Behaviour Could Mean a Faux Pas – Greater Cultural Implications – Arts and Humanities Assignment Help

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Assignment Task :

Not so long ago, “inappropriate” described things that were “not done,” like wearing white after Labor Day or congratulating the bride. It applied to minor transgressions against codes of social behavior, formules de politesse. These days, though, it’s an alarm. To hear it used in connection with your name is no doubt to imagine the heart-stopping worst: revelations of shameful behavior, firings and resignations, public loathing and perp walks.

Morgan Freeman is only the latest famous man accused of “inappropriate” behavior toward women he worked with. Given that those behaviors were said to include, in addition to leering comments and jokes, repeated attempts to lift the skirt of a production assistant while asking if she was wearing underwear, describing them as “inappropriate” does not feel entirely appropriate; it feels more like a culturewide dodge. Freeman, for his part, took issue with the idea that his actions were being lumped together with serious crimes: “All victims of assault and harassment deserve to be heard, and we need to listen to them,” he said in a statement. “But it is not right to equate horrific incidents of sexual assault with misplaced compliments or humor.” And, indeed, it is not right to equate them — but who, exactly, was doing that?

I suspect the issue is semantic. The original CNN report appeared under the headline “Women Accuse Morgan Freeman of Inappropriate Behavior, Harassment.” Other outlets followed suit, and the internet was once again blanketed with that catchall for any action too uncomfortable to detail, too hard to describe without breaking decency rules, too potentially libelous to name, too complicated to litigate on each reference. “Inappropriate” can elevate a small thing into significance (an employee is written up for an “inappropriate” hairstyle) or collapse a large thing into insignificance (the C.E.O. allows that it may have been “inappropriate” to use the company jet for millions in personal travel). It’s useful precisely for its imprecision, its ability to stretch over everything from jokes to violence, like some kind of one-size-fits-all ethical undergarment, playing one thing up and another down.

By definition, “inappropriate” describes behavior that is unsuitable in a specific circumstance or context, like wearing cargo pants to a formal event or laughing hysterically at a funeral. The problem is not the content so much as the container. And yet the word is so often pressed into awkward service to describe a specific type of objectionable thing — often sexual in nature, sometimes venal or corrupt — that it has started to feel like a secret code, an inconspicuous envelope containing some much more pointed message. Recent news stories tell us that the following things are inappropriate: Meghan Markle’s off-the-shoulder dress at a military ceremony in London; the texts of a Connecticut high school track coach to girls on his team; photos of teenagers received by a 21-year-old man in Illi??nois; the managerial style, comments and language of the head of compliance for a major bank; the behavior of the head of Pixar, which has resulted in his resignation; the behavior of a substitute teacher in Montana; a video sent by a Pennsylvania police chief to a teenager; and a Winnipeg 3-year-old’s sundress, which she is no longer allowed to wear to preschool.

 

“Inappropriate” is a broad category. It arranges peccadilloes, technicalities, indiscretions, corruption, toxic harassment and violent crimes on one shelf, takes a step back, shrugs and plays dumb. Right now, it generally serves to diminish things that are actually much worse than merely “inappropriate,” but it can also work the other way around. There are times when you’re more likely to find it in the mouths of authority figures and social superiors, clucking at the grave errors of the people around them: a woman’s “inappropriate” clothing, an employee’s “inappropriate” tone, a comedian’s “inappropriate” jabs at politicians. The word’s vagueness has always been a handy way to remind people of their relatively low status: If they can’t already tell what’s wrong about their behavior, perhaps they are beyond help.

As the parent of a young child, I can relate to the need to say something without actually having to say it. “Inappropriate” is my explanation for why I’m turning off the TV or skipping past a song. Sometimes I use it to avoid offering complex explanations that my child won’t understand. But the truth is that it’s embarrassment I have a low tolerance for. “Inappropriate” is a pulled punch, a stalling tactic, a code for “ask follow-up questions at your own risk.” As my daughter gets older, she weighs her desire for explanation against her desire not to have an uncomfortable conversation in the car. Avoidance usually wins.

Maybe this is why “inappropriate” is heard so often in the language of the workplace: It allows you to deem something unacceptable without having to say anything risky. You are off the hook both ethically (because you’ve acknowledged a problem) and legally (because you’ve refrained from going into any litigable detail about that problem). Push something behind the curtain of “inappropriate,” and you may be able to put off truly coming to terms with it, kicking the can ever farther down the road.

 

Step One:

Come up with a possible word you could write about. They should be words that have clear implications when used incorrectly. 

This is an example of a strong essay topic:

The word “skinny” is used synonymously with beautiful, and creates a false correlation 

This is an example of an essay topic that is weak/would not work:

The word “inflammable” means flammable not not-flammable. 

Why doesn’t “inflammable” work for this essay? There’s not high enough stakes, that is, no one is being harmed by its misusage. Where as “inappropriate” lets abusers off the hook for their actions and blames victims. 

Make sure your list of five words are strong. 

 

Step Two:

Decide on one word, the best of your list. Brainstorm your word. What personal associations do you have with it? How does the majority of our culture use this word? Is there a particular type of person who uses the word? What are the greater cultural implications of this word?

 

Step Three:

Research. 

What are the origins of the word? Usage? What is interesting about this word that you didn’t know about before? 

 

Step Four:

How are people using this word incorrectly? 

Create one hypothetical example, and find one real example :

What are the implications of the word being used incorrectly? Who is being harmed by this usage?:

1. Is your peer talking about the word itself and usage of the word OR about the concept of the word? For example, are they talking about when people say they “love” each other or “love” your dress, or are they talking about what it feels like to be in love, and what real love is? In this essay, we want to focus on the word and usage, not the concept. 

2. Does your peer display a thoughtful, cultural understanding of the word? Is there personal resonance?

3. Is  there a great, culture-wide misuse of this word? Are there historical and current events that reflect this misusage, like Chocano about Morgan Freeman.

4. Who is being harmed by incorrect usage? Who benefits from incorrect usage?

 

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