Pelayo 1

Denise Pelayo
Jennifer Rodrick
English 115
October 15, 2016
Space makes You, You
Should the way you dress or your skin color define you? Do you find yourself
changing your actions according to the space you're in? By nature we tend to act a certain
way to avoid catching peoples attention or to avoid getting judged by others. We avoid
using slang that we use in our normal day to day life because in many spaces it is viewed
as inappropriate. We dress accordingly to the space that we will be in. We do not act like
ourselves because most of the time it is seen as bad. Many people may never guess that
looking at someone a certain way or by trying to avoid eye contact with someone could
result in offending them or possibly hurting them in the long run. Not saying a word to
someone, but by simply avoiding a conversation with them can damage a person. The
space that we are in affects who we are, how we will be treated, and most of the time will
change us as a person and result in us viewing life in a different perspective.

(Figure 1)

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You are raised in a not so very well off neighborhood, but in your neighborhood
you are seen as a good person that doesnt do any harm to others. You go your whole life
trying to avoid conflicts or drama between others yet to one day you move out of this
place and are started to get viewed as the bad person. This young African American guy
was a good guy, he never tried to harm anyone but seemed that everywhere he would go
he would get judge based on his physical appearance. He could be walking down the road
and he would get labeled with very harsh names. "To her, the youngish black man-a
broad six feet two inches with a beard and billowing hair, both hands shoved into the
pockets of a bulky military jacket seemed menacingly close" (Goldthwaite 141). Being
that he is a certain race that is classified as being criminals this young guy was being
viewed as someone that was about to hurt someone when all he was doing was walking
down the street. He was seen as a criminal mainly because he was in a neighborhood that
he was not originally from

and no one knew him and who he was. He meant no harm yet the white lady was taught
otherwise that his type meant harm, so you should stay away from these types of people.
Goes to show that the space that if you don't act the way you should in a certain space,
you will get judged by whom who are in it. You have to act the way you're expected to in
order to not get judged and in this cause not get labeled as a criminal. (Figure 2)

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We all come from different backgrounds which makes us all different in many
ways. The sad realitly is that we are all not accepting of other's backgrounds do to us not
liking the unknown. We dont take a chance to get to know who they are or why they are
the way they are so instead we just judge them and that is how racisum is created.
"Racism is a cruel practice that can affect someone mentally, emotionally, and physically"
(Wings 48). As many say that we shouldnt judge a book by its cover well it's is true.
Judging someone by the way they look isnt something positive because no one choses to
be born with dark brown skin, with white skin, to be albino, or simplily light brown. One
thing is to be curious about someone and why they look they way they do and another is
to look at them and deteriorate who they are by judging every aspect of them. We judge
without thinking that that is going to affect a person in the long run. The perosn that you
just judged for dressing a certain way is now going to go through their whole day being
insecure of who they are not only physicaly but mentally as well. Rasisim is somehting
that affects people in every space they enter. It determines whether they will be judged in
a positive or negative way. This is all do to society and its social levels.
"Racial structures maitnian their shape and power throughout the decades
because they continoue to benefit the dominant group. These structures ensure the
racial that racial inequlity cannot be opposed. The frame of each space continues
because it works for those in power, and has been embedded into everyone"
(Wings 50).
Having the mindset to just someone when they are in the wrong space is normal because
the way that society has taught us is that if you aren't in the space that society expects you
to be then you should be judged. It seems that the space that you go are in affects you in

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many ways not only becase you are being judged but that you should know where you
belong. No matter what we do each race has its own power and some dominate others.
Walking into a place being a white colored person is way more dominating that
being a colored person. This is all do to how our mentality has been set up to be and how
history has formed us. Not only our race has to do with our judgement in a place but also
our gender."...the women have a stronger sense of place than men, in part because women
perform intimate acts in places (the gendered divion of labour has a spatial effect)"
(Russell 6). Being in certain places means that we are being catergorized whether it is
because of
our skin color or our gender these are only two examples in which space affects
us. It affects us because it is where we are being placed to be, who you are mentally
doesnt have anything whether you'll be seen as a good person or bad. Your social level is
what will define you and we can thank history for this.

(Figure 3)
All in all, space affects us mentally, emotionally, and physically. It definds how
we will be viewed by others. The space that you come from plays a big factor on who you

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are. Being a certain race or gender will deteremine whether you are seen as a good or bad
person. The space that we come into all vary but in how we will be judged.

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Works Cited
Goldthwaite, Melissa A. The Norton Reader:Shorter Fourteenth Edition.
New York London ,W.W.Norton & Company,Inc.,2016
McNeil,Hayden.Wings:Distinguished Student Essays
United States of America,2017
Russell,Danielle. "Between The Angle And The Curves: Mapping Gender,
Race,Space,And Identity In Selected Writings"
Pages 1-24, New York University,Ontario, February 2003
Figure 1- Barlow,Leslie. Google Images
Figure 2- Google Images
Figure 3- Pinterest