Talk:Issues in Interdisciplinarity 2018-19/Truth in Reproductive Biology

''' Please also look at the history of this page to see the progression of the wikibook, as we started and wrote the majority in this discussion page then moved (pasted) the whole thing into the actual book, and continued to edit there

word count different on different computers, but on Word it said the word count is 1200 (we also did not count the numbers referring to references)

'''We did the majority of the brainstorming and editing during the six times we met as a group. '''We started by looking at imperialism (see content at bottom of the page). I will add comments in format of // in discussion page''' //'''

'''the development of our wikibook page can be seen in each section. each new draft was an attempt to write it better/ cut it down = Truth and sperm and egg = // links to aid others' research and quotes we thought we tie everything together

"By using feminist critique to analyze some of the history of biological thought, we are able to recognize areas where gender bias has informed how we think as biologists. In controlling for this bias, we can make biology a better discipline"

links to articles:  Fertilisation in history, philosophy and science https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/when-did-i-begin/E0DDCBB4A288C8D18EC09D5DE13D3178 _ Aristotle - history of the theory of human reproduction

The Importance of Feminist Critique for Contemporary Cell Biology https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1527-2001.1988.tb00056.x

Where Do I Come From? Metaphors in Sex Education Picture Books for Young Children in China https://www-tandfonline-com.libproxy.ucl.ac.uk/doi/full/10.1080/10926488.2016.1187039?scroll=top&needAccess=true

Image of a weak sperm in pop culture : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nM3fglmaRrA (also really good movie!) maybe for our arts section?

Stats: Revisiting “The fertilization fairytale:” an analysis of gendered language used to describe fertilization in science textbooks from middle school to medical school https://www.researchgate.net/publication/257682406_Revisiting_The_fertilization_fairytale_an_analysis_of_gendered_language_used_to_describe_fertilization_in_science_textbooks_from_middle_school_to_medical_school

Definitions of Truth
//first draft done by Ciara

In theory, truth is “something that conforms with fact or reality”. There is an existing division between scientific truth, which is objective (not influenced by personal beliefs and customs) and positive (independent and verifiable ), and cultural truth, which is more subjective (influenced by personal perception) and normative (concerned with human values ). However, in practice the concept of truth, be it in science or art, tends to be much more fluid, with various definitions, interpretations and applications across the disciplines.

In our research, we will explore the commonly accepted cultural (subjective and normative) truth of fertilisation, believing that the male gametes are the solely active part of the process, whereas the female gametes are completely passive. Alongside this, we will explore the contradiction with the scientific (objective and positive) truth, which is the mutual and equal fusion of the male and female gametes in the fertilisation process. Furthermore, we will look at how the culturally influenced view is deeply ingrained in history, education, and the arts, but with new, era-defining movements striving to bring it to light.

//first draft by Weronika and the last bit is Jiaying

Humans have certain truth and perspectives engraved in their minds due to their upbringing in a certain time and society. Such implicit bias can affect fields that we consider far removed from culture – science. This chapter explores the inevitable intertwining of culture with science in education, particularly biology, and how the interdisciplinary issue of truth is subconsciously manipulated to fit scientific research into culturally determined norms. Emily Martin looked at reproductive biology descriptions through an Anthropologist lens and recognized the misconstrued narrative and gender-biased language that made the information highly inaccurate. This page will explore the commonly accepted cultural (subjective and normative) truth of fertilization, believing that the male gametes are the solely active part of the process, whereas the female gametes are completly passive and its contradiction with the scientific (objective and positive) truth, which is the mutal and equal participation of male and female gametes. Our research will consider this issue through different disciplinary lenses, discuss the implications of truth manipulated by subconscious culture norms, and examine how an interdisciplinary approach can improve the field of biology.

//reduced and final draft by Aidan

Humans develop particular truths and perspectives due to their upbringing in a certain time and society. These implicit biases can affect fields that we consider far removed from culture – science. Our case study first surfaced when Emily Martin analyzed reproductive biology descriptions using an anthropological approach. She found the scientific (objective and positive) truth of the mutual participation of male and female gametes was being misconstrued by gender-biased language to construct a cultural (subjective and normative) truth of male gametes being active and female gametes passive. This chapter explores the intertwining of culture with science in education, particularly biology, and how the interdisciplinary issue of truth is subconsciously manipulated to fit culturally determined norms into scientific research. Our chapter will consider this issue through different disciplinary lenses, discuss the implications of truth manipulated by subconscious culture norms, and conclude how an interdisciplinary approach can improve the field of biology.

