Month: February 2020

My interpretation of the picture is the idea that humans only see the end result of a long ongoing and inhumane process. There is a character dressed as a chef cutting up a piece of meat that would look appetizing to most people. However, that piece of meat was a living creature at one point and it went through a lot of pain and suffering until it was killed and put on the dinner table. The way the character is standing and cutting the meat resembles the idea that humans have a lot of power and control over animals instead of thinking that they are equivalent to animals.

Two gendered foods are salad and steak. Steak is associated with men and salad is associated with women. This idea comes from a social construct that has made people believe that men will not eat a salad, or it would be strange for a man to eat a salad. It also can relate to the idea of women being more equal to nature while men are seen as above nature. I found a study that looks at how women are more likely to be vegetarian then men. There are a number of different factors and some of them go back to hundreds or thousands of years ago. Men are most commonly known to be hunters over women. Over time it has molded society and made women more likely to be vegetarian while a lot of men actually kill animals for themselves to eat. Back when hunting and gathering was necessary for survival women would go out and collect plants and herbs for there meal. Another factor is that people associate meat with masculinity, There are all sorts of ways that contribute to not a lot of men being vegetarian (Love and Sulikowski).

Gaard explains the relationship between humans and animals. She starts off the article by talking about a bird in a store that she could see was not getting treated very good and did not get a lot of attention from the owner. She explains that the way humans treat animals can be compared sexism and oppression of women. Animals who are pets, farm animals, zoo animals, have any sort of tie with humans are oppressed in some way. When animals interact with humans their freedom is taken away from them. Gaard states “To be a pet is to have all one’s life decisions controlled by someone else: when and what we eat, how to act, whom to socialize with, whether or not to reproduce. If the situation were offered to humans we’d call it slavery” (Gaard 20). Pets can be treated very well or not treated well at all but either way it does not make it right. Animals should not be in captivity they are meant to be in the wild living their own life on their own terms. All pets and other animals that are confined by humans do not get to experience that choice. Gaard mentioned the bird at the beginning because that bird lives a controlled life in captivity but also explains this idea of the power humans have or at least believe they have over animals. Curtin focuses on this idea of moral vegetarianism. This considers that if necessary humans can kill an animal for food, but if it is not necessary then humans should find other options. There are many other forms of food and in the United States especially people have access to these other foods. Factory farm animals endure so much pain and suffering to then be killed for a human to have for a meal. Curtain explains that if you are lost and starving you can kill an animal and eat it, but if that is not the case then find something else to eat. When men choose to be moral vegetarians they are choosing to support women in their attempts to protect animal rights.

I found website “the kill clock” to be very disturbing. I think humans have managed to cover up a lot of what really happens in farming factories. I think people are not educated enough on what animals endure because I know that I am always learning new things. If what happened behind the scenes was revealed to more people I think a lot could be changed. Humans have created an industry that is brutal and disturbing, and billions of animals should not have to experience that.

 

Love, Hamish J, and Danielle Sulikowski. “Of Meat and Men: Sex Differences in Implicit and Explicit Attitudes Toward Meat.” Frontiers in Psychology, Frontiers Media S.A., 20 Apr. 2018,

 

“NEIGHBORHOOD TREEHOUSE.” Jackson Junge Gallery,

The painting attached above can have various different interpretations. However, when I look at it I feel like it really explains who I am as far as my connection with nature and what is around me. I live in a neighborhood in a small town. Behind my house there are very deep woods. I have a mix between secluded and not secluded. My neighborhood is very quiet because there is not a lot of human activity going on except for my other neighbors. This painting is called the neighborhood treehouse. We are all connected to nature but not secluded to only nature. If I want to just be alone and take in nature for what it truly is I can, but if I want to have a social life without going far I can talk to my neighbors. We all live in a community tree. We all have access to nature and the social world. Kingsolver explains how she loves to just be alone in nature and be able to look out for miles and see nothing but untouched earth. It is also clear that the log cabin is very secluded. “On a given day I may walk the half mile down our hollow to the mailbox, hail our neighbors, and exchange a farmer’s evaluation of the weather (terrible; it truly is always either too wet or too dry in these marginal tobacco bottoms). I’ll hear news of a house mysteriously put up for sale, a dog on the loose, or a memorable yard sale” (Kingsolver). It is so secluded that she has to walk very far to even see a person and she never knows about anything going on until she goes and talks to people. I agree with Kingsolver that we need “wildness” because it is a part of the planet that we live on. Whatever is not a part of nature is man-made and has been created as people evolve and develop. Nature allows us to have a better understanding of many different things and it also gives us access to resources. Even if you live in the city you can still form a connection with nature. There is nature all around and your appreciation for it depends on how much you allow yourself to connect with it.

If this is not painting is not considered a landscape, my landscape would have a lot of woods and a few houses. Williams explains that there always needs to be a balance between nature and a community. We must feel connected with nature but our “homework” that he talks about is when we need to transition later on and be connected with society. Nature and society both need to be a part of life and Williams defines this as “bedrock democracy.” Hooks piece explained the connection that black people have with land. She explains that goes back to ancestors. History and the events that have occurred over time like sharecropping for example. She explains her childhood and the impact her grandfather had on her because he was a farmer. Having a sense of the beauty of nature helps you to appreciate it more. People can get caught up with their lives, especially today with all the technology and hardly ever give nature a thought. Part of the appreciation comes from what your parents and grandparents have showed you. The house I live in now is the house I have always lived in and when I was younger my parents would make me go outside every day. I would explore the woods behind my house and always get excited when I would find something that was unfamiliar to me. Even if I was just playing with toys outside it still allows you to feel more connected with nature.

