POL-3 Midterm

Judith Butler, Gender Trouble

"It is a mistake to treat gender as a self-consistent category" because it is "impossible to separate gender from the political and cultural intersections". Concept of "woman" is not hegemonic. Feminism is tasked to acknowledge the repetitive struggles caused by historical constructions, and intervene by participating in all aspects that constitute identity. Wants to recognize the injustices caused by heterosexual normativity. Crucial insight: "gender itself is a form of repetition of imposed norms that decide not only how our bodies come to matter, but also how they are given meaning and gendered, and, moreover, how we are enjoined to love only members of the 'opposite sex'." The body doesn't exist outside culture. The sex/gender distinction presupposes a generalization of the body. Gender performativity Constant repetition of gendered norms creates what we identify as male or female. (gestures, movements, styles of various kinds). Discrete genders "humanize" us. We regularly punish those who fail to "do their gender right".

Wendy Brown, "Neo-Liberalism and the End of Liberal Democracy"

"Neo-liberal rationality, while foregrounding the market, is not only or even primarily focused on the economy; rather it involves extending and disseminating market values to all institutions and social action." (2) Neoliberalism is the collapsing of this distinction between state and market The logic of the market is no longer separated by state, but overtaken the state; market governing all aspects of our lives. The idea that all human interaction... measured by cost-benefit analysis (e.g. health care being a market place, 'consuming' education as a 'service') The ambitions of neoliberalism is to change the type of people we are; rather than being engaged in active citizenry, thinking of others less fortunate than ourselves, we blame others/ individuals for their poor lives. Individual action (e.g. Eric Garner case; politicians blaming his obesity, rather than police or racism) The logic of neoliberalism extending the idea of the market taking over all aspects of our lives Privatization, of water, being an example of how neoliberalism translates to policy; also free trade Everything becomes your moral responsibility

Ralph Miliband, "Fukuyama and the Socialist Alternative," New Left Review, 1992.

"What I said back then [1992] is that one of the problems with modern democracy is that it provides peace and prosperity but people want more than that... liberal democracies don't even try to define what a good life is, it's left up to individuals, who feel alienated, without purpose, and that's why joining these identity groups gives them some sense of community." by late 2003, Fukuyama had recanted his support for the Iraq war, which he now regards as a defining error alongside financial deregulation and the euro's inept creation. "These are all elite-driven policies that turned out to be pretty disastrous, there's some reason for ordinary people to be upset." The End of History was a rebuke to Marxists who regarded communism as humanity's final ideological stage. How, I asked Fukuyama, did he view the resurgence of the socialist left in the UK and the US? "It all depends on what you mean by socialism. Ownership of the means of production - except in areas where it's clearly called for, like public utilities - I don't think that's going to work. "If you mean redistributive programmes that try to redress this big imbalance in both incomes and wealth that has emerged then, yes, I think not only can it come back, it ought to come back. This extended period, which started with Reagan and Thatcher, in which a certain set of ideas about the benefits of unregulated markets took hold, in many ways it's had a disastrous effect. "In social equality, it's led to a weakening of labour unions, of the bargaining power of ordinary workers, the rise of an oligarchic class almost everywhere that then exerts undue political power. In terms of the role of finance, if there's anything we learned from the financial crisis it's that you've got to regulate the sector like hell because they'll make everyone else pay. Fukuyama is troubled by the potential for a US-China war ("the Thucydides trap", as Harvard academic Graham Allison has called the clash between an established power and a rising one). "I think people would be very foolish to rule that out, I can think of lots of scenarios by which such a war could start.

One-dimensional View of Power (Lukes)

(conservative/pluralist view of power) - Two or more groups are in conflict and one group is able to get another group to do what it would not otherwise do. - The conflict is seen to exist when two or more groups articulate conscious preferences which inform their actions and lead to disagreement with opposing views; - Clear observable behavior emphasized (i.e. protesting assignments in class)

Two-dimensional View of Power (Lukes)

(liberal view of power) - Power has two faces— observable conflict but also the ability to prevent certain issues from even being included in the political agenda - One face identified by one dimensional view - Second face... power that can be observed as problematic in and of itself because it can be used to deny issues being put on the political agenda - We observe power not only in the context of decision-making but non-decisions

Three-dimensional View of Power (Lukes)

(radical, or 'socialist' view of power) - Power must recognize not only people's subjective interests but their real interests - Luke's argues that any effort to define power is a political act - Luke's deviates from other definitions of power because he argues that power can be exercised even when no obvious conflict exists -not individualistically

