I traveled from Minneapolis to Seattle tonight, so I chose to observe men at the airport. As a frequent business traveler, I’m at the airport a lot. And I’ve been doing this for years and years (business traveling!) – starting when I was a 20 something until today -- I’m 40 something.
As a female business traveler, I’ve been very aware of the fact that I was in the minority. As such, most of the business travel trappings are geared to men -- from the lack of decent mirrors in hotel rooms to the TV station on display at the airport. First class seating on the plane was a male-only domain and even today is predominantly so. In fact, I’m sitting there right now. The count is 4 women, 8 men. Dinner was great, thanks. Because I’m traveling to the west coast, we are treated to a movie, which is a terrible, and all too appropriate for this post, male vs. female love story starring Matthew McConnahay. It’s a take off on a Christmas Carol, something about the Ghost of Girlfriends Past. Horrible, but I’m still watching.
So it is not without a biased eye that I entered the airport tonight to observe male behavior. It’s a Sunday, so it’s not a busy time and the business traveler onslaught is at a minimum (as evidenced by my own First Class upgrade). This translates into a more balanced male/female population and a larger than normal percentage of vacation and casual travelers. They aren’t as efficient or practiced as the business traveler crowd, and serve to make the airport feel more human.
My single overriding realization from watching men in this public place has to do with football. I’m not a big fan and blissfully unaware of game day – except for the fact someone waiting in the security line happened to be wearing Vikings garb (actually a woman!).
So instead of watching the single-mindedly determined male business traveler in pursuit of good gate placement, I’m observing male efforts to find football coverage. The first gate of my terminal is populated exclusively with men, all seated facing the television, all spaced out evenly in the seats. Suffice to say they are intent – INTENT – on the game. I stop to watch and a group of passengers who have just disembarked pass by. At least every other man stops to watch. I’m fairly sure they already know who is playing and are simply checking on the score.
I’m early for my flight and stop in a bar to kill some time. It’s still the weekend after all. What a surprise that a football game is on all four of the bar’s television sets. I mistakenly assume it is the Vikings until I call my father in California. One of the first things his wife says to me is “Did you watch the Vikings win?” Since I don’t live with a man and am not a football fan, I’m just not in touch. But my Dad’s wife – clearly not a fan herself – is totally tapped in. Hilarious. There was a day in my hard-core business past when I would intentionally keep up on the football scene so I could do the small talk routine with my peers.
Maybe I’m feeling magnanimous or simply reluctant after my own scolding by the author of this week’s reading, but I have no criticism of men’s football focus. I’ll happily criticize the new Gopher stadium, I’ll proudly defend Title IX forever. But to mock someone’s geeky obsession with a sport – even a highly commercialized one? Only if it makes a good joke at a business event or family function.
You mention how the airport is largely geared toward men. To support your observation, I'd like to throw in another piece of evidence - more times than not I've noticed a disproportionate amount of Maxim, FHM, Playboy, Sports, and whatever other man-esque sort of magazine over more women-esque titles. I just can't help but ponder the frankly nasty reasons behind this... Men being away from their wives and needing to satisfy their urges... Ick. Just ick.
ReplyDeleteBut, I feel that you bring up a good observation; that spaces are HEAVILY gendered. And as such, almost contain there own pedagogies. For example, the airport embodying the pedagogy of the high powered business men as you describe.
It makes me wonder what the educational and classroom implications of your observations are. As teachers, can we unintentionally "gender" or classroom space? What disadvantages and advantages may this have? What do you think?
Great post!
-Rick
OK, gross. I've never noticed that but you can bet I will next time I'm there!
ReplyDeleteYour question gets at something that hits me again and again in my studies. I think teachers can and do create a genderspace in their classrooms, but it isn't nearly as potent as those created by commercially driven enterprises. And sadly, those commerically driven enterprises are way, way better at it.
I think/hope that the education community looked at this as intentionally as you are asking. I remember reading about those researchers that say you really can't expect a boy of a certain age to sit in a chair for extended periods of time and concentrate and that they are having great success with classrooms that use those big yoga balls as chairs, or another where they have a like a one legged stool. And it works! Could the lack of attentiveness to boy's physical needs be due to the dominance of women in the field?
Or maybe it's not sexism, it's adult-ism!
Hi Glynis,
ReplyDeleteIt took me a half hour just to figure out how to post a commment here. I am a struggling non-native here in cyberland often, but getting a little better each day. First, thanks for your reading my blog of last week and that you enjoyed it. I will feel better to be at 60 as of July this year along with Bruce Springstein.
Your blog this week is really well done, you have really gone the extra mile on reading the comments. I almost printed the article, but was so far behind on getting asignments going today with three grandsons visiting, that I really glossed on this reading. But I agree that it is very chauvanistic in terms of the computer game programs in the cases I have seen, which is limited to walking into Best Buy past demos and seeing my nephew and a friend's son playing their games.
I will check your blog more often and appreciate the research you have done on the writers, its a service to the rest of us.
I apologize for such a brief comment and will come back and visit more and share.
Best to you and have a good week in your travels,
Sincerely,
John