What Is Gender Performativity free essay sample

All of us have been assigned a â€Å"sex† when we are born, and we are bound to be men or women. Many of us believe that we belong to a particular sex whilst sex is natural, gender is social and culture constructed. Sex refers to the biological and physiological characteristics that define men and women such as reproductive organs; gender refers to the socially constructed roles, behaviors, activities, and attributes that a given society considers appropriate for men and women. [i] To put it another way, male and female are sex categories, while masculine and feminine are gender categories. In this contemporary society, for males, behavioral traits generally considered masculine include independent, non-emotional, aggressive, tough-skinned, competitive, strong, active, self-confident. In contrast, for females, behavioral traits generally considered feminine include dependent, emotional, passive, sensitive, weak, accepting. Have you ever think that, why a male must act like a man, a female must act like a woman? It is all because of gender socialization. We will write a custom essay sample on What Is Gender Performativity? or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page During this process, we learned how to behave in the society, to act the expected role of men or women. In other words, that is all of us are taught to perform scripts of the belonged sex. Judith Butler argues that gender is â€Å"performative† and is constructed through â€Å"repeated acts of gender practice. In the following I will give explanation on Judith Butler’s arguments, and based on Bulter’s view, critical analyze the contemporary ideas of masculinity and femininity by discussing people’s clothing, see how are they being gendered. In Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity, Judith Butler mentioned gender is an act. The action of gender requires a performance that is repeated. This repetition is at once a reenactment and reexperiencing of a set of meanings already socially established and it is the mundane and ritualized form of their legitimation. Although there are individual bodies that enact these significations by becoming stylized into gendered modes, this â€Å"action† is a public action. These actions are formed by the temporal and collective dimensions, gender is an identity tenuously constituted in time, constituted in an exterior space through a stylized repetition of cts. Gender is instituted through the stylization of the body and, hence, must be understood as the mundane way in which bodily gestures, movements, and enactments of various kinds constitute the illusion of an abiding gendered self. This formulation moves the conception of gender off the ground of a substantial model of identity to one that requires a conception of a constituted social temporality. The act that o ne does, the act that one performs, is, in a sense, an act that has been going on before one arrived on the scene. ii] Hence, gender is an act which has been rehearsed, much as a script survives the particular actors who make use of it, but which requires individual actors in order to be actualized and reproduced as reality once again. [iii] Butler thinks that gender is performative which sees gender is the effect of a series of acts, how we act and walk and speak and talk in ways that consolidate an impression of being a man or being a woman, we have to nominate ourselves as either male or female, which means, it is constructed through multiple acts of gender practice. In Adorned in Dreams: Fashion and Modernity, Elizabeth Wilson stated that â€Å"fashion is obsessed with gender, defines and redefines the gender boundary. †[iv] In this contemporary society, fashion is androgynous, however, we use fashion as a tool to help us to perform the script, and let others to have a clearer identification of our gender. Therefore, fa is one of the most effective examples to demonstrate how masculinity and femininity are gendered. Clothing clarifies cultural ideas about gender; it helps in constructing self-controlling, self-regulating subjects with their â€Å"proper looks†; it adds layers of cultural meanings onto the body. Vision is the first thing to attract peoples attention, clothing is an indicator which help us to determine the sex of a person, for example, there are only little appearance differences between infant boys and infant girls, parents most often use clothing to avoid confusion. Boys are typically dressed in blue color, and often decorated with sporting, cars or superheros prints; girls are dressed in pink and decorated with flowers or hearts. [v] In 2010, there was a news â€Å"Rooms with a hue: The all-pink and all-blue photographs that prove girls and boys develop gender specific preferences to colour† by Daily Mail Reporter, it shows that girls usually like pink and boys usually like blue. [vi] However, before World War II, girl would be thought as butch if she wearing pink. At that time, pink was the boys colour (because its an offshoot of angry red) and blue was the girls colour (because it was thought to be calming and serene). [vii] This can indicate that colour performance is gendered, people set a value on one colour, and use that colour to help them perform their scripts better. Nowadays, blue provides a energetic feeling while pink is a girlish and gentle. Not only the use of colour, but also the types and the cuttings of clothing can illustrate that appearance is gendered. In order to emphasise male and female bodily features, the shoulders part of suit of men are stiffened, and the womens clothing is usually skinny which these can add â€Å"masculinity† and â€Å"femininity† to the body. [viii] The suit especially the stiffened shoulders, can help broadening the shoulders and chest, shows that men are strong. Also, men’s bodies are rendered invisible, which ignored their erotic display and men’s suits are usually promoting â€Å"professional† images of male, show that they are independent and competitive.