Foucault on Humanism

- Difference distinguished between liberalism, socialism, Marxism, etc. under one big blanket of Humanism - More that they share than what they disagree on - What they share is what Foucault critiques *Important to note that what Foucault is not attempting to do is provide an absolute definition of power; frustrating Humanism: 1. Prohibitive/ repressive - For Foucault, power can also be productive; it isn't just prohibitive. It also creates & produces. 2. Agency - The presumption is that we can point to someone/ group, in the liberal/ Marxist presumption (Marist view: Bourg over Proletariat), (Anarchist view: State over people) - Foucault's view: agrees that power is exercised, but who exercises it? No one and everyone. Power is everywhere. 3. Power vs. knowledge - The ways that we privilege truth as different from ideology is because we think of knowledge as truth, whereas ideology is opinion - Invested in knowledge/ truth that lives in a utopian space independent of power and that is why we trust. Also why we don't trust ideology. 4. Resistance

Weaknesses of Fukuyama's 'End of History' argument

- Does not address environmental concerns regarding sustainable growth. Assumes consumerism and economic growth unquestionably - Socialists have argued that democracy cannot coexist with capitalism as capitalism ensures the absence of economic democracy - Eurocentric - West largely the consequence of colonialism in the past and globalization today - Dismisses 3 billion people as stuck in history - Refers to west as vanguard of civilization

Strengths of Fukuyama's 'End of History' argument

- Fascism- certainly has no respectability. Capitalism spreading even to places like china - With fascism and socialism (seemingly) dead, one could argue, no other viable ideology remains. There are of course numerous other ideologies, some in fact hostile to liberalism but they are either utopian or issue specific (feminism, environmentalism) and thus fail to provide details when confronted with issues such as the economy - Liberal democracy plus capitalism seems to offer, with all its limitations, the beat recipe for individual life- individual freedom, wealth, parliamentary democracy.

Francis Fukuyama, "The End of History?" The National Interest, 1989

- Fukuyama argues that it is possible to arrive at the end of history (i.e. history as mobilized by competing ideologies) - Liberalism plus capitalism is representative of that end. -- That only liberal democracy plus capitalism has credibility and universal applicability - The two challenges to liberal democracy plus capitalism have been defeated --Fascism- defeated in 1945. --Socialism- crippling and disintegration of USSR, 1989 Revolution, end of the Cold War - Social Democracy- just a variant of liberal democracy plus capitalism with more state intervention - Fukuyama is not arguing that all nations today are liberal democracies but that there exist no viable, universal ideologies and thus, there contesting ideologies will eventually wane

Ball and Dagger, "More to Marx"

- Goes over Karl's life a bit and also ties into ideology piece. - Talks about socialist view of freedom, where it's also freedom from opression by wage-slavery and bourgeoisie opression - Also goes over the hegelian parts of Marx, but should know this by Fukuyama. - Ideas of the ruling class are the ideas of the time, oppressive by nature - Marx viewed capitalism as highly productive, outdated, but still necessary. It's a build up to communism, so you have to respect it. He admits it was once a progressive and radical force - Revolutionary Sequence: -- Economic Crisis - big recession, not business cycle -- Immiseration of the proletariat - Proletariat misery rises with no job -- Revolutionary class consciousness - Workers realize this misery isn't their fault, realize overthrow is necessary -- Seizure of state power - This is revolution -- Dictatorship of the proletariat - Using state power, proletariat establishes its own truly democratic state -- Withering away of the state - Capitalist thought is demolished, public ownership and camaraderie formed -- Communism - Classless, stateless society formed. Truly free. Marx doesn't say the particulars of it.

Critiques of Luke's Two-dimensional View of Power

- If the two dimensional view is an improvement, by adding a nuance, it is still a definition of power that is way too narrow. - Absence of any recognition of structural power; individualistic view. - Power might exist beyond an individual intention.

Advantages/ Critiques of Luke's One-dimensional View of Power

- Ignores instances of power that are not easily observable/ suggests that power doesn't exist when people do not have clear interests, or when conflict cannot be seen or observed (i.e. wage gap between genders, middle class people more likely to get into university education than working, etc. ) --Because of this definition's 'objectivity,' scholars argue that it is inherently conservative. - Power is more complicated than the simplistic definition given from the one-dimensional view --Scholars argue that one-dimensional view is reflective of conservative social agenda; narrow view.

Stuart Hall, "Variants on Liberalism"

- Liberalism deeply embedded in English culture - Represents a set of widely shared political values - People wanting to be known as 'liberal' - Yet very diverse in its forms; difficult to pin down at times. - Former Conservative Prime Minister Harold Macmillian disapproving of his successor Mrs. Thatcher for her extreme version of conservatism - Manchester School Liberalism (school of political economists), 19th century= advanced extreme laissez-faire doctrines, or free-market capitalism (no govn't interference); believed that the only source of well-being was individual self help - The question of liberalism still being a contemporary debate - Concepts no longer confined to paid-up liberals or the Liberal party, but are present within both social democracy and latter-day Conservatism. - Liberal: "an attitude of mind rather than a political creed. -- "Open-minded, tolerant, rational, freedom-loving people, skeptical of the claims of tradition and established authority, but strongly committed to the values of liberty, competition and individual freedom." - 'Liberalism' denotes the political creed associated with the Liberal Party - Emerged at the end of the 18th century after the American and French Revolution - Individualism in politics, civil and political rights, parliamentary government, moderate reform, limited state intervention, and a private enterprise economy. - "National self-determination" - The relationship between the terms liberal and Liberalism meaning different things - "The revival of a conservative brand of... 'neoliberalism'" - Hall being concerned with "mapping a much broader discourse about political, social, and economic life" or political ideology. - A distinct framework for defining, explaining and calculating about political and social matters. - Requires 'core concepts'

