Southern Hospitality: Not For Newcomers

Southern Hospitality, but Not for Newcomers

“A newbie not yet brazen enough, I always carried a Bible, which seemed to work better than a hitchhiker’s thumb.  When kindhearted folks—men in immaculate suits and women in puffy, flowery dresses—stopped for me and asked what church I was going to, I would invariably say “Yours.” – Yunte Huang

The above quote is what I found to be standard as far as Southern hospitality when I moved to North Carolina, back in 2007.  Though I was only there for two years I was able to gain a deep respect the South had for not only hospitality and family, but also comprehend how foreign their way of life seems to one from upstate NY. 

Every time I come across someone speaking of the South, whether it be for cooking, culture or religion, I cannot help but recall one of my favorite movies, “Sweet Home Alabama.”  Within this movie you have a young girl who, originally from the South, moves to the North; only to find herself right back where she came from.  Her fancy “Yankee” attitude and way of dressing does not fit in with her friends and family from her youth.  She slowly realizes you can take the girl out of the South, but you can never take the South out of the girl. 

I reference this particular movie as a way to show the closeness and values of family and township, the kind I have only experienced in the two years in Tarboro, NC.  Though Huang in his article speaks of immigration and the short lived HB 56 law, acceptance within one’s community is still shown and appreciated not only by the writer, but also by the reader, despite the fear enacted through what was termed “The harshest immigration law in the United States.” 

Within that small community of Tarboro I was the stranger.  In point of fact, I was worse than an immigrant or simply a stranger one did not know.  I was a Yankee, raised all my life in the Hudson Valley of Central New York State.  I dared to seek and gain employment in a period of time when small town residents of Tarboro were finding the “Job Prospect” scarce.  How dare some Yankee white girl come into their town and get a job as a secretary, with her fancy way of talking and her pretty clothes, when so many went without and had to rely upon the Government for financial assistance.  Walking around that small, provincial town, of which there were more churches on a single street than there were residential homes, I felt as if I had landed upon a foreign planet. 

One of the first memories I have from those first two weeks recalls strolling down Main Street.  The weather was warm, almost muggy and the sun was shining overhead.  I came across a café advertising them-selves as a tea shop.  Lord be praised, I was saved!  Finally!  Civilization!    I walked inside hoping to get a Chai Latte.  There was not a single Starbucks to be found.  In fact, the nearest Starbucks was down in Raleigh, a good hour and 45 minutes away.  I was to be disappointed, unfortunately.  Though they advertised themselves as a “Tea Shop,” their specialty was good, ol’fashioned Southern Tea.  Now if you have ever drunk Southern Tea you will know, for us Yankees, you might as well take a pitcher of Ice Tea and pour an entire bag of sugar into it.  This Southern delicacy is simply that sweet, much too sweet for my Yankee senses. 

Huang describes the benevolent nature he encountered with his neighbors and the friendly, welcoming encouragement of those who would give him a ride to various church services on Sunday.  He states “Before Xenophobia began to cast a different spell on the South, the folks were courteous, warmhearted, and always ready to help out a stranger.”  How accurate his words are especially to a lonely, white girl from the north, who knew nothing of the way of life in the south.  He also emphasizes the racial differences to be found within the south: “Yellow, I found, was not a visible color in a society where everything had for more than two centuries been black or white.” 

This came home to me on a Sunday when I was invited to a BBQ by a elderly black couple, who happened to know my father.  There I was, Miss Yankee White Girl from NYS, whom no one would speak to; and yet everyone looked at as if she was the newest attraction at a side show carnival.  The food was odd, to say the least.  I was expecting Hamburgers, Hot Dogs, Chicken, Potato Salad, Macaroni Salad, and various doses of alcoholic beverages.  What I encountered was more of that demonic Southern Tea.  It stalked me.  There was also a pig roast, a goat roast, a cat fish boiling in a big pot over a fire (Catfish Stew), a whole lot of boiled greens, corn on the cob, even more greens; but not a single hamburger or potato salad anywhere. 

