ipl-logo

Ronald Takaki's Iron Cages

1069 Words5 Pages

Race, gender, and class, while commonly thought of as separate, are deeply intertwined with one-another. In his book Iron Cages, Ronald Takaki explores and lays out both the ways in which these three connected the ways they are not and the underlying reasons as to why. Following will be the analysis of the three in pairs, so as to better break down the comparisons among the three in relation to one another, concluded with the intersection of all three. Beginning with race and gender, it goes without says that masculinity was emphasized when referring to peoples of color, and femininity was emphasized when referring to white people. This appears to have been used as a way to paint people of color as threats whilst maintaining the white person …show more content…

Washington (212). He rose up the ranks to become an honored guest and a leader in the Southern communities due to his more palatable ideas on race relations, primarily that black people should be thankful for the chance to earn money working in the factory and to not insist on desegregating social areas of society. His focus on the beauty of Southern culture and the romanticization of the relationship between the black man who built society and the white man benefiting along with the promise that black people would be “faithful”, “patient”, and “unresenting” in relation to white people allowed him to increase his class (213). While people of color have generally been at the bottom of the class hierarchy, people like Washington show that there was the possibility for a few to become exceptions to the rule, as Takaki points …show more content…

Both race and gender influence class, with women and people of color belonging to the lower classes and men and white people taking the higher ones. Through this, it is obvious how the woman of color has historically been the most oppressed and the white man the most privileged. So with Iron Cages Takaki was able to show not only how white men used republicanism to control women or to control people of color, he was able to show how all three systems worked together to create intricate networks of privilege, and to point to their

Show More
Related

  • Analysis Of Eldridge Cleaver's 'Soul On Ice'

    969 Words  | 4 Pages

    The section of “White Woman, Black Man” further delves into his views of white women and the role that society has in shaping gender relations between black men and white women and also in influencing masculinity and femininity.

    Read More

  • Booker T Washington Essay

    649 Words  | 3 Pages

    Many African Americans looked for black leaders for guidance on how to better their lives. He advised African Americans to work hard at being farmers, trades people, and worker in the industry. This approach, sometimes called “accommodationist” because it accommodated, or fit in with, wishes of many whites, won Washington the admiration and support of Southern whites. In front of an all- white audience, Washington declared his

    Read More

  • Structural Inequality In The 1970's

    916 Words  | 4 Pages

    When the idea of race was discussed “it [was] treated as a parallel system of stratification: an analogy [was] often made between ‘women’ and ‘minorities,’” (Glenn 87). Although an analogy was able to be made between women and minorities, white women had the opportunity to increase their social status more easily than non-Caucasian groups due to racism. With the similarities of the standards given to women and minorities, some white women could be “pretty enough, but with hearts like blackjacks” (Sexton 28-29). By creating an analogy linking white women with minorities, it shows that different groups of people were held to the same social standard, but during the early 1970’s only certain people had the ability to succeed in social mobility.

    Read More

  • Inequality In Jean Baker Miller's Domination And Subordination

    389 Words  | 2 Pages

    Throughout our history our society struggles with inequality. Sexism and racism still addresses like class, gender or other dominating classifications a structural problem in our United States culture. In Jean Baker Miller’s essay “Domination and Subordination” she discusses the temporary and permanent inequality. Miller states that the temporary inequality is a relationship between a dominated individual who explains and is a teacher to the subordinated individual. In contrast her explanation of the permanent inequality is the relationship of different individuals who always will be unequal.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Mapping The Margins By Kimberle Crenshaw

    314 Words  | 2 Pages

    Being part of the different subgroups prevents them from getting everything they need and want. They are burdened by lack of income and jobs. Without these essential things many of them will not be able to take care of themselves nor their family. Crenshaw presents us with many examples of why colored women are more apt to being the victim of a violent

    Read More

  • Pros And Cons Of E. B. Dubois

    838 Words  | 4 Pages

    Washington. He was an educated African American, born in slavery, and saw as the leader of the black folk. His main agenda was to promote the policy of submission since black folk could only survive in it. They wanted political power, civil liberties, higher education, accumulation of wealth, and consolidation of the south, and for their values and beliefs, Washington publicly shamed them. Th black folk further internalized the propaganda that slavery was justified, they neglected their own education, and their future depended mainly on their own efforts.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Booker T Washington On African American Equality

    821 Words  | 4 Pages

    Achieving African American Equality Booker T. Washington and W.E.B Du Bois were two of the most influential advocates for African American equality during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries (Blatty, 1). Although both men ultimately had the same goal, their methods for achieving African American equality were remarkably different. To begin, the men had conflicting ideas about what constituted as African American equality. Booker T. Washington argued that the accumulation of wealth and the ability to prove that Blacks were productive members of society would be the mark of true equality for African Americans (Painter, 155).

