Band of Sisters: Women in the Military - Essay Example

?Band of Sisters: Women in the Military The modern world finds women employed. This proves that women have the same skills and capabilities that men have. Women can also change tires, drive cars and lead a team or a department. And now women have proven once again that they cannot be limited to the damsel in distress role or the giver of life role. If women can give life, they can also take life. Women are now being accepted in the military service indicating the change in the social structure. But it is not an easy feat. Although women are being accepted in the field of what was believed to fit males only, there is still discrimination. The good news is there is a continuous movement towards eliminating the inequalities. Titunik explores the misinformed and misguided notion of the military culture (141). She also presents the different feminist view on women’s participation in the military, that there are two sides of the camp, one side questions if it is a good thing that women can join the ranks, the other side thinks of using this as a means to further gender equality (139). Meanwhile, Eberstadt focuses on soldier mothers, which sparked the interest of many because of the Spc. Hutchinson incident. She informs us of the different reactions of the public and the military, from condemning to sympathy. She also suggests the need of giving soldier mothers a balanced option when it comes to service versus motherhood. McSally, on the other hand, focuses on the inconsistencies in the policies and laws within the military culture with regard to equal opportunity and gender norms. Of the articles, it is only Eberstadt that has a more personal approach, which was effective since the topic is a more personal circumstance that happens within the military. Both Titunik and McSally presents facts, the current situation of women in the military. Although all of them suggest action plans to improve the situation and positioning of women in the military, it is only Titunik that explores the feminization of the military and how women positively affect the masculine nature of the military. Making Love, Not War: Creating and Enforcing Sexual Norms for Women and Men in the Military The field of military has always been attributed to men and masculinity. With the increase of women in the field, there has also been an increased effort to understand and to provide equal opportunities between men and women. As women have difficulties in gaining acceptance in the military, so are the homosexual men. While Meyer focuses on how women’s sexuality affects their journey to gaining acceptance in the military, Canaday explores homosexual exclusion from the military. Meyer examines the regulations placed on women for being women. Women are more associated with sexual symbols, and this is what Meyer looks into and what she finds is that there is a major need to reconstruct and reformulate gender and sexual norms in order for women to get rid of the sexual symbol. Canaday, on the other hand, focuses on studying how the GI bill dampened the spirits of the homosexual males who were willing to sacrifice their lives for the country. She presents different stories of homosexual males to understand their situation better. She reveals in her article the biased nature of the laws and bills created and passed for those who want to join the ranks, and of course it is leaning towards the male population. Both articles clearly manifest that we are in great need of a reconstruction of values and norms, not only for women but for all genders. We need to keep up with the changing world and we won’t be able to cope with the changes if we are not opening up to the changes. We will always get stuck with the past, and we won’t succeed at all. War, Gender Crisis and Sexual Anxiety The war does not only bring anxiety over death but it can also create sexual anxiety and more gender problems. Because war exaggerates men’s roles as protectors of women, it becomes a catalyst for outbursts from feminists and the women themselves. The impact of the Cold War is very evident as it continues to mark the delineation between men and women. Lichtman discusses how the home fallout shelter during the Cold War exaggerated even more the gender roles. In camp, even if women were serving same as men, when the fallout shelter was built, women were given the traditional roles of homemaker. She says that even in the changing world, the traditional roles still persist. This means that women did not get rid of their traditional image. What just happened was they adopted more roles. But Cuordileone reveals a different point of view, that men were softened by the war. But in reality, the war threatened all gender differences since both men and women were forced to see things differently and they were forced to adopt unfamiliar roles to survive. Friedman gives even more emphasis on the dichotomy that existed during the post-Cold War era. In relation to Cuodileone’s article, Friedman emphasizes the changing roles of men after the Cold War. She focuses more on the issue of pornography. She discusses different impacts of the Cold War on pornography and the bottom line is that the rights of the citizens were associated more with manhood rights and violent masculinity, including those who are into pornography, would always have racial connotations. She concludes that pornography have emphasized even more the quest of men