Loving Yourself As A Black Woman Analysis

It’s nothing harder to be in society than to be black and a woman. If I was given the opportunity to change my skin color I wouldn’t; however I would take it under great consideration. If I were white, or even hispanic I would be seen as pretty. Whenever I am complimented on my looks “for a black girl” is always at the tail end of the sentence. When people say something like that they are implying that by nature black women are not attractive, but for some reason I have broken the mold. Being black is already one struggle that carries its own weight, being a woman on top of that makes it even heavier.

n 1619 a Dutch ship brought 20 slaves to America and it took nearly 240 years for slavery to end in 1865. In the absence of rights or freedom, my ancestors were put to work growing anything from cotton to tobacco. For centuries, my people fought for equality. Although we are “free” the fight has still remain. As a black women raised in America, I was hit with some harsh realities at a very young age.

I have chosen to reflect on being a white woman, a member of the LDS church here in Utah but also in Denmark, and now a spouse of a cancer patient. Some groups you are born into, some you choose, and yet others you wouldn’t choose, but are none the less a member of, or become a member of. It has been interesting to reflect on these different groups and how they have influenced my life.

In conclusion, to succeed in living a happy life a person must set aside their worries, live in the moment, and find their reason to be happy. “Let your self-consciousness, your scrutiny, your self- interrogation, exhaust themselves on that; and if otherwise fortunately circumstanced you will inhale happiness with the air you breath, without dwelling on it or thinking about it, without either forestalling it in imagination, or putting it to flight by fatal questioning”(Mill). That is the ultimate approach to

While reading all three articles about happiness one common theme arose. What is truly happiness? Many different people interpret this question differently, and all three works of writing seem to have a different view on what happiness is. The poems, “Happiness” written by Jane Kenyon, addresses the come and go nature of happiness, while the essay, “A Balanced Psychology and A Full Life,” focuses on what needs to be done to increase happiness. With this being said “Pig Happiness” by Lynne McFall best addressed the question of what happiness is .

Race and ethnicity play a crucial role in one’s life. Communities worldwide were developed around diverse racial and ethnic identities whom proffer internal sources of resilience to others in the community. However, these aspects can consist of adverse social consequences that influence an individual’s chances of receiving quality medical care, getting a job offer or loan, and/or being falsely accused by authoritative figures. In addition to these hostile effects, one would ponder if it has a detrimental effect a person’s own self-esteem. Recall the racial, class, and social inequality in the United States of America in the 1960s (Eaton, Livingston, & McAdoo, 2008). Those who were considered minorities, such as the Chinese, Japanese, Indian, and various other races, dealt with the earliest form of discrimination back in the days. For an elongated time, African Americans were especially susceptible to the harsh and cruel discrimination in America as described in history classes.

Happiness is something that many people spend their whole lives searching for, but when it comes down to it, is often impossible to truly find. In John Gertner’s essay “The Futile Pursuit of Happiness,” he discusses the findings from the happiness studies done by Daniel Gilbert, Tim Wilson, George Loewenstein, and Daniel Kahneman. The results of the studies suggest that although people can predict who or what will make them happy, they do not know how long it will last or to what degree.

Already knowing much about this topic from previous experience and from others. It doesn't take much to know about the black experience. The topic can either be self taught or learning from the people who we grew up with. I know many things dealing with the black experience; hate, segregation, religion, discrimination, and white privilege. It’s exceedingly important to me since it’s good to take on knowledge about the past; helping in the future, so that we don’t walk in the world blindly, thinking everyone is reunited. I can relate to this topic because I am black and most of the people around me are black so we know how it feels to be here in America where our people were disowned and still today are. This topic keeps me engaged because of knowing more about our history helps us feel important and know that we did come something astounding.

It was as if I was stuck in a shallow hole, in which I could easily climb out of, but I was too embarrassed to so. This was indicative of my entire middle school experience, swallowed by my insecurities and unable to recover. I spent 3 years, as the sole black girl, anxious and unsure. I often muzzled myself in fear of appearing more unlike my friends than I already was. Despite Mr. Fletcher’s slight apprehension towards me following my heated outburst, I began to stop regretting what I said, because, well, I was right. I was capable of more than he allowed me to show in that project. During a time when I never even considered the value of my voice, Mr. Fletcher gave me a chance to speak. It was in his social studies class l learned for first time my words meant something, he changed my life. Whenever something absolutely ridiculous came out of Mr. Fletcher’s mouth I was no longer afraid to retort. Now, when I see an injustice, when I’m underestimated, I say something, and people

People travel through life with what seems like a single goal: to be happy. This may seem like a selfish way to live, however this lone objective is the motivation behind nearly all actions. Even seemingly selfless deeds make people feel better about themselves. That warm feeling experienced while doing charitable acts can be described as happiness. But what is authentic happiness? There is an endless possibility of answers to this question, and man seems to be always searching for the solution. Although one may reach his or her goals, there is always still something one strives for in order to be happy. In the book Stumbling on Happiness, Harvard psychologist Daniel Gilbert takes the reader through

Happiness is something that all people, no matter what race, gender, or social class, strive for. Based on lifestyle or perspective each person has their independent idea of what happiness is, but everyone shares an end goal to live their definition of a happy life. Many people, though, struggle in finding their way to this goal. They face hardships and challenges that test their happiness every day. Happiness, though somewhat indirectly, does take learning and training to discover and maintain.

“Choose to be happy.” This is what mom has always said, since a very young age and still to this day she tells everyone. For so long, it was just “mom talk”, those things your mother says that is supposed to make you stop and think. Yet, being too young, dumb and full of it, to really understand what she means. Curiosity emerges and suddenly there is a need to understand what it really means to be happy, what constitutes Happiness? So follow up with some research, entering the bookstore, gliding in and out of the rows and rows in the self-help sections are others, asking the same question. What is happiness? Where does it come from, are we born with it or do we make it happen? Happiness is but a belief, an idea, a theory; but theories,

People tend to feel the most happiness in their daily lives rather than happiness over all. For instance, if someone opens the door for you, does something outrageous, tells a funny story or simply reacts kindly to you, you can experience happiness. Laughing at someones joke can cause you to feel happy even for just a moment. Another definition of happiness in our daily lives is self appreciation such as, getting that new raise, getting an A on a test or even getting into the college you want. These examples all cause happiness in different but still rather large ways. We seem to think that happiness is so difficult to come by, we focus so hard on what happiness is that we don't even realize the simple things in life that are truly making a difference. We can become significantly happy without even noticing. Although happiness seems like it’s hard to find it’s not all that difficult. What’s hard to come by is the feeling of genuine happiness ; genuine happiness is what people truly look for.

Many live attempting to decipher the riddle of life. What is life? What is the purpose? What makes? Even though we only seek happiness why can’t we ever seem to achieve it? When we do reach happiness why can’t we seem to grasp it and hold it for more than the few short hours that pass like seconds? The question we must answer first is “What makes happiness, true?”

Attention Materials: Many times I have wondered what is true happiness. Is there such thing as true happiness? Can it even be attained if there is such a thing? Is it more of fulfilling desires, or satisfying psychological needs? Every person attempts to realize happiness in its fullest essence. It seems like today people are too busy trying to get rich. Nowadays it is believed that happiness lies in that new mansion, or a nice Ferrari. People are mistakingly assuming that wealth will bring to them a personal significance in which they will achieve happiness.