You’ve probably had the experience. There is something you care about so deeply that you can’t imagine how its importance wouldn’t be obvious to everyone else. And yet, when you talk about it, you see the ‘so what?’ cloud forming on the faces of your conversation partners. Sociology graduate student Chelsea Johnson had this experience when trying to explain her dissertation topic—black women’s hair—to other academics and social scientists, so she decided to share some strategies she learned about “the art of persuasion” in this August 2016 blog post on The Well.
Read it here: Johnson, “What explaining my natural hair to PhDs taught me about the art of persuasion”
- In the course of offering strategies for helping listeners (and readers) appreciate the importance of topics they don’t have much interest in, Johnson explains why her own research topic matters. What is her topic and why does it matter? To whom does (or should) it matter? Summarize her explanation and argument. Did she persuade you that her topic is important? Why or why not?
- Johnson mentions “the symbolic value of hair across time, place, and culture.” Does hair have symbolic value to you as a member of a culture and/or religion? Are the hair and head covering practices in the religious and secular culture(s) in your life restricted to one or another gender? Which one of Johnson’s strategies might you employ to explain these symbolic meanings to someone who knows nothing about them?
- Johnson’s essay is published on a blog called The Well. Explore the blog and its hosting site a bit. How well does Johnson’s post fit with the objectives of the blog? Why do you think so? Explain your conclusions.
- Many of Johnson’s suggestions are similar to the moves described in Chapter 7 of your text. Identify two of those similarities, pointing to specific passages in both texts to support your comparison.
- Johnson emphasizes how important it is to “learn how to communicate with those who don’t share your experiences.” Think of something you’d really like to explain to someone who may not understand why it matters to you. Write a letter (or the script of a conversation) in which you use Johnson’s strategies to express your position.
They Say I Blog 
In the course of offering strategies for helping listeners (and readers) appreciate the importance of topics they don’t have much interest in, Johnson explains why her own research topic matters. What is her topic and why does it matter? To whom does (or should) it matter? Summarize her explanation and argument. Did she persuade you that her topic is important? Why or why not?
Johnson’s topic is related to natural hair for African American women, and how society’s view of what it should be often is a harm to the black community. She also goes on to say that she has had issues with bringing up this topic, as not everyone can see why it is important to be discussed.
This topic matters to her, because as an African American female this is something that is a very important discussion for her, and the lack of enthusiasm that she meets when trying to bring up this subject is difficult to deal with.
This topic should matter to everyone, to try to repeal some unknown stigmas surrounding this topic, but as the writer states, that a large part of her work includes trying to convince people that what she is talking about even matters. In her work, she states there are 5 ways that she uses to get others interested in her work. She uses focusing on the bigger picture, making it relatable, showing the bigger impact, standing on the shoulders of others, and keep the conversation going to address her concerns and make sure she gets across how important her issue is. She states if she uses these strategies, she is able to get academic colleges to better understand her struggles.
She did persuade me that her topic was important. As a white female, I didn’t even know that this stigma existed for people of color, in face it had never crossed my mind until it was brought to my attention. The author did do a good job in bringing her issue to light, and making her argument valid by including those 5 talking points. I will take from this blog post a new understanding of what hair actually means to someone, and how it may portray more than what we think.
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Much of academic writing is self justification, especially when it comes to topics that don’t get a lot of coverage. Johnson is right to fight for her topic’s inclusion among the ranks of academic study.
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Once she introduces the matter at hand, Johnson adds that she is also trying to manage “the expectations of employers, family members, and romantic partners.” Already, she is answering the question “Who cares?” The people she mentions care, which is exemplified by the fact that they have premeditated expectations of what a Black woman should present herself as. She speaks on the fact that she listens “to women discuss dealing with coworkers who’ve called their natural hair “
‘wild,’ ‘ugly,’ ‘masculine,’ or ‘unprofessional’ and goes on to say that we’re living in a eurocentric bubble. At this point, she is answering the question “So what?” She continues by saying, “try explaining that to a bunch of academics.” The point she is trying to make is that the eurocentric views are not recognized and if they are, it will mean Black women can “go natural” without backlash.
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Johnson’s topic is the expectations of society and African American female hair. This topic matters to her because these are the issues she has to face daily in her life. This topic should matter to everyone because it gives everyone a glimpse as to what it is to live with this type of hair. As future employers or peers in a work setting, it is really important that we treat each other in a friendly manner and more so support others in their choices.
Johnson gives a few examples of who she feels are the biggest people who it matters to. These is family, employers and significant others.
Johnson gives 5 main points to focus on. She states that she should focus on the big picture, make it relatable to her audience, show what is really taking place, stand on the shoulders of other and lastly that she just has to keep the conversation going. Johnson found that by focusing on these points when she talked about her topic that it allowed her to connect with her audience as well as get them to trust her and what she has to say.
Johnson persuaded me that her topic was an issue that needs to be addressed. Even as a white female, I have chemically treated my hair for a very, long time due to the curls and over whelming amount of them. It is something took a while to get out of and it can be hard to deal with the impressions of your hair as your going through it. There are always bad critics and good critics.