Biology (the actual mechanics behind the myth)
//first draft researched and written by Weronika

Emily Martin’s ground-breaking article about the fertilisation fairy-tale was published in 1991, when many new discoveries about the process were being made, proving that the past beliefs portraying the egg as “a dormant bride” waiting for the sperm to complete the “perilous journey” in “quest for the ovum” and fertilise it, were far from the actual biological occurrence. Although this led to the revision of some of the language used when narrating reproduction, many researchers after Martin have proven that the gender biases still prevail nowadays in textbooks from middle to medical school.



Fertilisation is the fusion of two unique haploid gametes, the egg and the sperm, into a diploid zygote which then undergoes embryogenesis. According to contemporary scientific research, it is a mutually active and interdependent process for both the male and female actors involved. The sperm does not “swim” to the egg, in fact, “the forward thrust of sperm is extremely weak, which contradicts the assumption that sperm are forceful penetrators. (…) The sideways motion of the sperm's tail makes the head move sideways with a force that is ten times stronger than its forward movement.” The sperm, therefore, has to be transported into the ovum by the man’s semen as well as the woman’s cervical mucus, which additionally “protects, nurtures, and supports sperm (Katz 1985), “filters out morphologically abnormal sperm,” removes semen, and “stores the sperm for later release” (Katz 1985; see also Levin 252).” When the egg and sperm bind, two chemical reactions take place: the acrosome reaction, in which the sperm releases acrosomal enzymes to dissolve the zona pellucida of the egg, and the cortical reaction, in which the egg releases cortical granules, which prevent polyspermy in addition to dissolving the zona pellucida. The sperm is then taken into the egg and their genetic materials fuse.



Both gametes are therefore active participants in the process of fertilisation. Nevertheless, in a recent article revising the language used to depict fertilisation in gynaecological texts, Metoyer and Rust found that “of the 38 times textbooks mentioned the egg, 63.2% were in passive terms, as in ‘released’ or ‘fertilized’”, while “67% of sperm occurrences were active. Sperm ‘reach,’ ‘go into,’ ‘fertilize,’ ‘retain their fertilizing ability,’ ‘feed,’ ‘enter,’ are ‘motile,’ ‘survive in the genital tract’ and, most commonly, ‘penetrate.’” Never was the egg described entirely in active terms, while the sperm was depicted using passive language only 7% of the time.

Additionally, there was very limited mention of the importance of the woman’s cervix and cervical mucus in the analysed texts. “Overwhelmingly (84.7%) described the cervix passively—as a location, destination, object, route, or opening (…)”, while only 4.8% “associated cervical mucus with sperm transport or ascent”. On the other hand semen was described to be “universally potent and fertile” and “only 10.7% of the 28 semen / ejaculate occurrences acknowledged the transfer of sperm from semen to cervical mucus”.

Similar results were found by Campo-Engelstein and Johnson, who based their research amongst a wide variety of different-level textbooks popular in U.S. schools. Here too, information is either biased or manipulated to fit socio-cultural stereotypes.

These stereotypes are manifested e.g. in the use of active language describing the sperm, which provides an anthropomorphised image of the gamete, implying a “conscious mission” for the sperm but not egg, and reinforces the idea of the male as more important and powerful in relation to the female, or the omission of information regarding the vital role that the woman’s reproductive organs play in fertilisation makes her seem dependent on the male: a mere receiver, rather than involved participant. They show just how deeply engraved the culturally determined gender stereotypes are even in scientific writing.

Origin
Aristotle, a Greek philosopher and biologist who had a profound effect on today's Western culture, founded the modern understanding of the process of fertilisation, since 322B.C: his death. Aristotle built his theory of the fertilisation process on the evidence that menstruation came to a halt when a woman became pregnant and that a woman only became pregnant once sexual intercourse had taken place, therefore semen being released into the vagina. From this, Aristotle reasoned that there must be an 'active agent' to initiate the process and a substance for this agent to act on. From this, he concluded that the woman's role was passive and the man's role was primarily active. Aristotle believed 'The father'...only makes a living creature by the power which resides in the semen...' '. This theory appears to be based merely on logic and evidence, however unconscious sexism and patriarchy could potentially have taken a role in the formation of this theory at the time. Aristotle's theory formed the basis for the commonly accepted subjective truth today.

