tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post683891299655805383..comments2023-12-25T00:38:19.500-08:00Comments on Finding Wonderland: The WritingYA Weblog (archive): Privileged...?Sarah Stevensonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16534942492714970282noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-14521280466671378202008-01-14T09:54:00.000-08:002008-01-14T09:54:00.000-08:00What a great story! Now that is what I like to hea...What a great story! Now that is what I like to hear.Sarah Stevensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16534942492714970282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-69326957820295628092008-01-14T07:23:00.000-08:002008-01-14T07:23:00.000-08:00More about "what constitutes privilege?" -- my hus...More about "what constitutes privilege?" -- my husband went to a private high school for dyslexic boys-- his parents scrounged up money to send him because they knew he couldn't get a proper education in a public school "Special Needs" classroom that lumped all Special Needs together. Most of his classmates, though, were very wealthy. But when care packages came, the rich kids all got wads of money, and my husband got homemade chocolate chip cookies. And THEN who was the one everyone ELSE envied?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-42671183266080393492008-01-09T23:20:00.000-08:002008-01-09T23:20:00.000-08:00I love your ponder, "having someone read to you --...I love your ponder, "having someone read to you -- does that denote privilege or literacy?" <BR/><BR/>My dad often recited this well known poem: <BR/><BR/>You may have tangible wealth untold:<BR/>Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.<BR/>Richer than I you can never be–<BR/>I had a Mother who read to me.<BR/>from “The Reading Mother” by Strickland GillilanCamillehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10422449200792287901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-17358443089874925512008-01-09T21:41:00.000-08:002008-01-09T21:41:00.000-08:00Must go see this quiz. Thanks for the link. And th...Must go see this quiz. Thanks for the link. <BR/><BR/>And the laugh over Diego. Oh my. <BR/><BR/>Jules, 7-ImpJules at 7-Imphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14439756778611468303noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-25880336857198232842008-01-08T17:58:00.000-08:002008-01-08T17:58:00.000-08:00I thought that was an odd question, too (the media...I thought that was an odd question, too (the media one). It actually made me realize how rarely people "like me" (exactly like me, anyway) are portrayed in media at all.<BR/><BR/>And yes--the circumstances and timing of one's college education can reflect drastically different backgrounds.Sarah Stevensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16534942492714970282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-14752432341824375862008-01-08T14:48:00.000-08:002008-01-08T14:48:00.000-08:00I saw that quiz, too, and if nothing else, at leas...I saw that quiz, too, and if nothing else, at least it made me think. Which is perhaps its main purpose.<BR/><BR/>I grew up lower-middle-class by US standards, which means I was very well off by world standards. Some of the measures listed in the quiz are a bit strange, however--4 questions alone about whether your parents attended and finished college. My mother got an Associate's Degree at midlife; my father worked his way through college (took him 8 years of night school). How would that compare to a Harvard legacy? <BR/><BR/>Another strange question was something about whether "people like me are portrayed positively in the media." What does that mean? Should I go by race, sex, age, weight, physical attractiveness--many of which lead to different conclusions?<BR/><BR/>But like I said, food for thought, at least.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-60304343623080630382008-01-08T11:02:00.000-08:002008-01-08T11:02:00.000-08:00You're right, this is an interesting quiz in terms...You're right, this is an interesting quiz in terms of what it reveals about the quiz-writer's definition of privilege. According to the quiz, I grew up fairly privileged, but I don't think of my family as having been anything other than middle-class by any means. I felt very lucky in certain respects--my parents loved me, and they went out of their way to create as many opportunities for me--and us--given their means at any particular time. Like E. Lockhart, that meant lots of road trip vacations (and lots of Motel 6 stays)--plus a few big plane journeys. I owned some books, but we went to the library all the time. <BR/><BR/>The weird thing is, when I compare even my lifestyle now--wanna-be upper-middle-class, I suppose--to those in higher income brackets, it's obvious that there is a lot more variation in the privilege spectrum than this quiz implies. And whenever I travel, it reminds me of how well off even the underprivileged in this country are compared to the standard of living in many other countries, even many Western ones...Sarah Stevensonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16534942492714970282noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-2772635759809414942008-01-08T09:14:00.000-08:002008-01-08T09:14:00.000-08:00Regarding that quiz: We had original art on our wa...Regarding that quiz: We had original art on our walls, but then, two of my grandfathers and one of my grandmothers were painters. What I think the reading and book questions have to do with are middle-class values focusing on education. We were in one of the lower-middle class brackets, and the attitude was that you could lose your possessions but you would always have your education. There were no extra tvs, cars, cell-phones (we didn't have them back then, and I seriously doubt I would have had one as a teen), but my parents stretched funds so I could have piano and ballet lessons and there were plenty of books in the house. Despite the lack of money at times, we were rich beyond compare.:)Saints and Spinnershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04733517166056974501noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-13455035706156224542008-01-08T06:58:00.000-08:002008-01-08T06:58:00.000-08:00It's funny. My dad was a doctor---a surgeon, no le...It's funny. My dad was a doctor---a surgeon, no less---but we grew up with the ethic that less was more. I rode a bus the entire four years of high school and a bike the first two years of college. My books came from the library. I never, ever owned a designer anything, nor did I even know what those coveted things were, because we didn't have a TV until I was 8 or so, and then I wasn't allowed to watch it.<BR/><BR/>I have no doubt that my father's income put me into the privileged class, and kept me living in a safe neighborhood, and gave me access to things like the glasses and health care I needed, but I think attitude matters way more than anything. <BR/><BR/>Thanks for the laugh about Diego. Poor boy. Poor mom.Sarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12225998457253574928noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-8775276977404753322008-01-08T05:23:00.000-08:002008-01-08T05:23:00.000-08:00I didn't take that silly quiz but I've seen it all...I didn't take that silly quiz but I've seen it all over the place and it is driving me nuts. We had books because we went to the library every week and also because my parents got Reader's Digest Condensed books. Does that make us rich? And staying in hotels - well, a few times when I was older we stayed overnight at hotels. It was always Days Inn - always. And my father never paid more than $30 for a room (and we all fit in one room).<BR/><BR/>I just don't think the quiz reveals what it is aiming for. So annoying.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10890387.post-79311967500598622062008-01-08T05:18:00.000-08:002008-01-08T05:18:00.000-08:00I am laughing out loud (all alone in my office) ab...I am laughing out loud (all alone in my office) about Diego, the poor thing. I'm sending this to all the teachers I know. Kids are so creative!<BR/><BR/>Thanks for sharing.Triciahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18350907653629775293noreply@blogger.com