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Blog #4: To "Binary" or not to "Binary" that is the question
In class, we discuss how our realities have been constructed by forces far beyond our control by politics, social norms and mores, gender roles, decorum, etc. When we fall into these binary constructs, how does that impact our identities? Is it possible to live outside of the binary and be socially accepted? How do we straddle the divide and also stay inwardly true to oursevles?
28 comments:
I believe that the binary constructs that monopolitise our society and culture, hugely impact our identities. I feel that we are a people that want to be social and close to other people in some way. We strive to be apart of some sort of group and identify with it to the point that we give up our own identities. This is no different for how these binary constructs affect us as a whole. There are so many things that influence us in thought, faith, belief, and even social acceptance that we mold ourselves around as system that is bent on control and power. If we start to sway or cause ripples then we are looked upon as outcasts.
It is possible to live outside the binary and be accepted but to do so would require a birth in a new popular culture. If an outsider becomes popular and his/her beliefs start to become a fad, then yes, groups of people can live “somewhat” normal lives, excepted by the rest. As a single person, it is extremely tough to live outside the norm and be accepted. Now, our country is becoming very liberal, the newly elected president is proof of this. It wont be long before “outside the norm” and extreme characters become more excepted into our culture.
I believe that we can straddle the divide only if we learn to control our voice and don’t create too many ripples at once. We can be ourselves as long as we live the way the popular social demand wants us to be. If we only cause little ripples and work our ideas and ideals into the main stream slowly, then it may catch on and the liberal culture we life in will slowly accept us as normal, in a different sort of way. Its like water finding a way through a dam, sooner or later it will start to seep over the edges or even find a crack to work its way through, before the hole dang thing comes crashing down.
I agree with Kris that these binary forces construct almost daily habits for us as people living in them. We are so caught up in it, though I believe that its not even possible for us to get away from it. From birth, we are constructed into what these binary factors wants us to be. It is the societies fault for letting the constructs form ourselves. It was not until this class that i was aware of what i have become because of these constructs. I believe that people who are ignorant of the factors will never detach from them.
Also, It is possible to get away from the constructs. I believe the most natural society would be the Amish. They are not affected by Western societies constructs like , clothing, politics. They are not perfectly detached from the constructs because of gender roles and norms but they are close. I do not feel however they are socially accepted for their beliefs.
I believe the only way to detach or straddle the divide would be for society to become aware of it. Teach identity and individuality early and not press gender roles on children. This is a far fetched idea, but for this to happen we need it to be known. With these understandings being pressed earlier in children's lives they can become aware of it and be more true to themselves and create their own identities (not one set up for them already). This would be a great ideology, but for it to happen there would have to be a lot of change.
Human beings are, by nature, communal creatures, who strived to be accepted by others in our social circles. Our societies are created with boundaries and social norms, which force us into certain identities, without our own control. Although many of us would like to believe that our identities are not controlled by these aspects of society, they really are, and there is nothing we can do to stop it. There are people in our society who think they do not conform to social norms, but in some aspect they still do, no matter now much they would like to deny it. Religion, politics, social class, family values, and many others, will always be apart of our society, and will always have influence on who we are, and who we will evolve into. These binary constructs have always excited, and will continue to exist in our social communities.
I believe every single one of us will agree that we have fallen into such binaries, particularly in our youth years while growing up with our families. How many of us know of a friend whose parents (or even our own) that tried to sculpt their children into miniature versions of themselves? To a parent who has had much success in their life, they may want their child to follow the same path, whether it is in career, or simply lifestyle. Religion, gender roles, and personality are all social factors which I strongly find to be associated with and modeled by such surroundings. Not to dwell on the negative, but I also have found countless situations in which people will be trapped within such a binary. Especially with this recent election, I thought about all of my friends and peers who would talk about their political views, and it was amazing to see how many of them had come from a different background than the party whom they were voting for. Some of this was a pleasure for me to hear, as I always tend to follow my own message of “stray from convenience.” Far too many people are willing to live by the views their family has, when if you look at our generation, we are far more educated and informed (if we put ourselves out there to learn it) than most of those whose views we tend to follow. If any of you have taken classes in Social Psychology or Sociology, you know that these are the types of constructs which BREED ignorance. I also realize it is easier said than done if you ever needed to go against everything you believed in while growing up, as I have done it myself when straying from the Catholic religion. [Note: I respect anyone who has a strong religious faith, it is just not my cup of tea.] Probably the best manner to go about straddling the divide would be to stay informed and be confident, as this is your own life choice, and you are the one who controls it. Surrounding yourself with those who are open-minded and supportive, such as close friends, is an ideal group. As long as you are truly happy with such decisions, then that is all the excuse you need to live your life as you desire.
