Objectification -- what it means
Karen A. Van Hoek
also failing to recognize them as a _subject_ -- that is, failing
to recognize or show respect for their point of view and their
feelings. Objectification would mean viewing them purely as
an object of perception, not taking heed of their own status as
a perceiver or cognizer.
If this is the sense in which objectification is meant -- it's a sense
in which the word is used in my particular branch of linguistics,
though perhaps not anywhere else -- then we wouldn't want to say
that all objectification is evil. The opposite of objectification
(insofar as I'm used to these terms) is subjectification, which is
identifying with that person's perspective. If you literally do not
objectify the person at all, then you see everything from their
point of view -- in which case we're talking about extreme codependence
or some strange delusional state.
In any case, any time you take another person as an object of
perception -- any time you notice their appearance, or think about
them in any way -- you're objectifying them _to some degree_. So
to say "objectification is wrong" islike saying "looking at someone
is wrong". Presumably what's meant is something more like
"total objectification is wrong", where total objectification means
failure to be cognizant of the other person's humanity and
perspective.
You can see why I think we need more discussion of what "objectify"
means before we start slinging around accusations of objectification.
If anyone knows of a source in the literature that lays out The
Feminist Definition of Objectification, please let me know -- or
even if you know of any authors who've taken a good shot at the
subject.
Karen
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