Sociology of Deviance

For my sociology of deviance class we were required to write at least two discussion board posts per week which were generally responses to the varying readings we had to do. I have done this before, posting here my discussion posts so you will have to deal with the fact that you don't have all the information or readings to go with these posts. Each titled post is marked whether it is my original post or a response to another student's post. Please take the time to read these for they are invaluable...maybe not entirely my words [depending on your perspective] but the topics and concept themselves are. Enjoy.

Taboo- Oedipus example (response)
That is exactly it. That is the point the author was making, if a group goes far enough to speak against an act and even creating norm and laws against it. As the author clearly states, "if there's a taboo against something, it's usually because a considerable number of people desire to do it." I, quite frankly, believe him to be correct and this applies even to the Oedipus example. If so much effort is to be made against an act, this obviously shows that so much effort has been done in the act. Another example from social behavior that I can use to support why I believe this is the idea that many people project their inner fears or insecurities on others. For example, a man may have homosexual desires and while attempting to repress them he will call out these same things in others but with contempt and even more.

Hic Locus Est Ubi Mors Gaudet Succurrere Vitae (original)
Latin for "This is where death rejoices to teach those who live." This is stated on a sign that hangs in the rooms where autopsies are performed.

Interestingly enough, death has not yet been mentioned at length in this discussion board which further enforces the idea of the taboo that death is. Let my intensive studies and fascination with death allow me to be the first. The article “Mortality Around the World” provides a good deal of interesting information as well as the fact that as much as we shy away from death while we revolve our lives around it. We use euphemisms such as “passed away,” “crossing over,” “gone to a better place,” and so on while actually avoiding the word death and dying. And yet we are so concerned with issues of murder, suicide, abortion, capital punishment, aging, etc. We treat death like a disease that has a cure. By that, we deny the very inevitable thing that accompanies life.

My question is, given the above quote, how do you interpret it? Granted this can be taken many ways in different contexts, but which way will you take it?

Personally, I enjoy the idea of death teaching the living in the wonderful world of science, anthropology, and forensics. The human body, or any body for the matter, is a map of its life and death. Anatomy will tell its story.

Elements of Deviant Identity (response)
Much like what Jami was saying, with a majority as the decision maker, it will always be biased. Whether the subject is deviancy or not, superior race, inferior religions, so on, it is always biased. I also agree, labels can be detrimental as well as they can create oppression to groups that are outed and an outrage from within these outed groups.

The Young & Sex (original)
The article "Where'd You Learn That?" has opened my eyes even more. I have been aware of the more intensive sexual knowledge of the generations after me but this article (written in 1998) only rubs it in more. The effects of television on this knowledge is incredible. For this post, however, I wanted to focus on one particular few sentences of the article. The fact that the Rhode Island Rape Center studied 1,700 sixth and ninth graders and found that 65% of boys and 57% of girls believe it is acceptable for a male to force a female to have sex if they've been dating for six months. I don't know about you, but this qualifies as rape to me. Unwanted sex. It's all the same and definitely not acceptable by any means. This actually outrages me and further enforces part of the point the article is making that although these kids have high knowledge of the acts sex, they are losing their knowledge on the complexities of sex and relationships. I'm curious as to what the rest of you feel immediately upon reading this particular part of the article.

The Perils of Polygamy (response)
As an anthropology major, I have learned about many different cultures all over the world and quite a bit about their marriage and family practices. So, I must say there is a different side to polygamy, especially than what the article describes. There are still some cultures that practice polygamy, including polyandry in which a woman marries multiple men. Generally there are practical reasons for polygamy, including the sex ratio (or marriage squeeze) in certain areas, rearing children, death of a family member that requires the widow or widower to marry the brother/sister of their deceased spouse, etc.

I once felt the same as you do, feeling against the institution of plural marriages, however after acquiring more information on the subject my opinion has changed somewhat. In some of these cultures polygamy works for their benefit and can actually work harmonious. I will not, deny that polygamy has its disadvantages and harms as the article does state. I do not tolerate or support abuse or any control such as that, but I merely wanted to inform you of the other aspects of polygamy.

Multi-faceted S & M (original)
It's interesting to see the time line of events of the pathological status of S & M and not as well as any insight and research about the subject. I have been fascinated by it for some time but the article "The Pleasure of the Pain" definitely opened me up to more information that I did not previously have.

What is especially intriguing is the non-distinctive lines between those that are pathological and those that are not when involved in S & M. This reveals the complexity of S & M and those that participate in it. Furthermore, those that are very knowledgeable and even trained in the area can recognize behaviors and attitudes of those that may have a pathological/psychiatric implication and generally try to avoid these types. These are things I have not particularly thought much about in regards to S & M, therefore my question to whoever reads this is what was your initial response to reading this article?

