social location
• Part 1– Imagine that you are a member of a different gender (NOTE: male, female, or transgendered are all acceptable choices for this assignment). In what ways would your life be different? What would you specifically like or dislike about being a member of that gender? For example, as a child, would your parents have treated you differently? (If relevant, you might reflect on how your parents treated your brothers or sisters.) Do you believe that your teachers would have treated you differently if you were born a different gender? What about your expectations for your own behaviors?
As a teenager, how would your dating relationships have been different? And now as a college student, do you think that your choices of classes or a major would be the same if you were born a different gender?
Would your future career choices be the same as they are today, and would co-workers and your boss likely treat you differently? Finally, when you are old, how would you imagine your life to be different if your gender was different?
Write two pages in which you address the following four topics related to the above questions: (1) body awareness; (2) social expectations; (3) gender-related behaviors; and (4) employment. Please be as specific as possible in addressing all of these questions and topics. Be certain to note both your personal ideas about how life might be different, and to cite data about gender differences.
• Part 2– Try the same exercise in regard to race or social class. In what ways would your life be different if you were born to a different racial group or socioeconomic status? Which choices would you make differently, and/or which would be made differently for you? Consider (1) perceived privilege; (2) social expectations; (3) educational attainment; and (4) employment. This piece of the assignment should require about two pages to answer thoroughly. Be certain to note both your personal ideas about how life might be different, and to cite data about race or class differences.
• Part 3– Was it more comfortable to write about gender or race/social class? What factors made exploring the possibilities of other social locations more difficult? Less difficult? Did you rely more on your own experiences or on facts and figures? Which came easier? Were your answers ‘public’ or ‘private’? Use approximately one page to reflect on the writing of this assignment.