Foucault's "Method" in History of Sexuality vol 1

- Offers how power came to be - Holds that power is everywhere, even if it does not assume everything. - His theory emphasizes power through force relations, in which they are either supported and crystallized, or contradicted and isolated from each other within the spheres in which they survive. - When power is supported by a network of force relations, it becomes organized and embodied in various social hegemonies and institutions. - Foucault does not believe that power itself operates within a superstructural position that maintains subordination; rather, power should be understood as a strategy of integration and codification of relationships. - When force relations dismiss each other, power remains fluid—omnipresent, yet nowhere simultaneously. That is: no one, yet everyone exercises power. - His argument also holds that power exists in all kinds of relationships, where it is not just prohibitive or repressive, but creative and productive. - In this deliberation, he juxtaposes power with resistance, which also traverses power networks; it is the strategic integration and codification of these points of resistance that makes a revolution possible.

R. Chapple et al "Do #Black Lives Matter?"

- The authors argue that implicit bias and institutional racism perpetuate a vicious cycle that disproportionately criminalizes Black men in society, with fear (primarily) associated with reactions of Whites against Blacks. - Suspicion heuristic supports this framework, holding that our perception of individuals (i.e. implicit bias) informs our actions/ decision making (e.g. stand-your-ground laws). -- "suspicion heuristic" was developed to explain "the predictable errors in perception, decision making, and action that can occur when individuals make judgments of criminality" -- suspicion heuristic theorizes that if we believe/perceive someone as being bad (enter implicit bias), then we act/react based on those preconceptions (i.e. institutional racism). - Errors in implicit bias are often at the expense of Black bodies when making criminal judgements. - They challenge the notion that we live in a post-racial, colorblind society, outlining how Black lives are actually perceived. - When juxtaposing the killings of unarmed Black men by police to White male terrorists cases, Blacks were framed as violent/aggressive, where Whites were often dismissed. - The protests that followed increased the scope/ intensity of discourse regarding institutional racism. - The #BlackLivesMatter movement was founded in response to the pervasive anti-Black racism in society; by exposing suspicion heuristic and addressing visceral reactions of fear towards the Black body, justice is imaginable

Three important points for liberalism as a political ideology (Hall)

- Three important points about defining liberalism as a political ideology: 1. First, "the term ideology used to mean a clear-cut political doctrine or creed, whose concepts were logically linked to form a 'system' which had achieved internal consistency and been subject to rigorous philosophical elaboration. - Nowadays, the term ideology includes the whole range of concepts, ideas and images which provide the framework of interpretation and meaning for social and political thought in society, whether they exist at the high, systematic, philosophical level or at the level of casual, everyday, contradictory, common sense explanation." 2. Second, "...no ideology is ever wholly logical or consistent." - All great ideas bring together elements that are not always in agreement; must struggle to make contradictory ideas fit the scheme. - Always loose ends, breaks in the logic, gaps between theory and practice, and internal contradictions... - Attempt to remain consistent while explaining a changing historical reality; subject to severe stretch/ strain. - The necessity for a reinterpretation of liberal principles over time, under the new circumstances. Thus, creating new concepts to maintain this position (mid-19th century liberals endorsing laissez-faire doctrines vs. 'new liberals' of the 1880s/90s and their efforts in designing the welfare state). 3. Third, concerning the relationship between 'philosophical' and common-sense elaborations of an ideology. - Liberal political theorists and philosophers juxtaposed with the taken-for-granted discourses of everyday life

Criticisms of Luke's 'Power'

1) Subjective interest being different from objective interest. In this argument, subjective interest being superior. The problem with this distinction is that it can come across as pretty arrogant/ elitist. 2) Lukes account of power is 'macro-power,' which ignores 'micro' forms of power 3) Because Lukes appeals to false consciousness (think prostitution example), part of the reason it can work is because there is a distinction drawn between power and knowledge. But the presumption in his thesis is that power is distinct from knowledge & once people come to know their real interests, than they know the truth. -- "You think that's what you want, you think it's empowering, but you are not serving your own interests because you are so duped by the patriarchy" -- Power of patriarch, white supremacist, etc. false conscious making me think it is in my interest to do it -- Suffering from false consciousness; need to show them the truth to free them

Thomas Laqueur, "Orgasm, Generation and the Politics of Reproductive Biology" in Gallagher The Making of the Modern Bod

