Although this is a women's studies class I think what we are ultimately studying is what it means to 'be' human. How does being labeled male or female affect the way we relate to others and see ourselves? We are studying our relationships -- with the same and with the opposite gender, and also our self-perceptions. I was taught from an early age to be respectful of women, not in a patronizing way, but by stressing the need to pull my weight around the house -- sometimes by cooking and cleaning, other times through more stereotypically masculine activities. I also had to show consideration and respect for everyone's opinion, male and female. My mother considered herself a feminist because she believed in equality. She believed in treating others fairly, and demanded not to be treated as a second-class citizen. By setting this role model of strength, she enabled me to have a strong sense of self-worth, but also made me capable of respecting strength in others, both men and women.
In this class, I particularly look forward to studying what feminism means in the context of other cultures. Different cultures have assigned different roles and responsibilities to men and women, and what feminist liberation means in one culture is not the same in all cultures. For example, many women in Muslim nations find...
They think this enables them to be defined in a way that is not centered upon their sexuality. Others see the veil as discriminatory, because it focuses so much on a women's potential to be viewed as a sexual being. Studying gender in a cross-cultural context enables us to better understand the limits and particular nature of our own cultural perspective.
I am also interested to see how advances in the study of genetics and biology have affected women's studies. Some studies indicate that because of the way that men and women's development and brains function that young children should be taught differently, based upon their gender. How does biological difference impact the assumptions of the women's movement? This is an ongoing debate.
One of the exciting aspects of women's studies is that it is dealing with so many new influences, so much new data from research and also with continually shifting demographic information. Although I consider myself a feminist now, I am sure that my definition of feminism will change over the course of the semester. I look forward to learning from the input of my colleagues as well as from written works of the past, and am sure that every time I leave class my perspective will have experienced a slight or seismic shift.
