assignment 3

Cassie O’Donnell
WMST250
ASSIGNMENT 3-B
Ana’s Section

The Analysis of Everyday Life

The Matrix of Domination is a theory that explains issues of oppression that deal with class, race, and gender. Although they are recognized as different social classifications, they are all in ways interconnected.
Being a young, white, female coming from an upper/middle class family, power is located in many different places throughout my everyday life. I view power on one hand, as a positive thing, an advantage, opportunity, choices/decisions, and especially privilege, and on the other hand, power can be negative, limited, constraint, and especially oppression. Although I realize that I may be oppressed in some circumstances, I find myself very privileged as well. Ways in which I feel that I am privileged is by race, class, gender, health, religion, education, ect.
Race: I feel that I am privileged by my race because I am white. Many whites have an opportunity to get a good education, a good job, health care, etc. I find that many other races are faced with daily struggles such as trying to get a good education and get a good job. It seems to come easier for the white race rather than other races. I don’t agree with this idea; however I find myself being favored due to the color of my skin.
Class: Because I am classified as middle/upper class citizen, I am given many opportunities that others in a lower social class do not have. For instance, education is easier for my family to afford rather than others. Many lower-class families do not have well paying jobs, which makes it difficult for them to support their families, let alone pay for their children’s education. Because many families cannot afford to put their children through college, the child often works to pay for their own education. This is something I never had to worry about. My father pays for my college education, which allows me to solely focus on school. I don’t think I could handle working through college; I would be too stressed out. You find that many students drop out because they can no longer afford to put themselves through school. Without a good college education, their chances of getting a well paying job are small. Sadly, they will probably end up taking a low-paying job just to get by, which will never allow them to get ahead.
Health insurance and medical care is also a benefit of being a middle/upper class citizen. This is something that many lower-class families are not given which makes it difficult for them to be seen by a doctor if sick or any other emergency. My family lives comfortably and we still wouldn’t be able to afford doctor visits without insurance, the price is too outrageous. I couldn’t imagine not being able to take my child to the doctors when he/she is sick so they can get the proper medical attention. I would be devastated.
Coming from a middle/upper class family also allows me to enjoy luxurious things. I live in a nice community, where there is little crime. I live in a nice home. I have nice clothing, and am able to do extra things such as dinning out, shopping, movies, vacationing, etc. Vacationing is a tradition in my family. We vacation at least once or twice a year. I just visited Jamaica this winter. I found it surprising that other families don’t vacation regularly. I never really realized that vacationing is a privilege, not everyone can afford it.
Gender: Being a female (especially white) allows me to have many options. Career-wise, I can explore alternate career paths. I can choose between staying home with my children or working outside of the home. Many men don’t have this option because they aren’t considered "masculine" if they decide to partake in the woman’s "role" and be the stay-at-home "mom". Men are portrayed as the breadwinner. Most men are not okay with their wives supporting their family. I also find that this is an opportunity that many white women get. While other women of different races such as African American are limited to their career options. One reason is due to the high divorce rate in African American marriages. Many women are single mothers raising their children. Lower-class women are willing to accept the most hazardous and demeaning jobs our economy has to offer because they have no other options.
Giving birth is another advantage of being a female. This is something that sets us apart from men, making us very unique. Women are often given maternity leave, which takes a lot of stress off the mother. Public policies often offer opportunities for mothers to bond with their children.
Women are also allowed to express themselves more freely rather than men. Women are also not ashamed to ask for advice from others, while men are more exposed to the dangers of self-reliance.
Religion: My family practices the Catholic faith. Being religious allows me to have something to believe in. Religion gives me guidelines to follow during my day to day life. I feel that I practice good morals and values through my religion. I am constantly thinking about how I can better myself so I can have a happy after life. Religion also gives me hope and faith that I can break through the hardships of everyday life.
American Citizen: Being an American Citizen is a great advantage. It allows us to be free, independent, and have choices. For instance, many countries control how many children couples are allowed to have, what type of government they abide by, etc. In our country, we are allowed to have our own career choices. Education is available to everyone. We have the right to vote, which allows us to choose our own government. I am able to decide when and where I get married. I can decide how many children I want and whether or not I want to stay home with them. I have the opportunity to work outside of the home and becoming independent. Women no longer need to depend on their husbands. We are given health care and welfare to those who cannot afford to support their families. These are many privileges that we have that many other citizens of other countries do not. People don’t realize what it’s like to not have these options. We tend to take these privileges for granted.
Health: I feel very privileged that I as well as my family is very healthy. Many families are faced with many hardships when it comes to taking care of a family member that is handicapped or dying from a terminal illness. Having to care for a person with disabilities can be very expensive and time consuming. This causes many families to go into debt because their medical bills are so high. This is another reason why families can’t afford to live in their homes, support their family, and send their children to college. I am very fortunate and grateful that this is something that my family does not have to deal with.
Although I find myself being very privileged, I also find myself facing limitations throughout my everyday life through race, class, gender, religion, etc.