I feel everyone should listen to what Johnson has to say and should truly open their ears.
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Johnsons topic is about Black women’s hair and how it affects their lives. It matters because of the stereotypes and social norms of society. Black women are judged by how they wear their hair. If they choose to be natural, it is “out of control”. If they choose to use chemicals. it is costing billions, ruining their hair, and has potential health concerns. This topic should matter to everyone. The subject may be a black woman’s hair but the implications on finances and health are a global concern. It is a concern for everyone because black woman should not be judged based on their hair preferences. This is especially important in the workforce. She did persuade me that her topic was important. I personally do not like living in a society where so much emphasis is put on looks. People should be well informed on any topic before forming and opinion.
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My thought’s on Johnsons Black women’s hair topic… I am a woman and hair is of some importance to me but I’m not consumed by it. I currently have long hair but have also had short hair in the past. Do I think one is better than the other, no. Honestly, it’s just hair and I guess I don’t think much about it because it grows. I personally don’t care what color people want their hair to be, style or length. As a matter of fact I have a cousin who shaves his head bald on a daily basis and I happen to think that that looks good as well. Hair is hair and I feel you can do with it what ever you would like to do.
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Johnsons research topic has to do with African American women conforming to societies, so called, standards by changing their hair. The topic should matter to everyone. Johnson includes everyone in her audience from marketing down to public health members. Johnson argues why women change their hair, to look as what society expects them to look like; so they can get a certain job or boyfriend. She also discusses the pain behind the process of chemical straightening and the potential health hazards of the products. Should this topic matter to myself and others? Yes, it should because each member of society feels they either need to dictate what each member should or shouldn’t look like or feel an overwhelming need to look what they feel society dictates them to appear. Why should I, or we, conform my appearance to meet someone else’s standards? Anyone should be able to get a job not because we look a certain way but because we are the most qualified for the job. Johnson did persuade me to feel the topic of appearance and what we do to gain the acceptance of others is important. She did this by looking outside of the “box”.
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Although I have no interest in the relationship someone shares with their hair this overall was a good read. Now, it can just be me being bitter because I am going through male pattern baldness or it can be the fact that I see something far more valuable in a person than their outside appearance. Although I have no interest in this particular subject it does not mean that it is not important. If someone is willing to take the time and share something with you then it is your job to show respect and listen to them in return. I did strongly agree with the point of standing on the shoulders of others because hey, if a famous person said or did it, it must be valid. Cheers.
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Johnson’s topic for her dissertation is “race, gender, and beauty politics”. Specifically, Johnson is discussing the relationship black women have with “going natural” and how others react to them “going natural”. I feel that this is a very important topic and feel that more people should care about it. I have a biracial daughter with natural hair, one would never understand the amount of time and energy that is put into the care for natural hair. But more importantly, prior to the birth of my child, I would have never knew the fight women of color have with natural hair.
Prior to reading this article, I did feel that her topic was important, however, there was one thing that I read within that I never thought of before. The relationship she explained between black women and health issues never crossed my mind. I straightened my child’s hair once, not 5 minutes later it was curly all over again from the humidity and sweat. I never related this to black women avoiding exercise to keep their hair looking perfect! How many women are avoiding exercise thus increasing their likelihood of developing certain diseases? This is probably what affected me the most reading the whole article.
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The depth of which she involves us is the pursuit of explaining her dilemma is engaging and I must admit not anything I ever considered being that I don’t have her hair. As a white American with the expectations upon me in America I was always viewed as typical and I never gave a second thought to my hair presenting an issue to weather I was seen as employable or not. Yes I believe she makes a great argument and I need to note her 5 steps.
Wendy
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Amanda Coyle
Ms Johnson has a very interesting topic concerning the relationship between black women and their hair and how society views women and their hair. Johnson argues that black women are encouraged through society to turn their hair more natural. This makes them more appealing to future employers, family members and romanic partners. I believe that Johnson has difficulty making her thesis sound as important as it is or taken as seriously because “hair” is something that seems more superficial than anything. I also believe that often people do not enjoy reading that they judge someone based on something as minor as their hair.
However, women around the world change their hair in order to make statements everyday. It is a powerful for of expression that cannot be ignored. Others are going to notices someone’s hair. If a women’s hair is covered, that is noticed. People are initially judged and evaluated based on their apperance, especially on first encounter. So even as a white female, the state of my hair can impact my career. For example, in the army, my hair needs to be pulled back in a tight bun and basically does not move for sometimes 15 hours a day. Its miserable. But its state makes me look professional by the army standards. If I were to come in with hair hanging everywhere, and the bun falling out, I would be yelled at constantly throughout the day, probably made fun of, and eventually I would get so tired of it I would end up fixing my bun.
Johnson’s thesis is important because it gives us a deeper look on how certain individuals are affected by this otherwise superficial ideal: their hair.
