside from the differing ethnicities of those who immigrate to Germany, there is also concern over religious integration. The President will be discussing the possibility of organizing Mosques in Germany to help “…with the problem of integrating its four million Muslims, most of whom are of Turkish origin (para. 1).” Most of the German population currently practices Christianity or Catholicism. There are also some Universities who will be training “imams” to lead prayers in both languages.
There are some elements of cultural diffusion that are taking place in Germany. One example of this is the popular “doner” shops that are scattered throughout the cities. Doner kebabs are a Turkish sandwich made of lamb that is sliced off to order. These are extremely popular throughout the country. On the other hand, the rate of diffusion is slow and the evidence of diffusion is minimal.
Hopefully, the German President will continue to make significant measures to aid in creating a multicultural society in Germany, and those such as Mrs. Merkel and Mr. Sarrazin will silence the negative and racist comments. The issues that the country is facing in regards to their immigrant population are a constant theme in many societies today. Just as in America and elsewhere, immigrants to Germany are continually trying to assimilate, while still holding on to their own culture and values, a feat not easily achieved. Allowing racism and poverty to persist towards and among these minority communities will only hinder integration and assimilation into the society, thus negating Germany’s strive for a multicultural nation.
References:
Dempsey, Judy. "German President to Speak Before Turkish Parliament." NYTimes.com. The New York Times, 18 Oct. 2010. Web. 18 Oct. 2010..
Parrillo, V.N.(2008). Understanding race and ethnic relations(pp.28). New York: Pearson Education, Inc.
This article discusses the plan for German President Christian Wulff to address the Turkish Parliament. This is a significant trip for the President, because, despite the two country’s close ties, there has been a lot of controversy over the integration of various cultures into Germany, the largest group of which is Muslims from Turkey. One of the key players in the debate is Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor. She has made some divisive comments regarding the “failure” of Germany’s multicultural integration such as, “Those who want to take part in our society must not only obey our laws, but they must also master our language (para. 5).” The President on the other hand, has not adopted the same viewpoint, and is visiting Turkey to discuss issues pertaining to economics and social issues. One subject that will be avoided is that of the admittance of Turkey into the European Union, which is another sensitive topic.
The underlying factors that are being outlined in this article are the same issues that are faced among multicultural societies worldwide; things such as assimilation, and cultural diffusion, as well as ethnic stratification and subcultures. The immigrants in Germany face the same hardships and challenges as minorities elsewhere; they are often in neighborhoods that are of lower class, and lack the resources for things such as healthcare. Many of the immigrants do not speak the language upon their arrival to the country, and tend to associate with others who share similar ethnicities. Furthermore, often times they immigrate to an area where there are already some family and/or social ties, a phenomenon called “chain migration” (Parrillo, p. 40). All of these factors assist in creating ethnic subcultures throughout the nation, much like those that are seen throughout the U.S. Having just recently moved from Germany, I have seen many of these “Turkish neighborhoods” (as they are often referred to) firsthand. Generally they are areas of high crime and low income, a clear example of ethnic stratification. Not only are they pretty much exclusively populated with minorities, but even the shops and restaurants are reflective of the Turkish culture. We were even warned as “visitors” to the country (American military stationed there) to avoid these particular areas.
To further exacerbate the situation, there are many Germans who view the immigrants as people who move to the country only to take advantage of their system. Sadly, one man even published a bestselling book echoing these sentiments. According to the article, author Thilo Sarrazin published a book where he spoke of the immigrants in Germany “…particularly Muslims….” And how they “…sponged off the German welfare system or were unwilling to integrate (para. 8).” This mentality is detrimental to Germany’s efforts to integrate the minorities and create a multicultural society.
Aside from the differing ethnicities of those who immigrate to Germany, there is also concern over religious integration. The President will be discussing the possibility of organizing Mosques in Germany to help “…with the problem of integrating its four million Muslims, most of whom are of Turkish origin (para. 1).” Most of the German population currently practices Christianity or Catholicism. There are also some Universities who will be training “imams” to lead prayers in both languages.
