Kine 1000 Test 3

Understanding the implications of cultural content

"We need to understand the way in which the cultural content in scientific descriptions changes as biological discoveries unfold, and whether that cultural content is solidly entrenched or easily changed.

Emily Martin (picture of the egg and sperm)

"the picture of egg and sperm drawn in popular culture as well as scientific accounts of reproductive biology relies on stereotypes central to our cultural definitions of male and female. The stereotypes imply not only that female biological processes are less worthy than their male counterparts but also that women are less worthy than men." In other words our "biological" notions of what eggs and sperms do are more the result of stereotypical ideas of male and female social roles than scientific facts- not being very objective (male bias) Ex why is the male's vast production is not seen as wasteful.

Effect of the new discoveries

(they) began to describe egg and sperm in different, but no less damaging, terms Described the sperm as doing everything the same just doing it weakly now

Common mistakes with arguments

- Attacking the argued instead of their argument - Begging the question (arguing in circles) - The slippery slope (step might not cause chain of events but assumed it will) - The straw person (misinterprets someone's argument in a way that makes it weaker) - the fallacy of false alternatives (presents a range of positions as exhaustive when it's not) - The fallacy of equivocation (depends on the ambiguity of words/ phrases) - The fallacy of composition (incorrectly infers a whole has a particular property since it's parts do)

Levels of analysis regarding the construction of gender?

- Interactionists theoretical framework: emphasizes the ways that social agents "perform" or "do" gender are most useful in describing how groups of people actively create (or at some time disrupt) the boundaries that delineate seemingly categorical difference between male and female persons. - Structural theoretical frameworks: that emphasizes the ways that gender is built into institutions through hierarchical sexual divisions of labor are most useful in explaining under what conditions social agents mobilize variously to disrupt or to affirm gender differences and inequalities. - Cultural theoretical perspectives: examine how popular symbols that are injected into circulation by the culture industry are variously taken up by differently situated people are most useful in analyzing how the meanings of cultural symbols, in a given institutional context, might trigger or be taken up by social agents and used as resources to reproduce, disrupt, or contest binary conceptions of sex difference and gendered relations of power.

Conclusions of the Fink article

- Media are "Social Constructions" - Media do not portray reality rather it "re-present" selected version of reality - Female (athletes) are either ignored or sexualised by the media - Women should not try to perform like men (the difference between male and female sport should be celebrated not hidden)

How do parents reinforce the gender stereotypes as they comment on their children playing?

- Parents volunteer positions provide a exemplar of gender hierarchy from which the children learn gender boundaries and roles (coaches are mostly men, manager/ team moms and women, those different positions use different traits which is the reason they are associated with different genders, it is a cycle- parents learn it as children and perform it and from that their kids learn it) - Parents reactions to different performances of gender

Waneek Horn-Miller

- Stabbed in the turmoil of Oka - One of the few Aboriginal Canadians in Olympic competition (water-polo) - She's now trying to Change the Game for other First Nations people through health and wellness.

What kind of 'fat talk' and discourses of fatness have you encountered? Do they differ for men, women, racialized minorities, and so on?

- Stereotypes involved with being fat, seen as only an issue of agency (ignores the structure) - The acceptance of fatness differs greatly for different gender and cultures.

How do children construct gender by playing soccer?

- Structural theoretical frameworks- the soccer league provides structure within which gender can be constructed - Interactionist theoretical frameworks- soccer provides moments of different saliency of gender in which children are able to be active agents that perform gender within the structure and get a reaction (from parents) of reward or punishment from the way they act. These two frameworks interact and interlock. Interactions between the children is also important in this (when coed- amplified vs when just one gender together- hidden)

How has science constructed a romance based on stereotypical male-female roles?

- The language used to describe characteristics male and female reproductive systems mirrors the societally accepted characteristics of males and females themselves even though does not accurately describe the actual process (not actually objective) - Science is informed by social views of the time, which affects the results and the results are then used as evidence to support the social views (bias).

Criticisms to women not being as good at sports as men

- Who makes the decision that women are not as good at sport - Men's bodies are stronger, so naturally men and women play sport differently, one is not better than the other - There are different weight classes for men and within each different qualities are found to be praised, ie men have acommondated men's differences (if not only the strongest men are praised then why can women not be praised)- ex weight classes in boxing - Women may never do sports like men but why is that a bad thing

Dona Strickland

3rd woman in history to win a nobel prize in physics (laser beams) didn't have a wikipedia page until she won the nobel prize- why? Because she didn't have enough achievements- whose knowledge counts, who has the power

Cosmetic surgery

A form of body modification, completely elective.