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Johnsons topic is about Black women’s relationship to their and society’s relation to them. This is a topic that matters because it is an issue to a large amount of people and the more we can understand it the more we can be understanding of it. This topic should matter to everyone. It should matter to black women because it shows them they aren’t alone. It should matter to everyone else so we can be less judgmental in the world. She explains how not going natural is a big money making business and we can be influenced by the money makers to think that natural is not pretty just because they want to make money. She also talks about the importance of hair to those who may not think it is a topic worth talking about and how almost any race or religion can relate to the importance of hair to them and society. She makes a point that whatever type of hair you have could potentially affect your health. All these points that she made did convince me that it is an important topic to talk about because at least one if not all of her points were relatable to me in some way.
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The authors topic was to convince the reader that natural hair styles should be considered acceptable. The author states that the main reason is to go against the notion that natural hair styles are ugly, masculine, and unprofessional. I think the audience she is trying to reach is everyone who reads the article. I feel like she is trying the change the opinions of society, so that natural hairstyles will no longer be considered unprofessional. I understand where the author is coming from, but I feel most of her “five steps” are fluff.
For some groups hair has symbolic value. However, I am not to familiar with the practices of these regions to be able to comment if they are restricted to anyone.I think that comparing natural hair to religious head coverings, takes away from her argument.I think she might have used a better argument such as Jewish men having long beards, since that is a natural hair style which she is arguing for the acceptance of. She then compares hair to punks, goths, and hippies. All three of these groups are generally look down on in society, so I do think this is a good comparison to make if you are trying to make another person think that natural hair is acceptable.
The well is a website to advance black, latino, and native american students and professionals. I think that this is a perfect article for this website. Johnsons argument is to prove that natural hair is acceptable, she is saying that currently having natural hair is a burden on an individual because it is not considered professional.
In the book we have two examples that resemble Johnson’s arguments. The first is parents used to think spanking was acceptable, but is now counterproductive. Johnson is saying that natural hair was considered unprofessional, but now that way of thinking is wrong. Also her staying that her study is shedding new research on the topic, this is also in the book.
I would like to communicate the overuse of antibiotics using Johnson strategy of looking at the bigger picture. I would explain that using antibiotics every time you feel ill might make you feel better now, but over time you will get sicker. I would explain that the overuse of antibiotics is contributing to the creation of resistant bacteria.
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Johnson does a great job of explaining why her topic matters. Until recently, I was not familiar with the struggles that black women have with their hair. I did not know that after spending countless hours and large amounts of money on a hair style, that it could be ruined with the smallest raindrop. I learned from Johnson that women avoid exercise so that their hair is not affected from the moisture of sweat. It is sad that our society is so hung up on appearance that it is placing black women at risk for chronic conditions.
Although not every one cares about the struggles that black women have with their hair, Johnson pointed out that there are ways to get people to understand and take interest in this subject. She encourages people to focus on the big picture. Highlighting the larger problems of society, incorporate the monetary impact that it has on society. Secondly, it is important to make the topic relatable to their own situation. Everyone has a personal issue with hair that they can relate to. My issue is grey hair. I spend my precious time and money to get my roots touched up. Why, I ask myself? It is because I don’t want people to judge me. I don’t want to look older than I am. Having grey hair at this time in my life would decrease my self esteem and I would feel less confident. But I have never thought of the impact of putting chemicals on my head twelve times a year. Johnson also stated that one should stand on the shoulders of others. That is something that I never thought of. In addition, when you feel passionately about a subject, you should never give up. Do all that you can to let your voice be heard. She concluded that only you can begin to have the impact you desire.
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Johnsons topic is about African American women and their hair. After reading this article, it should matter to everyone but I feel like in particular she is talking about people in her life, her friend’s family co-workers and romantic partners are the ones who are directed in this article. This article talks about what society things that African American’s hair should be and what it looks like. Its hard to bring a topic like this up, because she doesn’t want to offend or make others uncomfortable, also she is one of not very many in her own class who suffer from this issue, so im sure makes it harder for her to be able to talk to others and have them understand her point of view. She did persuade me that her topic is important because she stated a few items to help convince anyone of their point. Focus on the big picture, make it relatable, show the real impact, stand on the shoulders of others, and keep the conversation going. All of these points made me believe her statement more, and made it more important to me.
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Johnson focuses on her own experience as an African American woman with “hair issues.” There is a clear difference between her natural preferences and what society perceives as attractive. She has chosen the former path, which has led to some problems in her everyday life. So this is the issue she is attempting to tackle. Johnson states how she wanted to express herself fearlessly to her academic advisors. This is what leads to her eventual argument of how to connect with people on important personal matters. Essentially, she is teaching readers how to engage others. This is a significant quality to have because people frequently fail to understand one another. Johnson realizes the struggle of trying to convince others of something that is unfamiliar to them, and acts on it. That is why this topic is so important. It focuses on helping others become more confident in themselves.
