Jessica Suguitan
September, 16
FD1
Trauma for Potential Mamas
As a woman born in post-feminist America I have grown up surrounded by models for gender equality; yet over half of the women I have met in my lifetime have been traumatized in some way because of their gender role. For women in other countries things are much worse. Globally one in six women experience either physical or sexual violence, commonly both. (Copyright © UN Women)[THESIS]The majority of women experience trauma adjusting to their gender role from adolescence to menopause. The types of trauma women experience are varied, from physical/sexual abuse to intense societal pressures. The root of the trauma, however, is the same, directly relating to a women’s gender role. [THESIS] A person must take responsibility for their life, regardless of the demoralizing things that may happen. Though, in order to do so one must be aware enough to recognize that something is wrong. The foundation for this begins in childhood, but as Tom Robbins wrote: “It’s never too late to have a happy childhood”.
The layers of gender role trauma in the average (not physically/emotionally abused) woman in America today are very nuanced. Some people have more sensitive characters and are more susceptible to trauma due to gender role pressure. I believe a friend of mine, with whom I reconnected a few years ago, suffered from gender role trauma and still feels its effects. Upon spending time with this traumatized friend of mine, I discovered that she was downright obsessed with her adolescence. She continually told stories about a variety of situations regarding social acceptance and boys who had been unkind during her teenage years. She still kept tabs on all of the guys who had turned her down. It was clear to me that she had been hurt very deeply in her adolescence as she attempted to adjust to and master her gender role.
Adolescence is the time where a person creates independence for themselves from their guardians. If that person experiences trauma due to the adjustments they need to make in order to fit into society because of their gender it distracts them from a pivotal period of self-discovery. This sets a low standard for future moments of self-awareness. Such an impediment holds great consequence for both the individual and society.
All of the expectations of being a woman in American society (dressing feminine, being accommodating, and adjusting one’s physical appearance via makeup and exercise to fit the standard of female beauty) had been so intense that she had not developed the awareness and compassion for herself that was necessary to know what she really wanted to do in life. In fact, I think that she allowed her gender role to become her character. She still has no idea what she wants to do with her life and a part of her still believes that she won’t have to really figure it out, just as long as she makes money and has a boyfriend who will pay for things.
I see shallowness as a psychological defense to being traumatized in adolescence. This shallowness, this ignorance, causes poor decision-making and has a negative affect on society as a whole. It perpetuates a cycle of low self-esteem, the leading cause to a slew of mental disorders common among girls. Perhaps the best known is anorexia that some 60,000 people, the majority girls, suffer from in the United Kingdom alone (Jones). Becoming a woman according to current gender roles is a distracting and stressful experience. “IQ scores drop and their math and science scores plummet…They report great unhappiness with their own bodies.” (Pipher)
I do not believe that that answer to this is to simply “let time past” as suggested by my classmate Max Babylon. His belief is that out of economic necessity men and women will become equal partners. Just because men and women will both have to work and maybe even earn similar pay does not in any way imply equality in treatment, this is something I have personally seen and experienced. I also believe that things do not need to come to an economic crisis in order to bring equality. It is up to us to do the work to make things equal. The women’s right to vote came with thousands of women risking their health and the health of their families to ensure that their voice would be heard. This is the kind of toil required when attempting to right an imbalance of equality. Things are no different today.
If a person is hurt or confused regarding the way society is pushing them to act because of their gender it is important to inquire about what it is that they are feeling. Nobody should feel stuck just because of other peoples expectations. This kind of processing towards self-awareness should begin in childhood. Simply ask the child what makes them happy. Then, explain the potential consequences of their actions. Everyone has a character, some are courageous, others rather bend to tradition, but what matters is that they stay true to who they are and understand that it is from there that they should act, not from societal pressures, or from traumas that zap their desire and ability to creatively process and understand their life. It begins in adolescence when we attempt to gain independence and it continues into past the time of menopause of women, where we learn to bring ourselves to the shared dependence of a society as a healthy community.
Bibliography
BBC. BBC- Archive- Women recall their struggel to win the vote. 2011. 16 09 2011 <http://www.bbc.co.uk/archive/suffragettes/>.
Copyright © UN Women, UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. Violence against women _ Gender Issues_ Unifem. 2011. 06 09 2011 <http://www.unifem.org/gender_issues/violence_against_women/>.
Jones, Liz. "What I think About the Fashion World." Krueger, Gary Goshgarian & Kathleen. Dialogues. n/a: Longman, 2011. 366.