Race: Being white can also have some disadvantages. I often feel that I am viewed as racists or hated because of slavery. I find myself being uncomfortable around some African Americans because they are still angry with White’s today. I often feel like I am judged because I am white. People are quick to assume that I live an easy life because of my race, which makes it difficult for me to connect with people of a different race. Another way I find that I am limited when it comes to my race is when it comes to education. I find that many minorities get special treatment such as, college grants, or scholarships because they are minority. I find that in my college the population is predominately minority. I often feel like I am the minority in class.
Class: I find that being upper class has some disadvantages as well. I do not qualify for certain grants or scholarships for college because my father makes good money. I tried to get a loan on my own and I was denied. What if my father decided to stop paying for my college education? How would I continue to go?
My parents tend to pay for everything, which I find to be a disadvantage to me. I’m 21 years old with no credit because my parents want to pay for everything. How would I be able to buy a home when I decided to leave my parent’s home without credit? I often fear moving out of my parents home and going out into the "real" world because I don’t know how I would survive. I have been very sheltered by my parents, and I have never had to do anything on my own. I have never been taught to have any responsibilities. This is a huge setback for me because I am at the age where I want to become more independent.
Religion: I often feel that religion is a big limitation for me. The Catholic religion is very strict and structured. Although I am free and should be allowed to marry whom I wish, my religion says otherwise. If I want to marry, my husband has to be Catholic as well. My current boyfriend is Protestant and in order for us to marry he must convert. If he wishes not to, then our church will not recognize us as "married".
Another example was my best friend’s daughter’s Baptism. The priest did not want to baptize her baby because she was not married to the baby’s father. I don’t feel like that is fair to the baby. She also wanted me to be the godmother but the priest disagreed because I didn’t attend church every Sunday. I was hurt when the priest told me I don’t practice my faith because I don’t attend church regularly. I still practice my faith in other ways such as prayer, my lifestyle, confession, etc. Although I don’t agree with my church 100 percent, I could never leave the church because my family would be devastated. I feel like that is a disadvantage to me because I practice a religion that I at times don’t agree with.
Government: The government can be a privilege however it can also be a disadvantage. Often, the government gets too much power. The Government has most influence on the way we live our lives. For example, they have a set of rules that everyone has to abide by whether they agree or not. They run the way our schools operate. They try to control what happens in our community. Our president ultimately decides what actions we take as a whole Country (ex: the war). I feel that people are often picked on by the government. In many cases I find that other races such as African Americans, Hispanics/Latinos, Asians, etc. are targeted by the police more so than whites. In that case, I have an advantage over the other races; however, I dislike the fact that the government has so much control over us.
Gender: I often feel limited by being female. I feel that oppression by sex is one of the biggest problems in my life and probably for many other women like me as well. I get the impression that women are viewed as unintelligent, physically weaker, having less power and less prestige then men.
I feel like men view women as an “object” rather than a human being. Women are so concerned about their image that they tend to make that their top priority. I can’t tell you how many articles I have read that has to do with ways women can improve themselves to make them more appealing, sexy, liked, etc. The media portrays women as a sex symbol, and if you’re not sexy, you’re not successful. I can relate to this as well because I am not happy with my image either. I am a size five, yet I still don’t feel sexy because the women I see on T.V. are unrealistically thin. No matter how much I diet and exercise I cannot get down to a size zero.
Women are often limited to what type of career they can choose as well. I find that when I apply for a job as a server or a hostess, the employees tell me that their manager says, “She can have the job as long as she’s hot”. That puts a lot of pressure on me and I’m sure a lot of other women as well.
Women are often faced with the issue of whether or not they should work outside of the home or stay home with their children. On one hand, I feel that I am at a disadvantage if I decide to work outside of the home because I will be missing time with my children. I strongly believe that children’s growth during their younger years is most crucial. Children start off as blank slates, what you write on those slates through teaching and doing is what they will learn. I want to be the one to teach my children family values, morals, religion, respect, etc. I feel that it is my duty as a parent to teach my children those things and I don’t want a day-care provider to do it for me.
On the other hand, many judge women for working outside of the home instead of staying home with the children. Many people today think the old traditionalist way that a woman’s place is at home with her family caring for her children and husband, as well as cooking and cleaning. I find this to be a form of oppression because it is not fair to expect a woman to stay home if that isn’t what she wants to do. I have big dreams of becoming a lawyer, yet people frown upon me. I don’t want to be judged for doing something that brings me success and happiness. I sometimes find others comments to be discouraging and I sometimes second guess myself, however I just strive harder towards my goals.
I often find myself getting easily distracted by the negative notions of power that surrounds me. I allow myself to become setback by the limitations that I struggle with on a daily basis. Doing this project has made me realize that everyone is privileged and oppressed in some way. Overall, I am given many more opportunities in life than disadvantages. I can’t change the way society is, however I can work towards breaking the oppressions and limitations that keep me from growing. Yes, I know I am a young white middle class female with limitations; however I am going to work hard to achieve my goals, and hopefully one day I can break those chains.