to establish once again their dominating presence. Sexual Violence in the Military The military culture has always been associated with dominance and the issue of sexual exploitation has always been a part of the controversies surrounding the military culture. History shows that sexual violence is ever present in the military. Traditions like crossing the line, mock rape and barring of homosexuals have been present before and until now, and the most recent one was an image of soldier women engaging in such activities. Kaufman-Osborn tackles the influence of women in such activities when a photograph of a woman soldier was revealed to tie and humiliate and Iraqi prisoner. But the controversy does not focus on whether it was a man or a woman who has done such atrocious things, the issue is the use of military power in engaging in sexual violence. The pictures of women doing the same things as men do when it comes to engaging in sexual violence does not refer to gender equality, it is actually the act that is supposed to be discussed not the individual behaving that way. Hillman also goes into lengths explaining how the military culture has always been masculine in nature, and even if women were the ones dominating men in the field, they are still seen as the inferior gender. Thus, when they engage in sexual violence, the women emphasize their need to become masculine as men. Furthermore, in another article, Hillman presents to us information about soldier women being victims of sexual violence. This happens mostly because the military culture tends to undermine the value of women in the field, or because they believe that even women have gained access to the military culture, they are still the inferior and weaker gender. But even if it is rampant and a well-known issue, it is not regarded as a civilian crime but a military crime, which has different proceedings when in military court. And because it is the military that has done the crime, there is even more confusion as they are the ones who are believed to be bastions of the values of life and control. Gender, Nationhood and Soldiers’ Bodies War brings home dead soldiers. Traditionally, the fallen soldiers when identified are given to their families for burial. But if they were not identified, they are entombed as unknown soldiers. This act is seen as a symbolism of emasculation. Takacs emphasizes the nature of national identity and security as masculine. Feminine traits such as diplomacy, negotiation and compromise prove the gendered hierarchy of values. In the military culture, there is a need to emphasize the masculine values in order to answer the call of war. The fallen soldiers become a symbol of victimization. Takacs uses the event wherein Jessica Lynch’s body was retrieved to prove that her death prompted the public to accept the emasculation of the military culture. The rescue of her body shows the public that a woman in arms would still need to be rescued even in death, this puts a stress on the struggle between feminine and masculine values. Marche, on the other hand, uses the story of Pat Tillman to point out that when soldiers question the current position of the military, they might end up in a friendly crossfire. This indicates that questioning is a feminine trait not tolerated by the culture. Death is part of the war but Allen questions the tradition to bury unnamed and unknown soldiers in the Tomb of the Unknown, that there is a possibility that these unknown soldiers were considered unknown because they were not properly identified. The tomb becomes a symbolism of sealing the injustice and inhumanity done during the war. American cemeteries overseas becomes a controversy, as explained by Robin, because of it was set up for failure. Overseas cemeteries become a symbol of domination, and it shows that even their dead can dominate the living. Gender and War Memory in the United States The memory of war is regarded as a collective memory. This means that not only the soldiers who were part of the war remember the war but everyone else too. This is emphasized by memorials. And gendered values play a role in these war memories as they determine how the collective memory is being accepted. Memorials are the same as photographs. They make us remember. These memorials also symbolize national identity. As discussed by Biesecker, the reconstruction of the past functions as lessons of national identity. They emphasize the need of the nation to become one in realizing a connection with one’s country. Biesecker suggests that the purpose of memorials is to establish the sense of being American as it is becoming lost in the war. The need to have a collective pain, according to Theriault, reconstructs national identity. But memorials do not just emphasize the need to have a collective pain to establish national identity. It also highlights gender and racial differences as one gender or race interprets it differently from the other. Theriault explains this through the use of Lin’s design of the Wall. An outsider would more like give due respect for the deaths of war because she was an outsider. Those within the war tend to view memorials differently as they were the ones who felt the loss first. Adelman even more gives us a picture of how national identity is closely associated with visuality and masculinity. The imaging of the fallen soldiers takes into the gendered values, and so emphasizes that men are more powerful even in death. Read More