Pipher, Mary. "Saplings in the Storm." Krueger, Gary Goshgarian & Kathleen. Dialogues. n/a: Longman, 2011. 349.
Robbins, Tom. Still Life With Woodpecker. NYC: Bantam, 1980.
RD1 Review: Ana Krummel
_x_ Aug. 23- Laulima Discussion: Who Am I? Post your response by midnight. Possible topics: your academic and career goals; your favorite pastime; favorite book, movie, song; favorite physical activity or sport; favorite quote; personal philosophy on the purpose of life; your personal thoughts on why it’s important to become an excellent writer; favorite food or restaurant; favorite vacation destination; etc.
_x_ Aug. 23- Intro to Paper #1. Read the “Guidelines for Paper #1” by midnight.
_x_ Aug. 23-31- Set up your personal blog for all class papers. Click here for instructions. Alternately, see the “Blogger” links in the right sidebar in our class blog. To begin, complete the initial setup. You’ll be able to add finishing touches as the RD1 due date approaches. If you need help, post a request in the “Q&A About My Blog” forum in Laulima.
_x Aug. 26- Laulima Discussion: What Is “Trauma”? One definition or many different definitions? Post your response by midnight.
___ Aug. 29- Complete readings for Paper #1 by midnight.
_x_ Sep. 2- Laulima Discussion: Causes & Solutions: What causes gender role trauma? What’s the solution? Assume that there is more than one cause or solution. Post your response by midnight. [10 pts]
_x Sep. 6- Submit RD1 (Review Draft #1) [50 pts] Review the guidelines.
_x_ Sep. 12- Submit three RD1 evaluations in Laulima. [50 pts] Review the guidelines.
_x_ Sep. 16- Submit FD1 (Final Draft #1) [100 pts] Review the guidelines.
__yes_1. Is the draft readable? All drafts submitted for review must be free of strange characters and symbols.
_yes__2. Does it address the topic or question for this assignment? In our first paper: (ENG 273N) Does it describe a place that has made a lasting impact on the writer? (ENG 215) Does it take a firm stand on the statement “Between adolescence and menopause, women experience trauma in adjusting to their gender roles”? (ENG 100) Does it describe in vivid detail a specific person, place, thing (object), or process (activity) that the writer considers “beautiful”? For subsequent papers, see the appropriate assignment guidelines.
__yes_3. Is it complete? Does it have all the parts mentioned in the assignment guidelines? If necessary, does it include a works cited section? Does it meet the word count requirement? (Paper 1&5: 750-1000 words; paper 2&3: 1000-1500; paper 4: 1500-2000. See the assignment guidelines for the latest requirements.)
yes___4. Does it show signs that the writer has put effort into reviewing and revising it before submitting it? Review drafts (RDs) aren’t the same as “rough” drafts. They are as close to final drafts as possible. Thus, they should be complete, show signs of revision, and be as clear as possible of mechanical problems.
__yes_5. Does it follow the basic formatting rules?
- Single-space within paragraphs, double-space between paragraphs.
- Single space after end punctuations.
- Omit indent at the start of paragraphs.
- Use standard fonts – avoid fancy fonts.
- Avoid using all caps, bold, exclamation marks, etc. for dramatic effects.
- Don’t use right justification; use ragged right instead.
_yes__6. Does it include information that identifies the author, date of submission, and assignment? In the upper left corner:
name
date
assignment
name
date
assignment
__yes_7. Does it have an original title?
_yes__8. Does it have a thesis statement? And is it bookended with the label “[THESIS]“? The thesis sentence is usually in the first paragraph. It’s usually one sentence in length and the last sentence in the paragraph. It tells the reader what the main point of the essay is. In argumentative papers, it clearly states a position or stand. Think of the thesis as the one main point that every paragraph in the body of the paper is developing or supporting.
_yes__9. Does the first paragraph introduce the subject of the paper and the thesis? The introductory paragraph should be brief. It introduces the subject and thesis. That’s it. It doesn’t try to develop or explain important ideas or arguments. That’s saved for the body paragraphs.
_yes__10. Do the body paragraphs develop and support the thesis?
___yes11. Does the conclusion try to do more than restate the thesis and main points? The concluding paragraph should be brief. It’s used to restate the thesis and briefly (one or two sentences) summarize the main supporting points. It should avoid the introduction of new or different ideas that haven’t been developed in the body paragraphs. If the new thought is important, then suggest that the writer expand her/his paper to include it as one or more body paragraphs.
