Discussion 3

I enjoyed doing this chart exercise . It helped me focus on the reasons why i had those thought about my physical appearance in the first place. in the fist column i chose my hair, nose and legs. I chose my hair because this part of my body has sent many different messages to others and even to myself.  I have natural hair but a lot of time i wear my hair in different styles such as braids or hair extensions . Braids are a hairstyle that is well known in the African american culture. It sends a message of black beauty, including natural hair . When i chose to wear my natural hair i sometimes wear it curly or in a Afro texture . I feel confident because i feel like i am embracing my African roots. However there has been times where i had a style in mind and when i attempted to style my hair it didn’t come out right. This left me feeling disappointed, insecure and unattractive. Why is it that i felt unattractive when my hair wasn’t ” done”. In Gender in communication A critical introduction by Defransisco, Victoria and Catherine Palzcewski With Danielle Dick McGeough, it discusses the three different types of theories. Which are biological, physiological and critical/cultural theories. Relating to my personal feelings , experiences and views on my hair , the physiological theory connects the most. Physiological theories are based on triggers by early child hood experiences.

The journey of my hair starts with social learning. Social learning is when behavior is learned by analyzing, observing and modeling others. Growing up in high school it was emphasized by males and females,  that if you didn’t have your hair done faithfully every week , it meant you were broke. It would also mean that the guys wouldn’t look at you as much as all the other girls who were up to par. I constantly compared myself to other girls, i would always try to keep up . I observed other girls in my school to see how many times they got there hair done a month. I thought if i can keep up with them , then ill be approved . I struggled with feeling beautiful because i believed that i wasn’t attractive due to what was being said socially. There were time when i had to wear my short natural hair. In society it has been displayed that longer straight silky hair is more beautiful that natural Afro or curly textured hair. I was convinced that i wasn’t that young woman that the world would desired because i didn’t have all of the exceptions the world vocalized. Today i no longer feel that way about myself i am aware that those statements are false.

The other two body parts i chose on my chart were my nose and skin. I chose my nose because this was a part of my physical body i was self conscious of . Again it relates to the physiological theories category.  through out middle school i was bullied a lot . One day boy at recces told me that i was ugly and i had a fat huge nose. From that day on i hated my nose and believed that everyone else’s was beautiful . My skin is an evident part of my race , i am a African american women. Critical/cultural theories highlights the cultural institutions that partakes in the alignment and management of gender. The multiracial and global feminism’s discussed the detailed investigation of the concerns of women and their gender . Women gender isn’t only the issue but race is as well, the view on the background of a women and the cultural stereotypical stigmas attached to women makes the vicissitudes of life even more difficult to handle. This chapter mentions the unfair historical events of African Americans, how women slaves were deemed as sexual beings. Relating to me being an African American woman, i remember a time when i walked  into a retail store that i would always go to. i walked in asking for Job application, the manager was a man including his employees and they were all Hispanic. I could tell the manager was uncomfortable of me being there, he told me that they weren’t hiring . That wasn’t true because i saw someone else come in a few days before and he accepted an application. I then came back to his store a few days later and realized that a new guy was there. Not only was this person a man but he was Hispanic. I purposely the guy was he new and he confirmed that he was. I then realized that my race and gender was a problem to this man .

Embodied communication is the opposite of non verbal communication , because it draws attention to the physical body as communication with others. Personally for me i believe i embodies communication with command performance by body politics. Me being viewed as highly feminine. I’ve been told many times that I “sit” like a lady. Or the way that i dress, i love makeup and dresses that makes a statement that i am a “girly girl” . A way that i believe i have refuse to comply with the command performance is not settling for mistreatment by the opposite due to the roles they believe i should perform because of my gender. The theories of culture and conflict relates to the way i communicate . i refuse to allow social construction rule the way i move or live my life .