Gender Roles

Topic:  The actions everyone is assumed to make because of their gender.

Source:  I recently got out of a bad relationship and I was told by the other person who I should hang out with and how I should act just because of my gender.  This also reminded me of childhood events.

Relation:  In class, we talked about how when one is born, we are automatically given a name and certain blanket/cap color based on our gender.

Description:  I recently got out of a bad relationship and I was told how I should be acting.  I was told that I should only be hanging around girls and I was told that I shouldn't even be talking to other men because my only friends should be girls.  Since starting this class, I have thought more and more about what "normal" is and it bugged me when I was told this.  When I said that it wasn't fair that I would have to restrict myself that much while he could do anything, his excuse was "I know.. but that is just how it is."    This whole past week has made me think a lot about my childhood.  I was made to wear dresses, even though I did not like them, I was told to cross my legs when I sit, I was told to always do my hair and stand with my shoulders back, and I was constantly fighting off my older sister when she wanted to put makeup on me.  

Analysis:  I think it is very disturbing how gender roles are enforced in many families.  Parents may say to their children that they can grow up to be anything they want, but god forbid if they step out of their gender roles in doing so.  My main question is, how can someone live up to their true potential when there are so many gender based restrictions in life?  When my now ex-boyfriend was telling me about how I should act and what things I should be, I came to the realization that even people that you have been very close with for multiple years might not accept and respect every little detail that is the creation of you.  It is hard to be a true individual in a society that is so persistent in enforcing the image of "male" and "female."  I think that media is something that continues this idea of how people should act and I am wondering if it is also fires up prejudice against others who do not seem to fit into the social norm.

Family Composition: How media says it should be

Topic:  Everyone has an idea of what they want their family to be like when they grow up and media is a major influence in this.

Source:  While watching television, I noticed that certain life decisions make for certain kinds of shows.  I have a friend who recently found out that she was pregnant and I saw a relation between her life and popular TV shows.

Relation:  I though of this topic when we watched "Modern Family" and compared it with the "American dream" type of family.

Description:   "Sweet Life of an American Teenager" came in to mind when I thought of my friend's pregnancy. It shows struggle and enough drama for a few families.  During some of the first episodes, the character was scared and life seemed to be this big struggle.  In other TV shows like "Grounded For Life," the parents seem super strict about sex and go to extreme measures in order to keep their kids close and make sex seem more dramatic than it really is.

Analysis:  My friend watches a lot of TV and she says that she wants a "classic" family.  She did not want to tell her family about her pregnancy because she feared that they would not understand and she fears being a teen mom.  I think it is safe to say that many people think this way, but I honestly believe that we CONTINUE to think this way because it is constantly portrayed in TV shows that marriage should come before the baby.

Deprived of Ritual

Topic:  Marriage is a ritual in which many Americans dream to have at least once in their lives but not everyone is allowed to partake in it.

Source:  A chat over Facebook on March 31, 2012 with my friend Michael.

Relation:  During the first few anthro labs, Rebecca talked about how just because you believe something, it doesn't mean everyone else should believe the same thing.  She talked about how different cultures have different traditions and talking to my friend made me think about how some people are deprived of their rights because of the ethnocentric fallacy of others.

Description:  My topic first crossed my mind when I was talking with my friend who is gay.  He was talking about all of the things he wished he could have but then added that he doesn't mind legalizing gay marriage.  He "the ceremony is beautiful but the paperwork is pointless."  I totally agree with him because love should not be based on a piece of paper; however, I do believe that people should be allowed to participate in this symbolic action of love if they choose.  

Commentary:  Growing up, I have always had dreams about a big white wedding with flowers surrounding me. Getting is every girl's dream, right?  I believe marriage is a ritual between two people that symbolizes them becoming one in spirit.  What I don't understand is why would haters try and deprive gay and lesbian couples of marriage.  Americans are more concerned about gay marriage than the environment (Phil B. "Gay Marriages").  Religious is the main argument that people against gay marriage have.  Being gay is considered to be a sin.   It is ridiculous that people are more focused on what others do rather than just focusing on themselves.  Marriage is a ritual that everyone should be able to partake in and restricting a couple from doing so, just because of their sexual orientation and personal beliefs, is depriving them of their natural rights.  Now my question to the people against it is why do you care so much if it is not directly related to you?  The first link below shows multiple photos of gay couples and the comments below them show so much hate.  Many are saying how god says it is wrong but he also says "thou shall not hate" and "thou shall not judge."

http://mombasa411.org/2011/08/15/a-pictorial-of-gays-and-lesbians-celebrating-their-union-ngai-fa-fa/

Phill B.  "Gay Marriage."  March 1, 2012.  <http://www.philforhumanity.com/Gay_Marriages.html>.

