History and Description of a Subordinate Group Member Essay Example for Free

History and Description of a Subordinate Group Member Essay Throughout the history of North America, there has been one ethnic group who has given up almost everything to the European settlers. Land, home, resources, and dignity were stolen from Native Americans. The long history of the American Indian is being written, even today. Approximately forty thousand years ago, the earliest ancestors of Native Americans migrated across the Bering Strait from Asia on pack ice (Hoerder, 2005). The population rose steadily, and by the time the first substantial settlement of Europeans was established in the New World, Native Americans lived throughout the continent. In the search for more farmland, European immigrants quickly pushed the native population out of their traditional homelands. This migration began the crowding of other native bands, forcing eastern natives to move beyond the Ohio River, thus starting a series of relocations for the Native Americans that continued through the next two centuries. Less than fifty years after the end of the American Revolution, many of the tribes in the northeastern United States sold their land under pressure from the newcomers. Before 1850, these natives migrated west of the Mississippi River. If you traveled to Oklahoma today you would find the same bloodlines that once roamed the New England hills (Indians The Readers Companion to American History, 1991). Wanting to live apart from the natives and expecting them to remain controlled, reservations were established, including an Indian Territory (est. 1825) in present-day Oklahoma. The Indian Removal Act of 1830 was enacted to populate these newly established areas. President Jackson ordered the forced migration of Native Americans from multiple southeastern tribes. Approximately 4,000 Cherokee Indians perished in 1838-1839 on their 800-mile march, or during their succeeding internment. This tragic event has become known as the Trail of Tears. (American Indian Policy, 2002) Trying to Americanize instead of segregate the Indians, in 1887, Congress passed the Dawes Act, which broke up reservations and gave land to individual Indian families. The idea of the Dawes Act was to assimilate Indians by giving them land from which they could profit. What followed were laws, over the next few decades, which dissolved tribal governments and placed Native Americans completely under the jurisdiction of U.  S. laws (American Indian Policy, 2002). The reservation system is one distinctive aspect of the Native American culture that materialized from their relationship with other Americans. The United States has 310 reservations within its borders. The federal government owns 298 reservations and 12 belong to the states in which they are located. A total of 437,431 Indians resided on reservations or trust lands. That is approximately 22 percent of the Native Americans defined by the 1990 census (Shumway Jackson, 1995). The United States has proven itself unreliable on its policies and treatment of Native Americans. The government teeters between a policy of segregation, under which Indians are treated as a self-sustaining culture, and assimilation policies, which try to integrate Indian and European cultures. The United States acknowledged Indian sovereignty and established treaties with them. Unlike foreign nations, Indians shared the continent with the quickly growing nation who needed resources, and were quick to form treaties, giving Indians land rights and territorial sovereignty but repeatedly found ways to revoke those privileges.

Effect of Socioeconomic Stress on Family Health

Effect of Socioeconomic Stress on Family Health Revisions and Literature Review Tiffany Stewart Socioeconomic status is defined â€Å"as the social standing or class of an individual or group. It is often measured as a combination of education, income, and occupation† (American Psychological Association, 2014). There are higher and lower socioeconomic statuses (SES) that can have a big effect on a family’s health. In 2012, research showed that one in five children lived below the federal poverty line (Noble et al., 2012). Family resources such as â€Å"income, parent’s education and health can have a direct and indirect benefit for children† (Thompson, 2014, p. 42). Families in lower SES have poor physical and mental health compared to families in higher SES. When a family lives in a lower SES, there are more stressful life events that affect the whole family. Stress can be defined as â€Å"a complex psychobiological process with biological, emotional, mental, and behavioral consequences, all of which influence one another† (Thompson, 2014, p. 46). Children and adolescents are at an age where they are not able to provide their own socioeconomic status. This is left up to the parents, which can have big effect on the child’s developmental outcomes at the current age and later in life (Hackman Farah, 2009). Research has shown that when a stressful life event occurs, catecholamines and glococorticoids are