Re: reference

Katherine Goff (Katherine_Goff who-is-at ceo.cudenver.edu)
Tue, 24 Nov 1998 10:38:35 -0700

Judy writes:
>The inclination to do differently, to engage with 'difference', to
>"hear"/ orient to the non-dominant perspective -- the key here
>is ENGAGEMENT. [For an administrator, the _prospect_ of engaging
>what is Different probably IS an either-or matter. Prospective
>candidates are stamped "deficient" or "competitive"; those
>who are competitive are either IN or OUT, etc. But actual engagement
>- interpersonal meaning-making -- is the suspension, it seems to me,
>of just this power to decide the fate of another.
>Engagement projects the frame that both participants are "in"
>(we are both part of this story)

i think barrie thorne comes close to capturing the complexity of face to
face interactions in her book, _gender play_. she writes that once she
gave up trying to categorize children's behaviors as either female or
male, she realized that she had been glossing over lots of exceptions;
many events where girls behaved in ways that are commonly labeled as boy
behavior and visa versa. in some contexts this "gender crossing" would go
unnoticed, in others the child would be teased or rebuked. but everyone
supported the categories.

unfortunately, thorne does not go into detail about her engagement with
the children or her process of coming to this insight.

but then, people on academic editorial boards still seem reluctant to
accept writing that is not clean, smooth, and impersonal. they want
"success stories."

kathie

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
life's backwards,
life's backwards,
people, turn around.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^sinead o'connor and john reynolds
fire on babylon: universal mother^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Katherine_Goff who-is-at ceo.cudenver.edu
http://ceo.cudenver.edu/~katherine_goff/index.html