Matrix Of Domination

453 Words1 Page
bulb-icon

Recommended: Inequality and social injustice

The Matrix of Domination and Identity Politics
The term Matrix of Domination is a sociological theory that was introduced by Patricia Hill Collins. She introduced the theory during the academic movement that arose from women's activism in the 1960’s and 1970’s. (Devault, n.d.). She thoroughly explains the multiple levels of oppression and connects issues of race, gender and class and differentiates how each is linked to a system of privilege or domination. Other forms of classification applied to the matrix of domination include, age, religion and sexual orientation. (Varghese, 2013). As stated by Devault (n.d.),“Her project locates lived experiences of oppression within the social contexts that produce the experiences”.
Domination can be experienced many ways and various challenges can be presented. As mentioned by Varghese (2013), challenges differ in which one obstacle, such as race, may overlap with other sociological features. Socioeconomic status, varying geography and simply, era, can contribute to the multitude of effects on individual experiences with things such as sex, age and race. As Patricia Hill Collins stated in her theory, based on one’s social location, a person can be oppressed in some ways and privileged in others, and for every act of oppression there is an interconnected act of domination. (Varghese, 2013). Ultimately …show more content…

Therefore, a diversity of lived experience of oppression can be represented and shared to form a coalition with members of the majority. This level of individual consciousness can be considered a response to domination and is a fundamental area where knowledge can influence interests and perspectives of social groups with which people identify and ultimately generate change. ('Identity Politics' Address Real Problems of Discrimination. (2016). As Smith (2017)

Show More
Related

  • 8th Fire: Indigenous in the City Analysis: One Step Forward, One Step Back

    1576 Words  | 4 Pages

    Ruth, Seán. “Theories of Internalized Oppression.” Leadership and Liberation: A Psychological Approach. London: Routledge, 2006. 155-173. Print.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Jean Baker Miller's 'Domination And Subordination'

    2116 Words  | 5 Pages

    Temporary inequality exists as a means of “improving” a subordinate to the level of a dominant. After the period of inequality is over, the two view each other as equals. The other form of inequality, permanent inequality, exists solely because of an ascription of inferiority to a subordinate that is inherent and unchangeable. Unlike temporary inequality, there is no possibility of improvement for the subordinate; they are, in the eyes of the dominant, inferior and impossible to “fix.” The dominants, who view themselves naturally superior to the subordinates, begin to take advantage of the subordinates. “Out of the total range of human possibilities, the activities most highly valued in any particular culture will tend to be enclosed within the domain of the dominant group; less valued functions are relegated to the subordinates” (Rothenberg, 112). Moreover, the subordinates, who by this point are under the total control of the dominant group, may begin to internalize the value of the dominants. “[Subordinates’] incapacities are ascribed to innate defects or deficiencies of mind or body…More importantly, subordinates themselves can come to find it difficult to believe in their own ability” (112). This theory of domination and subordination are clearly mirrored in race relations in the United States. Whites, who are the dominant group, make all of the fallacious errors involved in race-based thinking; they are prone to, like Miller describes, hoarding superior roles in society and practicing systematic cruelty towards the subordinates due to their sincere belief that the subordinates are inherently incapable of rising to the level of the dominant. This internalized belief on the part of the dominants, that the subordinates

    Read More

  • Dena Samuel's Matrix Model Of Oppression And Privilege

    1409 Words  | 3 Pages

    Today in the United States of America people are both privileged and oppressed based on their diversity markers and social locations. These advantages and disadvantages are put in place by the people whom are in power, or otherwise known as the government and other leading officials. This is a major issue in today’s society that often tends to be masked by the many other issues within the country as well as by the privileged people. Many people who experience privilege tend to believe that privilege and oppression do not exist and that everyone has equal opportunity, but that is not the case privilege and oppression does exist and it can be seen every day in society. After a careful review of Dena Samuel’s “Matrix Model of Oppression and Privilege” I identified myself as rather privileged due to my social and diversity locations on her model.

    Read More

  • Empowering Intersectionality In Yvonne Ridley's How I Came To Love The Veil

    1086 Words  | 3 Pages

    Empowering Intersectionality Intersectionality can be seen in many situations across the world. Oftentimes it is related to assimilation and adaptation, however these situations are not always seen as a force to completely change one’s views. In Yvonne Ridley’s essay How I Came to Love the Veil she explains how her “devastating” situation of captivity by the Taliban altered her views. In Sandra Cisneros’ essay Only Daughter she also explains how intersectionality lead her to believe that her father would no longer accept her.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Charles Murray's Coming Apart: The State Of White America

    1519 Words  | 4 Pages

    This finding affirms that oppression is indeed genuine collective behavior in the sense that it is grounded in processes of social influence and collective coordination of actions…indeed, as argued elsewhere, the present-day hostility toward immigrants appears to be driven primarily by intragroup processes (Smith & Postmes, 2008), and the aims of their oppression consequently have less to do with keeping them down, so much as advancing the positions of particular subgroups within the high-status majority (Postnes, 2009).