mediated (Lupien, King, Meaney, McEwen, 2000). When glucocorticoid response to stress in a short amount of time, this is an adaptive function that is normal. When glucocorticoid has increased for long periods of time, this can be associated with different depressive symptoms (Lupien et al., 2000). There is also other research on how stress from the mother will affect the child once born. The fetus is left exposed to the mother’s diet, emotions, and environmental influences that can have effect on development (Thompson, 2014). The fetus is very sensitive to maternal stress. If the mother is under a lot of stress during pregnancy, the child will have a greater reactivity to stress once born (Thompson, 2014). One study showed that when the fetus was exposed to maternal cortisol, seven year old girls had emotional difficulties and a larger volume in the right amygdale (Thompson, 2014). After a child has been born and has been under a lot of stress, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) axis does not function the way it should. The HPA axis is a human’s central stress response system. The neurological circuitry is changed to how the body response to stress. This will happen when the child is exposed to stressful event on multiple occasions to change the sen sitivity of the HPA system (Thompson, 2014). The way the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal system is supposed to work in individuals that are not exposed to large amounts of stress is by the â€Å"release of steroid hormone cortisol from the adrenal gland† (Essex, Klein, Cho Kalin, 2002, p. 777). Cortisol (stress hormone) has a big influence on brain function. When cortisol is released during stressful experiences, this will enhance an organism’s ability to adapt in those times (Essex et al., 2002). Elevated levels cortisol that happens multiple times during the early years will cause physiologic effects later in the individual’s life. These effects include â€Å"increased resistance to the effects of insulin, promotion of obesity, impaired memory via effects on hippocampal neurons, and altered immune responses† (Essex et al., 2012, p. 777). Behavior can also tie into the disruptive HPA axis activity when stress occurs. These behaviors include how the child is â€Å"coping, cognitive and attention problems, poor emotional regulation, and difficulty in social functioning† (Thompson, 2014, p. 45). These behavior problems have associations for children’s academic functioning as well as building relationships with other children and adults. Children that have been exposed to stressful events multiple times in their early life show academically that they have a hard time concentrating, remembering things, and controlling their own thinking. With relationships, children have â€Å"heighten emotional reactivity and weaken emotional self-regulation† (Thompson, 2014, p. 45). Stress in general is part of every person’s life. A normal amount of stress is nothing to worry about and necessary to survive. Stress does occur at a young age, and this will help to develop coping skills and learn how to adapt to stressful situations that will occur throughout the lifetime (Middlebrooks Audage, 2008). Parents are the ones that should help the children learn how to deal with stress in a healthy way. When stress is not dealt in a healthy way, there can be short and long-term health effects. Research has shown that there are three different types of stress that a person can go through in their life. These three include positive stress, tolerable stress, and toxic stress. Positive stress is from negative experiences that are short-term (Middlebrooks Audage, 2008). Examples of positive stress are when children start a new school, or when someone else takes a toy away from them. The health effects include heart rate being increased and hormone levels changing. This type of stress is normal and the parents can help the child learn how to cope with it as a developmental process (Middlebrooks Audage, 2008). Tolerable stress is from a negative experience that impacts the child more than positive stress but is still short-term. Examples of tolerable stress include dealing with a death of a family member, or the parents are separating (divorce) (Middlebrooks Audage, 2008). As long as the child has support from a family member or someone close to the child, he/she is usually able to learn how to deal with experience in a healthy way. If the child learns to deal with the experience in a healthy way, it will turn into possible stress. If the child is unable to deal with the experience, this can turn into toxic stress that will have long-term health effects (Middlebrooks Audage, 2008). Socioeconomic stress falls under the category of toxic stress. This kind of stress is from negative experiences that can continue for long periods of time. Other examples include neglect and abuse (Middlebrooks Audage, 2008). When toxic stress occurs, brain development and functioning will be disrupted. Health problems can also occur that have the capacity to be long-term. There is research that has shown