Before 18th cen. the common belief was that there was only one sex. Interpretation of sexes is understood under "social realities" (not biological or scientific). Sexuality plays into society and political theory/practice. The body (sex) is the representation (not foundation) of social gender. This means that science did not create the "radical differences" between the sexes, but rather "political, economic, and cultural transformations" did. Feminism helps to create the two-sex model b/c it allows for theire own "cultural and political stands". The two-sex model is key in female liberation (feminism) and social progess. Galen: sex is based off of heat; men are warmer. (one-sex) Women are the imperfect version of men. The female orgasm is irrelevant to conception

Marx, Communist Manifesto

Definitions of Bourgeoisie and Proletariat. Bourgeoise is capitalists, owners of the means of production, Proletariat is working class, exploited. Bourgeoisie is ruling class, pinnacle of class. Past systems were similar in exploited vs exploiter leading to new revolutions. The biggest thing about capitalism is now there isn't multiple classes like nobles and such, there is just proletariat and bourgeoisie. This makes the revolution final, once we realize inherent contradictions. Workers will rebel after they realize the inherent contradictions of the system, seize the means of production, establish communism as defined below Workers will unionize, and establish a full dominion of the proletariat The bourgeoisie necessitates its own death Not necessarily prescribing a future society, but insights into the society he was living in; a profound critique of capitalism & inequality

Capitalist Mode of Production (Marx's indictment of capitalism)

Distinctive nature of capitalist mode of production is that unlike the past where there were numerous conflicting classes, under capitalism class relations have been polarized into two camps: bourgeoisie and proletariat. Economics-- relations of production are relations between two hostile classes, the bourgeoisie and proletariat. State-- executive arm of the bourgeoisie e.g. minimal state, limited suffrage-- on on wealth Judiciary-- institutes laws that safeguard the interests of the bourgeoisie e.g. protects private property Ideology-- rights include freedom to acquire private property, to profit from other people's labor. Equality of opportunity not of outcome. Democracy-- political not economic. Society-- religion "opium of the people"-- a way of maintaining the status quo; a safety valve against violent discontent. Family-- form of prostitution-- marriage predicated on wealth, status.

The Deptford Murders", Simon Cole, Suspect Identities

Dr. Alec Jeffreys investigated ways of using genetic variants as markers for tracing familial lineages. He wasn't looking for a new identification technique but that is what he stumbled across Jeffreys discovered Variable Number Tandem Repeats (VNTRs) and created an X-ray photograph, called an autoradiograph, in order to display the first DNA fingerprint "DNA fingerprinting" underwent a terminology change and was then referred to as DNA typing or DNA profiling VNTRs are noncoding or junk DNA which is important to note because DNA databases can be constructed so that it doesn't contain any information about personal characteristics Geneticists were not making a claim of absolute uniqueness but rather probabilistic claims (ones with very high probabilities) Jeffreys first used his new technology over an immigration dispute The sex murders in Narborough offered Jeffreys his first chance to use his technique for criminal identification. This led to the release of an innocent man Even once the Narborough police had the genetic profile of the killer, they couldn't come up with a quick conclusion because there was no genetic database to search The police decided to ask for blood samples from male citizens and ended up taking more than 4,000. This project was called "the blooding" In the end, a baker named Colin Pitchfork was reported to the police for giving a false blood sample. Upon arrest, he confessed to both murders and his DNA profile matched the semen samples Identification methods do not become widely accepted solely on technical grounds. The acceptance of a new identifies as useful and reliable occurs within a particular social, cultural, and historical context Genetic identification is well suited to solve sexual assault crimes because both the assailant's and the victim's DNA is present at the scene. Investigators can also ensure the authenticity of the rape kit by checking that it matches the victim's DNA The U.S. created a genetic database by taking blood or hair samples from criminals and either preserving it or taking its genetic profile. The database can be used to identify perpetrators and solve old, unsolved, or cold cases The issue of race was injected into the debate over DNA typing when population geneticists mentioned the probability at which people mate with those in the same ethnic group as a result of geographic factors The accusation was that the VNTRs used to individualize people appeared with different frequencies in different racial populations and therefore might be used as racial markers Critics also worried about potential genetic profiling: that on the basis of DNA samples recovered from crime scenes, forensic technicians might be able to make educated guesses about the race, ethnicity, and appearance of perpetrators Anthropologist, Paul Rainbow, complained that genetic identification relied too heavily on genetic markers that vary directly with race and argued that fingerprints reveal nothing about individual character or group affiliation The Innocence Project uses DNA evidence to clear the names of those who were wrongfully convicted Forensic identification: seeks to link a specific criminal act to a specific criminal body. Using a physical trace of a body, an impression or an actual body part or remnant, it attempts to establish the presence of a body at a crime scene and establish authorship of a crime Archival identification: seeks to link a particular criminal body to itself across space and time. In conjunction with a paper or electronic record, it aims to establish a history of past criminal activities that can be ascribed with confidence to a single body Diagnostic identification: seeks to read the signs of past or potential criminal behavior in the body itself. On the basis of some biological theory of the etiology of criminality, it endeavors to prevent crimes before they occur by identifying and stigmatizing potentially criminal bodies