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Dubois And Booker T Washington

    681 Words  | 3 Pages

    Washington believed in working simple labor jobs and starting from the bottom and progressing up in order to gain the respect necessary to achieve racial equality, Du Bois believed in not submitting to lesser occupations and demanding racial equality. Washington says that the key to prosperity is through learning to dignify common labor. Whereas Du Bois states that “Becoming a gospel of work and money to such an extent as apparently almost completely overshadow the higher aims of life.” “Common Labor” is viewed by Washington as the only way to make progress toward a higher quality life, however, Du Bois views “common labor” as a social setback. Washington’s views can be summed up, almost completely, in the following quote “It is at the bottom of life we must begin, not the top.”

    Read More

  • Booker T. Washington's Fight For Equality

    846 Words  | 4 Pages

    He says that "It is at the bottom of life we must begin, and not at the top. Nor should we permit our grievances to overshadow our opportunities" (Washington). Because of Washington's acceptance of inferiority of his race, at the time, economically, he again appeals to the white audience in front of his speech, at the African American expo. He almost apologizes for how low the blacks are starting by saying "Gentlemen of the Exposition, as we present to you our humble effort at an exhibition of our progress, you must not expect overmuch" (Washington). This puts the pressure of equality on the black community, and takes pressure off the white community.

    Read More

  • The Great Gatsby Act 1 Scene 1 Summary

    1293 Words  | 6 Pages

    Tensions between races, or these groups, have existed in our world and will continue to, but perhaps races can learn to work together so our world can be one, instead of humans making assumptions that certain races are superior to others. Berger discusses European art paintings and how these depict a relationship between men and women: the painters and owners being men, and the object of the painting being a woman. He brings to attention the unequal relationship this creates and how it continues on throughout real-life and culture. Women today still view themselves as objects and survey themselves the same way that men survey them (p.

    Read More

  • Social Stratification In The Movie The Help

    610 Words  | 3 Pages

    Black women are treated less than because of their ascribed traits, their gender and race, and are often dehumanized and belittled throughout the movie. They are treated like slaves and are seen as easily disposable. There are several moments throughout the film that show the racial, gender, and class inequalities. These moments also show exploitation and opportunity hoarding. The Help also explains historical context of the inequality that occurred during that time period.

    Read More

  • Crenshaw's Mapping The Margins Analysis

    1376 Words  | 6 Pages

    Kareen Harboyan English 1C Professor Supekar March 15, 2018 Word Count: Crenshaw’s Mapping the Margins: The Marginalization of Women of Color Analyzed Through Generalization and A Feminist Lens Crenshaw's Mapping the Margins: Intersectionality, Identity Politics, and Violence Against Women of Color expands on the multifaceted struggles of women of color and the generalizations ingrained in society that limit women of color and keep them in a box. In this text, Crenshaw builds on the concept of intersectionality which proposes that social categorizations such as gender and race are intertwined and have great influence on one another.

    Read More

  • A Sociological Analysis Of Aladdin

    2599 Words  | 11 Pages

    Race, gender and class shape the experience of all people. Because of their simultaneity in people's lives we advocate using the approach of a "matrix of domination" to analyze race, class, and gender as different but interrelated axes of social structure. The matrix of domination or matrix of oppression is a sociological paradigm that explains issues of oppression that deal with race, class, and gender, which, though recognized as different social classifications, are all interconnected. This structural pattern affects individual consciousness, group interaction, and group access to institutional power and privileges. In the Disney movie, Aladdin, both status and gender affect positions in the matrix of domination, but an analysis of the

    Read More

  • Paris Is Burning Sociological Analysis

    1820 Words  | 8 Pages

    Race and class also determine the levels of oppression an individual will encounter throughout their lives. The documentary Paris is Burning illustrates how gender is not biological but instead socially constructed, which can

    Read More

  • Gender Roles In '12 Angry Men And Mudbound' By

    985 Words  | 4 Pages

    Societies' opinions on race and gender can lead to unequal potential and capability. The reason why society feels that way is that they are taught to believe some genders are not as important as others and those genders may only have certain jobs. Societies have certain opinions on people of color because they believe that they are unneeded and treat them as unwelcomed when in reality they are the same as the rest of society. Hilary Jordan's book Mudbound and Sidney Lumet's film 12 Angry Men both explore how certain races in societies are “different” and “undesirable”. The Disney film Mulan and Hillary Jordan's book Mudbound both talk about society's gender roles being unequal and certain genders belonging below others.

    Read More

More about Ronald Takaki's Iron Cages

Open Document