Blog Post #4

The Black Male: Searching beyond Stereotypes

             I think the way the white people treat black men is not what black males should deserve. For the way the white people treat black men, we can see that as a black man at that time, he was just viewed as a white society slave: white people`s tools which can meet their needs. In the article, it says that “…as such, their proper role in white society was as laborers, not as the managers of labor”, It shows us that the white people viewed them as physical power for them and they deprive of black male`s right to get their own achievements. Even worse, they are viewed as “the only acceptable behavior of any black male was that of subservience—the loyal slave” (Marable18).  It sounds like if they want to live in that society, what they have to do is to obey their masters without any questionings. In other words, whatever their masters ask them to do, they must do it. It give us a image: a loyal dog waiting for the master`s rewards, but finally he gets nothing. How sad it is! That`s what the white people treat black men. When we look back in white history in the article, we find that black men helped the white adapt the difficult situation. “Africans were the first to cultivate wheat on the continent…, who cut down most of the virgin forest across the southern colonies. (Marable 17). Even more, in the times of war, black men protect the white in order to save their lives and property. But unfortunately, the white people look like the snake treats the farmer in the fable of “the farmer and the snake”. Even though the farmer saves the snake`s life, the snake bites the farmer which leads him to death.

Work cited:

Marable, Manning. “The Black Male: Searching Beyond Stereotypes”. Men`s Lives.5^TH ed. Ed. Michael S. Kimmel and Michael A. Messner. New York: Allyn & Bacon, 2001.17-23. Print.

 

First Draft Paper#1

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Z_hMJ2E43gZy-exLKqtJCPcPmU8-J7FkfG75K9BhT3I/edit?hl=en&authkey=COnlp6oB

Secord Draft Paper#1
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1kz-tF95gyB9yvFHJb2Vklx2wN9mFa4dGYKOEipJo_Ig/edit?hl=en&authkey=CLLIxdkG

Blog Post #3

The Male Myth

I think sports are good for men because it will bring benefits to them. It helps men form strong muscle and build health body shape, also men can learn how to cooperate with other people in the team work. Even more, they can learn leadership skills which make them more responsible. In the article “The Male Myth” by Paul Theroux, he says “high-school basketball teaches you how to be poor loser”, and he also mentions men as “social misfits, moral degenerates, sadists, latent rapists and just plain louts”, even more negative thoughts, he says that “high-school sport is far worse than marijuana.”(Theroux 102). For what he thinks sports bring to men, I disagree with him. Actually, if you want to get in the sport team, you should be good enough to meet the requirements that school sets up. In other words, you have to a good student. For example, you not only need to maintain a good grade, but also you have to master good sport kills. If you miss either of them, of course, you don`t have other chances to get in. On the other hand, it makes me think of the fable of The Fox and the Grapes. It tells us that the fox is unable to get the grape, when he leaves with saying that the grapes are not ripe yet. When I think about these bad words that he wrote, it reminds me of the author himself as a man. I was wondering that he may have bad experiences with sports which causes him reject the sport. By doing this, it may comfort himself.

Blog post #2

Response to Lorber's "Night to His Day"

Each society has its own norms and expectations of gender for people. As an individual, you may choose the gender that you want to be as long as you fit these requirements. Otherwise, you will be kicked out of the society. Form the day you were born, the society already has its rules for female and male no matter what you like it or not. These rules already exist there even you don`t know when the society starts to use them. These rules are passed down from one generation to the next generation. Gradually, they will affect people`s behaviors, the way they treat others, and the way they be treated. It is just like the example mentioned in the article. In one African society, as a man, you should eat wholeheartedly with whole mouth when you eat something. Maybe you never think about why you do it. You do it may just because everyone does it. So, for them, It is just the way that a men needs to do. Another example from the article is when a baby was born, most parents gender them by naming, birth announcement, dress. It is a natural way for parents to prepare children like that in order to make sure that their children are on the right track and fit in our society, which means they want their children to be either a male or female. As a child, in the beginning, he or she seems like a blank paper. They doesn`t know about which gender they should belong to. But as the article says that from the process that they grow from the early childhood to adolescents to adults, they all will interact with their parents, the opposite gender, and guided by the schools, media, even the society stratification system. Later on, they all will know what exactly they should do to meet the rules. All in all, for the gender that we have, once we follow the rules, we will be fine.

description of photo

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1gC9w7RkJB4f3oM0VbqsJJqeMdEWlCizQOdhheU3OpNg/edit?hl=en&authkey=CJnNj4cE

Blog post #1

Are males born or made?

             Before I read the article “how to build a man”, I don`t even think about that question. It is natural for me to think that men are born not made. It just comes to my mind without thinking about it. But now that article makes me change a little bit. Men could be made by certain surgeries (let us call them men so far), but at some point, actually they are not real man even though they have certain traits that all men have. They can pretend to be men, but it is painful for them because when it comes to compare to the real man. They are still not. What comes next? They may treated by other people differently or to be someone else. Also, it is unfair for them too. They don`t have choice. They are already made to be men no matter what they want to be or not because when they are baby, other people (parents) already make the decision for them. They just accept the result. It is similar as the example mentioned in the article. When a boy was born with less than 0.6 inches long penis, he will be made to be a female, just because medical practitioners think that kind of change may be good for the baby. But who knows? That will be nice to the baby. When “she” grows up, “she” may be a female (not real woman), which may hurt her feelings too. Or she still has the desire to be a man. What can she do next? Change back!?