There are some elements of cultural diffusion that are taking place in Germany. One example of this is the popular “doner” shops that are scattered throughout the cities. Doner kebabs are a Turkish sandwich made of lamb that is sliced off to order. These are extremely popular throughout the country. On the other hand, the rate of diffusion is slow and the evidence of diffusion is minimal.
Hopefully, the German President will continue to make significant measures to aid in creating a multicultural society in Germany, and those such as Mrs. Merkel and Mr. Sarrazin will silence the negative and racist comments. The issues that the country is facing in regards to their immigrant population are a constant theme in many societies today. Just as in America and elsewhere, immigrants to Germany are continually trying to assimilate, while still holding on to their own culture and values, a feat not easily achieved. Allowing racism and poverty to persist towards and among these minority communities will only hinder integration and assimilation into the society, thus negating Germany’s strive for a multicultural nation.
References:
Dempsey, Judy. "German President to Speak Before Turkish Parliament." NYTimes.com. The New York Times, 18 Oct. 2010. Web. 18 Oct. 2010.
Parrillo, V.N.(2008). Understanding race and ethnic relations(pp.28). New York: Pearson Education, Inc.
Friday, October 1, 2010
Assimilation and Integration into a New Culture: A response to the novel The Tattoo, by Chris McKinney (Chapters 1 & 2)
Many of the theories and ideas of modern sociology are intertwined in the incredibly intriguing lives and stories of the characters in The Tattoo. The novel is a commentary on the impact of anger and racism, cultural assimilation and influences of family and friends on an individual, and is written in a way that not only invokes thought, but keeps the reader interested with every turn of the page. The story takes place in Hawaii, and gives a lot of insight into the local culture there.
The story and characters in the book are both intense and fascinating. The story is written as told by Ken, a Japanese man who lives in Hawaii with his family. The detail in which he tells his life story truly gives the reader an insight into his thoughts and feelings about everything, from his family and culture, to other races and the assimilation he has witnessed and undergone as a Japanese man growing up in Hawaii. There are very clear themes such as interactionist theory and symbolic interaction, as well as social identity theory throughout the novel. Ken in himself is quite an interesting study on culture and ethnicity. He is Japanese. His mother was a well educated Japanese woman who spoke English without even an accent (“stone white” as Ken refers to it [p. 24]). His father, on the other hand, is a Japanese man who grew up on the island of Oahu. He speaks the local “pidgin” language of Hawaii, and is generally quite angry and intimidating. Although the family is Japanese, they have become assimilated to the Hawaiian culture in many ways, especially Ken and his father, as they both grew up there and have adopted the local language and many of the local customs. At the same time, there are also many areas of their lives in which they hold onto the Japanese culture, and they take immense pride in their Japanese heritage. When discussing the interactionist theory, as well as the symbolic interaction among Ken and others in his society, the assimilation into the Hawaiian culture becomes especially prevalent. As stated in our text, this theory “examines….interaction patterns in everyday life (e.g. …individual use of commonly used terms)...” and that symbols are “-our spoken language, expressions….” (Parrillo 12). Ken clearly interacts with the other “locals” of the island as a local himself, especially in adapting the pidgin dialect. These symbols, the interactions with those around him, and Ken’s experiences growing up on the island, are all factors that have helped him to develop his own social construction of reality.
On a different note, racism is extremely rampant in the book, from the perspectives of all of the characters. There is racism among Ken’s peers, within his family, and in the prison that he now finds himself in. What I found to be especially interesting about this was the clear indication of how racism is taught and passed down from generation to generation. In the story, it begins with Ken’s grandfather and is passed through his father, and eventually to him. As Cal, Ken’s cellmate in prison thinks, after listening to much of Ken’s story, “I’d been a student of hate, too (pg. 36).” This really explains one of the reasons that hate and racism remain among people, despite the increase in intermingling between the races.
