Learning Analysis

Nadia Benmouna
As I enter my Woman Studies class I assumed what most people do about feminism. I assume the class will be about the female struggle, lesbianism, and female rights. I was also not surprised when I observed that the instructors were all females either. However, as the class progressed I realize that the class was not solely about what I had assumed. To me, this class was about more than feminism. This class focused on art and inner-evaluation. I as well learned a lot from reading the books that were assigned to the class. The books helped me gain a new perspective on art, cultural struggle, and feminism.
The first assignment that the teacher assigned opened my eyes to a new perspective of art. The assignment included a field trip to the National Museum of Women and the Arts Women, as well as four other museums. Prior to taking this class, art was an unfamiliar field for me. There was one perspective of art in my mind. This was the art work of the famous painters, Pablo Picasso and Vincent Van gough. It was the only art I was exposed to while I was at school. However, while I was observing the artwork in the museums, a lot of the art seemed simple. Some of the art was as simple as a dot on a piece of paper. Other works of art was beading on dress and clothing. I did not understand why this was considered art. Isn’t art supposed to be something I would not be able to make? As I began to analyze my assumptions, I realize that art is the ability to express oneself in a creative way. I started to consider this definition and realized that I could be an artist as well. I often express my most inner thoughts and feelings through poems. So this means that my poems are works of art because I am expressing my inner thoughts in a creative manner. However, does this mean that I am an artist in the eyes of others?
Not every person who claims to be an artist is considered to be an artist in society. Although I may consider myself an artist, others may not think that my poems are in fact works of art. In result of this, my artwork will not be displayed in a museum. Does this mean that that piece of dot on a piece of paper is any better than my poem? I believe not. People are the ones who give value to a piece of art. While reading “But is it Art”, by Cynthia Freeland, the chapter called Money, Markets, and Museums particularly stood out to me. This chapter addresses how certain works of art is worth millions of dollars in today’s society. An example of this is when the painting, “Sunflower”, by famous artist Vincent Van Gogh was sold for $39.9 million. The irony of this is that his works of art was unappreciated during his time living, and now it is suddenly valued greatly. His artwork was no more beautiful and astonishing now, than it was hundred of years ago. I believe the sudden value of his works of art was established because someone in society deemed his works of art to be great. This is not any person in society; it is someone who has power and wealth. If this type person reads my poem enjoys it, than it is art and it is valued. However, if I, a middle-class student, were to view the works of an underground artist and believe it is art, than the art is not valued any higher. Art has to be discovered by some with wealth and power in order for it to be recognized and valued. Or it has to be discovered by some that owns a particularly well-known art museum. However, these people have a different perception of art might. They may not view art the same way I do, or anyone else. To me these pieces of art are not any better than that of someone who has his art displayed at an art fair. There is a bias in the art world and many aspiring artists are suffering because of it.
In addition to gaining a new perception on art, I became more aware of my daily privileges and oppressions. Assignment three allowed me to evaluate my power in society. Prior to this assignment I did not consider my race, religion, language, gender, etc, to be areas that define my power in society. However, I soon realized that these characteristics put me in the category of marked and unmarked, or in other words oppressed and privileged. I was able to apply the theory of marked and unmarked while reading Kindred by Octavia Butler. The main character Dana is an African American living in the 1970’s, time travels to rural Maryland during the slavery era of 1800. When Dana time warped to the 1800s, she lost all the power she once had prior to her time travel. Although she was not completely powerless during the 1970’s, her race was still an issue. This story illustrates that race will always determine a persons power in society regardless of the time era. Dana may have been subjected to more discrimination and oppression during the 1800’s, but race was still an oppressing factor in her life. Her interracial marriage with a white man named Kevin, created a lot of hatred and oppression towards the couple. Kevin faced disapproval from his family and society because of they still disapproved of Dana’s race. This shows that despite the many years passed since the slavery era, race is still an oppressive dimension of difference.
Race still affects the power of a person in society today. While doing my third assignment I realized that race and religion are the only two dimensions of difference that oppress me. Prior in doing the assignment I thought that race could not still possibly be an oppressive factor in current society. However, after analyzing my past experiences in life, being an Arab can often take my power within society. While I was re-collecting how many times I have been subjected to discrimination, I realize that it occurs frequently. My friends, television shows, and teachers often make rude and racist remarks that I do not initially recognize. It is not until I think about it that I realize their words are hurtful.
While race was an oppressive factor for me, many other marked dimensions of differences were not. For example, the English language was specified as unmarked, but in society today being bi-lingual can be an advantage. My ability to speak a language other than English was beneficial to me and gave me a greater power in society. However the theory of marked and unmarked category proves otherwise. According to this theory, because of I am bi-lingual I am oppressed. I found this inaccurate. These categories of marked and unmarked are not permanent because society is constantly going through economic, social, and political change. Race should n longer be an issue in society today. People have struggled for centuries to eliminate racism and discrimination, but it still occurs today. I believe it is in human nature for people to think higher of their race. So as long as there are different races living amongst each other, there will always be racism.
In addition to becoming more aware of my oppressions and privileges, I gained a new perspective of feminism. Prior to taking this class, I have experienced discrimination based on my sex. I have been denied a job because of my gender. According to my friend, the employer told him that he did not to hire me because of ‘heavy lifting’. I was deeply hurt of his decision. However, I did not want to do something about it because everyone would consider me to be a feminist. I did not want to have this label on me because there are negative associations with it. People would immediately assume that I am a lesbian man-hater. However, while I read the book “Feminism is for Everybody”, by bell Hooks, I gained a new perspective to what feminism is. Throughout Bell Hooks’ book she shows that feminism is not always what it is portrayed to be. It is not the man hating, bra burning, lesbian, female movement that it is so often put out to be. I learned that not all feminists have these beliefs. Those who say that all feminist are lesbians, is the same thing as saying that all Arabs are all terrorists. These beliefs are based on assumptions. There is a wide range of feminist who view feminism in different perspectives.
I was able to realize that feminism means something different for each individual through the second assignment. While we were working as a group to come up with one cohesive definition, everyone expressed different ideas to what feminism was. I believed feminism was when a female feels as capable as male does. One person felt feminism had more to do with a woman feeling comfortable to express her beliefs in society. Another person felt that feminism is equality in the workplace. The definition of feminism meant something different for each person. So to say that all feminists are lesbians who hate men and believe that women are better than men is not true. There might be some who believe this way, but we can not assume that this is true for all feminist.
I entered this class with many assumptions that were proven to be false. This class has taught me that a lot of my assumptions are created by society. I was used to only one type of art because my school never exposed me to any others. I thought that feminism was a lesbian man-hating movement but that is because it is what I see on television. Society and the media often shape our perception on certain issues. However, these perceptions are often distorted and are not necessarily true.