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Collin College PSY 1300 Political Correctness Discussion
- Course
- PSY 1300
- Institution
- Collin College
Collin College PSY 1300 Political Correctness Discussion
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A June 2004 article in Altermedia Scotland states:"America as a nation is nowdominated by an alien system of beliefs, attitudes, and values that has become known
as 'political correctness.' It seeks to impose a uniformity in thought and behavior among
all Americans and is therefore totalitarian in nature." In no less than 300 words answer
the following: Do you agree that political correctness imposes "a uniformity of thought
and behavior"? Cite specifically what has informed your opinion, i.e. from where do you
draw the knowledge that led you to disagree or agree with the idea of political
correctness. Describe at least two examples of political correctness on college
campuses to illustrate your answer. Discuss what role, if any, political correctness
can play in increasing respect for diversity and enhancing the democratic process.
FOR YOUR PEER REVIEW: Gain an understanding of the perspective your assigned
peer has about political correctness. Using no less than 150 words and using respect in
your communication, disagree with your peer's perspective. No matter what that
perspective may be, I want you to play the 'Devil's Advocate', that is, take a different
perspective (notice I did not write 'opposite perspective') and demonstrate through your
response why your chosen perspective is the correct way to view the idea of political
correctness. Your assigned peer may already agree with the perspective that you
actually hold. I don't want you to rephrase your perspective. I want you to respond with
an alternative perspective to what your peer has.
In my opinion, I would very much agree that political correctness does impose uniformity of
thought and behavior, and has been doing so for some time now effectively. It has become more
and more prevalent in our society and only seems to stifle creative thinking and discussion.
When we feel obligated to curtail our vocabulary in order to ensure that we are not offending
anyone when we speak, it is a form of social censorship for which we feel that we must uphold.
In a peer-reviewed medical journal written by Joseph H. Friedman, MD, the doctor points out
how being politically correct should be important to observe in some areas such as the medical
profession. He states “Being PC simply means being sensitive to the meaning of the words we
use. In Alice in Wonderland, Humpty Dumpty states that “’when I use a word, it means exactly
what I choose it to mean.”’ This is not correct. Words can hurt. We should use the terms based
on how they are perceived, not how we think they should be perceived. Using denigrating labels,
even if they seem not insulting to the user, is a way of distancing ourselves but also reduces how
patients think they are valued.” I have to agree with the author when we are discussing how it
can be sensitive in using words that can be harmful to an individual in the medical sense, such as
the slang “retarded” rather than a more politically correct term such as “mentally handicapped”
or a more specific medical term. But when we take it too far and we become a society that
becomes overly offended by the slightest of verbal offenses, it only adds to the sensitivities that
we seem to have embraced in society today.
College campuses seem to be where these types of sensitivities have been embraced and add to
the issues that political correctness has caused in the academic system. For example, a professor
at Brooklyn College of City University of New York had to change his syllabus because part of
it said that effort was ten percent of the grade was deemed “sexual harassment”. It is difficult to
understand how a student would misinterpret that as a sexual advance and would take offense is
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