Although this piece initially seems directed at a specific demographic, it is really meant for everyone. Johnson is essentially talking about why the expression of personal beliefs is important. She recognizes the significance of these strong personal beliefs, and this leads her to teach the art of persuasion. Basically, anybody with an important point to make can take something away from her writing.
Johnson utilizes five primary points in her explanation of how to engage others. Most of what she says involves connecting with others through the content of your commentary. Whether you use all five ideas or just one, the key is that you find a way to connect with the other person. Once that link is formed, there is opportunity for a truly convincing conversation.
I was undoubtedly persuaded. Everything Johnson says is credible and sensible. It is easy to understand her personal struggles in a frequently ethnocentric society. Her means of resolving these problems are practical and efficient. I came away thinking that if I can remember these ideas when communicating with others, I can be a far more persuasive person. Overall, I thought Johnson’s argument was genuine and effective.
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Johnson’s topic is Black women’s relationship with their hair and how it affects their everyday life. It matters because there is a stereotype in our society that everyone, black women included, should conform to Eurocentric beauty (looking a certain way to get a job, significant other, etc.). It should matter to everyone, in her opinion, and that is why she is trying to persuade her follow academia to care. She describes the Billion-dollar beauty industry’s white-washing of Black women’s hair in order to sell products and services. She explains that we are mostly aware of other cultures hair, our ancestor’s hair (wigs), and even the symbolism of hair for certain groups within our society (punk, goth, hippie), so why not learn about and try to relate to her issue. She then goes on to explain the risks and impact of trying to maintain the societal norm for hair. Issues like Black women not exercising due to sweat ruining straight hair, which results in higher risk for heart disease and diabetes. Not to mention them chemicals used on the scalp, and hair loss due to extensions. She also used a high-ranking physician to catch our attention and make her argument more trustworthy. In the end, she did persuade me that her topic is important. I am very aware and conscious of what I put in my body and the house hold products I use. I am a firm believer in the more natural, the better. Chemicals that straighten the hair, prevent exercise, and make someone look “unnatural” are against my way of thinking and clearly not healthy physically or mentally.
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Johnson’s topic is about black women’s hair and the relationship that it carries with their everyday life. It should matter to everyone because not everyone can experience what she and other black women are going through with their hair. Any way that she would wear her hair she feels as if she would be judged. She persuaded me to believe her topic was important because I grew up with my sisters and their constant struggle with their hair. It was everything from chemical relaxers to getting weaves and even the thought about getting their hair cut short so its easier to manage. I have long hair and being part black I kinda relate to her and her argument. The hair and head covering practices are not specific to gender. I would use her second strategy to try and explain theses symbolic means to another person. The blog fits well with the objectives because its a good topic to talk about and inform people about. Johnson topic matters to some people because some people could have no knowledge of this topic and would want to learn more. I do not drink soda because I believe it is unhealthy for humans everyday life but I would not force my ways upon someone else. I would make a general statement, then go into details and try to relate with the other person, show why its bad and continue about it in an orderly fashion. I totally agree with Johnson’s argument, i feel it was very effective.
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Johnson’s topic was black women’s hair and how it impacts their lives. it should matter to everyone since it is obviously a problem that has impacted many black women and women who wear their hair a “different” way. I already felt that this topic was important before reading this article. I hear women talk about it often. If I was explaining this to someone who didn’t know anything about it I would try to relate it to something in their life. that way they might be able to understand better.
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Kristen Medved – 1st Blog Response.
In the course of offering strategies for helping listeners (and readers) appreciate the importance of topics they don’t have much interest in, Johnson explains why her own research topic matters. What is her topic and why does it matter?
She wrote that her dissertation was about race, gender, and beauty politics. Examining how Black women negotiate a politicized trend of “going natural” while managing the expectations of employers, family members, and romantic partners. She gave a very good argument on why this dissertation was of importance and how not supporting the “natural” black female imagine would continue to put unrealistic expectations on those women, even effecting their health, self-worth, and career.
To whom does (or should) it matter?
In my opinion it should most definitely matter to all woman, as unrealistic beauty and body expectations continue to jeopardize women’s health, self-esteem, and career. Conforming to societies ideal imagine can be exhausting and self-limiting.
Summarize her explanation and argument. Did she persuade you that her topic is important? Why or why not?
Chelsea Johnson used 5 strategies that persuaded me that her topic was of importance. Focusing on the bigger picture or argument that billion dollar beauty companies have profited from marking the need for black women to change or hide their natural hair/beauty in order to be accepted in society. She made the topic relatable by comparing to other ethnic groups, cultural traditions, and social trends. She explained the real life negative impact this topic has on black females such as lack of exercise, scalp scaring, toxic exposure, uterine fibroids, and hair loss. Chelsea used respectable public figures to support her argument, such as the former Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin. Lastly she did not let others depreciate the importance of this topic, she continue to share her experiences with a wider audience in order to gain more insight and spread the word.
