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Women's studies introduction to the women's bible essay
Essays on women of the bible
Women's studies introduction to the women's bible essay
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In this text Mitzi Smith, an African American woman, provides a womanist interpretation of the biblical ‘virgin-whore binary’. In hopes to recover the true essence of womanhood through God’s perspective the author explains that women, “should reject altogether the labeling and construction of women as virgins and whores (and their synonyms) [as] it tied to ideas of manhood.” Smith surveys the impact that this derogatory language has had on the creation and sustenance of the (black) female(‘s) identity; and suggests that women rebel against the clout of injustice that these terms have inflicted upon them. (3 sentence answer) An interesting point is the fact that she insinuates that instead of strictly following scriptures (that were written from malestream point of view), women should look to the God with themselves for guidance on how to govern themselves. I most agree with the author’s idea that, "Black women, for the sake of health and wholeness, must take charge of their own sexuality, including naming and defining themselves in ways that promote health self-esteem and self-love, as well as love of others and that represent God's graciousness, …show more content…
However, prior to reading this text, I found it most difficult to understand and materialize the concept of "reject[ing] the labeling and construction of women as virgins and whores..." In the past, I had always connected my sexuality and being a virgin to my identity. Though I try my best to reject the concept of a whore, as a Christian I have considered my virgin status as an example of my virtuosity and commitment to God. Though I realized the term whore is one of control, I did not realize that I was promoting patriarchal beliefs in being extremely proud of my virgin-ness. I appreciate Mitzi Smith's interpretation and perspective on the detaching and refraining of the employment of virgin/whore
The text suggest from various studies that sexual freedom and expression is still limited. How women and men are taught to view their bodies, how they view their autonomy, how they view pleasure, and how marriage is perceived as respectability plays into the socialization of sexuality (49). These studies reminded me of the numerous reasons that many women especially black women conform to societal beliefs and limit their agency and pleasure in sexuality. These socializations of sexuality transcend into gender roles and how gender is considered in kin relationships. Robert Evans and Helen L. Evans suggest in their study Coping: Stressor and Depression among Middle Class African-American Men that men have become a critical group to understand in order to better understand the social and psychological climate of the African American community. They suggest that family issues, employment issues, environmental factors, and racism were the main causes of depression and emotional distress. Acknowledging these factors are essential to acknowledging a communities well-being. While reading numerous studies on the family structure from polygamy to motherhood to fatherhood to black female-black male relationship, I continued to consider the role that post-traumatic slave disorder takes. I so often refer back to the slavery, but I began to ask myself can we really blame everything on
In “Sweat,” the Biblical story of Genesis has been rewritten to associate men-not women- with original sin, with the cause as well as the results of the fall of man; to attribute New Testament Christian values (meekness, sinlessness, forgiveness, and hard work) to a black woman (Carter
In nineteenth century, a discourse on homosexuality started to occur; meanwhile, boundaries between black and white became more and more clear. (16) It was the era when the issues that were considered as minority started to appear, and it was also the time when people were reinforcing their ideal “social norms” into the society. It was a dark age for LGBT people, African American people and female. In the article, Scientific Racism and the Homosexual Body, the author, Siobhan Sommerville, makes a strong connection between scientific racism and sexology and women’s bodies. “Although some historians of the scientific discourse on sexuality have included brief acknowledgement of nineteenth century discourses of racial difference in their work,
...s and upheld her views, even though she began to experience spiritual isolation and a great deal of criticism from many of the clergy, modern day feminists who disagreed with her methods and ideologies, and the general public, leading her to publish The Women’s Bible in 1895, a study of sexism in the Old Testament. The Women’s Bible consisted of all the texts concerning women and the main purpose of this revision was to expose the contradictions and the traditional teachings and interpretations in regard to women of the time.