how brain development is effected by long-term stress like socioeconomic stress. Brain development is a process that starts to take place during pregnancy. Factors that influence brain development include genetics and the environment that the mother is in. The toxic stress on brain development can impair the connection of brain circuits and lead to developing a smaller brain (Middlebrooks Audage, 2008). The circuits in the brain can cause a child to not be able to handle stress. The child will overreact to conflicting experiences that occur in his/her life. High levels of cortisol (stress hormone) can also damage the hippocampus that affects learning and memory that can continue into adulthood. There is even research that has shown that high levels of stress hormones can restrain the immune response in the body. The individual can end up with different infections and health problems (Middlebrooks Audage, 2008). Socioeconomic status has shown that there are negative effects on the developing brain. This includes regions of the brain responsible for language, and stress hormones. Linguistic exposure at a young age has been linked with developmental differences in language regions in the left hemisphere of the brain (Noble, Houston, Kan, Sowell, 2012). The left temporal, temporo-occipital and the frontal cortices are responsible for the development of language skills (Noble et al., 2012). Depending on the SES of the parents that are raising children in those environments will effect what kinds of resources are available to develop those regions of the brain. Higher SES families use parent-child reading activities and have multiple books available to help the child learn language skills compared to families that live in lower SES. Two fMRI studies have shown SES differences with children in two different parts of the left hemisphere for language. These include the functions of the left fusifor m and the left inferior frontal gyrus (Noble et al., 2012). Children from lower SES tend to show a difference in how they experience stressful events reflected in hormonal markers of stress (Noble et al., 2012). Research on stress in animals and humans has shown negative effects on the hippocampus, amygdale, and the anterior cingulated cortex in the medial prefrontal cortex (Noble et al., 2012, p. 518). These areas of the brain are critical for developing memory, socio-emotional processing, and cognitive control/self-regulation. An fMRI study showed that children in lower SES will more likely have a smaller hippocampus (Noble et al., 2012). The background information provided in the paper has shown that during pregnancy, a fetus can be affected by the socioeconomic stress the mother is dealing with. With this research, it has shown that the stress the parents deal with in their daily lives disrupts the development the child goes through mentally and physically. Socioeconomic status is usually defined by family education, occupation, and income level (Noble et al., 2012). The fetus is very sensitive to the stress the mother goes through which will affect child when they are born. The child will then have a greater reactivity to stressful situations (Thompson, 2014). This area of research is a problem since there is known information of how the stress does affect the child even before they are born. If the socioeconomic stress is affecting the child’s development, will this affect the child later in life? The purpose of this study is focus on socioeconomic stress and the effects it has on a child’s developing brain later in life. There is a lot of research on what happens to the brain of a developing child when there is a lot of stress being exposed to him/her. Research has shown that children that are sensitive to stress from environmental factors when they are born will have higher cortisol levels (stress hormone). What has gaps in the research is if the high levels of cortisol (stress hormone) in a young child will determine mental health problems later in the individual’s life. The only research on this area is very general and does not specifically explain mental health problems that can occur. The only specific research in this area mentions how children will have behavior and academic problems as they get older. The purpose of the study will include children at the ages of 5-10 to determine if they are experiencing mental health problems from the socioeconomic stress they experienced during pregnancy and at birth. Women in the second trimester will also need to be included to look back on the kind of stress they were experiencing that could affect their children in low SES. The mothers and the children at one month would also need to be looked at. The cortisol levels would be tested by a saliva sample from the children at the ages of 5-10. Starting with pregnancy and going to the ages of 5-10 will track maternal stress from infancy to childhood and the mental health problems that can occur from it. Essex, Klein, Cho, and Kalin (2002) also did a study on maternal stress and how it affects children later in life. This study was only one