Books – Page 4 – Georgina's Contextual Studies

UNESCO (2015) A guide for gender equality in teacher education policy and practices. France: UNESCO, pp. 1-112.

October 23, 2020October 23, 2020 georginie

UNESCO (2015) A guide for gender equality in teacher education policy and practices. France: UNESCO, pp. 1-112.

UNESCO released a guide for teachers to promote gender inequality in their institutions. This guide has helped my third chapter of my essay for Contextual Studies when I look at pedagogy.

The guide raises point such as that gender roles Are a learnt behaviour which can be fixed by education and training. The guide looks at the differences in cultures and within different cultures. Cultures and institutions are moulded by the people in charge.

To help the problem, support is needed. For teachers and for pupils, this way it can help the way teachers approach their students and in turn will help the pupils classroom experience. The problem with a curriculum is that it allows leeway for teachers to bring their own views, prejudices and views, this can have a negative effect on the pupils. Pedagogy will help these issues. Teachers should use gender neutral methods and directives.

This guides also looks at a study conducted by Grace and Gravestock in 2009. This study looked at gender biases in classrooms. For example male students were given longer to answer a question and teachers would often interrupt female students.

Gender stereotyping comes into play. Men are seen as active, strong and often rational, this is in contrast to women who are seen as passive, weak and emotional. This studies hopes that teachers will be aware of these issues and try and combat them. They need to stop using judgement in their language and manner. They need to have a fair approach to everyone. “Gender equality needs to become a reality in every learning environment” (UNESCO).

(UNESCO; Stewart, G).

Nochlin, L (1973) ‘Why have there been no great women artists?’ In: Hess, T. B & E. C. Baker (ed.) Art and Sexual Politics. UK: MacMillan, pp. 1-39.

October 23, 2020January 30, 2021 georginie

Nochlin, L (1973) ‘Why have there been no great women artists?’ In: Hess, T. B & E. C. Baker (ed.) Art and Sexual Politics. UK: MacMillan, pp. 1-39.

This work by Linda Nochlin has been very useful in my Contextual Studies essay. In my second and third chapter I look at the inequality between male and female artists. It has proved to be a valuable resource.

Nochlin discusses woman’s position as the “acknowledged outsider” in art with John Stuart Mill stating that we tend to accept what is seen as natural, “everything which is usual appears natural, the subjection of women to men being a universal custom, any departure from it quire naturally appears unnatural” (Mill Quoted in Nochlin, 1973). This is a good point which can help explain why inequality has taken such a hold, but it is seen as a natural division. “Those who have privileges inevitably hold on to them, and hold tight, no matter how marginal the advantage involved, until compelled to bow to superior power of one sort or another” (Nochlin, 1973). This statement is key, as it can help understand why men in power deny that there is an inequality, as they want to hold onto their advantage. They will fight to keep their influence and power.

Nochlin believes experience will lead to the production of different art by men and women. There has also been a misunderstanding of what femininity is. She also states that women are worked against from when they are born (Nochlin, 1973). This makes sense, as much of the inequality we see is deeply engrained in society so would affect women from birth.

(Nochlin, 1973; Stewart, G).

Mulvey, L (2007) ‘Visual pleasure and narrative cinema’ In: Evans, J and S. Hall (ed.) Visual Culture: A Reader. UK: Sage Publications Ltd, pp. 381-389.

October 23, 2020January 30, 2021 georginie

Mulvey, L (2007) ‘Visual pleasure and narrative cinema’ In: Evans, J and S. Hall (ed.) Visual Culture: A Reader. UK: Sage Publications Ltd, pp. 381-389.

Laura Mulvey looks at the male gaze and how dangerous it can be. The male gaze originates from cinema. Mulvey discus scopophilla which denotes the pleasure in looking. She looks at Freud’ work in this field. It is seen as ownership, where one believes the other belongs to them as an object. It is part of the ego and can develop further. Mulvey believes that the cinema provides a perfect place for the pleasure of looking. Jacques Lacan looks At how children see their own images in a mirror, and believes this is an aspect of the ego (Mulvey, 2007).

There are two types of pleasure found in looking. The pleasure found in using a person as an object through visual means is the first. The second is found in narcissism and the ego, this is where someone identifies with the image they see. Visual pleasure in found between the active male and the passive female. The male gaze is able to embedded their fantasy to the woman. Men have the power here (Mulvey, 2007).

For my contextual studies essay, this is a valuable sources. At some points I found it a struggle to make sense but I persevered with it. Mulvey pinpoints the gaze in cinema. It would be interesting to see how this translates into other areas. This is something I could develop for my Contextual Studies work, as Mulvey’s work is very relevant to my field but I could extend this though into other areas, for example the male gaze in landscape photography (Mulvey, 2007).