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This was an interesting topic to read about, our hair is a reflection of our identity because is personal and public. Johnson’s personal experience with black hair and the research she did made her understand the importance of this topic. Also she goes over the difference between chemical hair treatment and natural hair treatment. A person’s hair or cultural attire should not affect obtaining a job, or being labeled negatively because they are different. Also she addresses 5 ways of becoming more confident and successful regarding being understood by your peers which I thing is valuable advice.
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Johnson’s art of persuasion in academia shown through the struggle of black women being accepted for their natural hair is a very valid way of putting her point across. Afro hair for centuries has been disapproved, even within black communities itself and it still is an ongoing issue. The need for black women to feel they should have their hair relaxed (straightened hair) or in a weave (fake hair) to feel accepted solely because society sees this as a norm is wrong. This is an important topic, especially to myself being a black woman.
By Johnson highlighting this topic within academia is very clever as she is arising the subject with an audience who would never show interest in the subject of hair let alone black hair. She shares with the audience the bigger picture. Whilst putting her art of persuasion into practice.
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In the course of offering strategies for helping listeners (and readers) appreciate the importance of topics they don’t have much interest in, Johnson explains why her own research topic matters. What is her topic and why does it matter? To whom does (or should) it matter? Summarize her explanation and argument. Did she persuade you that her topic is important? Why or why not?
Her research topic is black women’s hair, but more specifically, the black women’s hair in the workplace, social settings, and romantically. She says that it does matter to black women, but it should matter to everyone. These unrealistic expectations of black women to maintain a relaxed hairstyle lead to activities (or lack of activities) that can cause increased health issues in the female black community. She also discusses that this is a huge business, so therefore it should peek interest in large corporations especially in the beauty industry. She did persuade me that it is an important topic, but it is not one that is personally important to me.
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Chelsea Johnson’s essay on strategies to use when conveying points of fact to an uninformed audience matter greatly because of the reality of our fractured society. Johnson argues, and rightly so, that niche topics need to be studied and debated. She described the issue of relating to people who are unfamiliar with her research field and strategies she has successfully employed to inform them. I see a fragmented, tribal society of people living within their own bubbles, and thus I tend to agree with Johnson. I agree that not only is her study of Eurocentric influence on African American women important, but also that communicating with those who have little understanding of the world outside of their own experience is vital to increasing awareness and effecting change for the better of all.
I am not a member of an ethnic of religious group in which hair has any symbolic value. However, I have lived in places surrounded by women who choose to cover their hair and face, to varying degrees. Depending upon where you are and whom you are talking with in America, the hair and face covering by Muslim women is looked at with curiosity, distrust, or contempt. One strategy to explain that the majority of these women dress this way by choice would be to make it relatable to their choice to wear in public a cross on a necklace or a sweatshirt bearing the likeness of Jesus.
Johnson’s article fits the mold and contributes substantive strategies to the goal of empowering underrepresented minority professionals and students to successfully navigate their careers. While her article highlights the struggle she faces as an African American woman and as a PhD student in a understudied and underappreciated field, it also gives valuable advice to anyone who has ever tried to inform the uninformed.
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Societies views on what types of hair is ‘good’ or ‘bad’ have for the most part leaned toward straight Caucasian styles; women of color have varying grades of hair that require hair-extensions or chemical intervention to achieve such styles. In recent years, black women have been transitioning from chemical treatments to allowing their hair to grow in its natural state. This topic of research would be very important to women in general because hair care is international; we all want healthy hair and women with mixed children would benefit as well as black women. She also mentions that hair maintenance has hindered black women from certain activities due to a fear of ruining a hairstyle. I feel her argument for research is valid because as a mixed child whose mother did not know how to care for my hair I had some interesting experiences with my messy natural hair and at times I damaged it. If my mother would have had readily available information I may have been saved the embarrassment
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Johnson’s topic is the importance of her natural hair being a huge controversy and people often questioning it and saying that it looks “sloppy” or “unprofessional”. This has led to having to persuade people as to why it is OK for her to do and this made her realize that it’s hard to persuade anyone about anything on a topic that they may not have as much care for as you do. Evey one should care about this topic because someone’s hair doesn’t define who they are and the type of work that they put out. As with any other beliefs. As long as you are doing your job and not harming others, what you believe should be out of the question of if you’re a good worker or not. This topic matters because there is more discrimination against black women for embracing their natural BEAUTIFUL hair than many people see or have ever even heard of.
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Her topic is about her dissertation on race, gender and beauty politics but specifically about how black women negotiate a politicized trend of “going natural” while managing the expectations of figures in their lives. This matters because she’s showing how not supporting the “natural” black female imagine would continue to put unrealistic expectations on those women, even affecting their health, self-worth, and career. This definitely matters to all women who have to deal with unrealistic beauty and body standards that society insist they follow because it hurts women on many level in their lives. Johnson explains 5 strategies to use to persuade the importance of her topic and any topic the audience may want to share; focus on the bigger picture, make it relatable, show the real impact, stand on the shoulder of others and keep the conversation going. I think she’s persuasive on her topic because she puts it into perspective, to help me see the struggle even though I’m not a black women.
