Ok i have edited now please can any one help me improve my grades many thanks.
Introduction
For the purpose of this assignment, I will analyse three of my own personal
experiences relating to privilege, power and difference. I will discuss the P.C.S
levels of power drawn on by Foucault's interpretation of power.
Together with an understanding of how my views have changed over the course
of this module by reading examples from Peggy McIntosh's white privilege.
As a white working, class female. I had never made any relation to power or
oppression, until I married a man from a Muslim religion and different ethnicity.
However when I decided to adopt a new religion Islam, together with wearing a
hijab. This was when my first experience of being
oppressed and feelings of powerless was noticed. One day while I was attending
an antenatal clinic, I registered my arrival and was treated with an abrupt manner
and spoken to in broken English. With the assumptions being made I was no
longer an English white female at this stage, I felt my identity was lost. When I
sat down awaiting my turn I could clearly see many other patients had
manoeuvred far away from me, with implying that I was invading their personal
perceived space which seemed to belong to their culture of whiteness.
I believe the language and discourse used towards me was greatly
influenced by the 911 tragedy, that had just recently occurred. Many peoples
language and discourse at this time was influenced through ideas and
knowledge that would have been framed by meanings and actions of recent
Muslims.
This knowledge however does not reflect the true reality and followers
of Islam. This may be reflected on by the ideology currently in force
with a system of ideas and beliefs concerning the cultural views of Muslims and
Islam.
After reading about postmodernism realising, it has helped to show us that there
is no one universal reality but that there are many realities and that language is
not the properties of absolute truth (p22 Mullaly, B ). It made me aware that many
peoples discourse and ideology is not always based on the absolute truth.
Despite my strong religious beliefs at the time, I adopted change by not making
people aware of my religion and removed my hijab to avoid assumptions and
being categorised as a marginalised group, also not to deal with oppression,
racism and living in fear.
With this personal experience, I can clearly understand the privilege of being
white it came clear what had taken for granted previously unaware of the
privileges I had naturally been born with. As Peggy
McIntosh stated some examples we take for granted, "to go shopping alone and
be assumed that I will not be followed or harassed, or even that I will receive
appropriate medical help". These are some aspects of basic life, which I had
previously taken for granted and has now widen my knowledge and awareness
through experience to appreciate the power and privilege a white person actually
possess.
After reflecting back on my experience of powerlessness .It came apparent to me
After reading Thompson (2006) on power the different levels of power that
can be implemented, Through the (P.C.S) analysis. This includes personal,
psychological level ,which Include Individual levels of thoughts, feelings and
actions, which could be shaped by our own experiences.
However, we could be greatly influenced by a powerful
role of culture in forming our opinions. The cultural level helps to form a context
in which our personal experience occurs and relates to the commonalities and
values. Which can make an assumed consensus what it the social norm.
In addition, the structural level compromises of a network of social divisions.
it helps to relate in ways of oppression and discrimination so they can be
Institutionalised. It denotes the wider level of social forces, the
Socio-political dimension of interlocking patterns of power and influence
( p28 Cited in Thompson N 2006.). It is also important to recognise that each
level Is embedded within the other and needs to be related to each other.
Foucault saw power as something that people either did or did not possess
But as an aspect of all social relations, a feature of interactions between
Individuals, groups and organizations .It is a fluid phenomenon open to constant
Influence and change (Thompson 1998).
My next experience of which I felt powerless and assumptions were being made
concerning my sexuality.
This occurred when I visited Blackpool with friends and we looked for a hotel to
stay over night. However we was refused by the receptionist stating they did not
permit same sex couples in the hotel.
I was shocked to be replied in language that made assumptions that I was
homosexual. However, I challenged the receptionist stating my sexuality as
heterosexual and we were just friends, also indicating how discriminatory she
was treating homosexual people.
In challenging this I managed to change her opinion of my sexuality and the
discrimination, in which she was displaying. Helping me to re gain power
within this situation.
After reading Berlant and Warner (1998). It gave me an understanding of
Heteronormativity culture and what is seen as the norm as public acts.
I can relate, understand and accept the
problems homosexual people have to deal with by not having such
privileges by not having to disclose their sexuality and not considered bias
because of their sexuality.
The final personal experience I will analyse is regarding difference. There are
varied and competing ways of understanding issues of difference and diversity.
I have given an example from my own personal experience.
I am a single mother with five children. This status sets me in a social class of
difference due to disparities of power it has categorised us all in society within a
set of ideologies according to social requirements.
This has classified me as one of the dominated social groups.
Also giving me a label which has placed me within a marginalised
group, influencing oppression. Whereby categorising that single women
prefer to spend their life on benefits and handouts by choice.
Together with the belief that their
children do not achieve academically as well as a two-parent family. However
when we analyse the binary opposite of a single mother to that of a single father.
The single male parent does not have as much stigma, oppression or being
categorised that they are a reliant on benefits for choice .The women
definitely is more devalued and under more scrutiny in a social aspect than that
similar for a man. This is proof still that whatever status a man hold he is always
seen as hierarchy over women.
Despite the social stigma, I have made a positive change within
my personal circumstances of being categorised as a single mother choosing to
remain on benefits, by taking a social constructionist approach and changing my
behaviour to gain more power and knowledge to break free from the devalued
role of a single mother.
I have positively gave my self, power and self esteem in
undertaking a degree at university. While feeling extremely privileged to be in
such an well achieve status. This also makes a positive impact on my
children to succeed within education, by following my example and it has given
me an tremendous amount of power in my life.
After reading ideas of Michel Foucault it has been extremely influential in
debates about 'difference'. Foucault argues that the ways in which people think
about, classify and categorize experience is influenced by wider social
discourses, and that these reflect and reproduce relationships of power within
society. So, for example, he argues that discourses of mental health in western
societies have changed significantly over the past 200 years, and that this
reflects changing power relationships and the interests of particular groups
(Foucault, 1967)
Conclusion
In conclusion I can positively relate power, privilege and difference to my
Own personal experiences and have a good understanding of these and how
they are applied from my understanding of this module. In addition, I am
beginning to understand the how they can by applied within key social work
skills. The P.C.S model of power that I have learnt has widened by learning
on all possibly aspects of power relations. I can positively relate to Peggy
McIntosh's white privilege through my own experience being more aware
of the white privilege, which I did not know before doing this module. After this
Module I have gained lots of information about difference in which I had no
previous knowledge.
naomisakhri
|
top of page