History of Gender Biases within Reproductive Biolody
 //Section written by Ciara''' '''

Origin
Aristotle, a Greek philosopher and biologist who had a profound effect on today's Western culture, founded the modern understanding of the process of fertilisation, since 322B.C: his death. Aristotle built his theory of the fertilisation process on the evidence that menstruation came to a halt when a woman became pregnant and that a woman only became pregnant once sexual intercourse had taken place, therefore semen being released into the vagina. From this, Aristotle reasoned that there must be an 'active agent' to initiate the process and a substance for this agent to act on. From this, he concluded that the woman's role was passive and the man's role was primarily active. Aristotle believed "The father'...only makes a living creature by the power which resides in the semen...' ". This theory appears to be based merely on logic and evidence, however unconscious sexism and patriarchy could potentially have taken a role in the formation of this theory at the time. Aristotle's theory formed the basis for the commonly accepted subjective truth today.

History
Aristotle’s theory was embraced by many biologists through history. To this day his theory, which was moulded by social principles at the time, is still being taught to students and is the most common truth. Despite conflict of views at the time, Aristotle’s theory was supported by Saint Thomas Aquinas(1225-1274), who was also an extremely influential philosopher. Alongside this, throughout history he had lots of encouragement from contemporary biologists. For example, in 1890, Sir Patrick Geddes and J.Arthur Thomson had developed their own theory of how fertilisation ‘worked’. By this time, it had been accepted that fertilisation was the fusion of the male and female gametes, but the mechanism they thought of, again was influenced by gender-bias and social ideals of the time, prolonging this subjective truth that the majority of the population now believe. Their theory was made up of two different types of mechanisms: catabolism(release of energy ) and anabolism(storage of energy ). They believed the type of mechanism determined the gender of the embryo, “In the determination of sex, influences favoring katabolism tend to result in the production of males, as those favoring anabolism similarly increase the production of females ” (Geddes and Thomson 1890, 45, 267). This deduction was determined by looking at the behaviour of male and female adults. Adult males have a "shorter life span, greater activity and smaller size" in contradiction the behaviour of females who are “larger, more passive, vegetative, and conservative.” This again shows the gender-bias which influences the misconstrued truth of reproductive biology. This is only one example of how cultural truth is formed and throughout history there are many instances where social principles have had a severe affect on what people believe.

///Weronika edit/// Aristotle, a Greek philosopher and biologist, founded the modern understanding of fertilisation, since 322B.C. Aristotle built his theory of reproduction on the fact that menstruation came to a halt during pregnancy and that a woman only became pregnant once sexual intercourse had taken place, when semen had been released into her vagina. From this, Aristotle reasoned that there must be an 'active agent' to initiate the process and a substance for this agent to act on. Aristotle believed "The father'...only makes a living creature by the power which resides in the semen...' ", therefore the woman's role was passive and the man's role was primarily active. This theory appears to be based on logic and evidence, however it is likely to have been moulded by social principles and subconscious patriarchal stereotypes of the time. Aristotle’s theory was embraced by many biologists throughout history, forming the basis for the commonly accepted subjective truth today.

To this day Aristotle’s theory is being taught to students and is the most common truth. It was supported by Saint Thomas Aquinas(1225-1274), who was also an extremely influential philosopher. Alongside this, throughout history it was revisited and developed by contemporary biologists. For example, in 1890, Sir Patrick Geddes and J. Arthur Thomson had developed their own theory of reproduction. By this time, it had been accepted that fertilisation was the fusion of the male and female gametes, but the mechanism they proposed, again was influenced by gender-bias and social ideals of the time, prolonging the subjective truth that the majority of the population now believe. Their theory was based on two types of mechanisms: catabolism(release of energy) and anabolism(storage of energy). They believed the type of mechanism determined the gender of the embryo: “in the determination of sex, influences favoring katabolism tend to result in the production of males, as those favoring anabolism similarly increase the production of females” [sic] (Geddes and Thomson 1890, 45, 267). This was deduced from the popular assumption that adult males have a "shorter life span, greater activity and smaller size" in contradiction the behaviour of females who are “larger, more passive, vegetative, and conservative.” This again shows the gender-bias which influences the misconstrued truth of reproductive biology.

