White Women, Race Matters: The Social Construction of Whiteness (Gender, Racism, Ethnicity)

With extracts from in-depth life history interviews, this unique book examines the experiences of white women in a racially hierarchical society. Book Cover......Page 1 Half-Title......Page 2 Title......Page 4 Copyright......Page 5 Dedication......Page 6 Contents......Page 7 Acknowledgments......Page 8 1 Introduction: Points of Origin, Points of Departure......Page 10 Points of Origin......Page 11 What’s in a Name?......Page 14 Feminism: Personal, Political, Theoretical......Page 16 Theorizing Race......Page 19 The Imperial Legacy and the Construction of Whiteness: A Note on Colonial Discourses......Page 24 The Scope of the Study......Page 26 Conclusion......Page 29 Vital Statistics......Page 31 The Researcher and Power......Page 37 Racism and Taboo: Problems of Initiating Interviews......Page 39 Interview and Dialogue......Page 42 Experience and Memory: An Interview Is Not the Telling of a Life......Page 48 3 Growing Up White: The Social Geography of Race......Page 51 Beth Ellison: An “Apparently All-White” Childhood......Page 54 Patricia Bowen: Race Conflict and “Segregation”......Page 59 Clare Traverso: Race Difference as a Filter for Perception......Page 64 Sandy Alvarez......Page 70 Louise Glebocki......Page 74 Conclusion......Page 78 4 Race, Sex, and Intimacy I: Mapping a Discourse......Page 80 Racialized Masculinities.........Page 87 ...and Racialized Femininities......Page 94 Border Infractions and Shifting Ground: Images of Interracial Couples and Children......Page 104 5 Race, Sex, and Intimacy II: Interracial Couples and Interracial Parenting......Page 112 Border Infractions: Rejections, Negotiations, Symbolic Resolutions......Page 113 Racism: The External Force......Page 121 Racism: The Rebound Effect......Page 123 Racism: The Pressures Within......Page 125 “Difference” Revisited......Page 136 What about the Children?......Page 137 Conclusion......Page 147 6 Thinking Through Race......Page 149 Color Evasion: Dodging “Difference”......Page 154 Now You See It, Now You Don’t: Difference and Power Evasion......Page 160 Race Cognizance: Rethinking Race, Rethinking Power......Page 169 Race Cognizance: Transforming Silence into Language.........Page 172 ...and Language into Action......Page 188 Conclusion......Page 202 7 Questions of Culture and Belonging......Page 205 Whiteness As an “Unmarked” Cultural Category......Page 208 Whiteness Inflected: Other Modes of Belonging......Page 218 The Politics of Belonging: A Note on “Salience”......Page 228 Ashkenazi Jewish Women’s Narratives......Page 229 Conclusion......Page 243 Epilogue: Racism, Antiracism, and the Meaning of Whiteness......Page 251 Appendix The Women Who Were Interviewed......Page 259 Lisbeth Poirer (1967) 5/1/86......Page 260 Cathy Thomas (1960) 2/10/85......Page 261 Patricia Bowen (1958) 10/20/84......Page 262 Louise Glebocki (1958) 3/21/86......Page 263 Sharon Ellison (1954) 10/12/85......Page 264 Clare Traverso (1954) 6/15/85......Page 265 Helen Standish (1950) 2/22/86......Page 266 Debby Rothman (1949) 9/25/85......Page 267 Frieda Kazen (1945) 8/8/85......Page 268 Eve Schraeger (1944) 11/13/85......Page 269 Margaret Phillips (1940) 10/16/85......Page 270 Joan Van Buren (1931) 6/5/86......Page 271 Ginny Rodd (1930) 4/14/86......Page 272 Irene Esterley (1926?) 5/13/86......Page 273 Marjorie Hoffman (1905) 9/24/85......Page 274 Dora Hauser (1900) 2/21/86......Page 275 Notes......Page 277 Bibliography......Page 293 Index......Page 300 Beginning With The Premise That Race Shapes White Women's Lives, Just As Much As Gender Shapes Men's Lives Or Sexuality Shapes Heterosexual Lives, The Author Examines, Through 30 Life-history Interviews, Just How This Whiteness Is Constructed. Whiteness Is Not An Empty Signifier, But Rather A Multifaceted Daily Experience Of Racial Structuring, And Through Ethnographic Descriptions Of The 30 Womens' Lives, Frankenberg Provides Evidence That Whiteness Is A Specific Set Of Cultural Practices. 1. Introduction: Points Of Origin, Points Of Departure -- 2. White On White: The Interviewees And The Method -- 3. Growing Up White: The Social Geography Of Race -- 4. Race, Sex, And Intimacy I: Mapping A Discourse -- 5. Race, Sex, And Intimacy Ii: Interracial Couples And Interracial Parenting -- 6. Thinking Through Race -- 7. Questions Of Culture And Belonging -- Epilogue: Racism, Antiracism, And The Meaning Of Whiteness -- Appendix: The Women Who Were Interviewed. Ruth Frankenberg. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 277-281) And Index. Also Available Online.