When I finally came back to NY in 2010, I felt as if I had returned to cultured civilization.  I mean, we at least have Starbucks!  Though I was not an immigrant from a foreign country, I might as well have been.  I was looked upon as stealing jobs from locals, and not one who would easily be or should be trusted.  Never know what us Yankees might try and steal next from the South. I came to appreciate over the years, the small nuances of southern society, though vastly different than our own, here in the North.  I now read, not only in Huang’s words, but also from other articles of terror and racial crimes sweeping the south. Though Alabama’s HB 56 law has for the most part been repealed as being unconstitutional, it has a shadow that reached far and wide through the south, gripping in Southernism in its fear of the unknown. 

An article, written by Benjy Sarlin for MSNBC, explains how HB 56 had an impact not only upon Alabama’s immigrants, but also within its legal citizens.  He focused within his article to show how this affected Alabama’s Hispanic communities.  Alabama’s view of immigration was best termed as “illegal is illegal.” There were no pretty, flowery terms to overlook one’s legal status.  If you were suspected of being an illegal, you were arrested.  It mattered not if you actually were a citizen or had working papers, allowing you to reside there.  Just the idea and fear that this law imbued poured forth changing a State’s voice. 

“There were a lot of false interpretations of the law – and then it would change or the courts would rule again,” Fetner said. “For a while it was memorandum city.”  - Benjy Sarlin

As Huang so eloquently ended his essay “I’m waxing nostalgic because I miss the time when the sweet Southern air was, at least for this immigrant, not poisoned by fear or malevolent phobia that haunts Dixie today.  As Charlie Chan might have asked “What in the name of Confucius happened to Southern hospitality?”

References:

Perl, Sondra, and Mimi Schwartz. "Southern Hospitality, but Not for Newcomers - Yunte Huang." Writing True: The Art and Craft of Creative Nonfiction. Second ed. Boston: Wadsworth, 2006. 390. Print.

Sarlin, Benjy. "How America’s Harshest Immigration Law Failed." MSNBC. 16 Dec. 2013. Web. 22 Dec. 2015.

The English Major: One Hot Topic

Within today’s modern society, Creative Writing is becoming a more valued tool for small business when looking for potential, future employees.  Corporations and other types of businesses will look to an English Major or one who has a Cultural Studies for knowledge not only in language and writing, but also proficiencies with social media networking. 
The following essay will discuss, not only the job market leaning towards professionals with the capable means to provide such services, but also explain why small businesses and other areas are looking towards English Majors to provide services in language, communication and media in order to expand their businesses for growth.  This will be shown through various articles provided and researched.

Words — so innocent and powerless as they are, as standing in a dictionary, how potent for good and evil they become in the hands of one who knows how to combine them. ~Nathaniel Hawthorne

When I informed my family of my intention to return to school the reaction I received was varied and mixed with doubt, curiosity and a lot of puckered brows.  Truly I have always been a person who seeks to make those around me happy; therefore, when I was advised that an English and Creative Writing degree was impractical in today’s Job Market, I originally elected to heed my family’s advice. 

My mother-in-law, a much wiser woman than I, assumed I would be much better off gaining a degree within Library Science, as that had a reputation with solid professional earning prospects than one as a writer hoping to get published.   It was only after I began to do some research of my own did I begin to discover that perhaps my mother-in-law’s information was simply based upon a personal experience having developed and grown in a different environment age where being a writer, a journalist and a woman during a period of time when equal liberties for both genders was only just coming to the forefront of society. 

In today’s modern society and job market we existent in a diverse realm than the one found thriving within the 1960’s.  Within the 60’s the ideals of freedom of speech, gender equality and sexual identity were changing how the world viewed communication.  Mass media was finding outlets via magazines, television, radio and music in order to express its varied transformative messages as it reached an on the rise international audience; especially with the broadcast of the Kennedy vs Nixon Presidential debate on Sept. 26^th, 1960 from the CBS Studios in Chicago, IL.

These would be the first examples of how English majors would come to find attention beyond modest, professional prospects in education.  The English major of the 60’s helped to alter how the world viewed Vietnam, opened our senses to new forms of literature, brought about new genres of television shows, and opened our senses and minds to the concept of music holding a message of change.  

In our modern world these changes would expand even further with the onset of the Internet.  In today’s society consumers and businesses alike are finding it to be fruitful to make use of social media applications as a practice of communicating with the world.  In a world where the common thought often is found to align with “one must have a degree in one of the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) programs in order to prosper in today’s society if one wishes to succeed,” how would an English and Liberal Arts Major equate to such standards? 