///aidan final draft, reduction, and edit//// Throughout time, philosophers and biologists have agreed and elaborated on Aristotle’s theory. Decades later, Saint Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274), an influential philosopher, supported his theory. Even as science progressed, the original narrative didn’t change that much. By 1890, it was accepted that the fusion of male and female gametes caused fertilization, but the process was still described with gender-biased language. From the assumption that adult males have “shorter life span [and] greater activity” in contrast to females who are “more passive, vegetative, and conservative”, they postulated that catabolism (release of energy) resulted in the birth of a male while anabolism (storage of energy) resulted in a female. This demonstrates the gender-bias that persisted throughout history that influenced the misconstrue truth of reproductive biology.

Arts/ cultural studies
//section of arts/cultural studies written by Jiaying

The issue of fertilisation in different forms of art can help shed light on the extent of subjective truth in our case study. Forms of art that have indeed portrayed the story of fertilisation can consolidate how the perceived truth is currently omnipresent and continually reinforced in society. Since art is a medium of expression that can have a deep creative influence in a community, it is one form of communication that can reject the truth, or reinforce it. For the former point, art that focuses on feminism in particular have shown themselves to be critical of preconceived notions such as the conventional view of fertilisation, and thus a cultural movement is also vital to the exposition of a manipulated truth.

Linguistics/ psychology
Language is one form of structuralism that reflects upon the our programmed systems of thought in society, and is a mutual and vital tool regardless of whether the topic is scientific or cultural. Language could therefore condition our thinking and be used as propaganda, be it subconscious propaganda without a centralised agenda, to fortify the culturally influenced view. In many textbooks and academic texts, the use of positive female and/or gender neutral language are not found when describing fertilisation, even a women's reproductive system and mechanisms.

When making comparisions between the male and female reproductive systems, the academic text Medical Psychology says: "Whereas the female sheds only a single gamete each month, the seminiferous tubules produce hundreds of millions of sperm each day". The verb 'shed' when compared to the verb 'produce' whilst both used as personifications, are at two different ends of the spectrum. Being so juxtaposed towards each other, one is connoting creation whilst the other is connoting destruction. Whilst being an academic text, it nevertheless uses the conjunction 'whereas', explicitly indicating the stark contrast it subsequently makes. When this type of subtle but indoctrinating language is repeated in other medical journals, researchers claim that it results in a psychological pattern of continuously viewing the female reproductive system as passive and weak. When talking about the specifics of fertilisation, the scientific process is harboured with romance-like descriptions that instill an image of the roles. The egg is 'saved' by the sperm, whilst the sperm acts ferociously and heroically in the 'quest' to save the egg. From Emily Martin's The egg and the sperm: How science has constructed a romance based on stereotypical male-female roles, a critical analysis of language is made: "The egg [...] does not move or journey, but passively "is transported," "is swept,"'or even "drifts"'along the fallopian tube. In utter contrast, sperm are small, "streamlined," and invariably active. They "deliver" their genes to the egg, "activate the developmental program of the egg," and have a "velocity" that is often remarked upon. Their tails are "strong" and efficiently powered. Together with the forces of ejaculation, they can "propel the semen into the deepest recesses of the vagina." For this they need "energy," "fuel," so that with a "whiplashlike motion and strong lurches" they can "burrow through the egg coat" and "penetrate" it." . These active adjectives and verbs continually denote how the egg is passive and weak, whilst the sperm is credible one in the process.

Forward-thinking researchers have since noted that not only is the story presented in a gender-biased way, most descriptions are completely presented from the perspective of the sperm, with the egg only as a backstory that is ignored.

