Anthropology

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Two fascinating examples of women’s resistance to oppression

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An excellent historical example of increasing patriarchal domination of women, and their ensuing resistance, is feminist historian and professor Ulrike Strasser’s “Bones of Contention: Catholic Nuns Resist their Enclosure.” The Pütrich nuns of Munich were established in the 13th century. Like all nuns at that time, they were not cloistered and therefore served extensively in…

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The pain behind Fire Eyes

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Trigger warning: this documentary review covers female genital mutilation. Don’t read further if you are easily squicked, please. ~ * ~ *~ *~ *~ * ~ We see activism as it happens in Soraya Miré’s short 1994 documentary film Fire Eyes. As a victim of the practice who has chosen to become a survivor, her…

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Wisdom worth listening to: Daughters of Mother Earth

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Daughters of Mother Earth: The Wisdom of Native American Women, edited by Barbara Alice Mann, offers us a view of ecofeminism rooted in indigenous women’s teachings (one caveat: when I use “we,” I am recognizing that I, like the Whites being written about, am speaking from a position of social privilege which is and should…

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St. Louis: everyone’s charming old auntie, part 2

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The temperatures here in St. Louis are, in a word, psychotic. It may be either pleasantly warm, muggy and hot, or pouring rain outside — but the air conditioning will be blasting in any building you enter. I can’t decide whether to swelter in my sweatshirt outside, or shiver in my shirtsleeves inside. Constantly taking…

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St. Louis: everyone’s charming auntie, part 1

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Sadly, flying has become more of an annoyance than an adventure. I’m not surprised most of the airlines are struggling, considering their attempts to sneakily ding you with constant, unrelenting fees stacked on hidden fees. Fortunately we deliberately packed light so all our luggage was carry-on, and I always travel well-stocked with good books. Also,…

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To Tend and Befriend, part 4

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Actually, the physical and mental health benefits of social ties with women are experienced by men and women both — and for married men, these benefits occur even when the women are not present (85-86). As Taylor poetically notes, “women are heavily involved in stitching up all the little rips and tears in the social…

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To Tend and Befriend, part 3

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The myths about male dominance and female submissiveness are not the only current social issues, however, that I believe merit thoughtful scientific consideration — or rather, already have been studied, but should definitely have the derived data become part of the general public’s knowledge base. For example, as mentioned in previous postings, there is currently…

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To Tend and Befriend, part 2

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I cannot politely say why I think it is that white, Western, and usually male anthropologists feel the need to insist — in the face of constant data to the contrary — that hunting is more masculine, more dangerous, and more prestigious than gathering. However, I find it tragic that such blatant lies about human…

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To Tend and Befriend, part 1

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It’s summertime for me now, and I’m gleefully starting my readings for Fall semester, which doesn’t start for another three or so months — this time I won’t get caught short on time! I’m going to try reading all the books that really interest me first, so I have plenty of time to ponder them….

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Women & World Religions comps booklist

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Later edit: This bibliography has been seriously revised and updated due to professorial input. Check out the new version here.   There! That’s all the reviews of all the books on my booklist for last semester’s Ecofeminism comps class. I figured posting the original versions, before they were edited down to fit into the comps…