New discoveries about the egg and sperm

A group of scientists at the Johns Hopkins University discovered that the "egg traps the sperm and adheres to it so tightly that the sperm's head is forced to lie flat against the surface of the zona. It took researchers 3 year to fully conceptualize and accept this concept. However they began to describe the "zona" (the inner vestments of the egg) as an aggressive sperm catcher.

Working theses

A hunch, or a temporary position that one adopts in order to give ones research an initial focus and direction.

With the new discoveries

A new paradigm about women was formed: "Women as a dangerous and aggressive threat." The femme fatale syndrome, women who victimize men is a difficult concept for our Western society

Our understanding of fat- medical model

A pathology/ disease A problem that requires a solution A fact/ number (body mass index above a certain number) Obesity discourse Effects: Fat is: - Soft, lumpy, unfit - Undesirable - The enemy - Something to avoid, reduce, limit, melt away, etc A number is supposed to determine a part of our health-> this idea shapes our story of obesity NOT ALL FAT IS BAD (are health related consequences to not having enough fat) Who is doing the research or study- that matters

Kelli Jean Drinkwater- enough with the fear of fat

A video about fat activism Messages in the video: - Celebrating all types of body and focusing on learning to be confident and love your body no matter your size - Fat people can do anything and be anything they want, it's your body, do what you want with it - Refusing to indulge in fat phobia

Aesthetic capital

Aesthetic traits -> social, financial and personal privilege Penalties if one does not have these traits i. e The taking of markers of beauty and transforming that into social, financial and personal privilege Accumulate aesthetic capital by buying beauty, or engaging in aesthetic labour or body work

Prosthetics TED talk

Aimee Mullins Woman who is living with the plastic body- changing it and manipulating it in a way that she is turning a disability to a strength/ power She has aesthetic capital

Wood Allen's movie "Every Thing You Always Wanted to Know About Sex But Were Afraid to Ask.

An atypical representation (the first) of a fearful sperm.

Orlan

An example for cosmetic surgery and agency taken to the extreme. "My body is my art" (cosmetic surgery as performance and social critique) She used her body as a canvas and cosmetic surgery as theatre, would perform (poetry, monologues etc) on camera while the doctors were cutting into her (would never be fully sedated) Transformed into elements from famous paintings and sculptures (goal was to acquire the ideal of female beauty as depicted by male artists). Adopted a carnal art manifesto

Volleyball and the sexualization of women

As late as 2012 women were allowed to wear things other than small bathing suits when playing beach volleyball

Women and biology

As more women are entering science we hope that many of these stereotypes (male bias) will disappear in science but some say it's unlikely- women are not necessarily less guilty of reproducing the bias images because of the way the scientific community is structured (doesn't allow for different perspectives) Women are not accepted in the scientific community Some researchers are not hiring women because of issues with grants and maternity leave- no wonder their are not as many women in science.

Embodiment

Awareness that we have a body

Evolution of barbie

Barbie has evolved (soccer barbie), has always been an object that put an impossible image in front of us Moving with the times to continue selling images and shares. Barbie has always been a symbol- symbol of what has changed over time (from money to professional/ athlete) Barbie as a feminist- Barbie (girls) can be anything they want (veterinarian, dentist, astronaut) ... as long as they are beautiful, skinny, with long legs, and big breasts.

Barbie as a symbol

Barbie's ideological content should be assessed in a context in which different ideas about Barbie could be developed after being exposed to her (reception context). Barbie has always been a symbol- symbol of what has changed over time (from money to professional/ athlete) Hegemony- we are not just puppets even at a young age we can still resist (Riley's rant)

Beauty as capital

Beauty is a form of currency in a cultural marketplace

Importance of examining body modification

Body as site and body modification (specifically cosmetic surgery) as a process where we can look at the tensions between the social and the individual.

Function of the conclusion

Brings a sense of closure to your work Summarized the essay and tests your understanding Suggests further lines of research in light of your thesis

Body as plastic

Can be reshaped Can be restructured Can be reconstituted Ex prosthetics

Comparison between egg and sperm

Comparison between the sperm (strong, adventurous, leader, fast, powerful) and the egg (passive lady in-waiting, only complete once the sperm becomes a part of her)- seem like traits given to males and females themselves

Components of the body paragraphs

Contextualize the topic Discuss main lines of thinking Evaluate main lines of thinking Establish your thesis

Why and how is the idea of 'good citizen' linked to health and vitality? What roles does sport play in the relationship?

