Women in the Workforce

Sariah Patterson

Eng101

Paper 4

12/8/08

“Stereotypes (or "characterizations") are generalizations or assumptions that people make about the characteristics of all members of a group, based on an image (often wrong) about what people in that group are like.” (www.beyondintractability.org). Women are often take advantage of in a stereotyping craze that puts them in a negative role which ultimately puts a male above a female. Yet today, in the workforce, women are overcoming that role by proving themselves by filling the work positions that many men once inhabited. Ultimately, this issue is claiming to be if women should be in the workforce. This idea would considerably aid the ever-persistent force to erase stereotypes from the records of all women.

To begin, the main and extremely important reason to back up the claim of women in the workforce would be because women working would help erase stereotypes between genders. “Women are not exploited enough: they are the world's most under-utilised resource; getting more of them into work is part of the solution to many economic woes, including shrinking populations and poverty.” (www.economist.com). In many other cases, the elements of convention or tradition seem to play a dominant role in deciding which occupations fit in with which gender roles. In the United States, physicians have traditionally been men, and the few people who defied that expectation received a special job description: "woman doctor". Similarly, there were special terms like "male nurse", "woman lawyer", "lady barber", "male secretary," etc. But in the former Soviet Union countries, medical doctors are predominantly women, and in Germany and Taiwan it is very common for all of the barbers in a barber shop to be women. (www.comparestoreprices.co.uk). Also, throughout history, some jobs that have been typically male or female have switched genders. For example, clerical jobs used to be considered a men's jobs, but when several women began filling men's job positions due to World War II, clerical jobs quickly became dominated by women. “It became more feminized, and women workers became known as "typewriters" or "secretaries".” (www.comparestoreprices.co.uk). There are many other jobs that have switched gender roles. Many jobs are continually evolving as far as being dominated by women or men. (www.beyondintractability.org). “The increase in female employment in the rich world has been the main driving force of growth in the past couple of decades. Those women have contributed more to global GDP growth than have either new technology or the new giants, China and India. Add the value of housework and child-rearing, and women probably account for just over half of world output.” (www.beyondintractability.org). Women still get paid less than men and few make it to the top of large businesses and companies, but, as prejudice and stereotyping fades over coming years, women will have great oppurtunities to boost their productivity—and incomes. (www.economist.com). 

The unstated assumption or “warrant” for this argument is as follows: gender stereotypes are corrupted and should be eradicated. People judge others or things not for what or who they really are but what they perceive them to be. Stereotypes are basically generalizations that are made about groups. Stereotyping is especially prevalent -- and problematic -- in conflicts. Groups tend to define themselves according to who they are and who they are not. 

On a more argumentative level, with females working out in the workforce, many women are subjected to stereotyping. But many would agree that this is not so negative as it is to decide what manner of a worker the female is. “Such generalizations are necessary: in order to be able to interact effectively, we must have some idea of what people are likely to be like, which behaviors will be considered acceptable, and which not.” (www.economist.com). There will still be differences between individuals from one culture, and with the same individual in different situations. But the stereotype is reasonably accurate, so it is useful. “Stereotypes are only a problem when they are inaccurate, especially when those inaccuracies are negative and hostile.” (www.beyondintractability.org).

To close, women are overcoming the stereotyping by proving themselves by filling the work positions that many men once inhabited. “The key to reversing negative stereotypes is to contradict them, in direct interactions between people, in the media, and through education.” (www.economist.com). If women could just overcome the stereotyping and gender roles that they are placed into by going out into the workforce and competently fill in those occupations in which they would excel, our economy and world would be that much better and more efficient... for who wouldn’t want a mother, the greatest caretaker of all, to “take care” of our government and economy?

Works Cited:

Gender Roles. 28 November 2008. http://www.ualberta.ca/dept/health/public_html/ healthinfo/decisions/roles.html.