to observe mother’s during pregnancy and continue until the child was four and a half years old. The author’s results showed that elevated cortisol levels appear to predict dysregulated behavior and mental disorders (Essex et al., 2002). Other findings also included how â€Å"maternal stress may increase the vulnerability of the developing child’s HPA system to later stress exposure† (Essex et al., 2012, p. 780). Since little research has started with maternal stress, it is important that further research is done to show that there is an effect on children’s mental health later in life. There research only covered socioeconomic stress, maternal stress, and cortisol level. This leaves out other factors (e.g. genetics) that could cause children mental health problems later in life. The question that would need to b e addressed is what other factors could have an effect on children’s mental health later in life. References American Psychological Association (2014). Socioeconomic status. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/topics/socioeconomic-status/ Essex, M. J., Klein, M. H., Cho, E., Kalin, N. H. (2002). Maternal stress beginning in infancy may sensitize children to later stress exposure: Effects on cortisol and behavior. Biological Psychiatry, 52(8), 776-784. doi:10.1016/S0006-3223(02)01553-6 Hackman, D. A., Farah, M. J. (2009). Socioeconomic status and the developing brain. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 13(2), 65-73. doi:10.1016/j.tics.2008.11.003 Lupien, S. J., King, S., Meaney, M. J., McEwen, B. S. (2000). Child’s stress hormone levels correlate with mother’s socioeconomic status and depressive state. Biological Psychiatry,48(10), 976-980. doi:10.1016/S0006-3223(00)00965-3 Middlebrooks, J.S., Audage, N.C. (2008). The effects of childhood stress on health across the lifespan. Atlanta (GA): Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Noble, K. G., Houston, S. M., Kan, E., Sowell, E. R. (2012). Neural correlates of socioeconomic status in the developing human brain. Developmental Science, 15(4), 516- 527. doi:10.1111/j.1467-7687.2012.01147.x Thompson, R. A. (2014). Stress and child development. The Future of Children, 24(1), Retrieved from http://ezproxy.snhu.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/1539237845?acco untid=3783

Self Interest in Hamlet by Shakespeare :: essays research papers

Hamlet is a play about inherent self-interests. Shakespeare composes the play with dominant ideals instilled within the reader, primarily those pertaining to revenge and tragedy, albeit those ideals are derived from each character's different self-interest, whether applied consciously or not. Shakespeare utilizes various soliloquies and certain dialogue throughout the play as a medium through which the reader comprehends a certain character's self-interest. Through these soliloquies and other dialogue, primarily those concerning Hamlet, Gertrude, and Claudius, the major themes of revenge and tragedy are derived from unconscious wants, thus making Hamlet a play about inherent self-interest. In murdering King Hamlet, Claudius achieves his goal to become King, and later seduces Hamlet's mother, Gertrude. King Claudius's intentions are revealed in Hamlet's designed play-within-a-play where "the King rises" and Claudius demands the show be halted with "Give me some light. Away!" (III.ii). His instantaneous flee proves his inherent wants when his inner thoughts of "dire property" are exposed (III.ii). Claudius realizes Hamlet has noticed his self-interest, thus planning his murderous scheme against Hamlet, which ultimately leads to the destruction of Hamlet's and Gertrude's once happy life. Gertrude's selfish behavior is indirectly selfish, in that Gertrude's priorities are derived from the men surrounding her, most dominantly, Claudius. Gertrude's allegiance through the play is constantly on the move: shifting constantly between Hamlet and Claudius, finally resorting to Claudius. Her selfishness is derived from Claudius in that she wants to protect what is hers through him. All that she owned became his as well when they married, therefore when the queen says "buy not by him" (IV.v) defending the king against Laertes's accusations, she is truly concerned about herself and the notion of her having to leave all she has if Laertes's accusation is seen as true. Hamlet's inherent self-interest is the underlying cause of the play. One of Hamlet's first soliloquies demonstrates Hamlet's passionate anger towards Gertrude due to her marrying Claudius. His anger shows clear as he insults all women in "Frailty, thy name is woman!" (I.ii), as well as "like Niobe, all tears" (I.ii). Hamlet's anger and frustration were always a part of his emotional status, allowing him to already have adverse feelings for Claudius, however, it was the ghost's commands that allowed Hamlet to propel these interests into the action he is to commit. Hamlet's previously felt emotion is the tinder the ghost uses in order to make Hamlet take action against the situation neither of them are willing to take action against.