Goodfellas narrative structure essays

Goodfellas narrative structure essays The movie GoodFellas based on Nicholas Pileggi's book Wiseguy and directed by the highly praised Martin Scorsese is probably one of the best mafia movies ever made. GoodFellas is the story of Irish-Italian American, Henry Hill, and how he lives day-to-day life as a member of the Mafia in the 60s and 70s in New York City. Based on a true story, the plot revolves around Henry, his wife, and his mafia partners. Joe Pesci plays Tommy Devito, a pure bred Italian gangster, who turns out to be Henry's best friend. Robert De Niro plays Jimmy Conway, the man who puts the two of them together, and runs some of the biggest hijacks and burglaries the city has ever seen. Hill (Ray Liotta) rises through the ranks of his Brooklyn neighborhood's organized crime branch, and with money from the mob he begins living the good life, complete with a beautiful bride, Karen (Lorraine Bracco), a fancy home, and the best seats at the most exclusive restaurants. A messed up robbery lands Henry in prison for a few years, and when he gets released, his reckless infidelities and drug abuse damage his associations with his adopted family forcing him to sell out his friends to stay alive. The movie is told through the view of Henry and also through the view of his wife Karen. Martin Scorseses unique narration structure of using two narrators creates a truer representation for the audience to see how life was like in the mafia. This is made clear when you look at the films exposition, cultural verisimilitude and subjectivity. In GoodFellas, the storys exposition or background information is given out through the narration and through flashback. The beginning of the film is one big flashback. It is during this time that Henry informs the audience about his childhood and how and most importantly why he got into the mafia. In his narration he says he felt like, the luckiest kid in the world growing up and working for mobsters...

