This chapter focuses on the specific questions we need to ask when thinking about both positive and negative, organized and unorganized peace for women. It encourages thought about how and why peace is a different concept for women than it is for men. The author talks about the difference between personal and structural violence in negative peace, in the difference between one women being beat by her husband versus a million women being beat by their husbands. This reminded me of the “personal as political” idea we discussed in class on Tuesday, and how feminism can help women to realize that their personal struggles are shared by others and give them the unity and conviction to work towards change. I think that one important, if tricky, part in giving women this feeling is not undermining their own personal struggle in a way that makes them accept it or feel that it is acceptable because it is “normal.”
The author also discusses the differences between direct and structural violence, giving the example of women being kept in ignorance versus not having enough to eat (even when men do), and says that direct violence such as starvation is of course more deadly. I think it would be interesting to discuss in class how direct and structural violence interact to reinforce one another. For example, are woman who are kept ignorant more likely to starve to death? Are starving women more ignorant? Do they accept direct violence because of structural factors, or is it the structural factors that create or worsen the direct violence?
great questiosn
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