Julius Caesar - Mark Antony :: essays research papers

Mark Antony The character of Mark Antony from Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar may be viewed as simply the confident and devoted supporter of Julius Caesar. On the contrary, Antony presents the qualities of a shrewd flatterer, a ruthless tyrant, as well as a loyal follower. Antony’s characteristics will change as the play progresses. He will begin using flattery to get what he wants, but he will eventually depend on his powerful relentlessness. Furthermore, Antony uses these various attributes to make him successful. Throughout the play, Antony uses flattering to achieve his goals. Following the assassination of Caesar, Antony quickly grasps that he must deal with Brutus, and he has the shrewdness to take advantage of Brutus’s gullibility. Antony has his servant say, "Brutus is noble, wise, valiant, and honest" (III i 126). From this point, it is clear that Antony intends to flatter Brutus and to work upon those personal qualities of Brutus which represent his fundamental weaknesses. Antony then comes to the Capitol where he further flatters the conspirators by shaking their hands and saying, "Friends am I with you all, and love you all..." (III i 220). This act symbolizes that Antony has made a new friendship with the conspirators, but in reality, he is plotting to seek revenge so he can take over Rome. Antony is also able to flatter the vast angry crowd in order to get his way. He is first able to get the crowd to feel sorry for him. This feeling is evident when the second plebeian says, "Poor soul, his eyes are red as fire with weeping" (III ii 116). Antony is then able to turn the people in the crowd against Brutus by teasing them with Caesar’s will. Antony says, "And being men, hearing the will of Caesar, it will inflame you, it will make you mad" (III ii 144-145). This blandishment provokes an immediate response of the crowd demanding that Antony read Caesar’s will. Although Antony uses flattery to get what he wants, he will also show respect for others with his devotion and loyalty. One of the most significant characteristics of Mark Antony is his strong, affectionate loyalty to Julius Caesar. Antony’s devotion to Caesar extends beyond a simple friendship, but politically as well. This fact is best recognized when he offers Caesar the crown of Rome three times in the beginning of the play. This act shows that Antony is dedicated to Caesar because he is quite willing to serve under the rule of an ambitious tyrant. Immediately following the assassination of Caesar, Antony acts as though he Julius Caesar - Mark Antony :: essays research papers Mark Antony The character of Mark Antony from Shakespeare’s play Julius Caesar may be viewed as simply the confident and devoted supporter of Julius Caesar. On the contrary, Antony presents the qualities of a shrewd flatterer, a ruthless tyrant, as well as a loyal follower. Antony’s characteristics will change as the play progresses. He will begin using flattery to get what he wants, but he will eventually depend on his powerful relentlessness. Furthermore, Antony uses these various attributes to make him successful. Throughout the play, Antony uses flattering to achieve his goals. Following the assassination of Caesar, Antony quickly grasps that he must deal with Brutus, and he has the shrewdness to take advantage of Brutus’s gullibility. Antony has his servant say, "Brutus is noble, wise, valiant, and honest" (III i 126). From this point, it is clear that Antony intends to flatter Brutus and to work upon those personal qualities of Brutus which represent his fundamental weaknesses. Antony then comes to the Capitol where he further flatters the conspirators by shaking their hands and saying, "Friends am I with you all, and love you all..." (III i 220). This act symbolizes that Antony has made a new friendship with the conspirators, but in reality, he is plotting to seek revenge so he can take over Rome. Antony is also able to flatter the vast angry crowd in order to get his way. He is first able to get the crowd to feel sorry for him. This feeling is evident when the second plebeian says, "Poor soul, his eyes are red as fire with weeping" (III ii 116). Antony is then able to turn the people in the crowd against Brutus by teasing them with Caesar’s will. Antony says, "And being men, hearing the will of Caesar, it will inflame you, it will make you mad" (III ii 144-145). This blandishment provokes an immediate response of the crowd demanding that Antony read Caesar’s will. Although Antony uses flattery to get what he wants, he will also show respect for others with his devotion and loyalty. One of the most significant characteristics of Mark Antony is his strong, affectionate loyalty to Julius Caesar. Antony’s devotion to Caesar extends beyond a simple friendship, but politically as well. This fact is best recognized when he offers Caesar the crown of Rome three times in the beginning of the play. This act shows that Antony is dedicated to Caesar because he is quite willing to serve under the rule of an ambitious tyrant. Immediately following the assassination of Caesar, Antony acts as though he

The Worst Vacation Of My Life Essay -- Summer Vacation Essays