Literature
In some informative children's picture books, the issue of fertilisation, as mentioned previously in the 'education' section, is frequently dumbed down to help with the understanding. However, along with this idea comes the early seeds of gender-biased views. A research conducted in mainland China focuses on the presentation of fertilisation in children's picture books, with its findings exposing the extent of patriarchal fertilisation socio-culturally influenced. When talking about fertilisation, the books are frequently aided by the use of metaphors that subliminally mean sexual intercourse. Not only is fertilisation viewed through the lens of patriarchy, but metaphorical representation of the action brings it even further away from reality. In the educational books that the article mentions, the metaphors (presented visually or verbally) of fertilisation usually depict a running/ swimming competition of the sperm cells (that are personified as boys/ tapoles) with the one that wins 'inside a bubble full of flowers', denoting courtship and male competition over 'the prize' of women, reflecting upon China's own social and cultural atmosphere.

The books use misleading metaphors to describe fertilization, constructing a narrative further away from the scientific truth. In the books that the article mentions, fertilization is depicted as a sperm (personified as boys / tadpoles) conducting a running / swimming competition with the winner ‘inside a bubble full of flowers’, denoting courtship and male competition over ‘the prize of women’, reflecting China’s own social and cultural atmosphere.

In some informative children's books, the presentation of fertilisation sows the early seeds of gender-biased views. Research conducted in mainland China exposes the socio-culturally influenced perspective on fertilization. The books personify sperm as boys / tadpoles in a running / swimming competition with the winner ‘inside a bubble full of flowers’. Such metaphors denote the male competition over the ‘prize of women’, reflecting China’s cultural construction of truth.

Visual media and Films
As discussed above, visual imagery are also used in children's picture books. According to the same study, the pictures of female and male reproductive organs are personified in diagrams. The depiction of the female reproductive organ is where it is drawn as a girl with pigtails (that take the place of the Fallopian tubes) with an innocent, shy expression. The depiction of a male sperm cell is a 'boyish' face and a snap back, drawing out the setting of a romantic interaction.

In the film Look Who's Talking (1989), the opening credits carry out a visual portrayal of fertilisation that promote sperm superiority. The sperms are made to come to life, with male voicing narrating them, whilst the egg is merely a lifeless, materialised cell, floating around without consciousness. They act as if they are on a mission, with some directing the way and saying "Ok, follow me [...] I've got the map". Once the egg had been sighted, cries of "yeehaw!" and "jackpot!" can be heard. The "penetration" into the egg is done with obvious difficulty, of which after some time of strength and perseverance was it done. . Another film, Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* (*But Were Afraid to Ask) (1972) (Woody Allen), has the sperms being portrayed as men, whilst the egg is left not being personified. The sperms act as if they are on a mission, with uniforms and protective clothing, whilst even in the 'factory' of fertilisation, only men are doing physical mechanical work. . Interestingly, the film also portrays the weakness of a sperm, when the main character expresses his fear of entering the womb and starting the process. Therefore, a film that embarks upon the issue with parody and humour could also bring it to light.

Woody Allan presents a humorous satirical perspective on sex in his film “Everything you always wanted to know about sex (But were Afraid to Ask). Sperm is personified through hyperbole as men with soldier-like uniforms doing physical work whilst the egg is merely a tool. Additionally, the weakness of the sperm is demonstrated through the main character’s fear of entering the uterus. The deconstruction of the narratives through pop culture could be a possible solution to gender-narratives in biology.

The Sperm and the Egg in Education
Written by Aidan

Education is used to facilitate learning. Through an educational lens, one could argue that the use of the metaphorical language (e.g. dormant bride as mentioned before) is a necessary mechanism of 'dumbing down' information for a broader audience. Sex education is becoming increasingly popular throughout time. Currently, it is "mandatory in most member states" of the EU and 24 states in the U.S. with more countries predicted to soon follow. Recently, the AP College Board has claimed that in education, an increasing audience makes it impossible to maintain high performance and quality standards. . The metaphors and language in fertilization excerpts could be a result of educational reduction to accommodate the differing academic levels of a larger audience. Critics add to this argument, claiming that it is unrealistic to expect science and biology textbooks written for adolescents "to provide a second-wave feminist critique of sexual relationships". Yet these arguments do not extend beyond high school education, and there are still issues with university-level textbooks and their use of subjective truth to describe the fertilization process.

