Blog #13

What do you think of ecofemisnism before you read, and after? Did you have any strong reactions? What do forms of dominance do you see in the world around you? 

            Before looking at the readings my impression of ecofeminism is one of irrelevance. I don’t see much need for distinguishing between genders socially to achieve some sort of environmental realization. I think the more genders and races for that matter are distinguished, the more attention we are bringing to the more we are creating the so called “inequality.” This reminds of our discussion during the spiritual ecology lecture when we got into having male gods and male dominated religions. I have always recognized my God is male; however, I don’t let that define Him. People, who point out the differences, I feel, are looking for them.

            Earth is defined as a woman, mother nature or Gaia. However, I don’t see how this perspective can be used to blame men for the destruction of the planet. The article on Vanadana stated she relates monoculture to male dominance with no support to back those claims and that this makes her an ecofeminist as defined by someone resistant to abuse of women or mother nature. There seems to be no logical progression of thought here and I don’t find their presentation of information very legitimate. I appreciate her work; however the connection seems to have been made with questionable motivations.

            I do agree with part of the article on the green fuse that states ecofeminists believe women should aim for liberation as women. This is similar to an argument I made in an earlier blog about how equality is best reached when people appreciate everyone’s roles, not seek to infiltrate them.

            I definitely see dominance in the world, including between men and women; however, I see the reasoning behind it and approach to solving it often as a fight of point the finger or pushing the blame on someone else. There is certainly dominance in business or across developing and underdeveloped countries. The gender division presented in the Lego video definitely presented a side that seemed to put boys’ creativity and development over girls’. Unfortunately, I saw this as just another example of the unequal appreciation of feminine and masculine tasks. It did seem that the buildings in the girl’s lego world were not as involved, but if they were, what is wrong with a bakery lego building? Are there not bakers in this world? Do they not enjoy their work? Are they not valued in society? Are there not male bakers? Yes, the Hogwarts theme sees great. I love Harry Potter. You certainly don’t have to be a boy to enjoy it and it is upsetting that it is seen as a male product.