Oppression By Katherine Fritz: Article Analysis

In the essay “The Common Elements of Oppression” from Suzanne Pharr’s book Homophobia: A Weapon of Sexism we learn about the different types of oppression. While watching the film Milk (2008) many of those elements of oppression are being strongly depicted. Throughout this piece examples will be given on how the film depicts three of those elements as described in Pharr’s book. The three elements of oppression that were the strongest in the film are: a defined norm, stereotyping and isolation.

Looking in from the outside, the journey of Women’s rights was a lengthy one, and it has come a significant way from what it began as. It was a long road to freedom that started with just a few women protesting together for change in the mid 1800’s to the large movement it is today. What started only as an effort to put women on equal footing with men in the voting realm blossomed into a full on fight against gender norms and independence through protesting, speeches, and gatherings. Gender norms or ‘roles’ are (as defined by Webster’s dictionary) “a set of societal norms dictating what types of behaviors are generally considered acceptable, appropriate, or desirable for a person based on their actual or perceived sex” and they are one thing that modern feminist have set their sights on to change for the better. Traditional gender roles have continued to exist for hundreds of years through perpetrators such as religion, government and society, and its effects have been felt by every woman, whether they realize it or not.

Minorities have been repressed for many years all over the world. They were treated as inferior and possibly will be for many years to come. There’s Hispanics, Native Americans, African Americans, Asian, and Indians and many more. Women have been repressed for far longer and continue to be treated as inferior because of how women have been raised believing they must do what men want them to. Due to this females are treated differently from males whether it’s a colored female or white females, women are treated as lesser beings to men.

Men have given the media this unrealistic image that women cannot fend for themselves, cannot do hard jobs, or cannot get as far in life as a man. Even in jobs, though a woman and a man may be in the same position, women “earn just 74 cents for every $1 a man earns” (CNNMoney). This is truly unfair, yet men today still say that women are “equal,” though it is obviously false. Women today, though they have more rights than in the 1800’s, are still not in the place we need to be in ranking with men. Women are still abused, sexually harassed and mistreated more than men because of their sex.

Overall, both men and women can be viewed as oppressed. I agree with Frye’s view that women have been oppressed in the past, but not with the view that men aren’t. The male gender has been forced to conform to society’s view of us, in order to truly be considered a man. If a man is not tough or stern, then he is considered weak.

This should enrage anyone who considers themselves to be female. For example, Devor talks about how women are seen as creatures who always want to avoid confrontation and who are instinctually maternal. Females are just expected to want to have and raise children, appeal to men, and be completely and utterly weak-natured. When they break beyond the boundaries that society has glued them into, they are seen as undesirable and tainted by feministic ideology.

In relation to that, the women in the article “Female Chauvinist Pigs” use that approach to feminism to define different aspects of life. More so than not wanting to be treated like shit, they just want to be recognized by their male counterparts to even get a start. Based solely on their gender, women are already placed at a disadvantage in the workplace

With the rise of civilization also came the rise of patriarchy-based societies and the slow decline of the importance of women in society. For the longest time the history of the world has been written by men who have been the head of the patriarchy and have forgotten the role of women in history. It is important to realize that women do in fact have a place at the table with men when it comes to importance in history, and are not just the ones cooking and serving the meal. It is women who tasked with raising the next generation. By looking at women of the past, people of the future can learn and evolve to fight oppression and gain their own power. Come up with a good thesis that doesn’t suck.

Before writing this essay I decided to look up the word “Oppression”, which means the state of being subject to unjust treatment or control. I thought about this and notice how women are more likely to be in this state of being, due to most women being sensitive, vulnerable, and caring. In the short stories of Interpreter Of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri, Girls At War by Chinua Achebe, and Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat, one can recognize how there are women in these stories who are oppressed in some type of way; however, find a way to escape this oppression although they’re unjustifiable oppression ends up strengthening them and leading to their success. Personally, I am a man who appreciates what women do in society, at home, everywhere because if it was not for women us men would not be here and could not continue living.

So, can women no matter their sexuality coexist with religious, cultural and social norms? Can women and men be seen as the same, will society ever be able to accept this? Women would like to believe that one day these questions would no longer be asked, women have made tremendous strides towards finding their own sense of importance, and acceptance in our society; whether it be their right to vote or even bigger woman finally being seen as a person, these are things that (a white) man has never had to fight towards. That being said, it has taken women hundreds of years to be granted these rights. In our lifetime and even our children’s lifetimes women no matter their sexual preference will sadly still not be fully accepted by society,

Feminism isn’t just equality amongst men and women; it can be used to illustrate social, economic, cultural, even political movements. In the novel An Untamed State by Roxane Gay, the concept of feminism in its disdain way, is transformed into something almost inadmissible. Women are supposed to be seen as powerless in a country like Haiti where men take advantage of women, but the roles are switched when the women display this nature. An Untamed State displays the reverse of the stereotypical role in society of men being dominant, because women hold both emotional and social power in a way that changes the scope of male/female relationships.

The advocacy of women’s rights serve as a voice for many who have been socialized to be ignorant and easily swayed by society. They have the right to make their own choices through sexual liberation or empowerment; debunking the role of being

What modern feminists refuse to admit is that feminism is only one side of a two-sided coin of inequality. A “movement” that advocates for the rights of one gender over another is sexist and unequal by nature. If feminists were striving for equality, then they wouldn’t be FEMinists. Being feminist, simply put, means that you want women to not only be equal to, but greater than men.. Thus, I believe that feminism is a poorly made masquerade to cover women’s desire to control men.

Women have been oppressed since ancient Greek, when female body was only an aberrant and deformed version of the perfect one, which was the male body. We have been outraged, insulted, mistreated and

Many women limit themselves by stay home and not taking on their own jobs, not driving because their husbands don’t want them to, and not following their aspirations because of what their husbands need. It’s almost implied that it has to be that way in many places. Especially in countries like India and countries in the middle east, it’s socially and physically extremely hard for women to to have a position of power similar to what men do. Even if women do get a good job, or a political position, most men don’t take them seriously and don’t respect them. The disrespect doesn’t just fall in India and the middle east, even American women are subjected to oppression that is now a part of the