__yes_12. Does it follow MLA guidelines for quotes and references? It should closely follow MLA guidelines for quoting, citing references, and setting up a works cited section.
__yes_13. Is it free from basic mechanical problems? Does it need to be carefully revised for mechanical problems such as spelling, capitalization, word choice, run-ons, fragments, subject-verb agreement, punctuation (commas, especially), etc.? Hi Jessica,
Your paper is very good!
Good job,
Ana K.
RD1 Review 2: Drake Akiyoshi
Hey,
i enjoyed reading your paper. It was very detailed and your opinions were expressed very well.
I especially like the middle of your paper when you give examples of what society deems correct for a woman to act, dress and feel like.
I was also wondering why there are two thesis statements. Reading through your paper though, I did feel that you hit both thesis statements, explaining both the adolescence to menopause question and your own thesis of taking responsibility of yourself whether you get demoralized or not. Its an inspirational paper. Good job.
Drake
RD Review 3:
Author: Jessica Suguitan
Evaluated by: Carmen Lee
_Yes_1. Is the draft readable? All drafts submitted for review must be free of strange characters and symbols.
_Yes__2. Does it address the topic or question for this assignment? In our first paper: (ENG 273N) Does it describe a place that has made a lasting impact on the writer? (ENG 215) Does it take a firm stand on the statement “Between adolescence and menopause, women experience trauma in adjusting to their gender roles”? (ENG 100) Does it describe in vivid detail a specific person, place, thing (object), or process (activity) that the writer considers “beautiful”? For subsequent papers, see the appropriate assignment guidelines.
_Yes__3. Is it complete? Does it have all the parts mentioned in the assignment guidelines? If necessary, does it include a works cited section? Does it meet the word count requirement? (Paper 1&5: 750-1000 words; paper 2&3: 1000-1500; paper 4: 1500-2000. See the assignment guidelines for the latest requirements.)
_Yes__4. Does it show signs that the writer has put effort into reviewing and revising it before submitting it? Review drafts (RDs) aren’t the same as “rough” drafts. They are as close to final drafts as possible. Thus, they should be complete, show signs of revision, and be as clear as possible of mechanical problems.
_No, please go over the checklist once again to correct your formatting__5. Does it follow the basic formatting rules?
- Single-space within paragraphs, double-space between paragraphs.
- Single space after end punctuations.
- Omit indent at the start of paragraphs.
- Use standard fonts – avoid fancy fonts.
- Avoid using all caps, bold, exclamation marks, etc. for dramatic effects.
- Don’t use right justification; use ragged right instead.
_Yes, but there are minor problem to it, please revise carefully to see what you are missing.__6. Does it include information that identifies the author, date of submission, and assignment? In the upper left corner:
name
date
assignment
name
date
assignment
_Yes__7. Does it have an original title?
_Yes__8. Does it have a thesis statement? And is it bookended with the label “[THESIS]“? The thesis sentence is usually in the first paragraph. It’s usually one sentence in length and the last sentence in the paragraph. It tells the reader what the main point of the essay is. In argumentative papers, it clearly states a position or stand. Think of the thesis as the one main point that every paragraph in the body of the paper is developing or supporting.
_Yes__9. Does the first paragraph introduce the subject of the paper and the thesis? The introductory paragraph should be brief. It introduces the subject and thesis. That’s it. It doesn’t try to develop or explain important ideas or arguments. That’s saved for the body paragraphs.
_Yes_10. Do the body paragraphs develop and support the thesis?
_No__11. Does the conclusion try to do more than restate the thesis and main points? The concluding paragraph should be brief. It’s used to restate the thesis and briefly (one or two sentences) summarize the main supporting points. It should avoid the introduction of new or different ideas that haven’t been developed in the body paragraphs. If the new thought is important, then suggest that the writer expand her/his paper to include it as one or more body paragraphs.
_Not completely, please carefully revise your paper.__12. Does it follow MLA guidelines for quotes and references? It should closely follow MLA guidelines for quoting, citing references, and setting up a works cited section.
_Yes__13. Is it free from basic mechanical problems?
Yes. Does it need to be carefully revised for mechanical problems such as spelling, capitalization, word choice, run-ons, fragments, subject-verb agreement, punctuation (commas, especially), etc.?
Your paper is very organized. I enjoyed reading your paper. You took a firm stand on your side. Your thesis is strong and is well supported by the examples your provided. You summed up the paper nicely in your conclusion. Please revise your paper as stated above to fix the formatting problem. Other than that, you did a good job.