In my life, hair has a very symbolic value in my religion and culture. As a Muslim, I cover my hair in the hijab as a way to be modest, my hijab represents modesty. Obviously this practice in only performed by the women of the Islamic faith because a woman’s hair is more valuable in expressing herself than a guy. I would use the example of another “extreme” religious practice done that my audience would relate to. For instance, with my Christian friends I would use the example of nuns covering their hair to be closer to God to get them to understand why I wear the hijab and how it’s okay that I cover my hair.
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In the natural article Ms. Johnson is talking about her experience with having natural hair while black. I have to went through these things she is stating. People asking you many questions about your hair or making negative comments all the time. This is why it is important to research like Johnson was doing. She made a list of things to do while researching a topic especially one that’s big. She says be look at the bigger picture, in other words think from A higher perspective to see more things, be relatable so people can feel A connection with you and your research. The amin thing to do is be yourself.
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As an young lady, I believe that there is value to your hair based on your culture and religion. Your born with this type of hair an texture for a reason. If you were suppose to have another hair type than you would have been born with it and that would have been the end of the debate. Depending on where you are coming from and what you believe in, yes it is different because women typically have more hair than women but in certain countries or beliefs it suppose to be equally tamed that men and women have hair. Except men have to have different treatments than women. By showing the real impact on what hair is to you and how you have achieved it throughout the years of your life. As well show the how it impacted you and how you became the person you are today.
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Eh, I will never get to do such vaults, I have a different hair structure. And I wanted so much.
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I have to disagree with Corby’s nonchalant attitude towards the author’s opinions on her hair. I commend her for her supposed indifference towards outside appearances, but the truth is that appearance is constantly scrutinized through the lens of societal norms and standards of beauty. Anyone who does not conform is seen as lesser in some way, and this directly impacts the types of situations they encounter in their daily lives.
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When it comes to the topic of persuasion, most of us will readily agree that it is an intimidating challenge. Where this agreement usually ends, however, is on the question of how we go about confronting the idea. In Chelsea Johnson’s article “What Explaining My Natural Hair To PhDs Taught Me About The Art Of Persuasion,“ she explains what she learned attempting to convince the sociology community that her problem is an important topic that needs examination. Johnson had a list of things that she felt she had learned along her path of being a graduate student, the first being that we need to “focus on the bigger picture,” which means that to emphasize the importance of an issue we need to look at the broader effects of a phenomenon rather than start with the most specific. Secondly, she she highlights the importance of relating your issue to something the others will understand, in her case she pointed out the importance of hair in the past to culture. Furthermore, she explains that there are many medical problems to black women continuing to use chemical relaxers such as less frequent exercise and scarring of the scalp. Additionally, she feels that quoting respected people helps establish credibility, and helps convince others to your argument. Finally she feels that persistence is the key as you may not convince them the first time, and if you keep talking about it others might rally behind your topic.
In discussions of Johnson’s article, one important topic has been the persistence. On the one hand, it is easily to be disheartened. On the other hand, it’s important to continue onward. I feel that persistence is the most important part of persuasion, as never giving up will keep you going onward. Additionally though, I feel that relying on other people, while building credibility, can be dangerous. This topic is dangerous as if you are using to much of their argument you may lose your voice in the debate at all as their words dominate your essay.
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I think Chelsea’s arguement is very important because people don’t see the importance in it. There are very negative connotations with “Black Hair”, very negative internalization for the black woman in this country and like she said even health issues ! Can you image what it’s like not feeling comfortable or beautiful just the way you are ? Being a black woman i have also went through this challenges and it really took me a long time to see the beauty in being who i am. Not feeling like i “need” to change my appearance to fit in, or feel beautiful. Her arguement broke down the many internal, invisible issues involved in the lives of black women in america. She listed the various challenges in efforts to show you why this should be a known concern. I feel that her efforts to push this topic was very well needed. We need this ugly truth to be brought to light for the mental and physical sake of women everywhere. No one should have to be teased or feel uncomfortable with who they are. No one should have to aspire to look like someone else. It’s hard to truly understand that when society accepts you for who you are, but unfortunately black women, and honestly black people in general haven’t been afforded that luxury. This is something i feel very passionate about because of experience, luckily we have more women embracing their natural hair, but we still have a long way to go.
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As i read through alot of the comments, it exemplifies exactly why Johnson had to write this article. Johnson wrote this article not only to show you the skills and tactics she used when writing her articles, but also to bring light to a particular situation. A lot of times in life if it doesn’t pertain to us or we’ve never experienced it before than we have a hard time relating to that topic. In return it makes it very hard to understand a topic that we know little about. But just because you don’t have any common ground with the topic , does that mean its not important. Johnson does a great job with incorporating how she got people out of their comfort zone to really listen and acquire knowledge of something that was important to her.