Humor

Topic:  Humor- How it can be misinterpreted over the internet and what things symbolize it

Source:  Observing the Facebook statuses and comments of my peers.  3/11/2012 at 8:00 pm.

Relation:  An activity that was done during class that involved stating if a speaking tone was possible, inappropriate, or appropriate for a variety of communication technology devices (Texting, YouTube, Facebook, etc.).

Description:  When things are said over the internet, they can be taken in ways that the writer did not mean.  In order to lighten up the mood, or hint at the tone, people add "hints" to let the reader know that they are joking.  These hints include the following:  lol, rofl, lmao, lmfao, wtf, ftw, haha, and emoticons.  I believe that statuses that use sarcasm as their form of humor need these humor hints in order for people to know they aren't being serious.

Analysis:  My experience taught me that, if someone does not know you very well, they perceive things differently than someone who does.  When talking to people that I do not normally talk to, I noticed that I use a lot of tone hints in order to lighten up the mood.  Without them, people could get offended; however, people could get offended with them too.  I have noticed a lot of people making jokingly offensive comments to their friends but they always add some time of hint that they are just being silly.  For example, one person said  "Madi, you're a bitch! lol ;) " (name is made up).  The person replied with another insult and another humor hint as though their insults were playful and somewhat flirty.  In class, we had to list if things were possible, inappropriate, or appropriate.  Anything is possible to say on the internet but it depends on what your humor hints are to determine if it is appropriate.

http://files.sharenator.com/cup_of_LOL_LOL-s448x394-48055-580.gif

Localization: Fresh to Convenient

Topic:  My topic is really about how the localization of fresh foods has resulted in the localization of myself.

Source:  Shopping for groceries at Safeway in McKinleyville around midnight on Thursday night.  (no long lines at midnight!)

Relation:  As said by our teacher "Anthropology is literally everywhere!"  I have noticed that it really is... it just takes some time to really think about things culturally and view how they differ from things in other areas.

Description:  As I walk through the grocery store, I walk past the pre-made pastas and soups.  The smell reminds me of cooking in the kitchen with my grandmother when I was younger; however, there is a huge difference when it comes to cooking with grandma and buying food at Safeway.  My grandma always used fresh ingredients and made sure you got  the food straight from the stove and not from the microwave.  She would make fresh Portuguese bread and it would be completely devoured while it was still warm.  She would make potato and bread soup from the potatoes that she grew in her garden and the bread that she baked herself.  She would make fried kale and linguisa from the kale that she grew and the linguisa she would order straight from Portugual.  When I was younger, I use to eat all of these fresh foods and I wouldn't even think about eating a TV dinner.  Being a college student has changed me dramatically.  Now when I walk into safeway, I head for the frozen isle.  Why do I head there?  The answer is simple... it is more convenient.  Instead of eating fresh foods, which were a lot better for me, I now eat mainly frozen foods, "just add water" foods, and foods that are prepared already.  I have changed in order to fit in with the schedule of a college and working life.

Analysis:  I had orignally intended to talk about the localization of fresh foods but then realized that my changed environment has caused me to be localized.  I have lived here my whole life but I was very close to my family when I was younger and we all use to cook fresh foods together.  Now I face time limits that I did not have to face before college or a job and I have "adapted" to this new setting.  When Rebecca first explained localization, I thought of it as being mainly product oriented and came to the realization that I have changed in order to fit the environment in which I live.

Balinese Cock Fight v.s. American Status

Source:  Robbins, Richard H. "Deciphering the Balinese Cockfight." Cultural Anthro. Student ed. Belmont, Calif: Wadsworth, 2012. 21-22. Print.

