Blogging Social Difference in L.A.: Week 10

Los Angeles Times Social Difference Article

     This week's task for my blog post was to find a Los Angeles Times article about Social Difference. I was unable to find an article based on a geographical location; however, I found a very interesting article titled California Women Still Lag in Key Categories. The primary idea behind this article is that women are more likely to obtain higher education degrees as oppose to men; however, men are more likely to obtain higher roles in the economy. 

     The study was conducted by researchers at Mount St. Mary's College in Los Angeles, which is an all girls private college. This study looks at factors like poverty and education of women from all across California of many different types of backgrounds. It was concluded that there is a large gap between men and women in upper level science and math subjects. The article also discusses how women lack the confidence and are less likely to be encouraged by their families to enter fields such as science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Women have higher rates of attendance in various graduate programs and are more likely to graduate as oppose to men.

     This article reinforces the lecture material that reflects the idea of gender as an axis of difference. In the Stuart Hall videos, he describes the term floating signifier. This term reflects the idea that the meaning of something like race and gender, never stays still and the meaning is always changing. Over time the meaning of a woman has evolved. Being a woman 30 years ago is not the same as what it is today. Women today are obtaining masters level degrees and are walking side by side men in the economy today. 

     Even though men and women work as hard as one another, there are still differences between the two. The article only reflects the differences in terms of education and the economy; however, in geography many gender differences are visible in the homes of modern suburbia. The meaning of home for a man is a retreat from society. For men, the home is a place where they can unwind after a long day of work and spend time with their families. On the opposite side, for a woman, the home is a place for labor and possibly neglect. The woman's occupation is to care for her children and home and she has no outlet from her daily tasks.

     In the textbook reading by Sophie Watson titled City A/Genders, she discusses the various representations of gender differences in the city. One particular section that caught my attention was when she discussed the dynamics of the home. She talks about how everyone in the household has their own space. The children have a playroom or their own rooms and the men have an office or the garage as their sanctuary; however, the woman's space is the kitchen which is her place of work. Another key point she made was that the master bedroom is not a woman's sanctuary because the room is primarily for sexual intimacy where the man has all control over the woman.

     In the past 50 years, the times have changed and differences between men and women have also changed. In 2012, we still see differences between the two sexes, whether it be in the economy or in the suburbs. Despite the fact that women are still lagging behind men, women are breaking out of the occupation as homemaker and are branching out to obtain higher education degrees. These women balance both their professional life alongside their family lives at home. Being a woman 50 years ago meant only caring for the family at home; however, over time the definition has changed and women are advancing in education and the economy.

Link to the Los Angeles Times article: http://articles.latimes.com/2012/mar/29/local/la-me-women-status-20120329