Fashioning the Body: Versions of the Citizen, the Self, and the Subject

How fun was it to be able to take the time and create your own gender identity through craft!  I personally enjoyed using my hands to create something that was tangible versus just discussing about it.  We did have an opportunity to share our thoughts and ideas regarding our gender figure, but it was a lot of fun to use different mediums like paper, scissors, glue, etc.  The identity I chose was that of the typical girl wearing the dress like you see on the bathroom signs.  My skin was orange, the dress was blue, and I put yellow hiking boots on.  I wanted to symbolize that I chose the girl identity, but I don't like too much frill.  Also, I added the hiking boots because I enjoy the outdoors and love to rock climb.  I had a great time putting my identity together. Thank you facilitators :)

Watching Scott's presentation was so inspiring for me!  I have never had the opportunity to learn about people who are transgendered and to be able to actually hear someone share their own personal experience was awesome.  Having a personal testimony really brought it home for me to truly understand the struggles and triumphs in Scott's life.  It was a privilege for me to be a part of gym that tuesday.

                                                                                                                                  Laurel 1

Olivia

Fashioning the Body

10/12/07

Concept Rhyming Essay #1

  KNOWLEDGE  Oxford English definition:

1)                  Information and skills gained through experience or education.

2)                  The total of what is known.

3)                  Awareness gained by experience of a fact or situation.

Learning about Foucault and DeLauretis jeopardy style is always a bonus!  I love that the hosts always made a point to be fair within the teams (ie. taking turns, giving chances to answer).  Foucault personally has been difficult for me to grasp with all of his wordy terms and statements.  My brain is just not that philosophical- yet :).  Each day though, I can say that I'm getting a better understanding of him, and all of the other essays we've had to read so far.  It's like a stew in my brain that constantly stirring and simmering.

ARE YOU NATIONALLY NORMAL?

Take this quiz to find out...

PRINT FULL NAME___________________________________

1.  Are you a) male b) female c) other

2. What is your race?  a) white b) black c) other

3.  What is your year of birth?  a) 1900-1930 b) 1931-1970 c) other

4.  What is your marital status?  a) married b) divorced c) other

ANSWER KEY

1.  A) 2 B) 3 C) 5

2.  A) 3 B) 2 C) 5

3.  A) 5 B) 2 C) 3

4.  A) 3 B) 5 C) 2

 SCORE:

8-12

You are on top of your game!  You are well on your way to a successful life of normallity in the United States. 

4-7

Your are currently in the middle of the road, but don't give up!  The light of normalness is definitely in view!

1-3

What the heck are you doing here?!  You don't really belong here!  You need to seriously rethink your future goals.

I really enjoyed looking through all of the censuses!  It was amazing to see how it has evolved throughout the centuries.  Most of the changes were based upon the politics and history of the current era- like being able to list if you were a free man or slave.  It's funny that even though the census has evolved to be more open of the types of families within the public, there are still many assumptions on what normal is supposed to look like.  The categorization is still there.  In the past year, I've experienced my own sort of category I don't know how I feel about it.  Last year, I becamed divorced.  Now, when I fill out any form that asks my marital status, I'm reluctant to check the divorced box.  I guess I feel that if I do, I confess to having had a failed marriage, which in turn would label me a failure.  There is the single box which I am now, but I'm also divorced.  Which is the lesser of two evils?  I pretty much base it on how I feel that day when I fill out the form- and that will have to be ok for the people who want my information!

In Foucault's book, he brings out the history of sexuality into an open arena of different perspective.  For centuries, sexuality was automatically defined as one thing and then put into this sort of box that became the public standard.  Anything defined outside of the 'box' was deemed inappropriate and sinful.  And people committing these acts were thought to be outcasts or diseased.  In the story about the farm hand from Lapcourt, the town sent him away for life to be scientifically studied, and try to speculate why he was acting out in this manner.  Did he really have to have the lab rat treatment for what he did?  It just tells me that the authorities involved were the ones who were ignorant even though they had this 'know-it-all' thinking.  Would their studies be even accurate because of their bias?  I think that Foucault does a good job of laying the facts out on the table, and then in turn leaves it to the reader to formulate their own ideas on sexuality.

What struck me the most about tuesday's gym was identity.  I love the statement that Julia gave saying "Identity is a double-edged sword- you may claim these catagories, but they also claim you."  Man, that is one powerful line!  It's so true that we go through life choosing our own identities, but in turn they sort of dictate who we are.  We get cast into this mold whether we want to or not.  Is there a way of making our own mold, or is the mold picked out for us when we make our life choices?  

When I first approached the office,  I noticed it was very makeshift.  This area is currently a temporary location, and so it looked like the office was thrown together.  The waiting area consisted of 3 chairs (no plants, magazines, etc.), and the main reception partition was so tall that the person on the other side could barely look over it sitting down.  Outside the office was a narrow hallway with 3 signs posted by the door that said, "DO NOT BLOCK THE DOORWAY!  Several times our observation group was mistaken for the actual line because this functional space was so small.  As I mentioned before, there was a main reception area where people came up to inquire about their registration needs.  When you enter the office, it looks like that is the only reception area, but it isn't!  Off to the left were other desks, with people ready to assist other people.  Very confusing to the student who wants to be helped.  You get the impression that there is only one place to go.  Because this was the last day on registration, our group was hoping to find crying students fighting for their class schedules, but alas, we were the ones that left in disappointment because everyone looked actually contented with their current schedule status.