I think that it is inevitable that everyone will fall into some kind of binary. Even if we try to live outside the binary, in a sense that too is a binary. That can be seen as a binary directed towards rebellion. I think our identities are impacted by what is popular within the binary. We do what we are told to do and wear what we are told to wear. Even if we try to be ourselves and straddle the divide, we are still some how attached to a binary.
This is a tough question to deal with different binaries and still be able to be in the groups that all of us still want to fit into. With each individual person, there are different binaries from what they do to what they believe in to how they social and live. I believe that this heavily impacts ourselves as part of who we are. At times I believe that it is possible to live outside of these binary lines that we have created in our lives. People sometimes give off two different personalities almost like a Dr. Jackal and Mr. Hyde where a person can act one way around one group of people and a completely different way around a different group of people. This line is possible to be straddled, the only question posed is that if the individual is capable of living these two or more different lives around each different group and if they are OK with it.
~Matthew Beucker
Our society is dynamic because humans are dynamic. The varied binary constructs people belong to help form and reinforce the multiple identities that become the full self of each individual. Because the side of our "self" we show in one binary may be very different from that which we show in another, we are often on the divide, which I don't see as a bad thing. For most people, these multiple identities are socially acceptable. Some people have or choose to adopt identities far from social norms; and are seen as deviants. It seems that it may be common for these people to hid that identity to continue to straddle the divide. Some push for this identity or subculture to be accepted by society to achieve the same effect.
I agree with what Jason Gouldner said about a binary of rebellion. It seems that these have become the most common binaries in our society, because our society often recycles actual rebellion into a rebellion or movement that can be purchased, worn, or turned into a slogan. Ayn Rand once said: "There is a level of cowardice lower than that of the conformist: the fashionable non-conformist." I agree.
As I enter a situation where I am forced to act acceptable toward one party or the other, I am mentally fractured. If the situation proposes a question or behavior contrary to the environment and morals that I was raised in, I can sometimes feel torn between the two. On one hand, maybe I want to experience this new social phenoma? Maybe the situtation triggers a question of doubt about my life or environment and I am intrigued to know more about it. After all, I believe that the only way to truly know your own personal position on many different levels is to have researched the other side of the fence. However, should I abandon a new experience solely based upon the fact that it is against my upbringing or social norm? I consider myself to be someone who lives out of the binary. Although not always accepted by one side or the other, I find stabilization with myself when I construct my own identity based on my own experiences. I agree that my decisions are definitely affected by the way that I was raised, but I try my best to be unbiased toward the binary poles.
Agreeing with my other peers, it is human nature to be impacted by different binary constructs. It is sometimes totally out of our control as to how we react to them. For most, the biggest construct is that of the family. For at least 18 years of one’s life, they are led to believe everything that is said, done, explained and explored around them. This not only encompasses the family life at home, but how the family acts in public and with other people. A child brought up in a Judeo-Christian home in a rural setting will have a much different identity than that of a Muslim child brought up in a urban or city setting. Often times these settings and roles lead to a sheltered and sometimes ignorant way of life.
The Judeo-Christian child, at age 18, may want to attend an inner-city university to obtain a college degree. The parents of this child, who stereotypically never attended college, would most likely frown upon this and want nothing to do with such a plan. In turn, the Muslim child decides, even though the family worked hard to obtain all that they have in a city setting in the United States, that they want to travel back to their country of origin and trace their roots. While both ideas are stereotypical and somewhat extreme, it still portrays the same idea.