Nelson Rockfeller, Last of the Liberal Republicans

Nelson Rockfeller, Last of the Liberal Republicans Nelson Rockefeller served as governor of New York for 15 years and became an influential figure in the Republican Party before serving as vice president under President Gerald Ford for two years. As the presumed leader of the northeastern wing of the party, Rockfeller ran for the Republican nomination for president three times. Rockefeller was known for a generally liberal social policy coupled with a pro-business agenda. The so-called Rockefeller Republicans essentially faded into history as the very conservative movement exemplified by Ronald Reagan took hold. The term itself fell into disuse, replaced by â€Å"moderate Republican.† Fast Facts: Nelson Rockefeller Known For: Longtime liberal Republican governor of New York and heir to the Rockefeller fortune. He ran unsuccessfully for president three times and served as vice president under Gerald Ford.Born: July 8, 1908 in Bar Harbor, Maine, a grandson of the world’s richest manDied: January 26, 1979 in New York CityParents: John D. Rockefeller, Jr. and Abby Green AldrichSpouses: Mary Todhunter Clark (m. 1930-1962) and Margaretta Large Fitler (m. 1963)Children: Rodman, Ann, Steven, Mary, Michael, Nelson, and MarkEducation: Dartmouth College (degree in economics)Famous Quote: Ever since I was a kid. After all, when you think of what I had, what else were there to aspire to? (on seeking the presidency). As the grandson of legendary billionaire John D. Rockefeller, Nelson Rockefeller grew up surrounded with extravagant wealth. He became known as a supporter of the arts and was highly regarded as a collector of modern art. He was also known for a gregarious personality, though his detractors claimed his habit of exuberantly greeting people with a loud Hiya, fella! was a carefully calculated effort to appeal to ordinary people. Early Life Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller was born July 8, 1908, in Bar Harbor, Maine. His grandfather was the richest man in the world, and his father, John Rockefeller, Jr., worked for the family business, Standard Oil. His mother, Abigail â€Å"Abby† Greene Aldrich Rockefeller, was the daughter of a powerful U.S. senator from Connecticut and a noted patron of the arts (she would eventually be a founder of the Museum of Modern Art in New York City). Growing up, Nelson was apparently afflicted with dyslexia, which was not fully understood. He had trouble reading and spelling throughout his life, though he managed to do reasonably well in school. He graduated from Dartmouth College with a degree in economics in 1930. He married soon after college, and began working for his family at Rockefeller Center, which had recently opened as an office complex. New York Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller (1908 - 1979, seated) with his first wife, Mary Todhunter Clark, and children, Mary, Anne, Steven, Rodman and Michael. Keystone / Getty Images Early Career Rockefeller obtained a real estate license and began his career by leasing out office space in Rockefeller Center. He also supervised some of the decor. In a famous incident, he had a mural painted by Diego Rivera chiseled from the wall. The artist had included the face of Lenin in the painting. From 1935 to 1940 Rockefeller worked for a Standard Oil affiliate in South America and became interested in local culture to the point of learning Spanish. In 1940 he began a career of public service by accepting a position in the administration of Franklin D. Roosevelt. His job at the Office of Inter-American Affairs entailed providing economic aid to Latin American countries (which was a strategic effort to thwart Nazi influence in the Western Hemisphere). Bettmann / Getty Images   In 1944 he became the assistant secretary of state for Latin American affairs, but resigned a year later, when his aggressive personality rubbed his superiors the wrong way. He later worked briefly in the administration of Harry Truman. In the Eisenhower administration, Rockefeller served as the undersecretary of HEW for two years, from 1953 to 1955. He then served as an adviser to Eisenhower on Cold War strategy, but left the government, hoping to get involved in politics elsewhere. Running for Office Rockefeller decided to run for governor of New York in the election of 1958. He secured the Republican nomination, partly because state party officials liked that he could finance his own campaign. It was widely assumed the Democratic incumbent, Averell Harriman, would be reelected, especially running against a novice at electoral politics. Showing a surprising flair for campaigning, Rockefeller energetically approached voters to shake hands and eagerly sample food in ethnic neighborhoods. On Election Day 1958, he scored an upset win against Harriman. Within days of his election he was being asked if he intended to run for president in 1960. He said no. November 9, 1966 - New York: Governor Nelson Rockefeller, who is Governor, according to amended campaign sign overhead, rejoices in his re-election early November 9, 1966.   Bettmann / Getty Images His terms as governor would eventually be known for ambitious infrastructure and transportation projects, a commitment to increasing the size of the state’s university system, and even a commitment to the arts. He would go on to serve as New York’s governor for 15 years, and for much of that time the state seemed to operate as a laboratory for governmental programs, often inspired by groups convened by Rockefeller. He typically convened task forces of experts which would study programs and propose governmental solutions. Rockefeller’s penchant for surrounding himself with experts wasn’t always viewed favorably. His former boss, President Eisenhower, was said to have commented that Rockefeller was too used to borrowing brains instead of using his own. Presidential Ambitions Within a year of taking office as governor, Rockefeller began to reconsider his decision not to run for president. As he appeared to have the support of the moderate to liberal Republicans on the East Coast, he considered running in the 1960 primaries. However, realizing Richard Nixon had solid support, he withdrew from the race early. In the 1960 election he supported Nixon and campaigned for him. According to an anecdote recounted in his 1979 obituary in the New York Times, in 1962 he was asked, while looking at the White House from his private plane, if he ever thought about living there. He replied, â€Å"Ever since I was a kid. After all, when you think of what I had, what else were there to aspire to?† Vice. Pres. Richard Nixon (R) with Nelson Rockefeller (L) September 01, 1960.   Joseph Scherschel / Getty Images Rockefeller viewed the presidential election of 1964 as an opportunity. He had solidified his reputation as the leader of the â€Å"eastern establishment† Republicans. His obvious opponent in 1964 primaries would be Senator Barry Goldwater of Arizona, the leader of the conservative wing of the Republican Party. A complication for Rockefeller was that he had been divorced from his first wife in 1962. Divorce was unheard of for major politicians at the time, yet Rockefeller hadnt seemed to be harmed by it when he won reelection as governor of New York in 1962. (He married for the second time in 1963.) It’s difficult to quantify how much impact Rockefeller’s divorce and new marriage had on his presidential prospects in 1964, but it’s likely it had an effect. When the 1964 Republicans primaries began, Rockefeller was still considered a favorite for the nomination, and he won the primaries in West Virginia and Oregon (while Goldwater won in other early states). The deciding contest promised to be the primary in California, where Rockefeller was believed to be the favorite. A few days before the June 2, 1964, voting in California, Rockefeller’s second wife, Margaretta â€Å"Happy† Rockefeller, gave birth to a son. That event suddenly brought the issue of Rockefeller’s divorce and remarriage back into the public eye, and it has been credited with helping Goldwater win an upset victory in the California primary. The conservative from Arizona went on to become the 1964 Republican nominee for president. When Rockefeller rose to speak at the Republican National Convention that summer to advocate for a platform amendment repudiating the conservative John Birch Society, he was loudly booed. He refused to support Goldwater in the general election, which Lyndon Johnson won in a landslide. Rockefeller, shown addressing the GOP State Committee, is seeding delegate strength among committee members on June 25, 1968.   Bettmann / Getty Images As the election of 1968 approached, Rockefeller tried to enter the race. That year Nixon represented the moderate wing of the party, with California governor Ronald Reagan favored by the conservatives. Rockefeller gave mixed signals about whether he would run until that summer’s convention approached. He finally tried to round up uncommitted delegates to challenge Nixon, but his efforts fell short. Rockefeller’s presidential runs had a lasting impact on the Republican Party, as they seemed to define the profound split in the party as the conservative wing was becoming ascendant. The Attica Crisis Rockefeller continued on as governor of New York, eventually winning four terms. In his final term a prison uprising at Attica came to permanently scar Rockefeller’s record. The prisoners, who had taken guards as hostages, demanded Rockefeller visit the prison and oversee negotiations. He refused, and ordered an assault that turned disastrous when 29 inmates and ten hostages were killed. Rockefeller was condemned for his handling of the crisis, with his political opponents claiming it demonstrated his lack of compassion. Even Rockefeller supporters found his decision difficult to defend. Rockefeller Drug Laws As New York endured a heroin epidemic and a crisis over drug use and associated crime, Rockefeller advocated for tougher drug laws with mandatory sentences even for dealing small amounts of drugs. The laws were passed and over time were seen as a major mistake, greatly increasing the states prison population while not doing much to curb underlying problems of drug abuse. Subsequent governors have removed the most severe punishments of the Rockefeller Laws. Vice President In December 1973 Rockefeller resigned from the governorship of New York. It was assumed he might be thinking of running for president again in 1976. But after Nixons resignation, and Gerald Fords ascension to the presidency, Ford nominated Rockefeller to be his vice president. President Ford holds the report on the Central Intelligence Agency presented to him at the White House by Vice President Nelson Rockefeller, chairman of the blue ribbon panel that made the investigation.   Bettmann / Getty Images After serving as vice president for two years, the conservative wing of the party, led by Ronald Reagan, demanded that he not be on the ticket in 1976. Ford replaced him with Bob Dole of Kansas. Retirement and Death Retired from public service, Rockefeller devoted himself to his vast art holdings. He was working on a book about his art collection when he was stricken by a fatal heart attack on the night of January 26, 1979 at a townhouse he owned in Manhattan. At the time of his death he was with a 25-year-old female assistant, which led to endless tabloid rumors. Rockefellers political legacy was mixed. He steered New York state for a generation and by any measure was a very influential governor. But his ambition for the presidency was always thwarted, and the wing of the Republican Party he represented has largely disappeared. Sources: Greenhouse, Linda. â€Å"For Nearly a Generation, Nelson Rockefeller Held the Reins of New York State.† New York Times, 28 January 1979, p. A26.Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller. Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2nd ed., vol. 13, Gale, 2004, pp. 228-230. Gale Virtual Reference Library.Neumann, Caryn E. Rockefeller, Nelson Aldrich. The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives, Thematic Series: The 1960s, edited by William L. ONeill and Kenneth T. Jackson, vol. 2, Charles Scribners Sons, 2003, pp. 273-275. Gale Virtual Reference Library.

