Gayle Rubin made me a little scared when she suggested that if male innate aggression and dominance are at the root of female oppression then extermination is the only solution. Lets just hope that they aren’t at the root, for my own sake. Now Im thinking I better watch my back at a school that is predominately women.
Rubin’s purpose is clearly stated as she explains how she wants to arrive at a more fully developed definition of the sex/gender system by taking a closer look at the works of Levi-Strauss and Freud.
Since we as a class were already dabbling in some Marxism it was nice to see Rubin starting out by pointing out the failures of classical Marxism and showing how it can be connected to labor force and capitalism. This just echoed the voice of that creep Althusseur. In relation to housework it was interesting to see how it linked with the worker making a consistent wage and yet a woman continually doing housework does not produce any wage at all.
As I continued on I really started to lose focus on what she was really trying to say. The next thing that I really took some time with was the section on gifts . Rubin explains on 1671 that “marriages are the most basic forms of gift exchange in which it is a women who are the most precious gift” As much as I agree with Rubins ideas I just feel that as each generation passes these traditional views of women will be ancient history. Even though these ideas may be passed own from mother to daughter, with easier access to the rest of the world the ideas have no chance of surviving. Now we could examine this notion even further by trying to find the root of sexism but this would turn into quite a frenzy. Hopefully a good ol class discussion will clear some things up.
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March 8, 2007 at 2:21 pm
atticfox
Hey Brett,
In reading through your take on things, I found this point particularly interesting:
Can I just point out a contradiction in what you said? If traditional ideas are passed from mother to daughter, how can that be thoroughly conquered by having access to the rest of the world, particularly when the world view inherently holds similar or more damaging values?
Yes, there are exceptions to the rule, people rebel and stand up for change. In our country, women finally got the vote, we were awarded choice when it came to our bodies, and, in most cases, we are no longer kept barefoot and pregnant. Still, women hit the glass ceiling in pay, earning less than men while doing the same job. Debate about family planning has now moved into the realm of Pharmacists denying women birth control and the trend is growing. Just recently, a man at the Wal-Mart Pharmacy laughed at a woman asking for Plan B as he denied it to her. Churches are still appalled at the idea of women preaching, an idea expressly carried over from Medieval times. In light of these issues, are we really moving so far ahead?
Sure, things are better, but so much lingers. If the US, one of the most progressive countries tackling inequalities for women has a long way to go, where do we look for outside inspiration? Europe is about the only country with fewer hang-ups about sexuality but they too have their problems. Otherwise, places like the Middle East, Africa, the Orient, and many others are deeply entrenched in the dichotomy of inequality, the residual byproduct of the cultural history Rubin pointed out.
The problem is that these residual ideas are so prevalent and unquestioned that we live them without seeing. Hop on over to my Rubinesque reading of my wedding if you get the chance. I was surprised to see how much I thought I questioned, only to find that I was simply reinforcing the idea. Ritual is certainly one way to mold a blind society into a reproductive machine, perpetuating norms that don’t reflect current realities.
And don’t worry, I’m not going to exterminate you because you’re a man. By experiencing no assault on your identity, it’s only natural to have so little understanding of how it feels. Unfortunately, for this exact reason, a male dominated society won’t shift until women topple it. You’re probably safe for awhile. They won’t manage it until they question it, not as small pockets of protesters and activist, but as one mass collective.
-Kim