Many individuals that are brought up a certain way feel that they must continue that way of life because they feel obligated and they would not be accepted otherwise. Some are gutsy and stray from their instilled social norms. To some, this is unacceptable, but to many in today’s society, it indeed enhances their identity.
Great reflections- it is not easy to reconcile the split between the binary and the nonbinary. It is up to the individual's beliefs to make meaning of how s/he can exist in world where parody doesn't seem to exist.
Our identities are made up of so many unconscious forces. Society plays a huge part in who we become; more so than what we think. Sure, we're all born with certain parts of our personality embedded into us already - but those who surround us really makes an impact in who we become. You may act one way around one person and then act completely different around another - all because of socially accepted reasons. These reasons are sometimes in our control and at other times they are not in our control. Sure, we try to live outside of binary constructions but in the long run, you're going to revert back to the person society has molded you into. As you grow up, you decide who you want to surround yourself with, in society. You find people who bring your true-self out - people who you feel comfortable with. You go through life learning from others, experiencing different social forces until you know where you stand.
I may be a bit biased in my answer because I'm a sociology major and truly feel that people are who they are because of society.
I believe with all the reflections posted above. Unfortunately, many people mold into what is socially accepted within our world. If people do not, most people are not socially accepted. I believe one of our personal goals in life should be to find ourselves, and become true to our personality. We strive to find our own identity but we are influenced by our family and friends that surround us. These people impact our dress, goals in life, attitude, and other aspects.
After reading everyone's posts so far, I think we all agress on one thing..everybody wants to be accepted by someone or something. Although everybody is different, there is someone or something that relate to another. Personally, I think it is more subconcious to fall into binaries because it's human nature to want to be accepted. I see nothing wrong with somebody falling into certain binaries as long as they are happy and content with their lives. If a person strives their entire life to follow and fit in, how could they have any time to truly be happy?
I think it is definitely possible to live outside of the binary because if people didn't, new trends and pop cultures would never emerge. Straddling the divide could either cause conflict, or just begin a new and exciting pop culture.
It seems that almost everyone agrees that we do conflict with the binary constructs. It is true that we want to be accepted. I think that it would be hard for me to feel rejected. However, I know who I am and where I come from. Therefore, I guess the situation really should not really matter.
I think that it could be possible to straddle the divide. However, I feel that it needs to be taught at a young age. Children and Youth need to be able to express themselves and not feel to be conformed to one way or another. As long as the individual is happy, then nothing should matter.
this is a tough question i must say to answer and understand. But i must agree with what some people are saying that we will eventually fall into one of the binary's. I think that if we wanted to feel accepted then most of us will just fall into one of these binary's just so our identity doesn't destabilize because we aren't accepted. Me personally i believe that when i am here at school i act differently then i do at home, i have started to notice this a lot when i sit down and think about it. I believe it is possible to live outside the binary but would be hard to do so and to be socially accepted.
When we fall into binary constructs, our identities are forced to adapt at times. There are many forces in society that we have no control over. The ideas of others are forced on us and we react accordingly. This doesn't mean we can't stay true to our identities but it puts a stress on the person. As said before, we as social beings want and desire the need to feel accpeted. At times we may go against our morals and values in order to feel "wanted" or "liked". To an extent you may be able to live outside the binary. However, this makes it more difficult on the individual and they will have to be willing to accpet that fact. We can straddle the divide by keeping an open mind to others, listening but not neccessarily believing everything we hear, and remembering who we are and making decisions accordingly.