Drucilla Cornell "Gender in America" in Keywords: Gender

First wave of feminism: "all forms of equality should be eradicated", not based on the concept of gender. Elizabeth Cady Stanton (with help from Susan B Anthony) Justified women's right to vote by using sexual differences (ie their "civilizing role" in the home). Advocated for white women, making them seem "above" women of color and other minorities. Second wave of feminism: introduced idea of gender roles (as an analytic category) & how to challenge them. Step 1: Rebellion against gender roles: activism and organization (ie civil rights, black power, student movements). Believed that "anatomy is not destiny" and that biological differences should not be used to justify positions and participation. Needed to challenge the "classical liberal political philosophy" of the public and private spheres that allowed men to find work outside of the home. Kimberly Williams Crenshaw Intersectionality Race, class, and gender all play a part in how we live our lives (ie forms of privilege and oppression). For example, intersectionality outlines how women of color live both their colorness and their womanhood. Demands that feminism expands its analytic categories because gender isn't the only play in defining social identity. Geduldig v Aiello Justice William H Rehnquist rejected a challenge to an insurance policy for male-related disorders but not pregnancy because it's an identifiable physical condition that's unique to women. Congress overturned Rehnquist's decision. Catherine McKinnon Says that women's oppression consisted in the socially constructed reality that they could never be similarly situated to men. Women can never be men's equals because of sexual harassment. Speaks of women as a whole, without acknowledging the privileges and differences between them. Sexual assault/harassment is sex-based discrimination in which gender is defined as sexual biology. 1. Exchange of sex has ensured women's dependence and inferiority. 2. Sexual harassment expresses male sex-role patterns (often in vicious and unwanted ways) 3. Women's sexuality defines women as women, so violations of it are abuses of women as women. Sex is classified as an intermediate level of judicial scrutiny. Within the legal system, we must address all challenges to gender and intersectionality. Imaginary domain: moral and legal sphere "The freedom to create ourselves as sexed beings, as feelings and reasoning persons, lies at the heart of the ideal that is the imaginary domain"

Anne Joseph, "Anthropometry, the Police Expert

Identification is necessary for governing and maintaining social order Anthropometry: scientific study of the measurements and proportions of the human body Carlo Ginzburg argues that fingerprinting is the best system of identification because photographs can be inaccurate and anthropometry only distinguishes between individuals The adoption of fingerprinting was an epistemological shift from the Galilean model of quantification to a qualitative model of conjectural science The anthropometric method could prove people innocent if the measurements did not match up but it couldn't necessarily prove people guilty solely based on identical measurements Previous methods of photographs, route forms, distinctive marks, and line ups were labor intensive Ex: inspection of unconvicted prisoners required 30 police officers three days a week The Bertillon system of anthropometric measurements: Length of head, width of head, length of left foot, length of left middle finger, length of left forearm, height, span of arms, height of trunk (sitting height), length of right ear, and length of left little finger First five measurements were considered to be the most important and made up the primary classification system For confirmation and additional differentiation: eye color, short physical description including distinctive marks, photographs, and fingerprints Anthropometry's strongest selling point was in its simple and effective system of classification that Galton's system of fingerprinting lacked in 1893 Fingerprinting granted police officers the ability to take fingerprints of suspected criminals "with sufficient accuracy" and the ability to use such evidence to make positive identifications but because it didn't have a working classification procedure, it was not selected at the primary system Anthropometry = identification and classification, Fingerprinting = classification and verification Anthropometry supporters promoted the system as objective due to the numerical demarcation of individuals into statistical groups but ironically, it relied heavily on human observation and complicated instruments Anthropometry was unworkable on juvenile criminals because their bodies were still changing in size Anthropometry came under attack because of variations in the measurements of the same criminal taken by different people Schaffer argues that the foundation of any measurement system requires explanation "Quantification is not a self-evident nor inevitable process in science's history, but possesses a remarkable cultural history of its own" (170). Anthropometry started to lose credibility in Britain because bodies change in size and because the measurements were taken on a foriegn (French) metric system Several historians construct the downfall of Bertillon's system in Britain as a failure to provide positive identification With anthropometry in decline, fingerprinting was emphasized for its requirement of inexpensive equipment and minimal training. It also controlled suspected criminals and operators of the system with much tighter discipline than the Bertillon system could and included juvenile criminals In the first decade of the 20th century, anthropometric measurements declined while fingerprinting increased After fingerprinting was allowed to identify criminals, police detectives had to fight for its acceptance in the courtroom to convict criminals Fingerprint evidence was first contested in a capital case in 1905