Cosmetic surgery not an accepted way of improving the body (easy way out, not a good citizen), however sport and physical activity even if done purely for improvement of appearance is praised and not seen as vain. If the body is improved by sport it is seen as a deserved chain, if improved by cosmetic surgery seen as undeserved.

Cosmetic surgery and the search for normal

Cosmetic surgery- not a way to stand out and become beautiful, rather seen as a way to look 'normal', blend in But what is normal? Our definition of normal is based off our definition of flawed (co-constructed against 'flawed') Explicit diminishment of markers of sex/ gender/ sexuality, race/ ethnicity, class, age, etc

Downplaying gender

Couple with baby that weren't telling gender- trying to reduce the bias associated with gender and baggage, try to stop their child from being placed in a box

Fat studies

Critical Social model Focus is not on the fat body itself Focus more on structure/ factors involved Say fatness is framed by social relationships, power and norms Focus should not just be on the fat body but that body in society (social, informed by power)- not just the individual but everyone around the individual

Criticisms of cosmetic surgery

Dangerous, risky, potential complications Emphasis on appearance Prey on individuals false desire for (unattainable) "physical perfection" (narcissism) Easy way out Splits the body and the mind (mind no longer relates to the body- can feel foreign and undeserved) Overlook the experience of women who have plastic surgery East to criticize cosmetic surgery and those who get it. However we should stop this knee jerk criticism as it gets in the way of understanding some of the reasons behind it (not all just agency, need to look at the structure involved)

Jackson Katz- Masculinity at Play

Dominant culture controls our perception of what it means to be a real man Lots of pressure to conform Consequence- connection in the media/ our culture between being a man and being violent

Emergent theses

Emerges as a result of research

A girl like me video

Even the children see black as bad and white as good (black as a flaw) Little girl says that the black doll is bad and when asked which looks like her reluctantly pushes forward the black doll (consenting to the stereotypes)

Gender

How children "do gender" when they interact or perform. Different expectations in sport based on gender

Culture

How popular cultural provides images to be used by children and parents to magnify differences. Images associated with sport (Barbie)

Structure

How the structured gender regime constrains and enables the actions of children and parents How we are constricted within sport Are there equal opportunities for everyone

Why should women be in the media

Human rights, being fair

Why should sport be in the media

If we want to understand how we function or about ourselves we need sport Important to be physically active

Why do women allow for the sexualization of themselves?

If women refused to undress they were kicked out of the photoshoot (why does one group get liway) In other words in the refuse to be portrayed in a sexulaized way the reporters will not hesitate to send them on their way Who has power Women have been allowed to play sport after a long time of not being allowed but under the rules of the men in power, if they refused the men would have just taken it away again (somewhat forced into submission)- hegemony (men explain the reasoning for the way things are in a way that is normalized and accepted- men are better at sport because they are stronger etc)

Reality of egg and sperm

In reality these traits are not even correct More accurate representation is that the sperms weakly flop along and get close to the egg by luck after which the strong egg pics one and fights it (and wins) to get it inside them (actually very different traits are applicable to the sperm and the egg). In reality sperm help each other while the egg is the real competitive loner.

Components of an introduction

Indicates clearly a well- defined topic for the essay Describes briefly how the body of the essay is organized Explains the point of writing the essay

Critique of the obesity epidemic

Is it really a crisis? Our estimations of levels of obesity in society may be wrong (much lower numbers that are said) Is it really a new issue? Is it still a crisis? - overall leveling off of obesity rates Moral judgment tied to disease Uncoupling Disease from Moral Judgment- WHO article

Carnal art

Is self- portraiture in the classical sense, but realized through the possibility of technology.

What is meant by 'reading the body' and how this is gendered?

It is seen in society that a woman's worth is measured by her appearance (alignment of the body and the self)

Perspective of those who undergo plastic surgery

It works Must now integrate cosmetic surgery into their identities Not only women Often have tried many other way to feel comfortable in their skin but non have worked so they turn to cosmetic surgery as a last resort Double bind

Performance of gender

Learning their roles as boys and girls through interactions Boys will be boys, girls will be girls What is the good for society in having all these biases put on a baby

Sexualization of men vs women

Males are sometimes sexalized as well There is a difference in the sexualization of men and women in sport When men are sexualized they are sexualized in a way that still portrays power (poses etc) When women are sexualized they are seen as a powerless object

Mind body dualism

Mind and body are two different things, not connected to one another often called Cartesian dualism, in honor of Descartes I think therefore I am However we often disregard our body- sensations, care for it, in favour of our mind Mind body split

Men portrayal in the media

More of a focus on skills and action On the court

Obesity discourse

Narrow view of fatness Lens of medicalization Fatness as pathology Focus on the individual

Cosmetic surgery, agency and structure

Need to understand cosmetic surgery in a way that emphasizes agency AND structure.