Everyone wants to be accepted in our society. So to be accepted we fall into these binary constructs along with most people and start to forms our identities based on these contructs. Sometimes we are forced into these identities because the people around us are in those constructs and we want to be like them. Some of the constructs we get into are simply because the people around us are in them and we dont want to feel left out. It is possible to live outside the binary and be accepted, but it is not easy. Chances are you are in some way in a construct and it is hard not to fit into one in today's society. Everyone believes in something abd it shapes our identities. Your surroundings determine much of who you are going to be. If you live in a religous surrounding, chances are you will be religous. The same is true with politics, family values, etc. What you are brought up to believe by the people around you will shape your identity. If you have a strong personality though your beliefs will stay your beliefs and you wont be as much influenced by the outside world. Just stay true to yourself by having a belief in something that triggers emotion in you and stick with that. Controlling our identity is many times out of our reach but you can still do it because ultimatley you have the choice to be what you want.
I do not feel that it is possible to live outside the binary and be socially accepted. Someone will always judge you. This is the reason hate crimes exist. It is so hard to be different than your friends and family. If I do something my parents don't feel is right, I can tell they are upset with me and this makes me do things their way. Many people think their different from everyone else and they think they're being "themselves" if they dress a certain way but they really aren't that different. There are always going to be those groups of people who think they're different (i.e. goths, punks, etc...) but how are they different than the people they're in the group with? I guess maybe everyone has something that makes them different but some people probably don't even realize what that something is.
I agree with Jason in that it is inevitable that everyone will fall into some kind of binary. I believe that we are a product of our environment, and that especially early on in a child’s life has the most impact. Our parents mold us in a way to match them, or even be harder on the child to make them even better. What we were allowed to watch on TV, how late we can stay out at night, when we had to do are homework, saying yes ma’am or yes sir, are all examples of how our environment molds who we are. I believe the only way we live outside of this binary is when we are forced into situations like prison, or another country. We try to hold onto our identity but can be forced into something you’re not.
The big picture of social norms and the "Binary" that we are surrounded by in the culture that seems to engulf us on a daily basis doesn't have to be the normal for us as individuals. I come from a small town where farms often surround houses and forests paint the horizon nearly every direction. The norm for those who grow up in this ares differs very much from those in Indiana and on the IUP campus, despite being only fifteen miles away. I believe that it is important to remain true to ourselves and our personal and local norms and in one sense our own binary that have molded us to become who we are, regardless of how we fit into society. However, though we are very influenced and shaped by our own surroundings and binary constructs, we need to be open to hear what other cultural sections have to say. Not only do we have to be open to hear them and understand that we are different to simply become more educated as to how other cultures work, but also to be sensitive to what others believe and how they react to their own personal and world-wide binary constructs.
I would love to think that I could live without the binary constructs of society, but I am not sure that anyone can. We talked about how there is not original anymore, it is taking to parts of something and putting them together. Therefore everything is impacted by something or someone. As we sit and do homework, we look at what type of computer we are using, is it mac or a pc? Are their brand names on the clothing one is wearing? Kris suggests that it is possible to live outside but it would require a new popular culture. But, would that culture form constructs of this own? I would think that it would. I was not very aware of my own identity and have recently experienced many events that shook me and asked me to look at myself and discover who that really is. I would like to think that I did not let binary constructs impact me, but i believe they have. Looking at ones matrix shows what is impacting them, those factors can change and so does the person. The thought of living without those constructs is wonderful, I am just not positive that it can happen.
I think that these forces affecting our lives facilitate our constructions of out identities. When chldren grow into adolescence, they are confronted with the decisions that will shape their identities. Decisions like who to sit with at lunch, what kind of clothes to wear, and what type of music to listen to. Their gender, race, and economic standings force them into the lifestyle society decides for them.
Being aware of who you are today and what affected your journey there is the only way to straddle the binary divide. It allows you to see opposing viewpoints and the value they have. Some people can only see issues in terms of black and white. It's either right or its wrong. They need to look at how they got to be the people they and understand who constructed their identities.
When we think about binary constructs we must always think about the factors of these constructs. Constructs exist because the law exists; these do's and don'ts of popular culture are limited and restricted because the holders of the law allow them. Think about how many people follow gang related activities because the activities are outside of the constructs of society. These are the reasons that these actions take place in the first place. If it was not deemed inappropriate to kill or steal then gangs would not have it. The same goes for other less extreme constructs such as simply dressing the part for followers of different forms of music. Some are deemed as posers just because they don't dress "punk" when they listen to punk music. So this means that the influences and favorites of your life are supposed to control you. False!!! I believe that we can live outside the constructs and do not have adhere our lives nor our identities to match the craze that society has created.
