Thesis:
Discrimination occurs through an attachment of values to superficial qualities.
Arguments:
The generality of discrimination is widely ignored in discussions of specific discriminated segments of society. Discrimination tends to weaken as one grows acquainted to another because those values attached to superficial qualities are replaced by the true values of that individual. Human beings innately classify people by the way they look, this is not the problem, the problem lies in the attachment of values to these qualities such as thinking that glasses make someone intelligent, baggy clothes make someone a petty thug, a country accent makes one a hick, etc.
We must move away from suppressing superficial classifications which is a natural tendency, it serves no one any good to try to ignore a man is black when trying to describe him to someone else. Instead we must push away from superficial value thinking. For example believing because someone is black they are violent, or because someone is a woman they are not fit for certain jobs.
Value thinking is also not inherently negative, it must be done on an individual basis with discernable facts backing it up.
Furthermore the institutionalization of the values whether it is in private or public realms leads to a re-enforcement of these values. This feeds into the greater problem of being manipulated. I do not believe that one can stop manipulation from occurring but I do feel that through education, individuals can become more aware of manipulation and look upon it with a discerning eye. It's not nearly as difficult to teach someone to question as it would be to regulate everyone from manipulating others.
Disconnect in reasoning-
Denial of body is tied into the conflating of superficial classification with value judgments. The denial of our bodies in our rational decision making processes leads to the creation of an artificial reality which clouds our reason. To not take in account our physical appearance and the initial ways we come across ignores the basic psychological nature of human beings, first impressions make a world of difference, and being confrontational creates a confrontation reply, dressing casually makes one be treated casually.
Prevalance of women's bodies
Define discrimination, object, value, objectification
Much of feminist thinking looks at the objectification of women as a negative. A potentially more pressing problem is the non-objectification of men. Because of the prevalence of women's bodies viewed as art, and entertainment women can have a closer bond with each other. It is not viewed as social awkward for a woman to see another woman as attractive, and she is not considered to be homosexual because of it. For men, this thinking is much more confined, for a man to tell another man they look attractive takes a significant amount of social capital. Even "checking out" other men is viewed as socially awkward. Perhaps we should come to terms with the idea that we may all be objects until we engage each other.