Deborah White configures the preeminent perception that Southern white women had of colored slave women. The initial impression was that all black women slaves were sexual deviants that were not fully equipped to fulfill their roles as slaves as they imposed a sort of “dangerous” sexual pressure in the community. The following vison of the common slave woman was that of a motherly nature in the way that the women were subject to have children for the sole purpose of renewing the source for slaves. No matter the outlook, it is clear that the slave women of the south were being forced to be flexible with their roles in order to please the slave
Womanist biblical hermeneutics centers Black women’s experience and identity, social location, historical memory, a hermeneutics of suspicion, and a hermeneutics of affirmation. In addition, womanist biblical hermeneutics are radical and subversive forms of biblical interpretation that provide multi-dimensional systemic analysis and critique, acknowledge and affirm a multiplicity of voices and identities. Womanist biblical hermeneutics provide a means for Black women to critique unjust forms of oppression, discourse, and practices, especially in relation to the use of scripture in order to facilitate social transformation. This bibliographic essay will map the various conceptual frameworks and methods of religious scholars engaging in womanist’s
Kiki Smith is a virtually self-taught West German-born American artist who commonly uses a wide range of themes including AIDS, feminine domesticity, life, death, and human relationships to animals, and nature in her pieces. Kiki began to catch the eye of the New York public in 1988 at a gallery in New York City where she first displayed some of her well known graphic sculptures of the human body. While Smith is more well known for her graphic sculptures of the human body, she is also a highly recognized photographer, printmaker, drawer, and painter.
In Laboring Women by Jennifer Morgan, the author talks about the transformations African Women suffer as they become slaves in America. The author explains how their race, gender and even their reproduction of African women became very important in the sex/gender system. She explains the differences of European, African and Creole and how their role was fit and fix in the sex/gender system in regards of production, body and kinship. Morgan explains the correlation of race and reproduction as well as how this affected the Atlantic World. She also explains the differences between whites and blacks and how they experience reproduction differently. Morgan also elaborates on how sex is a sexual disclosure. This gave us the conclusion on how the ideologies of race and reproduction are central to the organization of slavery.
...ualities and influences we want to accept as truth instead of blindly accepting the book of myths. She encourages women to descend the ladder and find the “thing itself” and the meaning that thing has for each individual woman.
Stereotypes have become a socially accepted phenomena in today’s society. So socially acceptable, in fact, they have made it onto advertising billboards and into our daily language. We do not think twice as they pass our tongues, and we do tilt our heads in concern or questioning as they pass into our ears. In Judith Butler’s essay “Besides Oneself: On the Limits of Sexual Autonomy”, stereotypes are exposed and explored. Especially stereotypes pertaining to sexual orientation. Butler explains how stereotypes are unacceptable. She does this in a way which allows her to concurrently explore what it means to be human, and also what humans do or need to make Earth a livable place for ourselves. When examining Butler’s essay, one could say, and
She sheds a light of how early Black feminist scholars such as Collins have been criticized for relying too heavily on colonial ideology around the black female body. Subjectively neglecting the contemporary lived experience of Black women. Critiques such as these highlights the Black female agency in the representation of the body. viewing this as a human and sexual rights or health perspective has been lending to the contemporary Black feminist debates about the representation of Black female bodies and Black eroticism within the culture of
This woman was a “lady” of lust, and did not care to gain or lose love, but she loaned for power over men and woman. She was a woman who would turn men against other women so that she could have complete control over the man, and make them her husbands in which she had 5 of since the age of twelve. One she had complete control over the man she portrayed herself to be a woman of biblical stature. Contradictive right? That’s where this woman began to grow more and more interesting.
The Afrocentric interpretation of the Bible does provide a different perspective about things that happened in the Bible and the people who are mentioned in the Scriptures. However, it is important that the Afrocentric scholars don 't push their thesis to extreme conclusions that would their credibility. And yet, Afrocentric biblical interpretation is needed considering it is critical for our Christian faith as African Americans. In the Original African Heritage Bible (KJV) Edition, it states that some struggle with the meaning of Afrocentrism in biblical interpretation. Again, the black or African presence in the Bible embraces much of black theology also biblical interpretations based upon the meaning of blackness as applied to religious experience. However, Afrocentricity constitutes a new way of examining this data, carrying with it the assumptions about the current state of the African world. We know all Scripture is given by the inspiration of God and II Timothy 2:15, states to “study to show thyself approved unto to God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” Therefore, the author Yamauchi, shares how we should thank Afrocentric scholars for calling attention to the neglected evidence of significant passages that refer to blacks in both the Old and New Testaments. Ultimately, Afrocentric biblical interpretation is needed considering the contributions of
Although this verse attempts to show the equality of women on the spiratual path, there
... a merely a reflection of Hebrew society of the time (Stanton). Jesus Christ, being a reformer, should have improved the status of women with his message of love and acceptance. However, there is no denying that the stigma is carried with women into the present day. Women’s position in society can be greatly attributed to their depiction in religious text. Holy word is still a factor in making women more susceptible, more culpable, and more sinful an impure than men. Even as women move up in the social order, religion is timeless and ever bearing on the struggle women fight for sexual equality.