Paper3 ZhF Final
Zhanhong Fang
Professor Courtney Stanton
English Composition 101
November 1, 2014 Unpacking our Knapsacks
Author Peggy McIntosh shows an idea of white people having more privileges and advantages which make them become the dominant group in society. She uses a metaphor to describe these privileges and advantages as the “invisible knapsack” in her article “White Privilege: The Invisible Knapsack.” McIntosh concentrates on the white people’s unconsciousness of the effects of their privileges and describes how white privilege affects non-dominant groups. In another way of revealing the issues between different hierarchies, Gloria Anzaldua starts with issues of language hierarchy inside the race hierarchy in her article “How To Tame A Wild Tongue.” Anzaldua describes that Chicano people’s language is different from either English or Spanish and their language are accepted by neither the Anglo side nor the Hispanic side. She states how Chicano people could have different status in different groups and their ambivalent attitude toward their own language. In summary, Anzaldua would complicate the central metaphor of white privilege in McIntosh’s article by analyzing the how non-dominant groups of people get responses when they have privilege in non-dominant groups and how different kinds of privileges could raise ambivalent feelings among people who carry them, which McIntosh does not do.
There is no doubt privilege is the concept that some groups of people have advantage relative to others. However, when others have the privilege, things will be complicated. Anzaldua would complicate McIntosh’ central metaphor by discussing different attitude toward privilege between dominant groups and non-dominant group. Through McIntosh’s whole article, she mostly focuses on the privilege that white people have. White privilege confers people with white skins invisible advantage, such as privilege that “neighbors will be decent to you, or that your race will not count against you
Professor Courtney Stanton
English Composition 101
November 1, 2014 Unpacking our Knapsacks
Author Peggy McIntosh shows an idea of white people having more privileges and advantages which make them become the dominant group in society. She uses a metaphor to describe these privileges and advantages as the “invisible knapsack” in her article “White Privilege: The Invisible Knapsack.” McIntosh concentrates on the white people’s unconsciousness of the effects of their privileges and describes how white privilege affects non-dominant groups. In another way of revealing the issues between different hierarchies, Gloria Anzaldua starts with issues of language hierarchy inside the race hierarchy in her article “How To Tame A Wild Tongue.” Anzaldua describes that Chicano people’s language is different from either English or Spanish and their language are accepted by neither the Anglo side nor the Hispanic side. She states how Chicano people could have different status in different groups and their ambivalent attitude toward their own language. In summary, Anzaldua would complicate the central metaphor of white privilege in McIntosh’s article by analyzing the how non-dominant groups of people get responses when they have privilege in non-dominant groups and how different kinds of privileges could raise ambivalent feelings among people who carry them, which McIntosh does not do.
There is no doubt privilege is the concept that some groups of people have advantage relative to others. However, when others have the privilege, things will be complicated. Anzaldua would complicate McIntosh’ central metaphor by discussing different attitude toward privilege between dominant groups and non-dominant group. Through McIntosh’s whole article, she mostly focuses on the privilege that white people have. White privilege confers people with white skins invisible advantage, such as privilege that “neighbors will be decent to you, or that your race will not count against you