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Chelsea Johnson’s main point is that society views black women with natural hair in the workplace to be unprofessional or lack the requirements to be successful. I don’t think that natural hair is unprofessional. I feel that if other nationalities can wear their natural hair why can’t black women do the same. Unless that woman is a model or in advertising I feel that their hair shouldn’t matter. Everyone hair grows differently I don’t think that everyone should be forced to fit in a box only for such type of hair or hairstyles.
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This article entitled, ” What Explaining My Natural Hair to PhDs Taught Me About The Art Of persuasion” written by Chelsea Johnson targets many of the uncomfortable faux pas that are associated with human expressions that goes against the status quo. She namely mentions the expression of wearing her hair in it’s natural state over the conventions of relaxed hair which many African Americans have chosen to opt for. She discusses how her decision to be free from what some consider normal or acceptable work place grooming has directly placed her in front of many of her academic partners. Because this is something close to her she has found a way of presenting her views in a persuasive that opens up the opportunity for others to see this way of presentation acceptable
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Johnson’s topic is about black women and there hair.Many people talk about black women hair and how rough and how it looks.Afro hair for a very long time has been disapproved even in black communities itself and it still is an ongoing issue. I think that black women should always feel comfortable no matter where they are. The should not be judged because of their hair. They should feel accepted.I think that this a important topic especially because i am a black women myself and there has been times when i let my hair out that I’ve been judged because of my afro.
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I personally think that it should not matter what a person’s hair looks like. It does not determine who they are as a person. Of course people are going to have something to say about your hair if they do not like it even if they do like it and are not bold enough or have the confidence you have to wear you hair a certain way. She talks about hair maintenance some people like me do not know how to do there own hair so, they pay other to do it. Also, some people can not afford to het there hair done sometimes so they wear it natural to get them through there days.
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To me hair does have a symbolic value. Hair to me sometimes is what can define a persons mood or how a persons day might be going. Hair can be something that women, especially African American women value the most about what is on our body. No I don’t have to wear a head scarf for my culture in a specific way for any specific reason. They say men shouldn’t wear weave and women shouldn’t get bald fades because it’s not normal, but I feel like if I want my hair to be bald because it keeps getting hot then im going to cut my hair because it is mines.
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A woman’s hair is often closely related to her self esteem, and black women are no different. As a Black man I can make loose connections to Chelsea Johnson’s article titled, “What Explaining My Natural Hair To PhD’s Taught Me About The Art Of Persuasion” and how it relates to black women. I believe that black hair is often a topic of misunderstanding and I believe that the world often highlights hair of 0ther ethnicities that are so different to people that identify as black. I ahve four sisters and often heard them talk about how they damaged thier hair. this topic is important.
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1.Johnson topic is about natural hair, and why she embraces it. I would have to agree with Johnson, because she explained the dangers of putting chemicals in natural hair. She also goes on to explain that putting chemical in natural hair is linked to health conditions, that can be cancerous. I would have to agree with Johnson because I went natural nine years ago, and I learned how to embrace it. Yes some people don’t understand or question why as a black woman do we walk around with our hair in there opinion is out of control and unprofessional. Some of us loss job offers because of the way our hair looks. Also as black woman, I looked a little deeper into my ancestors and they wore their hair as beautiful, and something to be proud of.There are so many versatile ways to wear your hair in a natural state. The opinion that I can give women, transitioning to natural hair is to relax, take it as it comes, and don’t let in consume you. Be proud of what God and your ancestors passed on to you. In today’s society, I feel we go with the flow on what so called “experts” think on how we should carry ourselves.
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Johnsons topic about black women’s hair is very important. Because this is something black women have to deal with in their lives on the daily. I also agree because I have personal experiences due to my natural hair. This topic should matter to everyone who is curious about the natural hair. She discussed her receiving so many questions and concerns, so this topic should matter to those people.
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Johnson talks about how society expects African American women to wear their hair in a certain way in the workforce. Black women are judged on how they wear their hair. Johnson talks about how she spent years chemically processing and ruining her hair to meet the standard of how society expects an African American women’s hair to looks. Personally I can relate to Johnson because about 3 years ago I damaged my hair completely by putting chemicals and heat in it. My hair started breaking off. I did not like my natural hair because I was influenced by society that I had to have straight hair to be accepted and pretty in society. A person should not be judged on how their hair looks. If a person is qualified for a job it should not matter how they look. Everyone’s hair makes them unique in some type of way.
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Johnson uses the art of persuasion to teach the art of persuasion. Turning an inattentive audience into an attentive one by using her methods one could grasp the attention of a busy bee. Using her charm to keep this student she conveys how European influence has shaped the standards for black hair. Throughout the history of this nation, black women have been forced to conform to the standards for beauty within our society. In school, work, and other organizations black women have been subjected to standards that force them to chemically and or physically alter the state of their hair. Chemical relaxers are used to permanently straighten curly hair. Wigs are used to hide the reality of what lies underneath. Yet these standards leave black women feeling insecure about their natural hair. The problem is not the differences between black and european hair but it is the stigma that has been created by society. Without the knowledge that one’s hair is okay the way it is, black women grow up learning to alter their identity with their hair to make themselves “beautiful”. When the reality is that they were beautiful all along. Unfortunately it is difficult to successfully highlight the problems created by society with a crowd that often ignores or overlooks their own behaviors. When trying to get through to a disengaged crowd, using Johnson’s tips could help reel in the audience.