Orlan and pain

Never addressed pain (would say "pain is a thing of the past), this is an issues as if paints a false picture of cosmetic surgery.

Does Prof Hernan hate science

No but he is critical of Science because he wants science to be better (not because he is saying it is not useful or stupid)

Four ways ones thesis can be flawed

No connection (to assigned issue) Trivial theses (everyone already agrees with) Wide theses (claims more than necessary) Narrow theses (claims less than necessary)

Competition with the science of reproduction

No need for such a focus on competition- cooperation is needed for the continuation of the species

Plastic surgery

Not elective, for medical reasons Not a form of body modification

Common responses to why women are not covered in sport

Not enough space in the paper Not as good as men Not always that women are not as good as men, rather that editors do not publish stories about women (why not) Not covered because "no interest" but what role does the media play in increasing this interest

How do we create change in science

Only by modifying the way in which people uncover the "facts" about gender, race, and class can humanity hope to achieve equality in these areas. Therefore, it is critical that inquiring scholars and scientists question the motivations of science and its relationship with society

Our definition of flawed

Our definition of flawed is anything different than the western look Ex. Iranian noses, asian eyelids

Socialization in other experiences

People who choose not to play sports may have different, perhaps better, socialization opportunities in other pursuits

Levels of analysis of gender

Performance, structure and culture must be understood as interlocking aspects in analysizing gender

Politically/ ideologically motivated images of women in sport

Photographs & images of women in sport are "politically motivated." Photographs of women in sport help to create & shape consent "to existing social arrangements ("All men care is the beauty of women as opposed to their brains.").

Purpose of an introduction

Prepare the reader for the body of writing that comes after it.

Men and cosmetic surgery

Represent approx 10% of cosmetic surgery market (growing) The reason the undergo it is often the "executive edge"- desire to look younger to compete in the workplace

Double bind

Reproduced the mind/ body split Bound to criticism- already unhappy with the way they look, feel judged -> turn to cosmetic surgery as a last resort -> even after surgery end up being judged by society for being superficial enough to undergo cosmetic surgery and lazy

Obesity epidemic

Seen as the new tobacco In the late 1990's reports of a obesity epidemic Gilman- the power of framing a disease (perception of something) Who is doing the framing- that matters

Implications of the way women in sport are viewed

Serious consequences to how we trivialize womens sports- the negative depiction of female athletes (when we sexualize and trivialize female sport) and the emphasis on men's sport we are symbolically annihilating womens sport Views of women of sport in the media are unsustainable and unacceptable

What social and cultural forces influence our relationship with our bodies?

Social norms construct our views of what constitutes beauty, these can be created through the media. The social norms are created by those in power, mainly white people.

Meaning and importance of social experiences

Social relations + cultural context = meaning & importance Since we learn as we get in contact with other people, the meaning and importance of those experiences will be given by those interactions and the cultural context in which they happen.

Mind body dualism and cosmetic surgery

Something is happening psychologically however they are changing something in their body (plastic body). Seeing the body as external something that can be changed, moulded, taken apart, out back together, worked on. Reproduce mind/ body split

Organizational patterns

Spatial, chronological and logical Best when used in combination

Sports and socialization

Sports are sites for socialization experiences rather than causes of specific socialization outcomes. Magnified moments We can have bad experiences with sport (two people doing the same thing can have very different experiences of the same thing- making vs not making a team, benchwarmers vs superstars)

Jackson Katz

Talks a lot about stereotypes of men and how they encourage violence.

Men and the beauty industry

The beauty industry now is just as much for men as for women Baldness in men is seen subconsciously as a sign of leadership (less of an idea that men have to be pretty to progress in the workplace- common stereotypes of what is acceptable for men and woman, power)

Why have scientists been so slow in challenging those factually wrong ideas?

The bias is informing their observations and it is hard to seperate yourself from the bias.

Body modification

The deliberate altering of the human body for non-medical reasons: - Aesthetics - A rite of passage - To display group affiliation (ex circumcision) - To create body art - Etc Purely for aesthetic capital, completely elective. Cosmetic surgery is but one form of body modification. Plastic surgery is not a form of body modification.