Ioannis Kounadeas. Business Man. 26 November 2008. http://www.fotalia.com

Male/Female Roles. 28 November 2008.  http://www.bookrags.com? researchtopics/ malefemale-roles/sub3.html.

Obsessive Compulsive Disorders. 20 February 2008. 28 November 2008. 

http://www.leemeiee.files.wordpress.com

Men vs. Women. 25 May 2007. 26 November 2008. 

http://www.comparestoreprices.co.uk/images/unbranded.html

Rhode, Deborah L. Gender Roles. 25 November 2008. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2294/is_n1-2_v39/ai_21136462/pg_1?tag=artBody;co11.html.

“The Importance of Sex.” 12 April 2006. 8 December 2008. Women in the Workforce. 

http://www.economist.com/opinion/displaystory.cfm?story_id=6800723

Burgess, Heidi. “Stereotypes/Characterization Frames.” October 2003. 8 December 2008. http://www.beyondintractability.org/essay/stereotypes/

Essay 2, Global Issues

Sariah Patterson

Eng 101 

Oct. 20, 2008

Throughout the world, developing countries are having problems with the abuse of their factory workers that are actually making goods and products for the United States, yet the people of America have no interest in helping out these poor enslaved workers that work five cents an hour just to serve them. Some have tried to reveal these disgusting truths to the American people but were heard in vain... it seems the people of the United States really don’t seem to care while someone thousands of miles away is getting unfair treatment and pay that is less than minimum wage, pay that would never be heard of in our own country and that would never be tolerated.

To add to the disgreeable wages, factories threaten to fire any worker who tries to defy the strict confines of the sweatshop world and go on strike for rights that should equally and honestly be theirs. Even huge producers like Disney, for example, threaten to pull any factory that goes against their standards of the sweatshop working conditions even though Disney is supposedly grand supporters and emulators of rights and fulfilled dreams for everyone or so it is advertised on television. In this way, big corporations are brought to light for everyone to witness the cruelty of the natural man and the unfairness to those who work just as hard as any other person to survive. It’s a wonder why third-world countries have people living in cardboard boxes and such when they are working seven days a week for hours on end to only receive a few dollars monthly to feed their families.

An article in Faigley’s textbook “Comment and Analysis: The Price of Dignity: Business Is Imposing Virtual Savery in the Developing World-- and Only We, the Consumers, Can Stop It” comments that if only the consumers could reach out and help stop the unfair treatment of factory workers in foreign countries we will “hold the key to ending child labor and sweatshop abuses and grease the squeaky wheel.” (Anita Roddick) As consumers, we can help this problem by rewarding those who are giing much better working conditions to their workers and staff and start naming those who are not following the right child labor laws. Ms. Roddick lists options that we may use such as: “full public disclosure of factory names and addresses; adoption of code of conduct which calls for strict adherence to all rights; release at least once a year of monitoring reports regarding the conditions in their factories; and an agreement to respond to allegations of worker rights’ violations.”

The US-based national labour committee has revealed their hopes to expose several pages of reports that shows the many feats and struggles of employees and workers in third world countries such as Honduras, El Salvador, Haiti, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Bangladesh, and China. As Roddick explains, “These are not just academic reports--they are calls to action to support these workers in their struggle for dignity and justice.” She closes with a sharp remark that reminds us all not to forget and take lightly the ordeals and problems of these people who are just like you and I. So, as she so plainly demands of us, Are we listening?

Essay 1

Breaking Free

From the moment I picked up a pencil, I knew there was something different about me. I don’t mean to sound vain about myself, on the contrary, I feel very shy and timid about revealing my talent to strangers. I guess I feel like I will still be put into a stereo-type... you know, one of those groups that people automatically see you coming from once they figure you out. It seems that all through high school I was dealing with this problem. It’s not that I was too smart or that I was ugly or that I even acted strange... I drew. Simple as that. Oddly, I had convinced myself that I belonged there... with the freakish crowd... even though I was neither odd or eccentric. 