There are many aspects to Ken’s life that I can relate to, either directly or indirectly. Of course, I have seen many instances of racism in my life, as well as have been the recipient of “reverse racism,” as it is called. More importantly though, I have felt what it is like live in a place with a completely different culture than my own. As we are a military family, there is no end to the many different places that I am moved to, and must assimilate to, at least somewhat. Of these, the most foreign culture to me was the past three years, when my husband and I were stationed in Germany. Although I was not of a different race, it was still a culture shock to me. It is true that, in many ways, Germany and Europe are “Americanized,” however, overall, their culture, including their ideas and values, as well as their symbolic interactions, remain vastly different than that of Americans. I spent much of my time there, learning about, through both experience and observation, the various differences and values of their culture. One very small example of this was breaking the habit of giving the “ok” symbol to servers when eating at a restaurant (your index and thumb together in a circle, with your fingers up). Although this is a socially acceptable and nice gesture in America, it is quite offensive to the Europeans. Another example of a cultural symbol is the Europeans ability to distinguish an American when they are counting with their hands (in Europe, they count one on their thumbs and two on their index finger). All of these differences in culture were something that I was constantly learning, and often adapting to, throughout my time in Germany. It was definitely a lesson on culture, interaction and assimilation; much as the story Ken tells in the Tattoo teaches these same values.
Works Cited
McKinney, Chris. The Tattoo. Honolulu: Mutual, 1999. Print.
Parrillo, Vincent N. Understanding Race and Ethnic Relations. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon, 2008. Print.
The story and characters in the book are both intense and fascinating. The story is written as told by Ken, a Japanese man who lives in Hawaii with his family. The detail in which he tells his life story truly gives the reader an insight into his thoughts and feelings about everything, from his family and culture, to other races and the assimilation he has witnessed and undergone as a Japanese man growing up in Hawaii. There are very clear themes such as interactionist theory and symbolic interaction, as well as social identity theory throughout the novel. Ken in himself is quite an interesting study on culture and ethnicity. He is Japanese. His mother was a well educated Japanese woman who spoke English without even an accent (“stone white” as Ken refers to it [p. 24]). His father, on the other hand, is a Japanese man who grew up on the island of Oahu. He speaks the local “pidgin” language of Hawaii, and is generally quite angry and intimidating. Although the family is Japanese, they have become assimilated to the Hawaiian culture in many ways, especially Ken and his father, as they both grew up there and have adopted the local language and many of the local customs. At the same time, there are also many areas of their lives in which they hold onto the Japanese culture, and they take immense pride in their Japanese heritage. When discussing the interactionist theory, as well as the symbolic interaction among Ken and others in his society, the assimilation into the Hawaiian culture becomes especially prevalent. As stated in our text, this theory “examines….interaction patterns in everyday life (e.g. …individual use of commonly used terms)...” and that symbols are “-our spoken language, expressions….” (Parrillo 12). Ken clearly interacts with the other “locals” of the island as a local himself, especially in adapting the pidgin dialect. These symbols, the interactions with those around him, and Ken’s experiences growing up on the island, are all factors that have helped him to develop his own social construction of reality.
On a different note, racism is extremely rampant in the book, from the perspectives of all of the characters. There is racism among Ken’s peers, within his family, and in the prison that he now finds himself in. What I found to be especially interesting about this was the clear indication of how racism is taught and passed down from generation to generation. In the story, it begins with Ken’s grandfather and is passed through his father, and eventually to him. As Cal, Ken’s cellmate in prison thinks, after listening to much of Ken’s story, “I’d been a student of hate, too (pg. 36).” This really explains one of the reasons that hate and racism remain among people, despite the increase in intermingling between the races.