(Mulvey, 2007; Stewart, G).

Butler, J (1990) Gender Trouble. Reprint, UK: Routledge, 2007.

December 18, 2019October 23, 2020 georginie

Butler, J (1990) Gender Trouble. Reprint, UK: Routledge, 2007.

Judith Butler, in her book, Gender Trouble, takes a postmodern standpoint which opposes the basic beliefs of feminine identity. She believes that the ‘politics of identity’ cause more harm than good in the freeing of women.

She quotes Catharine MacKinnon as saying, “Stopped as an attribute of a person, sex inequality takes the form of gender; moving as a relation between people, it take the form of sexuality. Gender emerges as the congealed form of the sexualization of inequality between men and women” (MacKinnon quoted in Butler, pp. xii). Going on this though, it is the result of a sexual hierarchy that gender is born. According to Butler, the only way gender produces identity is when people express gender (Butler, pp. 34). She sees gender as a compilation of identities, but these have no relation to our sex. Instead gender is performative. This performance aspect is based on repetition, it has to be repeated, by repeating it is reenacting something that is becoming and is already established in society (Butler, pp. 191). The fact that gender is performative, to Butler, suggests that it takes form from the repeated acts, this is its reality. Thus gender has no existential status. It’s reality is influenced by society, personal and public acts and conversations (Butler, pp. 185). This relates to gender inequality, the repetition of certain beliefs and their continued belief has create a view which is embedded deep in society. This also relates to gender roles. The repetition of the belief in gender roles coincides with human behaviour, together they create a set of beliefs which is ingrained in our society. Most of the time this behaviour is done unconsciously, probably due to the intense conditioning human have gone through over the centuries. “The view that gender is performative sought to show that what we take to be an internal essence of gender is manufactured through a sustained set of acts, posited through the gendered stylization of the body” (Butler, pp. xv). Butler believes that there is a gender reality which is born from continuous social performances, this is infect how gender inequality has taken hold (Butler, pp. 192).

Butler looks at the relationship between politics and feminist theory. She believes it is imperative that a dialect which represents women correctly and truthfully be developed. According to Butler, this should help with the problem in our cultural conditioning which is recognised to be both excluding and misrepresenting women (Butler, pp. 2). This relationship between politics and feminist theory relates to representation. The representation of women in many spheres, not only in politics, is a cause for debate. This debate leads onto my work, as the representation and expectations is one issue at the heart of gender inequality. Butlers work looks at feminine identity, whilst not completely concentrating on gender inequality, her work lends itself to this topic, as there are overlaps which make her work useful to my research.

(Butler, 1990; Stewart, G).

Warner, M (1976) Alone of All Her Sex: The Myth and the Cult of the Virgin Mary. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

October 28, 2019January 30, 2021 georginie

Warner, M (1976) Alone of All Her Sex: The Myth and the Cult of the Virgin Mary. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

This book was recommended by my tutor. I managed to get a copy and began reading through it. It is well paced and easy to read. Warner gets her point across in a way that is easy to understand. The book is broken down into sections, firstly Warner looks at Mary as the Virgin, then as a Queen, as a bride, as a mother, and lastly as an intercessor. Warner talks about the Virgin Mary throughout history and how she has been attributed and moulded to the developing ideologies within the Catholic Church over time. She looks into how Mary is seen within the church and how her images has been strengthened over time. Warner looks at how Mary has been depicted though art, scripture and beliefs. A link has been proposed between how prominent Mary is to the culture of the time. For example, at times she is seen as passive whereas at another point in history she is seen as glorious. She alternates between a human figure to being venerated like a saint (Warner, 1976).

Warner goes on to talk about how this view of the virgin Mary has effected women today. This is an important point that she has touched upon. Religion is powerful and overtime it can influence societies views. In this case, it has created a status for a female figure that no women can ever live up to. This has contributed to women being oppressed and the views about a women role. As well as contributing to the structure of society (Warner, 1976).

“The Virgin Mary is no the innate archetype of female nature, the dream incarnate; she is the instrument of a dynamic argument from the Catholic Church about he structure of society, presented as a God-given code…in 1974 Pope Paul VI…attempted to represent her as the steely champion of the oppressed and a women of action and resolve. She should not be though of, he wrote, “as a mother exclusively concerned with her own divine Son, but rather as a women whose action helped to strengthen the apostolic community’s faith in Christ.” But the Vatican cannot simply strip away a veil and reveal Mary’s Metamorphosis into the New Women unless it dredges centuries of Prejudice. (Warner, pp. 344)”

This relates to the inequality we have seen for centuries, these ideals and ideas have reinforced the ideal women which women cannot live up to. The role of a women has been solidified and thus in today’s world makes it very difficult for women to attain true equality. If the virgin Mary is the ideal view of a women, how can anyone live up to that. “Although Mary cannot be a model for the New Woman, a goddess is better than no goddess at all, for the sombre-suited masculine world of the Protestant religion is altogether too much like a gentlemen’s club to which the ladies are only admitted on special days” (Warner, pp. 345).