I used to spend the last part of my summer vacation with my uncle and aunt. As a continuation of a long-ago-established tradition we decided going to York - a small, picturesque tourist town at the seaside, located in the southeastern part of Maine. On the 27th of August, early in the morning we went to my uncle’s car with the entire luggage, prepared to leave and spend a nice, relaxing vacation, far away from the problems of the city. Unfortunately the unpleasant surprises started from the first second of our vacation. To our great disbelief the two front tires of the car were missing, and as later became clear, stolen during the night so at this moment the car was lying on the pavement, like a big wounded animal. I remember that my aunt said that this ought to be an omen of bad luck, warning not to go against your destiny and luck. After several hours repairing the car we, eventually, headed on, ready, for what turns to be the worst vacation in my entire life. However, our lack of luck was not over yet. On our way to the seaside we had a flat tire and after one more wasted hour searching for auto-service and proper repairment we were ready again. Unfortunately, our complete misfortune was still with us. Near Veliko Tirnovo the headway was closed, due to repair works, so we had to turn back a few kilometers and find another, this time not so good way. By this time the day was quickly turning into night. From the car windows I was seeing only the lights coming from the distant villages and the workers hurrying to get home. I thought for a moment, observing those people, that humans are very fragile. They were searching shelter from the coming night in those tiny lights, as they can save them from the perilous dark. ... ...one hospital I understood that she was lucky, because she had no other damages except 3 broken ribs and many bruises all over her body. That accident changed my prospective of seeing things. Long after the vacation I was feeling guilty because I had the chance of helping my aunt, but I failed. I was thinking that if I had not accepted her idea I might have prevented this. For the first time of my life I felt responsible for something. I discovered the meaning of the word â€Å"vulnerable†, and that made me even sicker. I was self-blaming for my inactivity and my helplessness. As the years pass I think that those memories are already left far in the past, that, slowly, I am surpassing them. But the changes are still visible- I am more cautious, knowing that every single moment is bringing certain risk and if I fail to notice it I may easily â€Å"fall from the cliff†.

Gay male culture Essay

American culture has focused much more heavily on gay men than on other members of the LGBT community. This may be due to larger numbers of men than women and it may also be due to gay men having more resources available to them to justify, explore and perform their sexuality. The western culture as a whole still sees men and male experience as the central experience in culture, even if the men in question are transgressing established gender norms. Gay culture relies upon secret symbols and codes woven into an overall straight context. The association of gay men with opera, ballet, professional sports, , musical theater, the Golden Age of Hollywood, and interior design began with wealthy homosexual men using the straight themes of these media to send their own signals. In the Marilyn Monroe film Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, a musical [filmfreakcentral. net] number features a woman singing while muscled men in revealing costumes dance around her. The men’s costumes were designed by a man, the dance was choreographed by a man, and the dancers seem more interested in each other than in the female star, but her reassuring presence gets the sequence past the censors and fits it into an overall heterocentric theme. Today gay male culture is publicly acknowledged. Celebrities such as Liza Minnelli spent [topix. net] a significant amount of their social time with urban gay men, who were now popularly viewed as sophisticated and stylish by the jet set. Celebrities themselves were open about their relationships. Gay men can’t be identified by the way they look or what kind of music they like. There are gay men in every field and all sorts of fashions and music. Lesbian culture A lesbian is a woman who is romantically and sexually attracted only to other women. The history of lesbian culture over the last half-century has been linked to the evolution of feminism. Older stereotypes of lesbian women stressed a dichotomy between women who adhered to stereotypical male gender stereotypes (â€Å"butch†) and stereotypical female gender stereotypes (â€Å"femme†), and that typical lesbian couples consisted of butch/femme couples. Today, some lesbian women adhere to being either â€Å"butch† or â€Å"femme,† but these categories are much less rigid and there is no express expectation that a lesbian couple be butch/femme. There is a sub-culture within the lesbian community called Aristasia, where lesbians in the community adhere to exaggerated levels of femininity. In this culture, there are two genders, blonde and brunette, although they are unrelated to actual hair color. Brunettes are femme, yet blondes are even more so. Also notable are diesel dykes, extremely butch women who use male forms of dress and behavior, and who often