    Read More

  • Subordinate Group Paper

    497 Words  | 1 Pages

    Many minority groups describe racism and other forms of discrimination as being more than just prejudiced towards people based on certain characteristics. Prejudice plays a large role in what is considered to be racism, but it also consists of having a dominant position in society and power to institute and take advantage of their racism. This dominant group of people have the most power, the greatest privileges, and what’s considered to be the highest social status. They use their power to provide themselves with (easier) access to resources like housing, education, jobs, food, health, legal protection, and et cetera. On the other hand, the subordinate group of people are singled out for unequal treatment and are regarded as “objects” of collective discrimination. They are provided with inferior education, food, jobs, healthcare and et cetera.

    Read More

  • Canada’s Shame: The Oppression of Aboriginal Women in the Indian Act

    1597 Words  | 4 Pages

    Oppression is not always brought on in a violent and oppositional way, it can take on a peaceful and silent form; however regardless of the way oppression is introduced, it maintains the same characteristics of “imposing belief systems, values, laws and ways of ...

    Read More

  • Oppression In Assata

    1422 Words  | 3 Pages

    Oppression disguises itself in various spheres, including Black womanhood. This classification includes societal pressures of Black women to conform to Eurocentric values, such as in beauty, gender, and families. The standard of European beauty is imposed on Black women, in which they feel subjected

    Read More

  • The Intersections Of Race, Class And Gender In The Anti-Racist Discourse Analysis

    1379 Words  | 3 Pages

    The author argues that in order for oppression to be vitally explored, the factors that create oppression must be realized. Oppression gives material advantage to the oppressor. "All social relations have material consequences". The author argues that all identities must be considered interconnected.

    Read More

  • Stereotypes Of African American Women

    1426 Words  | 3 Pages

    African American women are considered the most disadvantaged group vulnerable to discrimination and harassment. Researchers have concluded that their racial and gender classification may explain their vulnerable position within society, despite the strides these women have made in education, employment, and progressing their families and communities (Chavous et al. 2004; Childs 2005; Hunter 1998; Settles 2006; Wilkins 2012). Most people agree that race and gender categories are explained as the biological differences between individuals in our society; however sociologists understand that race and gender categories are social constructions that are maintained on micro and macro levels. Historically, those in power who control the means of production within a society have imposed race, class, and gender meanings onto the minority population in order to maintain their dominant position and justify the unequal treatment of minority individuals by the divisions of race, class, and gender categories (Collins 2004; Nguyen & Anthony 2014; Settles 2006;).

    Read More

  • Gender Norms: Society's Constructed Privilege System

    1183 Words  | 3 Pages

    This social construction created the system of privilege and oppression. Under the system, “some have advantages in accessing resources while others are disadvantaged by unequal access to right to life and happiness” (44). Privilege

    Read More

  • Critical Race Theory Essay

    1231 Words  | 3 Pages

    In relation to the Critical Race Theory, the idea of the “gap between law, politics, economics, and sociological reality of racialized lives” (Critical Race Theory slides). The critical race theory gives us a guide to analyze privileges and hardships that comes across different races and gender. For example, analyzing how and why a “black” or “indigenous” woman may experience more hardships versus not only a “white” man, but a “white”

    Read More

  • My Social Location

    687 Words  | 2 Pages

    I was once told that our social identities are similar to the lens of glasses, meaning that depending on which social identity we are presenting to society, we view the world differently depending on this ‘lens’. My social identity has given me a unique viewpoint and a special approach to life, in that I have the ability to acknowledge and empathize with the struggles of certain communities, because at one point in time that social inequality has most likely afflicted members of my social group. As for much of history, individuals have been persecuted because they, like me, are members of minority racial groups. My social location has also allowed for me to deeply comprehend the fact that social inequalities are not the result of the individual shortcomings of disadvantaged populations, but an unequal system that has resulted in certain groups being advantaged and certain groups being

    Read More

  • Oppression In Gilgamesh

    683 Words  | 2 Pages

    Oppression; something that has been around since the beginning of time; Mesopotamia. It is a cruel trait that takes advantage of others for the advantage to conquer and attain a goal in one’s life. From one of the first known literary works “The Epic of Gilgamesh” to William Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” Acts 1 and 2, the theme of oppression has been playing out in societies. In relating to these two stories through postcolonial theory we will look at different aspect of oppression. Oppression has shown it is one of a self-sustaining system of power that is used to dis-empower, disregard, silence, enslave and eventually could lead to death.

    Read More

  • Is Everyone Really Equal Analysis

    1334 Words  | 3 Pages

    We live in a world full of many societal issues. The aspects that determine whether one will have a successful or unsuccessful life is due to their characteristics such as race, gender, and social status. In the book Is Everyone Really Equal, Ozlem Sensoy and Robin DiAngelo’s exigence is to express the following issues and to encourage the reader to work upon changing the world through social injustice, oppression, power, and community.

    Read More

More about Matrix Of Domination

Open Document