TEACHSOC: Re: Crash/ Brokeback Mountiain

[Robert Hironimus-Wendt]

Hi Folks   Please allow me to jump in with two thoughts. They may be incorrect and if so, I apologize up front...   First, we must always, always, remind ourselves that filmmakers are not sociologists, and are not creating their works for us. Thus, we cannot simply assign the work and assume students will see what we see. I enjoyed Brokeback Mountain, and can think of several aspects of the film that work for and work against sociology. If I require a viewing, it is my obligation to point these out, equally, I suspect. Second….   When we teach minority-majority relations, we generally find it useful to think in terms of “ideal types.” We assert prejudice and discrimination are two separate, but sometimes related, issues. In this context, the assumption that acts of discrimination (in this case, willfully hurting others physically) derive from and are caused by prejudicial beliefs, assumes that all prejudgments are fundamentally the same, and ultimately must lead to directly to violence. And to suggest that all prejudgments generally will lead to a common act (e.g., violence) is equally, an oversimplification. At the very least, there must be intervening variables associated with socialization, that determine which prejudicial people will be compelled to translate that prejudgment into a moral justification toward physical aggression. The decision to violate societal norms through violence has been, I believe, associated with the presence of an authoritarian personality type. Which suggests the it is the personality type that predicts the behavior, and the personality type is associated with prejudice. But I could be wrong, and probably am. I do not study this sort of social psychology.   Nonetheless, I would suggest it is an oversimplification that ignores the complexity of human behavior, and the social conditions that can trigger maladaptive behaviors (e.g., violence). I would suggest “a fear of or discomfort with homosexuality” (prejudice) should be viewed as different from “manifest, powerful actions against homosexuals.” We all fear something, but that does not cause us to act. I fear corporate actors, but do not think to commit acts of violence against them.   Sexism is often a separate phenomenon from domestic violence. Sexism is a belief that there are two gender orientations, that those two are complementary, and that one is better at accomplishing some tasks, while the other better at other tasks, etc. While the sexism can be related to domestic violence superficially, the two are not always directly and irrevocably related (indeed, I would suggest they are not necessarily, causally related). Traditional orientations toward marriage and dating relations do not cause domestic violence or date rate. Date rape is about power issues associated with gender expectations, but the expectations themselves are non-normative in that they are premised upon submission and oppression, not mutually exclusive but complementary role relations.   Similarly, violence against homosexuals should not be assumed to be primarily about some fear, but instead, about a desire to use power to create a social order that itself, is non-normative. When African Americans were lynched, the people doing the lynching did not fear Black people. They feared changes in the social order. The violence was about something else, not against the individual victims or something the victim did. The presumed action on the part of the victim was tangential to the real issue. Violence against homosexuals is similar, I suspect.   Peace to all   Robert     Robert J. Hironimus-Wendt, Ph.D. Sociology and Anthropology Western Illinois University 1 University Circle Macomb, IL 61455-1390 phone: (309) 298-1457 fax: (309) 298-1857 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]   "It doesn't matter how strong your opinions are. If   you don't use your power for positive change, you   are indeed part of the problem, helping to keep   things the way they are."     -Coretta Scott King   --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Teaching Sociology" group. To post to this group, send email to teachsoc@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/teachsoc -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---