Interestingly enough, more businesses, both small and larger corporations, are finding themselves considering potential employee prospects that happen to have an English background as someone with viable skills. Logitech CEO, Bracken Darrell, himself, graduated with an English degree from a college in Arkansas.  He views liberal arts and the skills acquired from those who graduate with such degrees as “soft skills.”

What exactly are these “soft skills?”  According to an article published on the Open Forum website by Bruna Martinuzzi these skills consisted of the following:

1.      Communication - In a recent Job Outlook Survey, employers rated the "ability to verbally communicate with persons inside and outside the organization” as the most important candidate skill. Communication is at the heart of any business. Everything that happens in an organization requires communication.

2.      Writing - A Metlife survey found that 97 percent of business executives rate writing skills as very important. English majors—perhaps more than any other major—are trained to write well. A major part of what business owners do to gain clients has to do with writing, whether it's writing an advertisement or a marketing brochure, a good sales letter or an email sales campaign. Businesses also need people who can create powerful content for the company blog, develop a strong social media presence and craft a compelling description of products and services for the company website.

3.      Research - All business owners need to stay current on changes and developments in their field. They also need to have absolute accuracy in any communications with clients. Having someone on staff who excels in conducting research is a very viable asset. English majors are drilled in conducting in-depth research.

4.      Critical Thinking - The ability to analyze an issue and question assumptions applies to all kinds of information in a business setting. English majors are taught to deconstruct and analyze a problem, and package their conclusion so others can understand their line of thought.

5.      Empathy - Businesses are recognizing the importance of empathy in the workplace. In The 'Soft Skill' that pays $100,000+, author George Anders discovered over 1,000 listings for highly paid jobs where employers list empathy as a necessary qualification. And these were not just jobs in traditionally compassionate sectors, such as health care and nonprofits; they included companies in technology, finance, consulting and aerospace, to name a few. Think Microsoft, Dell, Raytheon, Symantec, Pfizer and McKinsey.  (Open Forum, Bruna Martinuzzi 2013)

In his own words he expresses how valuable he finds being able to communicate with not only his employees, but also with the consumer and technology world.  He attributes these skills to his background as an English major in college.  "The older I get, the more I realize the power of words and the power of words in making you think ... the best CEOs and leaders are extremely good writers and have this ability to articulate and verbalize what they're thinking," he says.” The market for liberal arts and English has declined so rapidly through the years as the STEM programs have boomed through the last decade, that he views the concept of liberal arts major as “an endangered species.  If you find one, you need to run over and catch them in a conversation." – (Business Insider, 2013)

English degrees, and those who have graduated with such, offer a unique set of skills not to be found in the other areas, such as STEM.  Within an English program, a student and potential employee within the job market, learns how to critically analysis situations through various readings, and has the ability to communicate through the art of storytelling and word development in a way that draws its target audience to desire more. 

Whether that “more” happens to be technological or consumer base, the English major understands how to adapt and manipulate the language arts, bringing to the table a depth of knowledge and objectivity not provided by another.  As Santosh Jayaram, former executive for both Twitter and Google, explained in an interview with The Wall Street Journal "Almost anything you can imagine you can now build, so the battleground in business has shifted from engineering, which everybody can do, to storytelling, for which many fewer people have real talent." (Business Insider, 2014)

Steve Strauss stated in his article “Why I Hire English Majors” in the June, 2013 edition of the Small Business section of the Huffington Post why he would prefer to hire English majors over others… “For my money (literally and figuratively), for my needs, and I suggest the needs of most small businesses, English majors are easily the top choice when it comes to getting the type of teammate who can make us all better, as they say in basketball.” As he explains in the most basic of terms English majors have not only the communication skills, (both verbal and written) but they have the ability to understand how to think both critically outside the box and to be able to see the world in a more abstract environment than the average soul. 

He explains this ability to critically analyze their world and the boldness needed to think outside the box with this statement: “I think what I appreciate most about English majors is that they are taught to think critically, and that is exactly what I want in my business. Busy with a start-up, a new book to finish, speeches, and running my regular business to boot, what I need is to be able to give someone an assignment and have them do it. Period.

That is exactly what I get from the English majors. They know how to think, to think for themselves, and how to analyze a problem. Business majors are fine, but they are preoccupied with theory, proving themselves, and doing it "right." But the English majors are used to getting a tough assignment, figuring it out, and getting it done, (usually) on time.