Anderson, Imagined Communities

Imagined communities guy Firstly, and most principle, members of a nation will "never know of their fellow-members, meet them, or even hear about them" yet imagines them to be similar to themselves. The nation is imagined to be limited, as no country has yet dominated the globe, and sovereign, as divine-legitimacy needed to be replaced. The nation is finally a community, as despite social boundaries and inequalities, there is still "a deep, horizontal comradeship". The tomb of unknown soldiers is excellent example. Tomb for people who have no face besides their nation. Don't even specify what nation they're a part of, because how could it be anything else Talks about Vietnam and the history of its name Imagined community everywhere now Some stuff about official nationalism- ordained by the state Revolutionaries generally tend to assume the powers and nationalism of the state, kind of contradictory

Raymond Williams, "Ideas of Nature" and "Culture"

In early use culture was a noun of process: the tending of something basically crops or animals — then became extended to a process of human development Culture is an independent noun — an abstract process or the product of such a process (in early development) More common words were cultivated or cultivation (during this period) In the romantic movement — used as an alternative it civilization Used to emphasize national and traditional; cultures — next concept of folk culture Current widespread use — culture is music, literature, painting, sculpture, theatre and film What do we mean when we say nature? An essential principle of nature: the multiplicity of things and of living processes, might then be mentally organized around a single essence of principle: nature Historical definitions of nature At one point nature was a goddess, a divine mother In some ways god was personified by nature Nature is whatever we decide it to be based on the process New idea of evolution Nature became an object — sometimes a machine Laws of nature were constitutional Nature became the selective breeder Nature is separate from man — above method and ethics Ideas of nature depended on a new and singular abstraction: the abscission of man

Bullard, "Environmental Racism"

Institutional racism has shaped the economic, political and ecological landscape of the US and exploited both land and people 5 Principle Colonizing Process (Black people subjected to) Enter the "host" society and economy involuntarily The native culture is destroyed white -dominated bureaucracies impose restrictions from which whites are exempt The dominant group uses institutionalized racism to justify their actions Dual or split labor market emerges based on ethnicity and race ALL of this domination is supported by state organizations Environmental racism is reinforced by government, legal, economic, political and military institutions Ex. South Central Los Angeles Toxic colonialism: the practice of targeting poor communities of color in the third world for waste disposal and introduction of risky technologies from industrialized countries Mainstream Environmentalism Typically focus on wilderness and wildlife preservation, resource management, pollution and population control — mostly supported by middle and upper class whites and does NOT address how social inequality is part of environmentalism Environmental Justice Activism by Minority groups has increased recently There has been research about environmentally threatened communities

Lenin, State and Revolution

Leader of the 1917 revolution in Russia; a Marxist Ultimately it is Lenin who led the revolution of the Soviet Union Figuring out, on the ground, what socialism looks like; the need to adapt. Majority of Russian population is not proletarian; peasants, serfs... feudal state Similar in China Hostile Europe at his door Before the revolution, Lenin in his exile, writes about what is to be done. Lenin's argument with anarchists saying that they need to overthrow the state in order for government to operate on a local level Lenin argues that it is essential to have a central government to avoid chaos; envisioned that eventually, people won't need the state Lenin also imagines what the new socialist-state would look like, defended bourgeois-right (liberal notion of equality); must continue with that philosophy (people getting paid for the amount of hours they work); wants to avoid resentment built in capitalist, ideological space (competitive, individualistic ideology) He also defends revolution rather than reform; he believed that the bourgeoisie would find a way to undermine people We must remember that Lenin tried to hold back/ delay the revolution in Russia because he genuinely believed that Germany, and other parts of Europe were on the brink of communist revolution; Russia needed the support of more 'advanced, Westernized' societies-- potential comrades in revolution.

Historical Materialism

Man is a social animal Men and women must produce in order to live. Production, presupposes cooperation, i.e. a certain degree of social organization. Picked up where Aristotle left off In order to produce, you need language, other human beings, other interdependent skills. Cannot have social relations unless we are social animals. Since recorded history European society has been divided into classes-- into the exploited and exploiters. Ancient Greeks: freemen, slaves, women, foreigners, barbarians; Middle Ages you had noblemen, priests, the king, peasants, serfs, workers, etc. Modern capitalist period is distinctive because of the polarization of classes into two campuses: Proletariat: nothing to sell but their labor Bourgeoisie: owners of the means of productions History has progressed because each mode of production (a given historical epoch) has given rise to an internal contradiction that eventually sees its demise and the emergence of a new mode of production. Radically different than economics; it is the relation of production that determines everything else. The history of class struggle It is out of these relations that emerge particular social, religious, state, legal and ideological forms They represent and reflect the general interests of the dominant class.

