Blog 10

 1. Define the phrase "pernicious effects" on the basis of what is stated in the essay.

Mary Wollstonecraft explains what life was like when women were a part of the war and then when they were told to do the domestic roles. She writes “A woman’s rank in life requires her to be dependent and charged with motherhood and denies her the opportunity to think and act for herself; men may unfold their faculties by becoming soldiers and statesmen.”If  Wollstonecraft were to look at women like they were expected to complete these duties and nothing more and this is her exact meaning of pernicious effects. 

2. Is it possible to compare women with property on the basis of this essay?

When this essay was written,  women were considered property and men had much more power over them.. Men had the right to control their wives, while “The most respectable women are the most oppressed and usually become contemptible only because they are treated like contemptible beings in their bondage of ignorance.” She says that women had to learn their rights and know their role was taking care of children and the house. Women knew to respect their husbands. They are to also treat their husbands as blissful beings and to show them true affections. She also writes “Reasonable men are called on to assist in the emancipation of women, to be content with rational fellowship, rather than slavish obedience, from women.” These men may be rare, but they should treat their wives less as slavish and more as a person. 

3. Clarify in what way the “unnatural distinctions” affecting women in society cause them to behave as Wollstonecraft says they do. Do you feel it is a genuine cause- and-effect relationship?

I believe women who were treated negatively back then deserved better. Even though this was how society worked for a long period of time, it isn't the right way to treat someone and I think it spiraled into today's society. I know it took society a very long time to give women rights and see them for their potential, but this also pushed women to make their voices heard about themselves. They fought for what they knew should be changed, and eventually it worked. Although now, women aren’t still paid the same amount of money as some men. This still can be worked on, but there are a lot of problems with the world and the society that we are still living in today. 

4. Describe Diversity in Schools according to Kozol and what your definition would be.

Kozol says “ The word diverse is often a euphemism for schools that are basically segregated and non-diverse. Most schools teach civil rights as historical phenomena; teachers do not focus on present day civil rights issues. The civil rights lessons focus on the desegregation of southern schools in the 1950s and 1960s. Segregation should not be taught as a distant piece of history. Many schools and school districts have reverted to de facto segregation. The proper way to teach children about civil rights is to empower them to understand and speak about contemporary segregation.” He says this because civil rights and segregation are still being at hand and still at stake. He questions why teachers are acting and pretending as if people aren’t still being discriminated against, but they are. If you look around at the world and examples of what is happening to some people, then you can see that people are still being discriminated against. Diversity according to Kozol is understanding for yourself what people are like, instead of being taught what it is. In my opinion, diversity is people of several different races and ethnic backgrounds who are together and are treated with respect. At school, there may be people of different races but not all the time are they respected. This is very sad, for the world to disrespect people based on their gender or race or anything they believe. 

5. What does Woodson mean by mis-education?

In the Mis-Education of the Negro written by Carter G. Woodsen, it is written that “Highly educated African Americans are of no service to themselves or to white people. White people do not need educated black people. Educated African Americans do not need the black working class. Thus, highly educated African Americans can only teach and preach and head down blind alleys, with little hope for future change.” According to Woodsen, African Americans who receive higher education are not really recognized. This education system doesn’t work until the white and black teachers are seen as equal and their teachings are revealed as equally educational. Woodsen also talks about how African Americans are taught to be white, but they will never be seen as having an education equal to the level of education received by the white people. He also says that the most successful African Americans are those who are self-educated or not educated at all. It is clear to me that back then, eduction wasnt easy and took a toll on many people because of the segregation and discrimination towards African American people.