I had been taking art classes for quite a few years and I began having this yearning of something more... something better that I could do. I mean, isn’t that what people tell us to do? Expand and broaden our talents? And just like a caterpillar in a cocoon, I needed to break free of my comfort zone and become something alternately and wonderfully different... something beautiful. The day I saw the painting my art teacher had finished under the instruction of a new Maestro, or Master Teacher, I knew exactly what I needed to work for to break free of the confines of my own inexperienced ability. I had to learn how to paint.  

It took months before I could convince my own art teacher to let me meet this Master Artist that she had been studying under, but eventually, once she knew that I was not going to give up and that I was insistent on learning how to paint, the belts were loosened and she agreed to let me ‘visit’ her at the workshop that month. I was so happy at her consent that I could have done backflips... considering if I knew how. My next challenge, though, was to somehow convince the revered instructor that I had talent and although I wasn’t eighteen, I was fourteen at the time, I could copmlete any challenge he put before me. Mind you, I did not know how to paint and, of course, I was just trying to psyche myself up, telling myself I could do all these things, when in reality, I really didn’t even know what oil paint was but I wasn’t going to be the one to tell him that. 

The day I was to meet the Italian Artist, I had so many mixed feelings, and above all, I was extremely anxious and nervous... I was so giddy that I jumped at everything and nothing, but i didn’t know what to expect so who could blame me? Luckily, I had had enough sense to sketch a few renaissance pieces that would hopefully impress him in my humble little sketch book that was ready to fall apart if you held it the wrong way. I determined that I would meet him and hopefully show him what I had done and he would be so impressed with my work that he would accept me then and there, demanding that I stay for the rest of the workshop. But of course, those were only fantasies in my head. I have come to figure out that nothing in life works out like you plan in your head. Nothing. And this is one of those times.

By the time I had come by, everyone was getting ready to go off to lunch for a break and I was panicking. I, like many people, have a strong will until those last few moments when nothing is going your way. And that’s what it came down to. I was about ready to give up until I saw a Mediterranean man come walking around the corner towards me with a big grin on his face, he looked vaguely familiar, kind of like Andrea Bocelli, the blind opera singer. His black hair was laced with silver and his skin was extremely dark, contrasting to everything around him. In a thick Italian accent, he introduced himself, telling me that he was Frank Covino, the Maestro. I had smiled awkwardly and shook his large hand and then just let him walk away since I was dumbfounded. It wasn’t until he had driven away and I was all alone at the workshop that I had realized that I had forgotten to show him my work, the whole reason I had come in the first place! Now I was only fourteen which means that I didn’t have a license and I had no idea how to drive in the first place... i also didn’t have a car to experiment on either, so I was stuck. It seemed, though, that I was fortunate enough to spot my art teacher from a distance as she was getting ready to leave and begged her to let me come with. Once we had climbed in her car and I had revealed the story of my meeting with Maestro Covino, she had laughed and told me to give her my sketch book and that she would take me home but that she would show him my sketch book and all that I had done. 

Later that night, as I was fidgeting with my shirt, something I always do when I am nervous or embarrassed, the phone rang. My family didn’t have caller ID at the time, so all day I had been bolting up the stairs to answer the call that was never the one I was expecting. This time was no different as I worked my short legs up to the second floor, skipping three steps at a time which was an amazing feat for me. I jerked the phone out of the holder and roughly, out of breath, tried to say hello in vain. But ignoring the stress on her line, my teacher relayed the news to me that Maestro Covino had more than willingly accepted me into his class but had said that I would have to wait until the next workshop to participate. I was barely listening to the rest of what she had to say as I went into a sort of stupor where your whole mind is consumed with one idea.  Mine was filled with paint.

