Conclusion

Throughout this portfolio, I have demonstrated the effects of sexism upon our society, as strongly influenced by my viewpoint as a transsexual woman. The one thing that stood out most of all was the use of fear: fear to keep institutions in place, fear to make victims stay quiet, fear to keep all women down. It’s a powerful emotion, and its no wonder that societal patriarchy chose it as its basis: it convinces us that there’s nothing to be done about sexism, and that doing so will only make us further powerless over our own lives.

To destroy patriarchal structures, we must destroy the notion that femininity is weak, lesser than, or inferior to masculinity. This can only be fully achieved, as I believe as a transfeminist, by additionally breaking down the notions that female and male are “opposite” sexes, that femininity and masculinity are nonoverlapping and wholly distinct categories of behavior, and that these are natural categories imparted upon us by our biological history.

Over this semester, I’ve learned the distinct power of media and popular culture to shape our socialized views of gender and sex in such deep ways that we cannot even truly imagine all of its facets. You are not immune to propaganda, nor am I, and the propaganda of gendered sexism is so deeply ingrained in our media system that it simply exists by default—it is only through active, concentrated effort that we may drive it out. This is not an easy task, and there are many who wish to perform the exact opposite transformation. However, this is no reason to lose hope: after all, the progress that feminism brought over the past century has transformed the daily lives of everybody in America. It is a slow, painful battle for a slightly better life, but it is one that we may live every day.

The recent election has scared many women, myself included, about losing our progress. Throughout these artifacts, however, I highlight that the fear brought by this reactionary movement is the goal, and thus we cannot let it paralyze us. It is a hard time to be a feminist, but it is also a crucial time to be a feminist. Without feminist, we could never undo the cruel work of sexism. With feminism, we have a chance. I believe it is a chance worth taking.

Thank you for this class. I found it to be by far my favorite this semester, and the class discussions felt truly productive throughout the semester. The only thing I would like to see a little more of is connecting the theory to student’s lives—there were many points where I felt concepts were understood by the class, but maybe not quite internalized (particularly ironic was when we discussed the third person effect, and a few students immediately claimed to be immune to it). I’m sure I’m not exempt from this as well, and I’d genuinely love to get called out on it. Thank you again, and I hope you have a great winter break!

Conclusion word count: 506 words

Total portfolio word count: 5840 words