Golden rule of relevance

The easier it is to imagine that the evidence is true but that the thesis is false, the less relevant that evidence is to the thesis.

The media and the western look

The exclusion/ marginalization of the non-White Other reinforces the definition of beauty as White, a definition maintained by most media images Many countries saw a major increase in cosmetic surgery with the introduction of satellite TV as they were exposed to western looks and standards of beauty (cosmetic surgery in other countries is often largely in an attempt to look more western)

Media and sport

The media has normalized what sport is and it is a very narrow definition Newspaper- sports section: - Advertised as all sport - Only professional, male sports (and male sports that are considered extra masculine)D Selective reality: - Media is dealing with something that is not actually reality: not true that only the people in the media are playing sports (selecting a fraction of sport participation and advertising it as all of sport)

The structure of gender

The value of what it is said ("They are SO different!") and the value of what it is ignored (Look at them! They are so similar!"). Even though the times they act similar way outnumber the times they act different Why do we separate genders in sport at a young age (physical abilities are the same) We say it is because the children want to be seperated but is that true Traditional gender roles are seen even within the coaching staff/ other parent roles on the team (managers) Hegemony involved in sport

Criteria for supporting arguments

Trustworthy and relevant

University sport and the media

University sport is ignored- not the case in many other countries

Body as cultural plastic

Unlimited potential for change Commodified (can buy it/ put it on the market) Symbolic of identity Linked to consumption of material goods

Swedish Video

We do a superficial analysis of people and often associate with those similar to us from that respect, but if we look deeper there's a lot of things that connect us to those who from first glance are different from us

Macho men and frail women in the media

We see one portrayal of how men (macho) and women (frail) should be when in reality here are frail men and powerful women but if we just looked at the media we would not see that

Our definition of normal

Western look Power- who has the power to create this as the definition of normal (hegemony) Definitions of 'beauty' or 'normal' maintain racial AND gender inequity Need to apply our sociological awareness to the concept of normal.

Methodology

What is the method we can observe and be critical of sport This is an important consideration

Denotation

What most of us see without major analysis Is the dictionary definition, what you see at a first glance/ superficial look

Mens sport trivialized

When men are treated the way women are they refuse and complain and it changes (who has power) Ex. At the first Olympics men were forced to wear small tight shorts however the were outraged and refused and so the rules were changed Men in the SUN were told to be topless and they refused (they argued that if they were going to be photographed it must be in the way they want) Men asked questions by reporters that women usually are asked

Women in sport and the media

When women are represented in the media how are they represented: Sexualized and trivialized, pictured off the court This sexualized is unwanted and demeaning Female athlete are treated differently than male athletes Stereotypes associated with female athletes (seen as tomboys or lesbian) almost frowned upon whereas athletic men are praised Strong, muscular female bodies are not accepted

The culture of gender

Why do we say it is wrong for girls to be strong or fast- because they are different or like boys? Barbie

Connotation

Will help us interpret what we see (content & context) What is implied by the word, when you add context into that image, deeper look

Types of these

Working, emergent

Janet Fink

Wrote article "Female athletes, women's sport, & the sport media commercial complex" Very extensive academic achievements

Ideological

based on or relating to a system of ideas and ideals, especially concerning economic or political theory and policy.

Participation and invisibility

despite an increase in women's participation in sport, they remain invisible in the media.

Intrepid

fearless; adventurous Applied to sperm

Aesthetic labour

labour to attain beauty full emphasis of the beauty aspect, time put in to obtain beauty (and only beauty)

Social body

markers on our body that people make a judgement based on

Hegemony in sport

organizations, even while appearing 'gender neutral,' tend to reflect, re-create, and naturalize a hierarchical ordering of gender." Not surprisingly, their modus operandi becomes the common sensical norm (which they children learn to be normal- men are coaches, women are managers) The institutional structure of sports has differentially constrained and enabled women's and men's previous options and experiences." In other words, their choices reflect their past experiences vis-a-vis gender roles, they fulfill the roles they see to be "correct" for their gender and the cycle continues.

Pedagogy of disgust

the method and practice of teaching using disgust Advertsiting against obesity using gross images and scary facts (scaring people skinny), blaming of those who are obese (not understanding of structure involved), hateful messages. Is it effective?

Body work

work that is done to, by or through the body work for more than just beauty (health) but results in beauty, going to the gym to look good Work for beauty that also has other benefits/ beauty is a byproduct