work as truck drivers. Lipstick lesbian refers to feminine women who are attracted only to other feminine women. Bisexual culture In modern western culture Bisexual people are in the peculiar situation of receiving hatred or distrust [Lunde 1990] or even outright denial of their existence from some elements of both the straight and lesbian and gay populations. There is of course some element of general anti-LGBT feeling, but some people insist that bisexual people are unsure of their true feelings, that they are experimenting or going through a phase and that they eventually will or should decide or discover which (singular) sex they are sexually attracted to. One popular misconception is that [Lunde 1990] bisexuals find all humans sexually attractive. That is no truer than the idea that, say, all straight men would find all women sexually attractive. More people of all kinds are becoming aware that there are some people who find attractive sexual partners among both men and women – sometimes equally, sometimes favoring one sex in particular . Distinctions exist between sexual orientation (attraction, inclination, preference, or desire), gender identity (self-identification or self-concept) and sexual behavior (the sex of one’s actual sexual partners). For example, someone who may find people of either sex attractive might in practice have relationships only with people of one particular sex. Many bisexual people consider themselves to be part of the LGBT or Queer community [Barris, 2007]. In an effort to create both more visibility, and a symbol for the bisexual community to gather behind, Michael Page created the bisexual pride flag. The bisexual flag, which has a pink or red stripe at the top for homosexuality, a blue one on the bottom for heterosexuality and a purple one in the middle to represent bisexuality, as purple is from the combination of red and blue [Lunde 1990]. Transgender culture The study of transgender culture is complicated by the many and various ways in which cultures deal with gender [hrc. org]. For example, in many cultures, people who are attracted to people of the same sex — that is those who in contemporary Western culture would identify as gay, lesbian, or bisexual — are classed as a third gender, together with people who would in the West be classified as transgender or transsexual. Also in the contemporary West, there are usually [hrc.org] several different groups of transgender and transsexual people, some of which are extremely exclusive, like groups only for transsexual women who explicitly want sex reassignment surgery or male, heterosexual only cross-dressers. Transmen’s groups are often, but not always, more inclusive. Groups aiming at all transgender people, both transmen and transwomen, have in most cases appeared only in the last few years. Some transgender or transsexual women and men however do not classify as being part of any specific â€Å"trans† culture. However there is a distinction between transgender and transsexual people who make their past known to others . Some wish to live according to their gender identity and not reveal this past, stating that they should be able to live in their true gender role in a normal way, and be in control of whom they choose to tell their past to. Epistemology of the closet. The expression â€Å"being in the closet† is used to describe keeping secret one’s sexual behavior or orientation, most commonly homosexuality or bisexuality, but also including the gender identity of transgender and transsexual people [branconolilas.no. sapo. pt]. Being â€Å"in the closet† is more than being private, it is a â€Å"life-shaping pattern of concealment† where gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender individuals hide their sexuality/gender-identity in the most important areas of life, with family, friends, and at work. Individuals may marry or avoid certain jobs in order to avoid suspicion and exposure. Some will even claim to be heterosexual when asked directly. â€Å"It is the power of the closet to shape the core of an individual’s life that has made homosexuality into a significant personal, social, and political drama in twentieth-century America†. (Seidman 2003, p. 25). Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, in her book Epistemology of the closet, majorly focuses on male homosexuality. She is also an intellectual who is interested in gay and lesbian studies, queer studies, gender studies, and feminism. Sedgwick (Seidman 2003, p. 25) â€Å"proposes that many of the major thoughts and knowledge in twentieth-century Western culture as a whole are structured—indeed fractured—by the now endemic crisis of homo/heterosexual definition, indicatively male, dating from the end of the nineteenth century†. Incoherent ideas about homosexuality inform the way men are acculturated in the modern West, and (Seidman 2003, p. 25) since this is so, this incoherence has come to mark society generally. Incoherence characterizes the attitude toward homosexuality in the West and is beyond debate. examples, are gay men ridiculous figures of fun or are they sexual monsters who prey on young children? ; is the homosexual a limp-wrested effeminate unsuited for the armed forces, or the lothario of the showers who will gaze upon and/or rape his fellow servicemen? ; Is sexuality an orientation