1) Somerville is arguing that people have tried to identify homosexuality with the identity of races.
2) Somerville begins the argument by talking about how people first believed that sexuality was a medical issue and that people were originally born to be homosexual rather than choosing to be homosexual. The author described this medical reasoning as being “the model of a female soul in a male body” (pg 18). The writing then goes on to explain how tests were done in order to try to find a connection between different races and homosexuality. Somerville then talks about how the different races evolved differently which lead to the differences in sexuality. Somerville mentions that the anatomy of different races shows how each race evolved differently than the other races. The author talks about how African American women and Caucasian American women were compared to see if there was a difference in their sexuality based on their organs. This scientific test showed how their was a difference in the organs which ended up leading to the white Americans being the better species of human because their organs less noticeable and accessible compared to the black Americas. The author also talks about how scientific tests were run in order to figure out the differences between the races, and between the sexuality of people.
3) If we all evolved from the same people, Adam and Eve, then what makes us differently from each other? Why are white females viewed as not being more evolved than black males?
4) I believe that people try to find a reason behind everything that is occurring in a person’s life. People want to know why someone is a certain way compared to them. The easiest way for people to discover differences is to run tests of subjects. The scientific tests that were run occurred because people wanted to be able to explain the unexplainable. No one knew why people became homosexual, but people wanted to know so that they would better know if they would possibly end up being homosexual. I believe that because races are anatomically different does not make one race better than another. Each race may be better at certain activities because of their anatomy, but that does not mean that they are better than all other races. I think that the races were always compared to the European “white” races because they were the ones running the tests, and that people always believed that the white males were the superior race.
Monday, April 7, 2008
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Challenge to Democracy
1) This video is showing the audience the lifestyles of the Japanese during WWII, and what it was like living in the relocation communities.
2) The video showed the Japanese moving into these communities that provided housing that was only 20 by 25 feet. Since these rooms were so small the families could not have a kitchen and at cafeteria halls. These communities were also built on land that had never been used before, which the Japanese ended up making into farm land. While living in these communities, the Japanese were given some goods by the government, but what was not given they had to pay for. In order to be able to pay for these extra goods, the Japanese had to find work, but most of their jobs were not well paying jobs. The professional were paid $19 and the beginners were paid $12. Since they were paid so little the families had to dig into their savings to be able to pay for things. The video also tried to make these communities look good and like any other community in America. The video also showed how the Japanese Americans tried to fight in the war because they felt like they were fighting for their home country of American, not Japan.
3) Since the Japanese were relocated during WWII after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, why were Arab Americans not relocated after September 11?
If their crime rates were so low, then why were people afraid of them doing something wrong?
4) I think it took a lot of strength for the Japanese to try to make these communities as normal as the communities they came from. They were forced to move, but never seemed to protest, and tried to make their lives as normal as possible. They even let go of some of their Japanese traditions, like their religion by switching to an "American" religion of Christianity. The people in the communities even played baseball and football, two typical American sports. If they did so many things like other Americans then why were they punished for the actions of a country that some of them have never seen? While living at these communities they worked hard for little pay to try to make a small living. They worked in sugar beet fields which required tons of bending, arm swinging, and lifting. This type of work can really take a toll on a person's body, but it didn't matter to the Japanese because it was job which let them have some extra items that the government didn't provide. If they didn't work the Japanese would lose so much of their savings that after the war they wouldn't be able to support themselves and have any extra money for emergencies.
2) The video showed the Japanese moving into these communities that provided housing that was only 20 by 25 feet. Since these rooms were so small the families could not have a kitchen and at cafeteria halls. These communities were also built on land that had never been used before, which the Japanese ended up making into farm land. While living in these communities, the Japanese were given some goods by the government, but what was not given they had to pay for. In order to be able to pay for these extra goods, the Japanese had to find work, but most of their jobs were not well paying jobs. The professional were paid $19 and the beginners were paid $12. Since they were paid so little the families had to dig into their savings to be able to pay for things. The video also tried to make these communities look good and like any other community in America. The video also showed how the Japanese Americans tried to fight in the war because they felt like they were fighting for their home country of American, not Japan.
3) Since the Japanese were relocated during WWII after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, why were Arab Americans not relocated after September 11?
If their crime rates were so low, then why were people afraid of them doing something wrong?
4) I think it took a lot of strength for the Japanese to try to make these communities as normal as the communities they came from. They were forced to move, but never seemed to protest, and tried to make their lives as normal as possible. They even let go of some of their Japanese traditions, like their religion by switching to an "American" religion of Christianity. The people in the communities even played baseball and football, two typical American sports. If they did so many things like other Americans then why were they punished for the actions of a country that some of them have never seen? While living at these communities they worked hard for little pay to try to make a small living. They worked in sugar beet fields which required tons of bending, arm swinging, and lifting. This type of work can really take a toll on a person's body, but it didn't matter to the Japanese because it was job which let them have some extra items that the government didn't provide. If they didn't work the Japanese would lose so much of their savings that after the war they wouldn't be able to support themselves and have any extra money for emergencies.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)