Emily Nelson blog 4

August
Believe
    After reading August’s essay on anti-male bias, my initial thoughts disagreed with a lot of the main points made. After playing the believe in doubting games, introduced by Peter Elbow, I opened my eyes up and started to understand why August has made these arguments. “Male victims are simply not news; women (and children) victims are,” (August 131). After reading this part I started to agree with August, not because I strongly believe that women are extremely sexist towards males, but because there is a lot of truth in this statement. The number of times you hear about women victims in the news completely blows male reports out of the water. There is truth in what August is proving here.
Doubt
    Although I can agree with some of what August has to say about anti-male bias in English, I have to argue against most of what is said in the essay. I understand where August is coming from, but I do not think the arguments are a reflection on all women. There are points women could argue back about sexist males in our society, I personally could argue rap music and everything it stands for, but I know it doesn’t reflect all males as a whole. Just as I don’t think it’s fair to argue all women are held to this standard that August describes. If everyone is so worried about sexism in our society then why does everyone keep pointing fingers?

Tannen
Believe
    I hate this essay, I strongly disagree with almost 100% of it, but I did open myself up to accepting what Tannen had to say about being marked and unmarked and understand where the points are coming from. Women are judged all the time by appearance, I don’t agree with it, but it’s true and how you are labeled or ‘marked’ says a lot to people. Men sometimes are left for open interpretation, as in they aren’t constantly being judged like women. The points Tannen makes are good arguments, but I think there is a lot more to being unmarked and marked than what is described.
Doubt
    As I previously stated, I was not a fan of what Tannen was saying. I think women are way more than what they wear or how they present themselves. I believe all people shouldn’t be prejudged, I don’t think everything is based on the surface. You have to listen to what people have to say to understand what they are fully about. Tannen states in the essay, “...but a woman whose hair has no particular style is perceived as not caring about how she looks, which can disqualify her from many positions, and will subtly diminish her as a person in the eyes of some,” (Tannen 142-143). This statement makes me angry. I don’t agree with this mainly because if appearance truly does further you down the totem pole, then those judging aren’t worth what one has to bring to the table in the first place. I don’t like prejudgement and don’t agree with Tannen’s beliefs of women being marked all the time.