Blog post 3

The two articles that stood out the most in my opinion were “Age, Race, Class, & Sex,” by Audre Lorde, and “Global Women,” by Barbara Ehrenreich.

In Lorde’s, “Age, Race, Class, & Sex” article, she talks about how society tends to use human differences as a means to make some people superior and others subordinate. Whether you look at this notion from a 21^st century standpoint or any earlier in our history, this idea holds true in nearly all societies across the world. Regardless of age, gender, race, or any other distinction between humans, there will always be some justification to oppress the minority population. In recent times, the problem has not been so much that society recognizes difference, because in America we are a melting pot of cultures, it is that, as Lorde illustrates, “we pour the energy needed for recognizing and exploring differences into pretending those differences are insurmountable differences, or that they don’t exist at all.” For example, as Professor Messner and Lorde both touched upon, societies tend to have a “mythical norm” that the social hierarchy based upon. In America, that mythical norm tends to be a white, financially stable, Christian, and heterosexual male. Even Lorde herself admits to how she fits outside the “mystical norm” in America – she is a 49 year old Black lesbian. Lorde ultimately criticizes society for squandering their energy on further dividing our society, and instead should thwart that energy to redefine our society and create a better future.

In the next article, “Global Women,” Ehrenreich discusses how many single mothers have to move away from their homes, often to other countries, in order to get a job and provide for their families. This article got my attention because I was unaware of how prevalent this occurs in our world today. Although it may be rare to see this in American society, but in third world countries like India, it is a more common occurrence. Many people would argue that this is a liberating opportunity that provides women with the freedom of finding work outside the home, which is true, but Ehrenreich portrays this in a more negative light. She argues that, this globalization causes millions of women from poorer countries to travel to the rich countries to work as maids, sex workers, and nannies. In addition, many of these women are single mothers who are leaving behind their children. An absence of a fatherly and motherly figure within a family structure can be very detrimental to the children and the family relationship.

In response to Professor Messner’s question, I feel situated knowledge is not a barrier to seeing the world clearly. Yes it can cause narrow-mindedness because you are extremely knowledgeable about a specific topic, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that you cannot see the world clearly. A person learns, not only out of textbooks, but also in real life experiences and situations. People are bound to form opinions and create their own beliefs, and that is not entirely due to their situated knowledge.