The Sex Industry- A Respectable Business? (response)
I do not think it will be impossible for the sex industry to be a respectable business. However, it will take quite some time. But like the article said, that the views held on the industry and acts involved have changed so rapidly in just the past two decades, I feel we are only still heading in that direction, rapidly. Yes, I agree there are still institutions, communities, and groups that will continue to oppose and 'tabooize' sex and the industry. I don't necessarily feel that legalization or increasing the widespread of different aspects of the industry will affect sex crimes and abuse a whole lot. Like others that have responded to this post, rape and other sexual crimes is very much about control and not necessarily sex. Furthermore, sexual crimes and negative behavior towards women stems from the cultural and social view of women, which indeed varies in different areas. There are cultures that have high regards for women and these cultures have relatively very rare cases of rape. In our culture, specifically, we view women through the male gaze and through that only, making them objects of men's desires. Therefore our culture, especially the media, reinforces and allows us to view women in this way which leads to treatment in accordance to that. So my point is, we need to change the way women are viewed, portrayed, and displayed before we can really affect the treatment and crimes being aimed towards them.

Scars and the Beautiful (original)
As fascinating as all the points made in the "Marks of Mystery" article, I want to focus on the point about scars of the beautiful. Specifically facial scars on really attractive people. The article discusses the response and opinions of people who see an attractive person with a major scar as very different than how they would perceive the attractive person had they not had the scar. I found this incredibly interesting and actually quite accurate. So my question is for you to imagine yourself in the situation in which you encountered a very attractive individual who had a very prominent scar on their face, what would you think about them? What would your first thought be, excluding the initial curiosity of what happened to them. And think about how your response would differ among the sex of the individual. What would your thought process be for a scarred woman and a scarred man?

[Article quote: “’If someone is pretty good-looking and they have a scar, I think the unconscious assumption would be that they got scarred in a way that wasn’t their fault, because they were terribly brave, I think there’s something about those with extreme levels of beauty that can make other people stereotype them as fairly shallow. Maybe a scar makes them a bit more human and desirable.’”]

Gay No More (response)
Judging has probably got to be one of the most immoral acts. The golden rule of every single religion is to treat others as you would like to be treated.

I love what you wrote..."Why are you straight?" People don't stop and think about what they are or what they are doing if it is part of the norm. Don't question themselves, don't question others. But when others aren’t a part of the norm they sure question the hell out of them.

Cure Me (original)
I also agree with Jennifer Woodward (Gay No More posts) in regards to the idea of curing a person is quite detrimental or even worse. It boggles my mind every day how significant and controversial the concept of sexual orientation is. Not even just homosexuality or bisexuality, but sexual orientation alone, people whom people are attracted too. I would like to add a twist or different concept to this, I often like to compare the idea of curing people of their "ailment" such as gayness to idea of "curing" the deaf. I personally am hard of hearing and have engaged in numerous conversations, interactions, research, paper assignments, and projects regarding this idea. A good majority of deaf people, myself included, actually don't view themselves as inferior or broken and in no need for a cure. This goes to the same for people with "deviant" sexual orientation, myself also included. In any case where the majority group feels the need to push their own agenda and make the announcement that there is something "wrong" with this minority group can do nothing but harm, especially to one's esteem. I want you to think about any case where you have been treated unjustly, inferior, or differently even the slightest merely due to something that someone knows (or thinks they know)about you that may not of been within your control (you don't have to share it if you wish not to). How did that make you feel? Would you say that experience is any different than treating non-heterosexuals as some sort of inferior race? And finally, do you think you need a cure?

While you may be making personal statements or confessions, I will be fair and do the same. I am hard of hearing, as I mentioned, as I wear hearing aids in both ears and mostly communicate by talking and listening similarly to hearing people. I read lips for the most part and have taken some sign language classes at ASU as well. The interesting part about my "situation" is that I am not hearing nor am I completely deaf. I live in this middle ground that is very hard to put into one group. The spectrum of hearing and deafness is very diverse just as the spectrum of sexual orientation is, for I am also bisexual, putting me in the middle once again. So I can get ill treatment from both sides. Not hearing enough. Not deaf enough. Not straight enough. Not gay enough. This goes the same for people of mixed races that have to deal with it every day just as well. It's a tough life when you aren't clearly defined on the spectrum for people's convenience...when we all know (or should know) that no one is strictly anything, everyone is diverse and varying in all different situations, time periods, etc. I say, embrace who you are and fuck the cure ; )