Consequences of Gendered Language in Science The use of gender-biased language in science and sex education has been believed to reinforce negative stereotypes. There is a danger that by "presenting science in a gendered way", females will be "deterred from enjoying and considering a degree or career in science". Overt sexist language has been shown to have a delirious effect on both boys and girls, which can also have an effect on the economy. In an economic perspective, women being discouraged from technology-related fields would cause a loss of human capital. The economy would be less efficient due to not utilizing 50% of the population properly. This is reflected in real life as well. Morgan Stanely recently reported that "the better a tech company's gender diversity, the greater its returns". Additionally, there is a potential danger of a vicious cycle of males using their implicit bias to construct culturally influenced truths, which discourages women from STEM, which causes the field to remain male-dominated. The circle is quite difficult to break, especially as there is no quick fix to the problem. In the U.S., a western and medically advanced country, only half the states require sex education. Even if science textbooks are updated to achieve a more objective truth, a large number of individuals won't have access to that education. They will be taught by their parents who were taught by the outdated textbooks, causing the patriarchal myth of fertilization to perpetuate for at least another generation.

Implications could be avoided if we portrayed biology more accurately and without gendered language.

Conclusion
//First draft Jiaying

(dunno where to put these points but adding it here because i think it's an interesting perspective) It is noteworthy that many of the resources we found are over two decades old, some even older. Yet from our own ignorance and from the limited sources online, it is clear that this issue is still far from being widespread, nor are outdated biology textbooks being updated. This, in some respects, emphasizes our issue and reinforces its relevance in further research and nurturing. When the prospect of gender-influenced perspectives are taken into consideration, new perspectives emerge in biology that are less tainted by gender biases and therefore one step closer to objective truth.

//Final draft Weronika and Aidan The fact that science is typically perceived as a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes truth and knowledge through objective methodologies like the Scientific method, and, as noted by Campo-Engelstein and Johnson, that "textbooks serve as authoritative sources of knowledge for students",, makes it very difficult to find and challenge gender biases located within the discipline. Therefore an interdisciplinary apporach is necessary. With the use of our case study, we have shown that through the lenses of linguistics, art, feminism and history, the sciences - in this case biology - can be culturally influenced. By recognising the gender-biased language, we can begin constructing a new narrative that is more accurate and closer to the objective truth.

"By using feminist critique to analyze some of the history of biological thought, we are able to recognize areas where gender bias has informed how we think as biologists. In controlling for this bias, we can make biology a better discipline"

Potential Titles
The intertwining of Scientific and Cultural Truth The intertwining of Scientific and Cultural Truth in Educational Biology Truth in Educational Biology Truth in Reproductive Biology

The effect of culture on truth in educational biology

'''//We met again and decided that we weren't confident enough in imperialism to continue the topic. Weronika suggested looking at "FERTILIZATION FAIRYTALE: 'KNIGHT IN SHINING ARMOR' SPERM AND 'DAMSEL IN DISTRESS' OVA". After reading some articles on the topic, particularly Emily Martin's and those that revised her work, we decided to look at the issue of truth in reproductive biology. Similarly, we divided the research into groups. Aidan looked at education, Weronika biology, Ciara history, and Jiaying cultural studies/arts. The above is the development of our work. We edited each others' sections and posted our edits below the previous draft.'''

old topic, deisregard
//Weronika contribution:Okay so I wrote a short introduction on propaganda and truth (it's on my sandbox, I'll also post it here just in case), but I just basically rephrased what we had before. When we meet on Friday let's try to write a proper one and see what we come up with. Also I found a good article which talks about how the dehumanisation of the muslim man in Western media spawns islamophobia: its quite long but read through the introduction (towards the beginning), I think that's where most of it is :)

Imperialism is typically attributed to the past, especially to Europe’s colonial history, however recently there has been an emergence of a modern from of the concept which implies “the extension and maintenance of a country's power or influence through trade, diplomacy, military or cultural dominance, etc.” In other words it is the imposition of a nation's societal ideals on other countries. This is relatively frequent in the contemporary world, for instance in the case of the US foreign policy and international relations.

The US frequently uses military force abroad in order to alter some elements of the policy of the target country, which would ensure a more democratic political system in the local government and the establishment of human rights. Their foreign policy states that no country “whose governments engage in a consistent pattern of gross violations of internationally recognized human rights" can receive financial, security or political assistance from the United States. In order to receive support, the country must therefore first be ‘converted’.