I believe that it is possible to live outside the binary and be socially accepted. For example, one of the characters in SLC Punk did not dress or look like the “norm” of punk, but this character was socially accepted for being okay with the group. I do not think it is the clothes or the atmosphere that makes a group what it is. I believe that a personality is all mental. A person can look one way, but feel a completely different way.
Growing up, my brother enjoyed skateboarding. He was not the best at it, but he always tried. As he got more into the lifestyle of skating, he began to dress in “skater” clothing. He eventually dropped skateboarding, but continued to dress as a “skater”. He was called poser by other skaters. They thought he did not have the right to dress their way, if he was not a skater himself. I think this is stupid. I do not feel a person has to be something to dress that way.
I think it is possible to straddle the line between being true to yourself and others. For example, there is a saying, “I’m gonna do me and you do you”. I believe if everyone is okay with themselves, they should be okay with how other people are.
All of these binary constructs impact our identities especially family and growing up and going to public school. I believe when growing up with your family you fall into what ever your family believes and the school you attend has a huge impact on who u are. I know going to the school I did it was a huge change coming up to IUP and seeing so many diverse people because my HS was 99.9% white and it was very interesting coming out of my shell and meeting so many new people and so many different ethnic backgrounds. I do believe people can live outside but I believe it is very hard and harsh living outside the socially accepted when your young in middleschool and high school.
I do try to stay true to myself and what i believe i sometimes feel like i'm on the ouside of the socially accepted in college when it comes to smoking. but I stay true to myself and i tell people i hate smoking and i dont like when people do it around me but when i first came to college everyone smoked it was awful and so disgusting i'm so glad that i have noticed a lot of people stopping and less people doing it.
This question made me puzzled. I realize I get influence by peers or others when placed in a certain situation; however, that is a daily thing for most so I don’t really think about it. I agree with almost everyone for this question. I also believe society plays a role on our binaries. I believe when we are impacted by a binary construct that it impacts our identities a lot. For example, growing up I was a different person when around my family and then when I was with my friends I would let loose. It wasn’t that I didn’t feel comfortable enough being myself around my family, its just some things parents don’t need to know about. I believe it is possible to live outside the binary and be socially accepted. Unique people I feel are living outside of the binary, so they are the ones setting the trends for what others what to be. I agree with Meg in when she said our identities are made up of so many conscious acts. I know I am guilty of acting a certain way and not even realizing I acted that way. Since many of us grew up in loving families, I believe we don’t realize sometimes when we fall into these binary constructs. I am not sure how one can straddle the divide and stay true to themselves. I guess to answer this; the person must take into consideration that not everyone is going to accept them for who they are. People have to trust themselves and be able to accept who they are. Meaning, if they stick to their beliefs for the most part I believe they will be able to straddle the divide. I once heard the saying humans are like plastic, we are able to handle almost anything and be flexible.
I think that the binary concept is an interesting way of viewing a certain identity/reality. From the time that we are born, our parents raise us in a binary. If in fact we step outside this binary, we take risks of dissociating ourselves from certain aspects of society.I think that it is possible to remove ourselves from a binary, but that in turn will result is us making a new binary. This concept is probably not a successful one. It is always easier to be the person that your parents raised you to be, but sometimes it is worth stepping outside the box to find out who you really are.
We are constantly being influenced from our birth up until our dying day. It can be from the smallest of things (such as what to have for dinner) to life-changing decisions (like having a sex change). Going out of the binary is/can be considered barbaric by society, family and friends. Though, while there are people out in the world who are not binary, it is an incredible weight/burden to carry. To be completly "isolated" from society is something I do not think I could do (by myself). To those who are outside of the binary, have my utmost respect and sincerity.
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