Not only do these folks have to be bold simply to make such a choice of majors at a time when everyone is advising them to think about making themselves as practical as possible in this shrinking, global job market, but the nature of their gig is that they have to be bold. Reading Chaucer, making sense of it, writing a term paper on it, and then being able to defend it, takes far more bravery than, say, analyzing the fall of the Soviet Union.”

In a world where everyone and anyone can create a blog, or a social media page it is almost mandatory for a business to have on their staff someone who has the knowledge and ability to think beyond market strategies and market value.  Companies both small and large need to be able to set standards by being brave enough to be reachable to the common consumer with language that is both friendly and understandable.  This is where the English major thrives. 

No longer are the jobs simply contained to ones where the English and literature major can expect to go into teaching or perhaps journalism.  Now they can seek further reaches beyond average boundaries.  Where will the next 5, 10, or even fifteen years bring for those who branch out and are bold enough to seek a degree in English and Writing?  One can only look to the future and write our own path… For if those in the 60’s had not been bold enough to step forward and speak for civil liberties and gender equalities where would we be today? 

A writer and nothing else: a man alone in a room with the English language, trying to get human feelings right. ~John K. Hutchens, New York Herald Tribune, 1961 September 10th

References:

1.      "This Week in Small Business: Hire an English Major." You're the Boss: The Art of Running a Small Business. The New York Times, 15 July 2013. Web. 29 Oct. 2015.

2.      Grasgreen, Allie. "Liberal Arts Grads Win Long Term." Inside Higher Ed. Inside Higher Ed, 22 Jan. 2014. Web. 29 Oct. 2015.

3.      Bruni, Frank. "College’s Priceless Value - Higher Education, Liberal Arts and Shakespeare." The New York Times. The New York Times, 10 Feb. 2015. Web. 26 Oct. 2015.

4.      Strauss, Steve. "Why I Hire English Majors." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com. Web. 26 Oct. 2015.

5.      Giang, Vivian. "LOGITECH CEO: 'I Love Hiring English Majors'" Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 20 June 2013. Web. 25 Dec. 2015.

6.      Asay, Matt. "Why Every Tech Company Needs An English Major." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 26 Feb. 2014. Web. 25 Dec. 2015.

7.      "Why English Majors Are the Hot New Hires." OPEN Forum. 11 July 2013. Web. 25 Dec. 2015.

Women's Wit

What is it about Women’s Wit that separates it so completely from that of men’s, leaving an almost gulf of communication lost not only in the past, but also in the present?  As I was reading the assignment I found myself considering not just the topics being discussed but how those topics are still prevalent within this present time, perhaps even more so.  Perhaps we do not have sewing circles or meeting houses as emphasized within Frances Whitcher’s carefully crafted satirical sketches; and yet we can turn back the hour glass in order to understand and find common ground with Fanny Fern as she pours irony through her descriptive monologue and letters, giving life to everyday chores and relationships with partners and children.

As I sat and read Whitcher’s “Aunt Maguire Continues Her Account of the Sewing Society,” I could not help but reminded of two things, one of the present and one of the past.  The first that came to mind was how Hillary Clinton, herself, has used irony and humor throughout her campaign to emphasize various issues and to help alleviate stress.  She is not the only woman in the present that has been known to use similar such tactics as was found in the 19^th to help bring attention to women plight.  In today’s society the more prevalent names are Ellen DeGeneres, Tina Fey, Barbara Walters, The ladies of The View, The Talk, and The Real, a more modern day version of the 19^th century sewing circle as depicted by Whitcher in her short story.