Ball and Dagger, "A Working Definition of 'Ideology'"

Many definitions of ideology - Ideology explains the world - Supply standards for evaluating social conditions - Orientation- a sense of identity - Tells the group what to do politically Goes over power and freedom, how they're contested. Power through the three dimensions, freedom through liberalism. Political ideology defined on ideas of - The agent: the class, group, people, etc - The goal: What the agent wants to do - Obstacles: What stops the agents from reaching their goals

Contradictions to Marx

Marx argued that internal contradictions of capitalism will result in ... the bourgeoisie produces its own gravity Like feudalism before it, capitalism will be overthrown bc: Produces its own gravediggers (working class will overthrow it) Booms and busts Capitalism demands workers; high supply, low wages. Low supply, higher wages. Petit-bourgeoisie (e.g. mom pop operations; corner store) in a context where 7/11 is around the corner-- no longer exist; join the proletariat. Proletariat eventually overthrowing the bourgeoisie Capitalism's internal logic-- constantly open to 'booms and busts' What happens when they keep producing, but demand goes down? Getting rid of workers to compensate for extra goods...extra people out there but cannot afford product because they no longer have a wage. Nevertheless regarded capitalism as a necessary evil;

Baradat, Political ideologies 46-62

Nationalism is the theory of the nation-state Nation is a group of people with a sense of union to one another State is a combination of people, territory, government, and sovereignty Thus, a nation can exist without the State, like the Kurdish people, or Jewish prior to WW2 Nation is extremely impactful, recognize that nation-states are extremely new concepts. Nearly all now are nation-states American nation is founded on the state itself Soviet union failed nation, attempted to unite countries that prefer not too Worrying about nations are their justifications of poor actions as benefiting the nation Theories of the origin of the nation-state: The natural theory: ariostilian in nature, humans social animals bound to create states Nationalism in history isn't fascist in nature, and can be socially productive, often revolutionary. That being said, it is generally only good if used to free from a tangible oppressive force. Nationalism to put down imaginary Jewish conspiracies are obviously bad, but nationalism to out colonial enterprises are good. In interest of nation to convince citizens of their nationalism Patriotism is essential to nationalism Nation is by definition unifying and exclusionary, especially subversively so. I'd argue a lot of minorities in the US don't always feel very welcome. This is why ethnicity based nationalism is especially dangerous Nationalism makes people divide interests not along the lines of humanity as a whole, which is also potentially dangerous, looking at you climate change New internationalism might be forming

Hobbes

Nature has made all men equal From equality proceeds difference - from difference warre (war) Everyone someone looks at should be given the same value he gives himself Three principle causes of quarrel Competition - gain Difference - safety Glory - reputation All other time that isn't war is peace Culture is an independent noun — an abstract process or the product of such a process (in early development) More common words were cultivated or cultivation (during this period) In the romantic movement — used as an alternative it civilization Used to emphasize national and traditional; cultures — next concept of folk culture Current widespread use — culture is music, literature, painting, sculpture, theatre and film What do we mean when we say nature? An essential principle of nature: the multiplicity of things and of living processes, might then be mentally organized around a single essence of principle: nature Historical definitions of nature At one point nature was a goddess, a divine mother In some ways god was personified by nature Nature is whatever we decide it to be based on the process New idea of evolution Nature became an object — sometimes a machine Laws of nature were constitutional Nature became the selective breeder Nature is separate from man — above method and ethics Ideas of nature depended on a new and singular abstraction: the abscission of man In such a war no thing is unjust — in the war of every man against every man Notions of right and wrong, justice and injustice have no place

Roediger, "From the Social Construction of Race..."

Race is given meaning through the agency of human beings in concrete historical and social contexts -- it is not a biological or natural category Black is considered to some as the political color of the oppressed -- anyone who is different could theoretically be considered black with this mindset (ex. Immigrants in Brent London) race exercises a great political force -- it is so intrinsically connected to our politics perhaps nothing but a large direct movement would stop it Two approaches in politics Republican: does not shy away from race based policies but creates racist policies that can be overt Liberal (Democrat): stays away from race... if discusses talks about unification Withering away of whiteness White people assumed to not have a race If it does not involve a critique of whiteness, the questioning of racism often proves shallow and limited

J. Reardon, Race to the Finish

Talks about the Genetic Diversity Project -- which attempted to use science to take away racial categories but ended up being bound by race or even called racist Talked about a Post WW2 discussion of race Racial science ideas began emerging at the beginning of the 19th century then died after WW2 Talked about the UNESCO statements on race 1950 First Declaration: statement marks the end of racial and racist science -- saying there is no biological reality to the concept of race Second Declaration: amid criticism said it is not for sure that there is no biological reality of race -- some traits may be different based on race (ie. intelligence) Dichotomies to distinguish typological approach from a scientific one race/population race/culture classfactory/empirical history/natural selection phenotypic/genotypic Although there was much debate between physical anthropologists and genetics there was NO consensus about the role of race in studying human origins and diversity emerged after WW2 No agreement that race had no biological meaning and should be replaced by a study of population, or that typologies had no use in science Instead most tried to redirect scientific ideas and practices for studying race

John Plamenatz "Two Types of Nationalism"