From that time on, I was immediately accepted into a tight art community that is more like a family to me than anything else. And it wasn’t just because they would come over and pinch my cheeks or kiss me and tell me how cute I was all the time, it was because they really cared for me, they didn’t judge me. And they still don’t. I was so far from being an adult yet they accepted me as if I were one of them. It helped me to grow up and realize who I was and who I wanted to be as well. I have finished my eighth painting now with their full support and encouragement and they have helped me get into galleries and art shows, thus bringing me into a much more diverse community than just that of a fourteen year old’s little world. Indeed I had become that butterfly and I had broken out of my cocoon. 

Sariah Patterson

Ideas for Essay

First Painting

From the moment i picked up a brush, i was integrated into something much deeper than i had previously realized. I was part of a community, a family of artists who strived to be equal to that of the Renaissance Masters like Rembrandt, Da Vinci, and Michaelangelo. I matured from a mediocre artist to a more professional one which gave me many open opportunities to expand my horizon.

Accepted into Academy

I had yearned to be a part of an art academy for some time and when i got my chance, i took it. Maestro artist, Frank Covino, had come into town and i determined that i had to meet him and prove myself to him. Later after that meeting, i was contacted by a member of the academy who had told me that he, Maestro Covino, had accepted me into his class and workshops. This shows my maturity level go from just high school level into an adult level.

Some of my artwork!

Brushstrokes

Sariah Patterson

One man said that you can see the artist through their artwork. I believe him. You may not be able to see my face hidden in the paint, but underneath each brushstroke is a vow of true devotion. My paintings are an altar of worship. My own soul is on display, on auction waiting to be sold. Painting is my religion. And like all religions, one must have faith to believe what is not yet seen. One must have faith to one day see... to one day open one's eyes and see a work of art staring back at them. I say it's an addiction. A high that I can never escape. This wild craving to imitate nature is an obsession. Each brushstroke takes me deeper and deeper into the infatuation of color and light. But will it ever be enough? Will it fulfill all the desires of my heart? It's betrayal. Art is a drug that won't let me stop... it takes my soul and heart and gives it away... shares it with every critical eye that happens upon it. They critique and criticize my heart and soul that I've so bravely put before them on stretched canvas covered in paint.

The paint will crack.

And with each brushstroke, so will I.

Epigraph

"Love takes off masks that we fear we cannot live without and know we cannot live within." ~James Arthur Baldwin

When writing, people seem to be able to hide problems and truth. Isn't it great to know that everyone has an escape? And for some, the pen is a relief to show readers something they're not. But can I or anyone else really hide from truth and fact? It doesn't seem very realistic until you have a pen in hand and paper in front of you when the mind gets fuzzy and your eyes glaze over to a far off dream of what you could be. James Baldwin points out that we will never be able to hide who we really are... yet i still have urges to be and write like someone I am not. And doesn't everyone have that problem? Whether Love removes our facades or something completely different, we still have this belief that we are something more than we lead on to and whether in English assignments or through the internet, this idea floats in our subconscious to be who we are not. I suppose we could refer this reoccuring phenomenon to dreams that we ourselves cannot recognize or comprehend often. Some say Love is to blame for lies and fables that we create and fool our readers with each time we sit down to write. Some say it's Pride. And because we concoct ideas to impress others or perhaps just ourselves, these written ideas that we blame our lies and mistakes upon, reveal us to the world. We are unwillingly showcasing our true colors we would not have been able to hide from those we care for to begin with. It is a curious human trait that takes hold of everyone at least once and when we are at the point of no return, we find that because of this, we learn who we are and where we stand. We take into consideration what we wished to become and what we now want to sculpt ourselves into with our writing. I realize that we are really like clay, we shape ourselves into what we choose to be and what we hope to be, and it is truly up to us to decide whether we turn ourselves into a masterpiece... or a constructed object waiting to flake and crack. So now, it's time to ask ourselves, are we going to be beautifully molded by the truth of our written fantasies? Or are we going to be deformed and crumbling, modeled by written lies and unrealistic hopes to be someone we could never be in the first place?