Whitcher reminded me also of another character from the same time period with her description of Miss Samson Savage.  I was so caught up in this tale and shaking my head, laughing at her descriptions as I recalled there was a movie of a very similar lady from 1964 “The Unsinkable Molly Brown,” based upon Margaret Brown, who left her mountain home, and was uneducated but sought a wealthy husband and survived the sinking of the Titanic.  Whitcher describes Miss Savage in such a way I felt she was describing Molly “She was always a coarse, boisterous, high-tempered critter, and when her husband grow’d rich, she grow’d pompous and overbearin’.  She made up her mind she’d rule th roast, no matter what it cost—she’d be the first in Scrabble Hill.  She know’d she wa’n’t a lady by natur nor by eddication, but she thought mabby other folks would be fools enough to think she was if she made a great parade.  So she begun by dressin’ more, and givin bigger parties than any body else.” (Witcher 77)

It is lessons for today’s women to look back and realize the past may have lacked the technological advances we are gifted with in modern society, but the humor is still there… When Fanny Fern moralized “It isn’t every man who has a call to be a husband,” (Fern 48) how was she to know this was a lesson that would mark the sheaves of time itself for truer words ever to be written?  Ladies take heart and learn, never let the past fade far away…

Cite:

Walker, Nancy A., and Zita Dresner. Redressing the Balance: American Women's Literary Humor from Colonial times to the 1980s. Jackson: U of Mississippi, 1988. Print.

Humanism

The study of the humanities, or “studia humanitatis” in the classical Latin format, helped to bring about the intellectual movement during the late 14^th century.  Unlike other movements during the Renaissance and Reformation periods, humanism did not conform to systematic logic and thought process.  Instead this movement, through newly reformatted education and scholarship endeavors, promoted growth of the mind and intellect through various liberal pursuits.  As noted by Wilcox “humanist eventually found themselves involved in politics, literature, law and even philosophy and theology.” (Wilcox, Ch. 5, pg. 75) While looking into the historical impact and how it might be interpreted Wilcox presents us with three notable interpretations by distinguished men and students of the Renaissance humanism: Paul Oskar Kristeller, Eugenio Garin, and Hans Baron.

Paul Kristeller, (Born May 22, 1905 – Died June 7, 1999) a renowned historian and student of the Renaissance, was also a philosopher who sought to show how humanism and philosophy developed as two separate intellectual movements.  Through his studies and research, Kristeller published several noteworthy works:

The Philosophy of M. Ficino. New York, 1943.
The Classics and Renaissance Thought. Cambridge (Mass.), 1955.
Studies in Renaissance Thought and Letters. Rome, 1956.
Renaissance Thought, vols. 1–2. New York, 1961–65. (The Great Soviet Encyclopedia)

As Kristeller developed his platforms, he focused on the teachings and approaches to the two different movements, using technical approaches to analyze and interpret both.  He was able to define humanism and philosophy as individuals and yet not nearly so separate; unfortunately, his approach disallowed for the concept of emotional and personal equation towards humanism, leaving many seeking further definitions.

Eugenio Garin, (Born May 9^th, 1909 – Died Dec. 29^th, 2004) approached the concept of humanism through a different path, though also being a scholar, philosopher and student of the Renaissance.  Where Kristeller’s approach was more technically pragmatic, Garin had a more grounded, humane approach based upon two assumptions: “First, the ancients should be studied as men living in a certain historical time; second human knowledge proceeds less by abstract speculation than by communication of personal perspectives and points of view. “ (Wilcox, pg. 77)

Our last of the three scholars, Hans Baron (Born June 22, 1900 – Died Nov. 26, 1988) believed a crucial turn of events took place in Florence around 1400 that lead to a dramatic shift in intellectual and scholarly pursuits during this period.  It is due to this shift in education and scholarship the humanist movement came to be, and can be seen not only in the historical value of intellectually stimulating documents but also the arts.  By approach the movement from such a varied path than the other two, Baron was able to “identify so clearly the developing patterns of thought and values in this small period… This generation of humanists pursued classical studies with a new vigor and intensity; they were aware of the unique position of Florence in fostering the revival and were firmly convinced of the superiority of the active life.” (Wilcox, pg. 79.)

In having studied and taken the time to consider each of these men’s approaches, along with the question of which one I favor, I came to the conclusion that I favor none and all.  My reasoning for this is the concept that each historian / philosopher is noteworthy within his own, but at the same time they each lack something vital in order to be given an entire grounding in humanism.  Can one truly understand humanism simply by using nothing but practical, technical approaches?  Is it appropriate to look to the one who sees patterns and follows the intricate web of thoughts of the men of this time; or does one approach it more from an emotional, naturalistic point of view.  In the end I think it is more practical and fulfilling to try an equally balanced approached, taking something from all. 

