Identity and intersectionality: In this extract, Woodward K. (2004) questions identity focusing on theindividual’s perception of themselves in relation to others through thediscipline of sociology. She goes on to explore how our world is becoming more andmore unstable, but prevailing changes offer new opportunities as well as newchallenges for everyone around the world. Woodward deliberates whether or not gender,class and ethnicity offer lucidity about who we are, or if these factors are tobe seen as constraints on our autonomy to choose our own identities. Moreover,she explores the philosophy behind whether or not we are bound by the socialconstraints and inequalities which we are born into.
This text gives an easily graspable examinationof identity by weaving references to multiple social theorists such as Mead(1934), Williamson (1986), and Goffman (1959) throughout the text to criticallyanalyse how identities are shaped. Woodward uses the evidence well to supporthis argument that identity is fluid and is ever-changing. He puts forward theargument that we build our identities through symbols and social interactions,as a result of living in a fast growing changing society, our identities are regularlybeing challenged and redefined Class and identity: changeit Afterhaving carried out a considerable amount of fieldwork in Calcutta, India, Donner, H. (2016) presents unprecedented ethnographyof how middle-class women in India experience economic prosperity through the evolutionof their family life by using the discipline of anthropology. Initially, this extractexplored intimate components of the woman’s lives, by analysing theirexperience of marriage and childbirth, then proceeds to examine the repercussionsglobalisation is having on the new middle classes in Asia, specifically from adomestic perspective to explain how this is re-defining woman’s identity. Bymaking maternity the focal point in her writing, Donner explores how the familyis affected by the newly immerging neo-liberal ideologies. Donner sheds somelight on women’s agency as “wives mothers and grandmothers” (p….
) in these newframeworks, Domestic Goddesses confer the experiences of different generationaffected by changes as they recognise that woman’s identities are transformingaccording to changes to attitudes in society. Through a careful analysis ofwomen’s narratives, Donner concludes that the domestic sphere represents thekey site for the remaking of Indian middle-class citizens in a global world.This unprecedented insight into the class system through the family structure isunusual but very effective in explaining the most fundamental factorscontributing woman’s experience of social class. Gender age on identity, Inthis extract, Eriksen (2010) presents a clear outline ofanthropology, targeting fundamental topics to the discipline, such as, age,gender, and ethnicity, offering an array of examples which exhibit the vastscope of anthropology and the essence of identity around the world. What makes ‘SmallPlaces, Large Issues’ (2010) so potent in presenting argument on the subject ofage, gender and identity is his reviews of crucial monographs to illustrate hisargument. Eriksen’s clear and accessible text analyses the evidence coherentlyas he picks apart the main argument made by ethnographers such as Weiner (1988),Rosaldo and Lamphere (1974) and Bamberger (1988).
What I find interesting isthat Eriksen delves deep into the distinct difference in moral values that menand woman hold by putting forward the example of the two gendered values in theCarrabin; men peruse to enhance their reputation, however, woman strive to gainrespectability which entails two different ways of perceiving and experiencingthe world (Wilson E. O 1978). Moreover, Eriksen talks about the complexity ofexplaining or pinpointing what gender is for example in certain societies, gaymen are considered to be “intermediate” meaning they are nor male nor female. This exemplifies the alteration in thedefinition of traditional male and female gender characteristics. Identity: gender and war:In the newest edition of her book, Cockburn (2015) givesthe reader an in-depth account of the most important theories and issues on genderidentity with reference to theorist such as Petersonand Runyan (1993), Enloe W G (1996) and (Kramer 2000: 8), wefind that the book is written from a feminist perspective, explaining the importance tocontemporary global issues such as human rights, rape in war, terrorism, humanand arms trafficking while discussing woman’s experience of identity and sexuality inthe context of war. Furthermore,the insights of feminist theory are often merged with a range of otherdisciplines including International Relations (hence forth IR) to create a newperspective entirely: Feminist IR. I believe this has changed the way we lookat feminism as it is no longer a stand-alone theory but is now linked with a disciplinewhich examines global issues surrounding age gender and ethnicity. Thisextract considers how contemporary the military has become as they are increasingincluding women in a range of roles within the armed forces.
Cockburn Draws onthe idea of the “regendered military”, as she presents a conceptual strategyfor considering how feminist theorising about the gender–military nexus cantake seriously women’s military participation while remaining alert to feministpolitical goals of gender equality, peace and justice. Diaspora: In This extract Tsolidis, G. (2013) draws on a larger wealth of knowledgeabout diaspora using the case study of the Greek community of Melbourne,Australia to examine the means through which young people from minoritybackgrounds form their identity. Tsolidis describes the long-standing communityas divers. As a result of this, the young people who were involved in thisstudy give an insight into cultural processes which are not at all related tomigration. In most scenarios, it was the young people’s grandparents orgreat-grandparents who migrated. Many of the boys have one parent with no familial link to Greece.
Thisarticle examines the essence of what is “home” in these young people’s self-identification.Drawing on De Certeau. M’s (2001) work, Tsolidis, G. puts forward the argument thattheir everyday experience can be seen as an act of “anti-discipline.” As”users” of the Greekness, they are bestowed through family, community, andschooling. Further, they use “tactics” of cultural reformation that allow for fusionof both “Greekness” and “Australianness.” This demonstrates that although somemay share two or more nationalities they can adopt the cultures which come fromboth sides to shape their identity.