new book

my husband suggested i read a chapter in charlene spretnak's states of grace, entitled

embracing the body
on honoring the personal body and the earthbody: the wisdom of goddess spirituality

i know the following is a long quote from her, but i really like it and it ties in well with my current thoughts on my dissertation:

social structures and attitudes in our society draw legitimacy from the central assumptions of western religion and philosophy. creativity in the universe, ultimate mystery, the divine--all are symbolized by the distant father-god, ruling in transcendence far above earth's realm of blood, mud, birth, and death. the goal of most western spirituality has been to transcend nature and the flesh (which meant primarily man's escaping the "lure" of woman's flesh). western philosophy, following pythagoreans, identified man with mind, subjectivity, determinate form (substance), and potential transcendence. it has identified woman with body, passivity, indeterminate and disorderly form (process), and "dumb" matter. throughout the history of western philosophy, three vital concerns of men raise in patriarchal culture continually appear: separateness, reactive (defensive) autonomy, and control. what is accorded value is that which is situated within the bounds of "reason," a mode of cognition that disallows gestalt sensibilities, feelings, or subtle perceptions called intuitions.

patriarchal socialization shapes the consciousness of both sexes, not with uniform results among individuals, of course, but with an informing orientation. in general, women raised under patriarchy received the message from myriad sources that we have the wrong body to be taken seriously in matters of culture, commerce, medicine, government, and so forth. "feminine nature" is found wanting by the dominant culture; hence insecurity abounds. even within the delineations of patriarchally approved presentations of the female body, cultural messages tell woman she is inadequate--in need of bound feet or high heels, corsets, padded bras, dyed hair, and even plastic surgery. depression, fear, self-loathing are common psychological themes for women raise under patriarchy. for men raised in such societies, the informing obsession is to be "not-woman"--not emotionally invested in relationships, not "vulnerable" through empathy, not weak in physicality (especially upper body strength), not docile. autonomy is the goal, and there is great pressure to distinguish oneself from the pack. life is often experiences as competitive, atomized, and alienating. cultural messages tell man that his body is somehow treacherous, issuing form a woman's vagina only to eventually cause his death by breaking down and failing. rage, fear, and loneliness are common psychological themes for men raised under patriarchy; detachment from feelings is the acceptable coping strategy.

i'm going to really spend some time on this chapter because i think there is more here for my dissertation. the more that i read about gender studies the more i like it. i think that's a good sign. :)