My efforts to gather information and perspectives by exploring the environment around myself through the eyes of women that have a directly impact and have a correlation to my life has been a most interesting experience. All these women hold different levels of positions of authority in relationship to each other as well as contrasting positions in my life, coming from different backgrounds and levels of society. The gathering of information by asking questions of women’s understanding about feminism and the injustices faced by women every day either personally or as a larger groups was used as the aid to reach these conclusions. The goal was to understand the environment surrounding myself. By gathering personal accounts and understandings of what gender roles meant to women in society.
The defining piece of information gathered from these women that occupy different levels relationships and position in my life, was that all to often the inequality did exist but some how does not directly affect their lives, that some way they have cheated the system of blind discrimination and subjugation of women. This fact speaks more to truths in society, than any particular injustices and discrimination women are facing and more than the direct history associated with gender inequality. Because it speaks to a larger truth, not only about how women are treated in this country but of how women view this discrimination.
Could it possibly be that these women associated with my life teachers, friends, mentors, senator, aunts, my mother were an exception to an extremely pervasive and defining point in American culture? Or could it be that they simple choose to ignore or cannot see the inequality that affects them every day? I think the answers these women gave speak between the lines about the truth about the invisibility of gender inequality in society. It is the acceptance of norms that drives these answers. While ultimately I do feel that these questions were answered in earnest, I also feel that questions concerning the prevalence of inequality in today’s society, were almost exclusively discussed with the opinion that inequality does exist even if an understanding of what it might be was not understood.
The response to the question: Do you feel that gender inequality still exists in American society, were considerably enlightening. The answers were always yes, with varying degrees of certainty, ranging from strong conviction to uncertain acknowledgement. But when posed with answering the question of how or if this inequality has affected you, only two people responded saying yes it has. Every other respondent, while agreeing that inequality exists, quickly moved themselves away from the idea, quickly removing their associated with the “negative” word. Respondents would reply “in my life you mean?” (Respondent 2) or “I don’t feel like I am directly affected by it.” (Respondent 3) And again “probably not personally but just people that I know personally, yes.” (Respondent 4) While this may or may not be complete truth, it does bring to light the problem of admitting that there is a problem. Even after these women had finished responding to the initial questions, there was always a following response of negation. Responses included “because I never have put myself in a place were I would have to face it,” (Respondent 4) or “no I don’t feel like I am missing out on opportunities because I am a women,” (Respondent 3). These responses make it seem as if all choices in life are dictated by personal preference and the ability to build the environment surrounding us, including the people and laws directly effecting this environment. In response to being asked to think about questions concerning gender roles in today’s society a respondent stated that “this brings me to what I see as the core problem when it comes to gender inequalities – it isn’t blatant inequality, because women stand up for themselves now. The core problem is our acceptance of male power and privilege.” (Respondent 1).
The facts that women see a problem in society of inequality but overwhelmingly feel that they are indirectly affected by these discriminations, while also acknowledging that it is an acceptance of male domination and privilege brings to light an interesting dichotomy. These three points lead to the question over the invisibility of normative social behavior. I argue that all these women have felt direct discrimination because they are female, either in practices of law, the subjugation of women, being stereotyped or becoming the butt of jokes. No matter how harsh or severe the discrimination has been is not important; it is the idea that being equated with such an act goes beyond comprehension. By acknowledging the existence of inequalities but being unable to connect discrimination in social interaction, reinforces the fishbowl metaphor. The Fishbowl metaphor seeks to explain the reality of invisible natural conditions. The fishbowl gives meaning to the world people live in, acting as a representation of the social norms within a society, in this case unequal practices towards women based on the premise that there is an inherit and unequal difference between the male and female.
As the rest of the questions asked have relevance to the current situation of gender roles in society, specifically females, the ability to recognize the greater question and problem of how social norms and invisible practices affect interactions within the boundaries of a culture remains a huge problem. “It is a constant and chronic characteristic of our society,” one respondent said “We all fail to recognize it because we are so accustomed to it.”(Respondent #1) This conclusion speaks to a larger truth of acceptance and disparages in society. That idea that people, ideas, differences and diversity are natural in culture and that difference in these concepts create inequalities when treated as an amalgamation of one entity.
Respondent 8, stated that “I don’t think the goal is to ever get to a point where men and women are as ‘equals’ – what would that mean? How does one come up with a set of benchmarks?” and offers a solution that “Instead the goal is for all people to be given the same rights, resources and opportunities to live their lives with dignity.” This solution still does not grapple with the central question over how to deal with the invisibility of patriarchal oppression, and how to discern when the same resources and rights of opportunities are given to all. Does measuring the equal participation in all aspects of society or equal-proportional representation dictate the disappearance of injustice in society? Again benchmarks for measuring the success and failures of these attempts may prove to be inaccurate and even futile. As public opinion shifts to different understandings of situations the perception of what is equated as equal also adjusts. This creates a social climate and system that can never be reconciled with empirical data to recognize true equality.
The greater question and meaning of investigating disparages in equality is to understand ones personal role in the equation. “the idea of men being superior, leaves women standing there holding the bag, they [men] think that they are the hunters and women are the gatherers. They are bread and raised differently” (Respondent 6). It is about the way society constructs gender within parameters of acceptability. The fault alone cannot completely be blamed on one point of reference or another, “I don’t think it is all about how men view women but also how women view women. It is a lot about society.” (Respondent 7)