Relation:  An example of a culture text that is presented in the class reading, "Cultural Anthro" by Robbins.

Description:  The Balinese like cockfighting just as much as Americans like football.  They fight their prized roosters until one dies and many may see this is a disgrace.  "Rarely do cocks owned by members of the same family or village fight each other" (Robbins 21).  The people who fight cocks are usually the leader of the communities.  "A man will never bet against a cock that is owned by someone of his family group or villiage or a friend's family group or village, but he will place large bets against a cock owned by an enemy or the friend of an enemy"(Robbins 21).  The owners of the cocks are usually among the leaders of the communities and the winner takes home the loser's rooster for dinner.  One may view cockfighting as disturbing, but the Balinese do not do it for violence.

Commentary:  The Balinese use cockfighting as a cultural text to represent status in society.  If one is known to be successful in cockfighting, they have a higher status in their community.  I think it is important to try an understand the reasons behind what people do, rather than fall into ethnocentric fallacy and say that their belief is wrong.  The Balinese use cockfighting to represent status and the United States uses money.  The more money you have the more "success" and "progress" you have made in your life.  Balinese cockfighting is similar to the way American's determine status because most successfull Americans (political leaders and large companies) are willing to eliminate their competitors now matter how many people it hurts.  There is always one winner and one loser, one made richer and one made poorer.  Once I compared American status and Balinese status, cockfighting didn't seem so bad.  Is the way Americans get status really any better?

To the readers:  I am not sure if my commentary makes sense.  It does to me but I'm not sure if my comparison is understandable.  Was trying to compare how Americans and the Balinese get status and how they are similar.  If it doesn't make sense to you, please email you so I can explain and so you can help me fix it. :) Thanks!

Leftovers: What they say about my family and our combined culture

Source:  The leftovers in my refrigerator on January 28, 2012.  I observed the leftovers in my refrigerator to show what kind of foods my family eats, the amount of food that is saved, and present, culturally, why it is saved.

Relation:  In Cultural ANTHRO, Robbins includes a chart titled "Would You Eat?" and a list of foods that a culture would eat that you might not (pg. 6).  This reminds me of my family because there are foods that we have in our fridge that some people might not even think about eating.  I also thought about how the quantity of food would show the culture of my family.

Description:  I opened my fridge and saw a jar of picked pigs feet, homemade pickled eggs, artichoke hearts, and leftover homemade enchiladas (made from random ingredients in the fridge).  Usually we have every kind of salad dressing known to man kind, even if it is expired, but my sister felt it necessary to clean out the fridge.  A lot of the items in the fridge are expired but my dad likes to use everything until it is finished.  Expired items included mustard, ketchup, jelly, sodas, and horseradish.  When my grandmother was alive, we would always have kale and linguica in the fridge and a loaf of Portuguese sweet bread on the table.  At the moment, our freezer is stocked full with toaster waffles, leftover frozen lasagna, pita bread, a ton of chicken, and TV dinners.  Our freezer is usually crammed so full with food that everything must be arranged carefully in order to close the door.

Analysis:  One thing you should know about my family is that both sides were very poor.  My father is from the Azores in Portugal and his family was very poor.  They did not have a refrigerator so they stored their food in lard, which meant their food didn't last long.  My mom's side of the family is from Humboldt County but they were also very poor.  My mom said that she never had food in the fridge and that if they missed the call for dinner, they did not get dinner.  I think that the reason we have so many leftovers in the fridge is because my parents are grateful that they can keep them.  The enchiladas in the fridge are made from random ingredients that we had because they did not want to waste anything.   Eating pig's feet is normal in my family and most of my friends are disgusted it because it is not a "normal" food to them.  The linguica we had was from Portugal and was brought over by family and friends or ordered.  Many of the foods we have take a long time to perish because we plan on keeping them there for a while.  I do think that my parents overstock on food but I understand that it is only because they weren't able to save anything when they were younger.  My mom's side of the family ate whatever they could find and my dad's side ate mainly things that they grew and preserved themselves.  I believe that their two cultures combined to create the refrigerator that is in my kitchen.  There are items that seem strange and items that are familiar to most and I am grateful to have a fridge that reflects the past of my parents.