The main criticism is that the US presidents have used democracy and freedom to justify military intervention abroad, without taking into account the various local socio-cultural particularities. There is an ongoing debate regarding the entry of the US into Afghanistan after the 9/11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Centre in New York City. In October 2001, the international "war on terror" was declared and although this action was initially supposed to end the country’s support for Osama bin Laden and impede the progress of the al-Qaeda, it also enforced the concepts of women's rights, freedom and democracy onto the Afghan society according to Western Standards. Some of the justification relied on the veil, especially the burqa, as a symbol of oppression of Muslim women, an idea which then globalised gaining international attention.

The veil was widely used in U.S. advertisements and propaganda in 2011, most notably in the TIMES magazine. Symbols of Afghani women and their hijab became the symbol of oppression and a rallying cry for Americans to get behind the war on terror and female oppression.

Taking into account the particular cultural background of the local area, the validity of this situation can be studied from the perspectives of different disciplines, including anthropology, psychology, history and politics/international relations, and explained through the concept of modern imperialism.

// We had another meeting and decied to focus on the case study of Afghanistan and propoganda

Disciplinary Issues in Women's Rights Enforcement Anthropology

Many anthropological studies concerning gender, religion and contemporary imperialism focus on Islam’s conceptualisation of women and how it is perceived in the West. An ethnographic example can be found in Lila Abu-Lughod’s argument about the ‘global’ view of Islam’s treatment of women. After the 9/11 terrorist attack, the West became increasingly interested in Islam ideology and culture, particularly the tradition of veiling and the burqa, which became a worldwide symbol of oppression, a generalisation reducing diverse circumstances and attitudes of millions of Muslims to one socio-cultural custom. When Abu-Lughod asked an Egyptian woman whether she felt oppressed by religion, she replied that not Islam, but the government oppresses women.

Therefore the view that veiling represses freedom, so firmly advocated by many global figures, contradicts the local understanding of it, as for many Muslim women the veil is, in fact, perceived as quite the opposite of oppressive. It allows them to leave their homes and interact with other members of the community in a religiously moral manner, all the while being symbolically protected from strange men and other harm. The way that Western or ‘global’ concepts of freedom, gender, religion etc. are often taken as the only valid ones and societies who do not follow them should be ‘saved’ to them, implying a sense of superiority that still prevails in the West and can be related to the idea of modern imperialism. Muslim women, who are constantly told what they should want for themselves according to Western standards often feel like they are forced to choose between local culture and the global push towards homogenisation, instead of finding their own compromise. In its quest to “save” the Muslim woman, the West does not always recognise that different women may have different desires, and for many these desires are not associated with unveiling, but rather living in a godly way, having a close bond with the family, or simply a life in a world of peace rather than war. Using the veil as an excuse to use military force, therefore, seems to be a paradox or misunderstanding.

It is also important to mention that in the local sphere of western societies, the ‘mission’ to save Muslim women from the veil influences the way Islamic practices are judged, and sometimes goes as far as to fuel the contemporary phenomenon of islamophobia. This, as noticed by anthropologist Farha Ghannam, has recently, especially after the 9/11 terrorist attack, resulted in a dehumanisation of the Muslim man in the US, where he is commonly associated with terror and oppression. She points out “the assumption is that only women and children are innocent and deserve our sympathy while men are guilty and deserve being brutalized, tortured, or killed.” And draws our attention to “the images of Middle Eastern men in the media [which] frequently depict humiliation at the hands of American or Israeli soldiers as well as groups of angry men chanting against the West or attacking “innocent” Westerners and their allies.”

