Sunday, July 1, 2012

Blog Post 2: The Science of Objectification

Tracy Clark-Flory's article, "The Science of Objectification", from Salon.com explores the notion of how and why viewing the naked body (the naked body of women, in particular) creates an objectification of the subject being viewed. Traditional beliefs would have us come to the understanding that this objectification is of a sexual nature, but Clark-Flory explains that recent studies have proven otherwise. The study in question, “More Than a Body: Mind Perception and the Nature of Objectification,” done University of Maryland clearly illustrates that although the amount of skin shown does in fact alter someone's perception of another person, this perception is not in fact as cruel as a complete objectification and, as fittingly stated by researcher Kurt Gray, " 'the wholesale stripping away of mind' (in other words, viewing someone as a mindless sex object)". Instead, the study concludes that this changed perception occurring in the viewing of these naked bodies creates the individuals as “beings who are less capable of thinking or reasoning but who may be even more capable of desires, sensations, emotions, and passions”. This of course doesn't go to say that blatantly sexual nude presentations (such as pornography, sex scenes in films, or sexy music videos) would not elicit a sexual objectification of sorts.

This article was of particular interest to me because I am a psychology major, and of course, because I am a woman. It is interesting to see scientific studies being done regarding a topic that has undoubtedly been an issue for ALL women since Eve was parading around the Garden of Eden in her leaf-kini. However, the main reason I chose this article is because the writer managed to maintain an objective and clear stance on the issue at hand-simply stating facts and citing credible sources. That kind of approach to current event writing is commendable. Clark-Flory even dedicates an entire paragraph to why she believes that women are not the only people who are capable of being objectified by the opposite sex.

RHETORICAL STRATEGIES:

1. Logos: The writer clearly establishes a pattern of easy-to-follow reasoning by presenting excerpts from the actual study being discussed, and also by drawing on quotations from one of the study's researchers, Kurt Gray.

2. Ethos: The discussion of the objectification of women is undoubtedly a hot topic for about half (assuming numbers are equal) of all readership-women. Yet by adding in the paragraph about how that objectification is not necessarily limited to women, Clark-Flory secures the attention of her male readership as well. The psychology of human nature is interesting in that nearly all people require the attention and approval of their fellow human beings. The danger of this supposed objectification is that the approval and attention is either negative or non-existent. That enough can arouse (pun intended) discontent among affected readers. Which in this case, would be anyone...human.

3. Allusion: The writer begins the piece by alluding to Sharon Bialek, the well known accuser of Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain. This allusion is well placed to draw the attention of the reader to the article. Considering the expected readership of an article place on Salon.com, the author (correctly) assumes the reader will understand the reference.

4. Imagery: Beginning with the introduction paragraph where the writer describes Bialek's "demure, long-sleeved black dress", there is undoubtedly a vision created in which the story can be shown instead of told. The writer continues to use this imagery when describing the source of the presumed objectification of the naked body, when stating that the "birthday suit as having less agency than, say, someone in a business suit".

5. Tone: I believe the tone of this article created a sense of importance without sounding pretentious or opinionated. On such a hot-button topic (basically anything involving sex), it is essential to present facts before opinion. Although this is not a manner in which most current event articles are usually written, the objective stance is actually more an appeal to authority-the reader is convinced of the writer's credibility on the topic without assuming that the piece is simply written to bribe the reader into seeking the author's viewpoint on a subject.




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