Mental Illness Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Mental Illness - Essay Example Panic attacks usually last for a short duration of time in which a person is subject to stress and overload of anxiety and they have a sudden intensity of that anxiety. A panic attack is characterized by a person having heart palpitations, sweating, trembling and shaking, shortness of breath, a feeling of choking, chest pains, nausea, dizzy and lightheaded sensations, numbing or tingling sensations, a feeling of distance from reality or from oneself, a fear of dying, losing control or going crazy (Panic attack, American Psychiatric Association, 1994). Panic attacks can often lead to panic disorder. This is mental illness that is characterized by a series of panic attacks that a person experiences over a period of time due to anxiety and stress. It is a recurrence of this unexpected panic attacks that create the disorder. Many times it is diagnosed with or without agoraphobia present (Panic disorder with agoraphobia, American Psychiatric Association, 1994). Agoraphobia is the condition in which a sufferer of the panic disorder often begins to have continuous concern that another panic attack will come on. It is the anticipation of going to a certain place where they fear that a panic attack will occur. It is often difficult for people to travel beyond their comfort zones without suffering from severe anxiety. Many people find it hard to go to shopping malls, ride a bus or attend theater or sports performances because of the urge to need to find a quick route to get out so that they do not become embarrassed if they were to have an anxiety attack (Anxiety Disorders Association of America, 2011). Patients are worried that certain situations will cause them to have a panic attack and therefore sometimes start to avoid situations which make them anxious or nervous. They are often afraid to do something as