Warner ends by stating, “the Virgin’s legend will endure in its splendour and lyricism, but it will be emptied of moral significance, and this lose its present real powers to heal and to harm” (Warner, pp. 345). I can see this book causing quite the stir among some Catholics. This type of book, where the author looks into a part of religion and critiques and analysis it, does evoke a strong reaction. I am not religious but can see why a Catholic might disagree with Warners findings. But for me having read it, I find it fascinating.

(Warner, 1976; Stewart, G).

Baudrillard, J (1994) Simulacra and Simulation. USA: University of Michigan Press.

October 28, 2019October 23, 2020 georginie

Baudrillard, J (1994) Simulacra and Simulation. USA: University of Michigan Press.

Baudrillard, J. (2001) Selected Writings. USA: Stanford University Press.

I found this book quite heavy and at times hard going. But i stuck with it and eventually found that I wanted to keep reading, I wanted to finish it.

Baudrillard notes the cultural shift of postmodernity, and that in fact differs from previous cultures in history. Simulacrum is this shift in cultural reasoning. Baudrillard goes on to look at what is real and authentic. According to him, what is seen as real, isn’t actually real as it has actually disappeared, being replaced by something that appears real again, “never again will the real have the chance to produce itself” (Baudrillard (1994) pp. 2). What we see is hyper-reality, which stops us from seeing the differences between what is real and what is not. Therefore, when looking at society, we can understand it as layers, each a representation of something, which has in turned diminished reality. What we see is a sort of copy of reality. But he believes there is no real layer, no absolute original reality, “it is dangerous to unmask images, sine they dissimulate the fact that there is noting behind them” (Baudrillard (2001) pp. 172). Problems can arise form our preconceptions. We have ideas of something and this can also cloud reality. Another problem is that people tend to prefer the layers, not the true reality. People pick and choose their reality, they attached themselves to ideals and ideas, which become their reality, but it has actually distanced them from reality. When we search for what is real we find “When a system has absorbed everything, when one has added everything up, when nothings remains, the entire sum turns to the remainder and becomes the remainder” (Baudrillard (1994) pp. 144). He believes this is a sign of a postmodern society. To Baudrillard, the world is a simulacrum. “Today, it is the real that has become the alibi of the model, in a world controlled by the principle of simulation. And paradoxically, it is the real that has become our true utopia – but a utopia that is no longer in the realm of the possible, that can only be dreamt of as one would dream of a lost object” (Baudrillard (1994) pp.123).

I will be honest I didn’t understand a lot of this book. I found it very heavy going. Some of it was easier to understand than other parts. It did prove an interesting, albeit confusing read.

(Baudrillard, 1994; Baudrillard, 2001; Stewart, G).

Turner, V & E. Turner (1995) Image and Pilgrimage in Christian Culture. New York: Columbia University Press.

October 28, 2019October 23, 2020 georginie

Turner, V & E. Turner (1995) Image and Pilgrimage in Christian Culture. New York: Columbia University Press.

In this book, the authors look at Christian pilgrimages. They did initially talk about pilgrimage in various religions, but ultimately concentrated on Christianity. They also look into the symbols, ideals and images. Pilgrimages are an important part of religion, which in turn have important social and cultural characteristics. But it isn’t researched often. This book explores Mexican, archaic, Marian and medieval pilgrimages, whilst concentrating on two main thoughts. The first being the historic raise and explanations behind pilgrimages and the second on the symbols and images of pilgrimages. This book takes an anthropological look at pilgrimages, which I find is a big advantage, as it allows a comprehensive analysis.

Symbols are important in pilgrimages, they can be seen as ‘eternal objects’, which are never ending. They hold specific points in culture and social structures (Turner (1995) pp. 245-246). Images hold an significance in pilgrimages. They hold value for the followers but also hold an “unrecognized and unlegitimized social values” (Turner (1995) pp. 101). Followers are seen as being “impregnated by unity…and purified from divisiveness and plurality” (Turner (1995) pp. 257). According to the authors, pilgrimages answer the call of spiritual requirements of people.

I found this book very interesting. It reminded me of my previous studies and helped me remember a lot I had actually forgotten. It was easy to read and easy to understand, but this could have been due to my experience in this field. This book has been valuable and helped with my body of work.

(Turner, 1995; Stewart, G).