References:

"Paul Oskar Kristeller." The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition. 1970-1979. The Gale Group, Inc. 20 Feb. 2016 http://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Paul+Oskar+Kristeller

Wilcox, Donald J. In Search of God & Self: Renaissance and Reformation Thought. Second ed. Long Grove: Waveland, 1987. Print.

Theory

During the 19^th and 20^th centuries maleness theories and studies on female criminality were to become a topic of research conducted by well-known and established psychologists, including Cesare Lombroso, William Ferrero, W.I. Thomas, Sigmund Freud, and Otto Pollak.  Each of these men would establish their studies in the “grounded belief that biological determinisms accounts for female criminality: Whereas men are rational, women are driven by their biological constitutions.” (Belknap, pg. 26)

These men agreed that this classical way of thinking could be accounted for by four distinguishable characteristics:

1.      individual characteristics, not those of society, are responsible for criminal behavior

2.      Identifiable biological nature inherit to all women

3.      Offending women are “Masculine” which makes them non-feminine and more likely to break the law.

4.      Male and female criminality differs between sex, not gender.

Cesare Lombroso was a physician, psychiatrist, and criminal anthropologist in 19^th century Italy.  He spent his time studying the criminal minds and behaviors of both the convicted male and female; being referred to as the “Father” of criminology.  He delves first into the idea of maleness theory with his book, The Criminal Man, published in 1876, (originally in Italian and later translated into English by 1911, by his daughter.) with the idea of racial hierarchy, showing extreme separation of race, social class and intelligence between those with Black skin and those who were of White European descent.  Lombrosos was able to show that by “focusing exclusively on the physical and psychological makeup of the individual in determining criminal behavior, he dismissed the effects of socialization or social-structural constraints as important determinants of criminal behavior or the labeling of behavior as criminal.” (Belknap, pg. 27)

Lombroso delves once more into his theories with the female this time as his subject of one his books in 1893’s “The Female Offender.”  (This translated two years later into English print in 1895.)  Within this book we first encounter the theory of Atavism.  Atavism, as explained by Lombroso, is “a concept that views some deviant behavior as a “throwback” to an earlier evolutionary stage in human development. “ Belknap, pg. 27) 

With this train of thought and Lombroso’s theory in practice, criminals and deviants were less evolved along the evolutionary chain than your average human.    With today’s science we know men like Lombroso and his son-in-law, William Ferraro theories about women being less evolved than men, and yet in their time period their theories were not only accepted they were considered cutting edge research.  They used prostitutes to show women were not having less degeneration then men and therefore less evolution then men. 

W.I. Thomas used Lombroso’s work as a stepping stone for his own, though he personally was more of a liberal when it came to his own personal tone and point of view.  When it came to his own theories he chose to define criminology as “ a socially induced pathology, rather than a biological abnormality.” 
            Again he tended to agree with Lombroso when it came to the male vs female aspects of what made one a criminal: sex vs gender rather than society and the restrictions placed upon one by that time period you lived within.  “Thomas’s analyses of class and sexuality are overly simplistic concerning the links between gender, sexuality, class, and crime.  According to Thomas, middle-class women are invested in protecting their chastity and thus commit very few crimes; poor women, on the other hand, long for crime in the manner of a new experience.  In fact, he believed that delinquent girls manipulate males into sex as a means of achieving their own goals.  Thus, Thomas favors psychological over economic motivations to explain female criminality.  Given that Thomas was writing in an era of mass illness and starvation, the choice to ignore economic deprivation as a potential cause of female crime is rather remarkable.” (Belknap, pg. 29)

Our greatest psychiatrist on this list, and probably most well-known out of the bunch would be Sigmund Freud.  His theories are many and center on the ideas that women are inferior to men, though his most famous would be his infamous “penis envy” approach to explaining female behavior.  Within this concept a perfectly healthy women would experience a heterosexual response, only she is the receptor in this… and in doing so she is receiving pain and the male is aggressive and giving pain…

Thus in the end the female will only be truly satisfied if she can have a penis of her own to inflict the same kind of pain.  Freud’s theories are often found filled with classism, racism, and heterosexism, not to mention they help promote the deviant role of a woman and encourage perversion.  One thing Freud does not encourage is equality, whether amongst gender or sex.