or is it a choice?; are homosexuals born or are they made? ; essentialism or social constructionism? ; nature/nurture?. These are all part of the effect of this crisis in modern sexual definition. Sedgwick believes that it is impossible to adjudicate between these (Seidman 2003, p. 25). In describing in general terms the mass of contradictions that adhere to homosexuality, she proposes that one consider it in terms of an opposition between a minoritizing view and a universalizing one. A minoritizing view takes the position that homosexuality is of primary importance to a relatively small group of actual homosexuals. A universalizing view takes the position that homosexuality is of importance to persons across a wide range of sexualities. Under the universalizing view, one can put nurture, social-construction, choice and a warrant for social â€Å"engineering† to eradicate homosexuality(Seidman 2003, p. 25). Sedgwick says that the current debate in queer theory, between â€Å"constructivist† and â€Å"essentialist† understandings of homosexuality is the most recent link(Seidman 2003, p. 25). She goes on to conclude that the continuation of this debate is itself the most important feature of recent understandings of sex. The aim of the book is to explore the incoherent dispensation under which we now live. Through an examination of a number of mostly late nineteenth century literary and philosophical works, including (Seidman 2003, p. 25). Melville’s BILLY BUDD, Wilde’s THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY, various works of Nietzsche, James’ THE BEAST IN THE JUNGLE, Thackeray’s LOVEL THE WIDOWER, and Proust’s REMEMBRANCE OF THINGS PAST, Sedgwick discovers a number of pairs of opposing terms (binarisms) which she then shows to be inconsistent with and dependent upon each other. I found it fascinating to follow her explication of the ways in which these terms were related. Among the pairings that she assembles and dissects for our consideration are secrecy/disclosure, private/public, masculine/feminine, majority/minority, innocence/initiation, natural/artificial, new/old, growth/decadence, urbane/provincial, health/illness, same/different, cognition/paranoia, art/kitsch, sincerity/sentimentality, and voluntarity/addiction (Seidman 2003, p.25). She asserts that a true understanding of the force of the opposition of these terms must be grounded in the realization and acceptance that the content of all of these terms was determined around the turn of the century amid and through anxious questioning over who and what was homosexual. These opposing terms, all of which operate today, therefore have a residue of the homo/hetero definitional crisis(Seidman 2003, p. 25). In addition, Sedgwick perhaps delivers the coup de grace(Seidman 2003, p. 25), if such was needed, to sleek, masculine, modernist objective criticism. She demonstrates that modernist criticism finds its genesis in the homo/hetero definitional crisis and both its flight into and prizing of abstraction is a direct reflection of its homophobia.

Deputy Manager Essay

The learner will: 1. Understand diversity, equality and inclusion in own area of responsibility Assessment criteria The learner can: 1.1 Explain models of practice that underpin equality, diversity and inclusion in own area of responsibility 1.2 Analyse the potential effects of barriers to equality and inclusion in own area of responsibility 1.3 Analyse the impact of legislation and policy initiatives on the promotion of equality, diversity and inclusion in own area of responsibility Learning outcome The learner will: 2. Be able to champion diversity, equality and inclusion Assessment criteria The learner can: 2.1 Promote equality, diversity and inclusion in policy and practice 2.2 Challenge discrimination and exclusion in policy and practice 2.3 Provide others with information about: the effects of discrimination the impact of inclusion the value of diversity City & Guilds Level 5 Diploma in Leadership for health and social care and children and young people’s services (England) (3978-51/52/53/54/55/56) 2.4Â  Support others to challenge discrimination and exclusion Learning outcome The learner will: 3. Understand how to develop systems and processes that promote diversity, equality and inclusion Assessment criteria The learner can: 3.1 Analyse how systems and processes can promote equality and inclusion or reinforce discrimination and exclusion 3.2 Evaluate the effectiveness of systems and processes in promoting equality, diversity and inclusion in own area of responsibility 3.3 Propose improvements to address gaps or shortfalls in systems and processes Learning outcome The learner will: 4. Be able to manage the risks presented when balancing individual rights and professional duty of care Assessment criteria The learner can: 4.1 Describe ethical dilemmas that may arise in own area of responsibility when balancing individual rights and duty of care 4.2 Explain the principle of informed choice 4.3 Explain how issues of individual capacity may affect informed choice 4.4 Propose a strategy to manage risks when balancing individual rights and duty of care in own area of responsibility City & Guilds Level 5 Diploma in Leadership for health and social care and children and young people’s services (England) (3978-51/52/53/54/55/56)