There are many aspects to Ken’s life that I can relate to, either directly or indirectly. Of course, I have seen many instances of racism in my life, as well as have been the recipient of “reverse racism,” as it is called. More importantly though, I have felt what it is like live in a place with a completely different culture than my own. As we are a military family, there is no end to the many different places that I am moved to, and must assimilate to, at least somewhat. Of these, the most foreign culture to me was the past three years, when my husband and I were stationed in Germany. Although I was not of a different race, it was still a culture shock to me. It is true that, in many ways, Germany and Europe are “Americanized,” however, overall, their culture, including their ideas and values, as well as their symbolic interactions, remain vastly different than that of Americans. I spent much of my time there, learning about, through both experience and observation, the various differences and values of their culture. One very small example of this was breaking the habit of giving the “ok” symbol to servers when eating at a restaurant (your index and thumb together in a circle, with your fingers up). Although this is a socially acceptable and nice gesture in America, it is quite offensive to the Europeans. Another example of a cultural symbol is the Europeans ability to distinguish an American when they are counting with their hands (in Europe, they count one on their thumbs and two on their index finger). All of these differences in culture were something that I was constantly learning, and often adapting to, throughout my time in Germany. It was definitely a lesson on culture, interaction and assimilation; much as the story Ken tells in the Tattoo teaches these same values.
Works Cited
McKinney, Chris. The Tattoo. Honolulu: Mutual, 1999. Print.
Parrillo, Vincent N. Understanding Race and Ethnic Relations. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon, 2008. Print.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Protecting or Discriminating? Evaluation of the recent use of force in Seattle
latimes.com: Seattle in turmoil over police-involved shootings
I thought that this article was quite relevant from a sociological perspective, especially concerning ideas such as ethnocentrism and racism. In fact, the entire underlying context of the article was precisely these issues. I found it quite interesting that the seemingly ethnocentric viewpoint in the article was that of the minorities (in this case, Native Americans), in that, the police force, as well as media seemed to be concerned with the treatment of the minorities, rather than how they looked themselves. However, this could be argued in the sense that one could say they were simply trying to “humor” the minorities with their apparent “concern.” Regardless of the argument, in this particular article there does not seem to be enough evidence to demonstrate an ethnocentric viewpoint from the authorities and media. Conversely, ethnocentrism is quite pronounced in the actions and words of the Native Americans. One indication of this is in the Native Americans stating that this was murder. They view the act by the police officer as an intentional act of hate towards their people. It is as if the world is “out to get them” which is ethnocentricity down to its core.
The issue of racism is seeping out if every sentence in this particular article. As it is written, it leads one to believe that the Seattle Police force must be primarily white, as the complaint is that minorities are being targeted by them (or possibly it is just the white officers involved in these attacks). It is very difficult to really make a completely objective observation in this case as to whether the attacks were racially motivated or not, due to the fact that there are arguments that could be made on both sides (however, none of the arguments truly have all the facts, which leaves them to be more speculation than fact). For example, one could say that there have been a string of attacks against minorities in the area, as the article suggests, or perhaps, that it happens to be minorities that were involved in these situations and/or attacks against white people are not noteworthy enough to make the headlines (as this would kill the story as a whole). At the risk of sounding redundant, this again revisits the idea of ethnocentrism if, for example, if the minorities agreed with the first part of the statement, or white people agreed with the latter. Whether race was the motivating factor in this string of police shootings, I am not one to say, however, when looking at something from a sociological perspective, it is extremely important to examine the issue from all the various viewpoints without neglecting to try and understand why these viewpoints may exist.
When discussing both ethnocentrism and race in this article, I think it is important to also consider a third term: ethnoviolence. In Understanding Race and Ethnic Relations, Vincent Parrillo defines the term as, “hostile behavior against people solely because of their race, religion, ethnicity, or sexual orientation (2008).” If, in fact, the police were targeting these minorities, it would be an ideal example of ethnoviolence in society today. Unfortunately, ethnoviolence is a cultural phenomenon that is very much real throughout all societies, past and present. The outward appearance of a person often dictates the way that they are perceived by another (termed sociologically as “categoric knowing”), and thus, treated by the other.
It is truly unfortunate that there are such hostilities among all of the races in today’s worlds. Given both human nature and history, it is unlikely that this will diminish in any of our lifetimes. One can only broaden the understanding of each other as well as humankind, and human nature in order to understand, and hopefully help to alleviate some of these prejudices. This is only one of an innumerable amount of stories in which racism, and targeting minorities is the primary factor in America today.
Reference:
Parrillo, V.N.(2008). Understanding race and ethnic relations(pp.28). New York: Pearson Education, Inc.
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