Otto Pollak uses his study, The Criminality of Women, in order to repeat Thomas, Lombroso, and Ferraro’s ideas with his own about the biological and physiological make-up of the female criminal.  He also makes a point of emphasizing that the female criminal has managed to stay masked within the justice system due to “chivalrous or lenient treatment of women in the crime-processing system.  But Pollack’s main point is that women are better at hiding their crimes.  He emphasizes the “deceitful” nature of women, using as supporting evidence females’ ability to hide the fact that they are menstruating or having orgasms and their inactive role during sexual intercourse.” (Belknap, pg. 30) Unlike his previous researches, who based their studies on a great deal of facts gathered over time, Pollak’s were based upon a lot of assumptions in which he failed to take into account the imbalance between men and women, instead jumping in head first  and pushing forward with his own opinions.

Gisela Konopka, a more modern theorist from the 1960’s and 70’s, who wrote The Adolescent Girl in Conflict chose to base her theory upon the idea that girls become criminals out of loneliness and sexuality, leading to eventual other emotional problems.  Vedder and Sommerville use maladjustment to explain delinquency in their book The Delinquent Girl, but then Cowie, Cowie and Slater counter it with Delinquency in girls by tstating that to use masculinity, femininity, and chromosomes are what are needed to help explain criminality.  “In this perspective, the female offender is different physiologically and psychologically from the ‘normal’ girl,  in that she is too masculine; she is rebelling against her femininity.” (Belknap, pg 31)

Though these were only some of the theories to be attributed to criminality, many others can be attested to this to including Robert Merton’s Strain Theory, Cloward and Ohlin Opportunity Theory, or Edwin Sutherland’s Differential Association Theory, or otherwise known as DAT.    Though at the time each of these were well established and researched theories in criminality they would not hold up in today’s modern society or with today laws.  Today’s society is not a society based upon sex or a society in which women find themselves less evolved, even if they are convicted.

The Great Schism

The Great Schism

The year was 1378, and Pope Paul Gregory XI was in the process of returning the church’s home back to Rome.  It had spent the last 73 years as a “guest” in Avignon since 1305 when the king of France had applied influence to have the papacy transplanted to Southern France, thereby placing the church within the French king’s control.  The French king saw opportunity to use the Pope in his struggle for power against the English in his own war.  This 73 year time period became known as the Babylonian Captivity, resulting in the pope losing his tax revenue, thereby charging fees and dues for services provided.  The parishioners viewed him as “greedy and materialistic.” (mini-lecture, Paul Trela, 2013)

Though Gregory was unable to see the fruit of his labor and the end result of his efforts, he was successful in moving the church back to Rome in 1378, though this was the beginning of “The Great Schism” as it would come to be called.  Soon after the move back to Rome, Pope Gregory XI passed away.  At that time the Sacred School of Cardinals chose to elect an Italian or Roman pope, looking to towards the Archbishop of Bari to fulfill this role, in hopes that he would be what the populace was demanding.  Unfortunately, upon election the archbishop of Bari, or as he became to be more properly known Urban VI was overly hostile to those around him and was not as easily controllable as they had previously believed.  (Great Western Schism, Encyclopedia Britannica)

An election  was enacted in order to remove Urban VI and vote for a new pope, unfortunately Urban was not willing to step aside for a new pope and now the church found themselves with two popes, though technically Urban was the legitimate elected head.  The new pope Robert of Geneva, now known as Clement VII, was one of the Cardinals Urban has previously had issues with.  Clement and his new papacy would remove themselves to Avignon, making this their home base of power for their line.  (Encyclopedia Britannica, September 2014)

In 2014, the Conciliar Movement, “a theory that a general council of the church has a greater authority than the pope and may if necessary, depose him.” (Enc. Brit. Sept. 2014) This was not the first time such a movement had been put into practice as such an occurrences had taken place in the 12^th- and 13^th- centuries amongst the canonists, during the period of time when they attempted to set juridical limitations on the papacy.   With the 15^th- century and the Great Schism we have the Council of Constance in Sweden (1414-18)  in order to end the 73 year turbulence and disruption within the church. 

This finally came to an end with the election of Cardinal subdeacon Oddone to the esteemed highest seat within the church.  He would become known as Martin V, and upon his election the others would relinquish their claims to the papacy.  He refused the French their offer of Avignon, choosing instead to make Rome and Italy his home.  He also worked to mediate the Hundred Year War, attempting to bring peace between the English and the French.  He also worked to once more bring back to the Papal authority all matters ecclesiastics, and help to subvert the crown to that of the church.  Once more the church was back in power in the reign of Martin V, paving the way for the oncoming reformation and for men like Luther and Calvin.