I found an article titled “How Modern Life Became Disconnected from Nature.” This caught my attention because it is obvious that society continues to grow further and further away from nature. This is based on a choice and there are people who connect with nature but there are more who do not. Kesebir and Kesebir start by explaining that there have been studies to prove that nature can keep us healthier. However, the question I wanted to know is why we are disconnected with nature. The authors performed a whole study on this and found that there are many different causes to this. However, the two most prominent ones are urbanization and technology development. People are becoming more dependent on man-made products but there are a lot of natural things in nature that can help us just as well (Kesebir).

Kesebir, Selin, et al. “How Modern Life Became Disconnected from Nature.” Greater Good

 

 

Environmental degradation is this idea that the planet is breaking down due common practices of humans. Anything that humans do that hurts the environment in some way is a type of environmental degradation. Women in the Global South are suffering the consequences of environmental degradation from the poor water supply. The water is not clean, and they do not have easy access to water. Women rely on water for basic hygiene, but in this part of the world the women are the ones who are expected to go out and get water for their families. It is very different from how it is here because there are no pipes running through their house and they do not have the ability to turn on the faucet and have clean water in seconds. Everyone relies on water for hygiene, but women need it for more specific reasons and in the Global South they do not even have a private place to wash up and take care or other personal needs. Based on the interview with Vandana Shiva, she believes that society and the environment are closely linked. People normally care more about their rights and their lives then they do about environmental degradation. However, Shiva is trying to explain that it is also directly affecting us.

There are quite a few similarities to the views that Hobgood-Oster have and the views that Agarwal have. Agarwal talks how women and nature are viewed as equal and they are below men. Men have been thought to have more power over nature, but also women. Hobgood also mentions this by explaining the typical social hierarchy and because men have this idea that they are above women it also puts them above nature. However, Hobgood explains his views by taking a more philosophical approach and it is not as apparent with the views that Agarwal has. Warren focused a lot on making connections between different ideas. The different connections helped to understand the different approaches that can be taken and the different ecofeminist views. Agarwal mentions environmental degradation and the effect that has on everyone. She even draws in some points that Shiva talked about and compares her views. She also explains the different factors that play into this environmental crisis that can be eye-opening. Population growth for example has become a major problem. The human population is growing the fastest while other species are becoming endangered or extinct. Environmental degradation is hurting all the species in some way.

I found Agarwal’s perspective more interesting. Environmental degradation has always been something I have been curious about. There are so many things that can factor into it and everything humans do, especially humans in first world countries contributes to environmental degradation. Like Vandana Shiva said the people in the third world countries are suffering the most, however it is the people in the first world countries who are causing most of these problems.

 

 

“Ecofeminism ⋆Commonspolis.” Commonspolis, 11 Nov. 1970,

The picture attached above is a great representation of ecofeminism. If you stop and look at all the details in that piece you will start to put it all together and understand what the artist was trying to portray. The girl on the bike is colorful and so is the bike while everything else is grey and black. I believe the purpose of this was to show the positive impact women can have on the environment. She looks happy, she is singing, and she is on a bike. The bike is purple and the cars in the background are black. Riding a bike is an eco-friendlier option versus driving a car. Her hair is green and that is a color that is brought to mind when you think of the environment. This piece is giving the girl the recognition that she can have a relationship with nature without destroying it. It also ties into Warren and Hobgood-Oster’s readings because we can see that she feels like she has freedom just by how her stance is and she is not letting the views of others and oppression stop her. It is important to be able to identify ecofeminism in different ways and one way is through art.

Hobgood- Oster gives the historical background of ecofeminism and how it first came to be. Ecofeminism focuses on the relationship between women and nature, but there are so many different views and directions that are seen in ecofeminism. At the core it takes into consideration feminist views and their views on the environment and nature. Humans are a major part of the environment and in many ways, humans are the result of why the ecosystem is in the condition that it is currently in. As technology grows and develops it but the environment more at risk, but this been an issue for decades. Ecofeminist try to explain that they have not always been given opportunities to protect nature and men have had more of a negative impact on the environment. One major idea that Hobgood- Oster focuses on is oppression and how women have always been underneath men. They do not always get enough credit, but it has been brought about that men may have more of a negative impact on nature then women. However, ecofeminism tries to shut out hierarchy’s because women, men and nature can all be placed together on the same level. Many other issues the racism and differences in religion can also factor into this. Who we are and what believe plays a role in this. It forces us to have different views about the world.

Karen Warren identifies eight different connections between women and nature. The one that stood out to me the most was the fourth connection “symbolic connections.” This draws upon the idea that ecofeminism can be represented in a number of ways and the four that are mentioned are religion, theology, art, and literature. Previously I explained that piece with the girl on the bike. That piece was a clear symbol and representation of ecofeminist views. Allowing people to see these types of things can give them an understanding that women do have a connection to nature. They can be compared to a piece of nature just as a piece of nature can be compared to a woman and it is not meant to be insulting. These eight connections all give us a better understanding of ecofeminism, but I think this one encourages you to think more and allows you to see different stand point.