Sex, Gender, and Race Flashcards
Sex & Gender
What is the difference between sex and gender?
sex - biological/physiological characteristics (male, female, intersex)
gender - social construct; norms, behaviors, and roles associated with masculinity or femininity
Sex & Gender
What is the difference between gender essentialism and gender uniessentialism?
essentialism - there are male/female forms; gender flows from the form (you’re born that way)
uniessentialism - Witt’s theory, gender prioritizes certain social norms & unifies gender-based norms
Sex & Gender
What does Beauvoir mean when she says “One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman”?
sex does not equal gender
Sex & Gender
Explain how women are seen as “others” based on subjects.
You see yourself as a subject; in defining yourself, you define how others are–others don’t define you.
Through defining themselves, men define women.
initially - women = not man
aristotle - women lack qualities of man
aquinas - woman = imperfect man
others = women are for men
Sex & Gender
What is Queer Theory?
every gender identity is a social construct–gender doesn’t exist
Race & Racism
What is race?
a physical and social concept; a group of beings divided based on shared physical traits that society prioritizes
Race & Racism
What is discrimination? What is privledge?
discrimination: unfair treatment based on certain qualities
privilege: the “system” has an assumed user (male, white, etc.)
Race & Racism
Other than Blum’s argument, there are 2 views of racism. What are they?
black: patterns of racial inequality; prejudice + power
white: departing from color blindness; racial bias
Race & Racism
What is Blum’s claim on racism?
racism is any form of racial discrimination/prejudice
anyone can be racist, but some acts of racism are worse than others due to power
black -> white (racist) / white -> black (also racist, but worse)
Race & Racism
According to Blum, what are the 3 kinds of racism?
- personal racism: racist acts, beliefs, attitudes, behavior
- social racism: racist beliefs, attitudes, and stereotypes within a population
- institutional racism: racial inferiorizing/antipathy in schools, corporations, hospitals, criminal justice systems
Race & Racism
What are the 4 Moral Asymmetries?
- historical legacy: some groups have had a history of oppression; the past can do more damage
- positional inferiority: positional superiority (economic, social, political), not inherent; tends to overlap with race–more money = more power
- patterns and prevalence: some groups experience more racism than others; not all discriminated races are economically disadvantaged
- contribution to racial injustice: racist actions contribute to the maintenance of systemic racial injustice; “reinforces the system”
Race & Racism
What is the difference between subordinate and vulnerable?
subordinate: positionally inferior
vulnerable: NOT positionally inferior, still subject to racism