Psychology The psychology of the imperiaist / reasoning of the imperalists and their mindsets History //Jiaying contribution

Subverting past imperialism? And is the oppression forced by imperialists in the first place? Main issues:

the extent of historical imperialism in influencing the mindset of female modesty and inferiority (with the assumption that it was relatively forward-thinking before) if modern oppression of women was triggered by modern imperialism (western intervention). i.e., is the backlash towards liberalisation of women the result of intrinsic denouncing of female freedom (based on religious and cultural traditions), or does it represent subliminally the denouncing of western values instead because of the distaste of imperialism? or did imperialism and the coerced liberal values strengthen hatred towards forward-thinking ideals, in a society that would have been relatively open to it otherwise? the irony of imperialism and the coerced values of freedom and compassion; their intrinsic contradictory values. brief history of Afghanistan

controlled by dynasties in the 18th century

became a buffer state between british india and russian empire in 19th century

from 1919 it was rid of foreign influence and became a monarchy under king amanullah - issue here: amanullah and his father were both liberalisers- wanted full independence from foreign influence and more modern education. does this mean that they associated imperialism with old values that they were desperate to eradicate?

amanullah was known as the reform king and took back control of their own foreign affairs, land reform, extended education, wrote first constitution (sounds very westernised- a case where it westernises but whilst simultaneously rejecting western control/ explicit influence). issue here- when he tried to take power away from village elders and religious establishments, revolts happened- thus is it implicitly still dictated by imperialism which led to people rejecting it?

Nadir Khan took control in 1938 and established a dynasty that was run by prime ministers (but still rife with nepotism- his uncles were the prime ministers) and that was closely allied to the USSR (asked them for military aid). This constitutional democracy lasted from 1964 to 1973. during this time intellectuals enjoyed more freedom, women began to enter the workplace and government,

International Relations Aidan contribution / research

International Relations has inner conflicts on the justification of imperialism through Muslim women propoganda and the veil. Liberalism, one of the classical theories of thought, is based on the moral principle of individual liberties. Therefore, the U.S. media's depiction of females being forced to wear veils is perceived as an infringement of their individual rights and liberties. In International Relations, that is a strong justification for the invasion of Afghanistan. Furthermore, International Relations has also birthed the Democratic Peace Theory - a theory proposing that democratic coutries do not go to war with each other. The image of a woman in a veil, particularly when it is indicated it is not the women's choice to wear it and it wasn't a democratic decision, will further justify military means of enforcing demoratic values. Not only is it for female liberties, but also for peace and prosperty in the future. policies based on Western theories UK Australia etc. liberalism

Internal Imperialism In November 2001, the Northern Alliance took control of the Afghan capital Kabul. They were being helped by the US and other countries that agreed with it, including the UK.

Case Study: using the veil to justify military intervention in the Middle East
Propaganda (from the modern latin term propagare meaning to spread or to propagate) is "the systematic dissemination of information, esp. in a biased or misleading way, in order to promote a political cause or point of view". It often manipulates facts, presenting them in a selecive manner, in order to spawn an emotional rather than a rational response in the viewer, and to persuade him to develop a specific opinion or point of view about a situation. Propaganda techniques were commonly used by political parties throughout history and are still prominent in the workings of the contemporary world. Although this sort of subjectification and manipulation of reality is often considered misleading, harmful and controversial, there is very little possibility of regulating it legally as it can always be both defended and condemned in terms of truth.

A contemporary example of the usage of propaganda as a political tool can be traced to the criticism that the U.S. presidents have used democracy and freedom to justify military intervention abroad, without taking into account the various local socio-cultural particularities. There is an ongoing debate regarding the entry of the US into Afghanistan after the 9/11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Centre in New York City. In October 2001, the international "war on terror" was declared and although this action was initially supposed to end the country’s support for Osama bin Laden and impede the progress of the al-Qaeda, it also enforced the concepts of women's rights, freedom and democracy onto the Afghan society according to Western Standards. Some of the justification relied on the veil, especially the burqa, as a symbol of oppression of Muslim women, a propagated idea which then globalised gaining international attention.

Taking into account the particular cultural background of the local area, the validity of this situation can be studied from the perspectives of different disciplines, including anthropology, psychology, history and politics/international relations, and explained through the concepts of propaganda and truth.

'''//We met to brainstorm ideas. Jiaying, Aidan and Weronika want to do imperialism. Ciara wants to do truth. We decided to go with the majority of the group and do imperialism, specifically in regards to gender. Aidan recommended using the U.S. and Afghanistan as a case study of oppression of muslim females and imperialism. Aidan and Weronika talked to Carl about this idea, he was skeptical and thought we should focus on propaganda. We divided the group into disciplines to research. Aidan did international relations, Weronika Anthropology, Jiaying History and Ciara psychology / other. The above is some work we did.'''