McIntosh and the Irish

"This image represents how Americans portrayed Irish. They were recognized as monsters and beasts" 

How does one person have greater privileges than another? Why is it, that discrimination is so obvious in our everyday lives? In McIntosh's reading, these questions were just a few of many that ran through my mind. Grasping an understanding of what McIntosh was trying to portray, you first have to take your own life into account. When you observe your own life you might think you’re on an even scale with everyone else in the world, but is that really true? McIntosh brought up that even though white woman have less privileges than men, those woman have a greater amount than woman of a different race. This is where the concept of whiteness comes into play. The privileges of a white person are much greater than those of a different race. McIntosh points out that there are many people around us that are limited in what they can do because of the colour of their skin or culture that they were born in. No one has a choice of how they will start their life, which makes it unfair that those who aren't born white are discriminated against.
 

Panopticism

"The look of a Panopticon"

                To understand what Foucault meant when he explained Panopticism, you first have to realize that it is used only as a metaphor. Foucault portrays his idea of the Panopticon with an example of prisoners being held inside a prison that is built differently from any other regular penal institution. This prison is built so that all prisoners are constantly observed by authorities in a watch tower that is located in the middle of the surrounding cells. What is interesting about Foucault’s example is that a person constantly aware that they are being watched may behave in ways they would not have acted in a private setting. Foucault points out that this metaphor also works with other groups of people such as employees of a company or children in a school. In a Panoticon environment a school boy would have less of an urge to cheat or behave in a bad manner. The reason behind this strange shift in behavioural activities is of the thought that someone could be watching your every move, it makes succeeding a higher priority and the rebellious actions are put into the back of their mind. Having everything you do monitored makes an individual act differently and they will do things in a different manner in order to obey authority figures.