Political Science - international relations Essay

Political Science - international relations - Essay Example America is presently on course for an economic meltdown at the same time the EU and China are thriving. This trend is expected to continue unless drastic steps are taken immediately but much the same as the global warming crisis; the self-inflicted damage has already been done and may not be completely reversible. The current President Bush administration cut the taxes of the rich while increasing military expenditures on The War on Terror, invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan and the rebuilding of those countries. The debt has now exceeded even the Reagan administration’s record levels. It has severely hampered America’s ability to continue to effectively defend itself and will cripple it economically for many years to come. (Suter, 2004). In this time of increased globalization of the world’s financial markets, American legislators are more easily able to borrow from other countries that are experiencing a surplus of money. The United States is regarded as a good investment and has an unlimited ability to secure loans without a problem, but loans must be paid back, with interest. China and other countries own a large piece of America, a potentially disastrous prospect. For example, in February of 2005 the nation’s seventh largest creditor with $53 Billion in holding s, the Bank of Korea, revealed that it intended to â€Å"diversify reserves out of U.S. dollars† (Hirose, 2005). The Dow Jones dropped 174 points and the dollar lost significant value that same day. What if tomorrow, a major U.S. creditor lost confidence in this nation’s ability to honor the debt or decided to exert political influence by means of economic threats related to the debt? (â€Å"America’s Foreign Owners†, 2006). What if they all united against the U.S.? It probably won’t happen anytime soon but the fact that it could happen should be enough to alert Congress to the crisis. One or a combination of creditor countries could cause a sudden and

Importance of Homework Essay Example for Free

Importance of Homework Essay Homework, as I understand, is a practice and review of lessons learned as part of your studies, not an instrument that forces students to relearn an entire lesson,” comments Dr. George Roberts, a renowned psychiatrist and professor at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Roberts does not believe in assigning students enormous amounts of homework because he considers it unnecessary and a waste of time. However, not all school boards concur with Dr. Roberts, since they perceive homework as an essential part of education and learning. Most people will agree that homework is an essential part of education, but the question is, how much homework should be assigned on a daily basis? Everyone may have different opinions on how much homework should be assigned, but here is my stance on the situation. I believe that the homework load that teachers can assign should be limited so that students will not accumulate too much stress, get enough sleep, and have more free time to enjoy their hobbies and spend with their family and friends. First of all, extremely exorbitant amounts of homework have been causing stress in many teenagers. What comes to mind when you think about stress? Competitions, performances, or homework? Amazingly, homework is one of the top stress providers for students. 13 out of 100 teenage suicides are related to stress buildup at school, specifically from the large amounts of homework. Excess homework has even been proven to cause an increased maturing rate of hair, also known as the graying of hair. I’ve had my own experiences of stress caused by homework, and they weren’t too pleasant.

Peace Essay :: essays research papers

China and Iran: Transition to Democracy   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Throughout the course of history, there have been Communist, Socialist, Democratic governments and dictatorships, but the most equitable form of government has been Democracy. All these different forms of government have been successful at some time, but in today’s world in order for the process of democratization to succeed, many factors have to be favorable for success to be achieved. In this essay, the democratization of China and Iran will be discussed. One has been successful where the other has not emerged. The process and factors that lead to their present outcomes will be discussed.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The democratization of China had been a very slow process. China’s process of democratization has been long in coming, â€Å"for 160 years since the Opium War, China has struggled through countless tortuous paths in pursuit of democratization. Millions of people with lofty ideals sacrificed for it; a number of them were killed by those who resisted democratization, but even more died as a result of internal conflicts.†1 These deaths were not in vain, they taught the people of China a very valuable lesson and after the Cultural Revolution(1966 to 1969), which was a crucial period when many political and social reforms were initiated, the people of China started to accept these political reforms. â€Å"The legitimacy of the Communist government had been exhausted. Cultural Revolution raised questions to the Chinese about the legitimacy of the former communist regime.†2   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  There were many events that led to the democratization. The incident at Tiananmen Square was a major event (June 1989) in twentieth century Chinese history, as well as one of the causes of the downfall of communism in many countries. During this incident students marched and demonstrated against the CCP. It was watched by the world via television, it marked the beginning of the third period of modern Chinese foreign policy. The first was coterminous with Mao Zedong’s rule, 1949-1976, and the second was coterminous with the economic reform movement of 1977-1988, led by Deng Xiaoping. Under Mao, Beijing’s foreign policy was determined mostly by domestic factors. The first of these was revolutionary politics. The most important domestic change was replacement of Maoist radicalism by Dengist pragmatic moderation and a corresponding shift from the primacy of politics to that of economics. â€Å"Tiananmen symbolized the beginning of the end of communist r ule in China, contributed to the end of Marxism-Leninism globally, and affected China’s foreign relations in two ways.