References:

1.      Sectarianism and schism in Europe. [electronic resource(video)] : Christianity in the 15^th and 16^th centuries. (2007). New York, N.Y.: Films Media Group, [2007], c1999.

2.      Conciliarism. (2014). Encyclopoedia Britannica,

3.      Western Schism. (2014). Encyclopoedia Britannica,

4.      Martin V. (2014). Encyclopoedia Britannica,

5.      Oakley, F. (1990). The great papal schism. Christian History, 9(4), 23.

6.      Trela, P. (2013, July 17). Church in Crisis. Retrieved February 7, 2016, from https://moodle.esc.edu/mod/page/view.php?id=1218424

Female Offender

Have your attitudes and perceptions about female crime changed since reading statistics comparing gender differences in the frequency and nature of criminal behavior?  What myths and/or stereotypes about girls and women and crime did you hold prior to the readings and how have the readings thus far affected your understanding of the realities of female crime trends?  What role does the media play in shaping myths about the "new" female offender?  Please reflect on the readings and use/incorporate the assigned readings to inform your response to this discussion question. 

Please post a response of approximately 350-400 words, and remember to respond to the posts of three others. Others need to see and have an opportunity to respond to what you say.  You will not receive credit if you post only in the last few days of the discussion period.

To be perfectly honest, I don’t believe my attitudes or perceptions concerning the gender differences within criminal behavior has changed dramatically.  If I had to point to one particular thing that showed difference was the concern I felt over the statistics provided and a curiosity in how many of these girls/women are not just criminals but are victims of the CLS and society around them. 

Belknap states “The majority of crimes are male gender-related but rape, homicide, and other violent crimes are especially so.  The most common example of a female-gender-related crime is sex work (mostly measured as prostitution).”(Belknap, pg. 111) Society then condemns the female, but the outcome of finding her guilty fluctuates, depending upon multiple factors such as race, wealth, SMS, with race being at the forefront…

A perfect example of this took place with the story of Cyntoia.  The young 16 year old committed murder, what has been viewed as a male gender-related crime, but before this act transpired, she was already a victim of an older male who brought her into prostitution and drugs.  (Cyntoia, 2004) Unfortunately for Cyntoia, she was both victim and criminal, with the crime overshadowing the victim.  Would Chivalry had taken place and a different sentence for a final judgement if Cyntoia had been “white?”  “Regarding race and gender, historical analyses of the United States indicate White female offenders were largely viewed as amendable to rehabilitation, whereas stereotypes of African American female offenders as “aggressive” and “virile” were used to justify their harsher punishments.” (Belknap, pg. 176)

I believe the strongest myth lies upon the idea of the “new” female offender.  How much is it that they are “new” or perhaps it is that the mask has been shed and the court system is being less chivalrous towards the female gender?  The media over the years has helped with this hype, from a 1993 Newsweek article entitled “Girls Will Be Girls” of which it is “noted some girls now carry guns.   Others hide razor blades in their mouths.” (Chesney-Linde, pg. 34) to article published in 2010 in the Las Vegas Review Journal stating “ten members of an all-female gang were arrested on robbery and burglary charges.” (Chesney-Linde, pg. 35)

One of the sites that can help with information and news articles concerning the gang activity in the United States is the National Gang Related Website: https://www.nationalgangcenter.gov/Gang-Related-News.  This site helps to keep current news and media articles up to date as far as gang related issues within the United States.

Refernces:

Birman, D. (2015, September 12). Cyntoia's Story (Documentary). Retrieved February 11, 2016, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Ek6sIcDb1Q

Chesney-Lind, M., & Pasko, L. (2003). The female offender: Girls, women, and crime (Third ed.). London: SAGE. Chapter 3, pg. 34 – 35

Belknap, J. (1996). The invisible woman: Gender, crime, and justice (Four ed.). Belmont: Wadsworth Pub. Chapter 4 pg. 111, Chapter 5 pg. 176

Gang-Related News Articles. (n.d.). Retrieved February 15, 2016, from https://www.nationalgangcenter.gov/Gang-Related-News