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Johnson writes of the importance of being able to communicate with those who don’t share your experiences and might not see the importance in things you care about. Johnson is writing her dissertation on race, gender, and beauty politics where she assesses how African American women embrace their natural hair while having to deal with societal expectations. This topic is important because although we say that a woman’s hair shouldn’t define her character, work ethic, or skills, the sad truth is that it does. These unconscious or implicit prejudice thoughts we have cause us to make quick judgments based on appearance. This could look like a woman with straight hair getting a job over a woman with an afro since straight hair is the “norm”.
In my experience, hair has a symbolic value in both my culture and religion. Cultural wise, being West African, specifically of the Fulani tribe, the way a woman’s hair is braided is a way to distinguish between different tribes. Fulani women usually wear their hair in natural long and intricate braiding patterns with cowrie shells and beads. However, around the 1800s, hair was a symbol of many things like age, marital status, and wealth. As a Muslim, I cover my hair in the hijab as a way to be modest, my hijab represents modesty and is a way of preserving or protecting beauty. I believe that Johnson’s second strategy, make it relatable, is the most important to explain the symbolic meanings to someone who knows nothing about them since this is a way to make them see the relevance of the topic and create a cross-cultural understanding.
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Chelsea Johnson discussed this issue because she is currently going through it in her everyday life. She got individuals to listen by linking the maintenance of African American hair with public health issues. Johnson stated that ” Hair maintenance keeps women from exercising which increases heart disease and diabetes.” Johnson also mentioned that “the chemical relaxers can scar your scalp and have been linked to uterine fibers, while having extensions can cause hair loss.” These facts came from Dr.Regina Benjamin who is a physician that was named the highest U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps by President Obama. I’d like to change the subject to one that hasn’t yet been addressed that having natural hair does make it harder to be seen as a professional. Most people give me compliments about my hair, but others have remained quiet. Going natural was a very great decision, and has also saved me from having any public health issue that come from chemical relaxers. I will continue to embrace my natural hair no matter what.
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This topic has opened my eyes a little more to the issue dealing with women and their hair. The point Corina Enascut made about, “A person’s hair or attire shouldn’t affect an earning of a job.” We seem more concerned about how another person looks than someone’s character. This topic also has made me more confident in myself and the way I look. I also experience society discriminating me due to my curly hair, and dull appearance. But this shouldn’t hinder what I know I love about myself.
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When I picked this article to read, I didn’t just pick it because it seemed interesting, I picked it because it was something I could relate to. Growing up as an African American child, I grew up with natural hair like any other African American woman. My natural hair is more out in the open than the previous years. It’s not held back and tamed anymore and I pick up on the certain looks people give because I let my natural hair flow. Growing up as a little girl, my mother use to put kid relaxers in my hair to tame the curls and make it easier to do my hair. She would braid it, put it into sections and twist. I continued getting relaxers until I was 12, then it was when I decided I wanted to go natural and I knew after I made my decision there was no going back.
I know growing up in previous years it was a thing to have your natural hair tamed because it was acceptable, it was a way to be accepted into society. Now that’s not the case, more women are rocking their natural hair and I love it. We as African American women shouldn’t have to conform to the pressures of the ideal of what others think is beauty.
Chelsea took what she knew about African America women’s hair and made it a topic to study. This topic right here is important to research because we all want to take care of our hair and ourselves but we need to be more knowledgable about what we’re doing
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After reading this article it’s very clear that she makes her argument important by how she talks about the commitment she’s put into the idea of good hair for black women that’s socially acceptable. She also uses her academics to reinforce her ideas. some things she thinks work well to make your idea shown is showing the bigger picture first. In her example, she uses a big way that she thinks the world is against her. Her big picture in this is how companies do things that make her living with natural hair harder and try to get the viewers’ pity. It should matter to big companies and anyone whose opinion can have an impact. To summarize her argument, She wants people to fight larger companies and change people’s opinions to stop promoting that you need specific products, or that your hair needs to look a certain way to be beautiful. This didn’t persuade me that this issue is important. Mostly because I felt like it was trying to get everyone to feel bad for her. Things that catch my attention more are maybe if she had already had a group with her talking about this, or statistics somehow.
Hair doesn’t necessarily have any symbolic value to me. However, I have seen, met, and been around people who have. In the Christian bible, there’s a story about a man who was never to shave his hair because it was a gift of God. He was given lots of strength and became a strong warrior because he honored that deal with God. This story is very specific though. It isn’t limited to any gender but it does show me that it’s okay to wear your hair however you want. When explaining this, I would probably show the real impact. Provide sources of the number of people Samson killed and stories about killing a bear or lion (I can’t remember which one) with his hands.
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