Two types of nationalism - these are responsive measures Nationalism doesn't always have to be political? Comparison of east to west, west obviously political, east not so much Eastern nationalism is response to oppressive west, need to show their place in the world. Not as easy for them to trade culture because of this Nationalism is a reaction of people who feel culturally disadvantaged. This is kind of envy, but more so inspired from internationalism Nationalism's two types are an approach to struggles for conformity. If you feel your culture is misadapted for international relations, your nation will: Conform to other nations. Change your language if necessary, abandon native culture for ease in the modern world. This is Eastern nationalism, and is a response to a feeling of "backwardness" in comparison to metropolitan ideals thrusted on them from the west. An attempt at proving oneself, but losing yourself as such Refuse to conform, and then fall behind in international relations, or be fine already. This is western nationalism. They want freedom from an oppressive force that is often imaginary. Should attempt to balance both Natural reaction from poor and weak in response to oppression

Jacobson, Whiteness of a Difference Color

We think of race real -- indisputable but races can rise and fall ex. Celts, Slavs, Anglo-Saxons Race is made not born -- races are invented categories created for grouping and separating people along the lines of presumed differences Race is a perception Racism is not coming from democracy it is fundamental to American Democracy Discussed a history of whiteness in the US Nations first naturalization law (1790) -- naturalized citizenship to "free white persons" Mass european invasion from 1840 to the restive legislature of 1924 we saw a fraturning of whiteness into a hierarchy of plural and scientifically determined white races In 1920's whiteness was reconsolidated -- unitary Caucasion race Discussed a rise of scientific racism hierarchical ordering of human types The belief that outer characteristics were but markers of inner intellectual, moral or temperamental qualities The classification of human groups -- measured by physical and behavioral variations

George Lipsitz, "Evolution of identity" The Possessive Investment in Whiteness

Whiteness is everywhere in US culture -- but it is nearly invisible Contemporary racism has been created anew -- by race neutral, so called democratic policies of the New Deal Era and by the race conscious neo-conservative reactions against liberalism New deal era policies often were overtly racist For instance the Wagner Act and the Social Security Act excluded farm workers and domestics while benefiting whites The Federal Housing Act gave credit to millions of citizens but overtly racial categories made it so black people were not able to benefit in the same way white people were All of these policies widened the gap between different racial groups Highway building projects where often build through low income neighborhoods While segregation may not have been legal neighborhoods were still segregated essentially Federal home loans put the power of the federal government into the hands of private discrimination White families were able to acquire wealth over the years while other minority groups were left discriminated against and unable to accumulate wealth

Kimberly Lau"Camping Masculinity: Play and Subversion in World of Warcraft."

World of Warcraft is considerably a man's world. Accentuates male features while oversexualizing female ones. Hetero-masculine environment exercised through verbal play (homophobic slurs, feminized insults, harassment of female players, etc). Lecture notes: Camp masculinity vs. Hypermasculinity - Not too far apart Camping masculinity - Invokes discourses and practices that lie and wait for... a form of sabotage of heteronormative masculinity Players camping over and over again Camp - a cultural practice and theory of exaggeration and play Susan sontag "Notes on camp" (1964) Camp involves "love of the unnatural: of artifice and exaggeration" with its hallmark being "the spirit of extravagance" For Sontag, "the whole point of Camp is to dethrone the serious... Mark Booth, (1983) Camp is "being committed to the marginal with a commitment greater than the marginal merits... the marginal in society is the traditionally feminine, which camp parodies in an exhibition of stylized effeminacy" Avatars Visual representations of avatars are one way of camping masculinity (i.e. avatar wearing a dress) However, still very hypermasculine (i.e. small waist, big shoulders, square jawlines, broad stance) Chuck Norris and Mr.T in camping - cultural analysis of WoW commercials Chuck Norris being a camp masculine icon Chuck Norris cult - exaggeration of masculinity Hypermasculinization and racialization of Mr. T almost presenting him as a caricature The difference between being the phallus and having the phallus, Judith Butler "Melancholy Gender - Refused Identification" (1995) Think "trophy wife" where the woman is the phallus and the man has the phallus Jacques Lacan, "The Meaning of the Phallus" (1966) The fact that women/femininity so constantly put on the mask... strange consequence that, "in the human being, virile display itself appears as feminine" YouTube video of WoW avatar suicide Melancholia of grieving the possibility of same-sex love Freud and Butler Butler "When the prohibition against homosexuality is culturally pervasive, then the 'loss' of homosexual love is precipitated through a prohibition which is repeated and ritualized throughout the culture. What ensues is a culture of gender melancholy in which masculinity and femininity emerge as the traces of an ungrieved and ungrievable love;" Butler also posits a gay melancholia that contains anger that can be translated into political expression Die-ins provided public forums for "life-affirming rejoinders to the dure psychic consequences of a grieving process culturally thwarted and proscribed." -Butler why/ how camping masculinity can offer alternatives masculine socialites in our culture Exaggeration of masculinity, playfulness, etc. Affirmation of masculinity Exploring same-sex lovers in virtual reality